Looking for Original Vintage Character- But Also Something “New”? 839 W. Wellington in Lakeview
This vintage building at 839 W. Wellington in Lakeview was converted into condos in 2005 but many of the vintage features were left behind in this 2-bedroom top floor unit.
It has 11 foot coffered ceilings, 6 inch crown moldings throughout and the original limestone and mosaic fireplace.
The kitchen has granite counter tops, white cabinets, a stone backsplash and custom wine shelves.
The unit has outdoor space with a screened in back porch.
It also has air conditioning, washer/dryer in the unit and a deeded parking space.
The unit was recently reduced and is now listed $14,500 under the 2005 purchase price.
Bonnie Tripton at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.
Or you can see it in person at the Open House on Sun Jan 30 from 12-2 pm.
Unit #3: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed
- Sold in August 2005 for $449,500
- Originally listed in August 2010 for $442,000
- Reduced
- Currently listed for $435,000
- Assessments of $252 a month
- Taxes of $6845
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- Parking included
- Bedroom #1: 13×12
- Bedroom #2: 15×12
I could get a 3 bedroom house in Uptown for less than that.
so how long before the new owners install the tv over the fire place?
oops my bad brain read it at “sold”
“so how long before the new owners install the tv over the fire place?”
Probably slightly longer than it takes for someone here to make a crib remark.
If a seller chases the market down and never quite catches up, does a homeless family hang their tv over a fire-barrel?
I really can’t find too much wrong with this place. It’s got charm, nice finishes, Air/WD/Parking. Taxes are a little high, but you could always challenge those.
I think this looks like a very nice place. Well done and finishes seem nice. The small closets and lack of storage would make it a no-go for me.
A whopping 1.6% price reduction since August? Nothing wrong with the place that a real price reduction won’t fix.
“A whopping 1.6% price reduction since August? Nothing wrong with the place that a real price reduction won’t fix.”
G, i ususally agree with you but dont you think in the glut of facsimile 2/2 in the area that this beauty stands out a deserves a premium?
*not saying “I” would pay 435k
Not a bad place, but living room is small and there is a lack of storage. There are better places in the area for lower prices. I would say this place goes under 400.
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/841-W-Wellington-Ave-60657/unit-1/home/12663712
This area is totally crime ridden! Just take a look at Everyblock. Bunch of car thieves, burglars, pickpockets, and that is just in the past ten days!
the living area/dining are seems really cramped from those photos. nicely redone but seems pretty cramped for the price, esp given the glut of 2/2 vintage units in ELV.
ugh a giant impractical wood burning fireplace!
I refuse to enter a home where wood has been burned, even infrequently.
I know everyone always sez that Masonic isn’t really that busy, but do you really want to live across the street from an ER, at this price point?
What is up with the fireplace haters? I love em!
Jason, did you not get the memo? fireplaces are OUT OUT OUT!
I know it has great finishes and all that, but this place does seem awfully expensive compared to 2/2’s available in River North. I think this one has a lot further to go down, maybe to $350,000.
OK. Gee, I guess I’ll just cement mine in then.
This place is really a great renovation, but its still about $75K over priced. Smaller bedrooms, and no place to put the grill.
List at $375K, and someone will snatch it up for $350K-$365K.
groove,
The trend is not their friend.
841 #2 closed 7/31/06 $465,000
841 #2 listed 4/7/10 $475,000 now $438,000.
Middle floor for more than 839 #3? Time to cut the price. They both have plenty of equity to work with, so it could become a price-cutting war.
839 #1 closed 6/26/09 $637,500
841 #1 closed 7/6/10 $577,000
Sure, duplex downs could be falling faster, but they are still asking 2005 prices for the 2/2 units.
The fixtures look like something out of a pottery barn catalog. It looks just like it. UG.
This was originally a 5% down purchase in 2005 (90/5/5) but cash-in refi’d a few years later into a straight $300,000 mortgage.
hd, and the other avail unit 841 #2 owes less than $100k. We’ll see who wants to sell.
I love this place granted I know nothing of the neighborhood. I also love the wood burning fire place. Apparently I am behind the trends of the NYC elite : )
sonies is nyc elite?
no just sarcastic
Hating fireplaces is so incredibly wrong.
Really cool place; that block of Wellington is dour though. Still, you’re really close to a lot in ELV/ELP, and conveniently close to the Wellington stop.
lol…it is reference to an article saying snobs say fireplaces are out. I guess they have not experienced the joy of making necci (a Tuscan winter delight made with chestnut flour) on the fire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-kE2MCd5XI
It looks like a very nice unit with great vintage touches and appropriate new amenities tied into the vintage feel, but I have to agree with what others are saying. It seems a little overpriced when compared to other vintage ELV properties.
Just browsing around, it seems if you sacrifice the deeded parking space you start finding much larger 3 bedroom units in the same price range.
Anyone know what it costs to turn a wood-burning fireplace into gas?
I like the finishes a lot and it looks like the builder did a great job on it. I don’t think the list price is too overpriced considering most buyers are low balling everything out there. With that said what sale price range are you expecting lower than ask these days? I was told no lower than 15%. That would put this place at $369 if the seller accepted a “market acceptable” low ball offer.
Oh I found it:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/garden/20fire.html?_r=2&ref=garden
In honor of these silly hippie I going to go home and enjoy a nice fire. Maybe I’ll burn some cardboard or coal just to piss them off!
What a terrible article. I want that 2 minutes of my life back. She won’t enter a house where wood has been burned? Somebody slap her please.
Calling anything west of Halsted ELP or ELV = me laughing at everything that you think you stand for.
“Anyone know what it costs to turn a wood-burning fireplace into gas?”
Assuming a suitable flue and firebox (confirm that with someone who knows), the cost will mainly be in plumbing the new gas line. Have a friend who GIY’d it.
“Calling anything west of Halsted ELP or ELV = me laughing at everything that you think you stand for.”
Are you kidding me? This is less than two blocks from Clark. What the heck do you call Sheffield and Belmont, then, or Clark and Aldine? Those are west of Halsted.
This is definitely ELV.
Beautiful unit, but too small to be useful for an over-30 couple. Kids? forget it, too small. It’s be nice for a single eldery woman, but then it’s up 3 flights of stairs!
Who is the target demographic for this? Single female?
The comments in that article about fireplaces are interesting, esp. the one about having a fireplace in the city being a “luxury”. That’s sort of true, think about getting the wood from a rural area, then chopped, shipped, inventoried, then delivered up 3 flights of stairs at Halsted & Wellington? Inefficient…
Well, actually I chop my own wood. We had a huge tree cut down it our backyard last year. They cut it into big pieces and stacked it on the side of our building. I’ll have wood for ten years.
Jason (TFO): “This area is totally crime ridden! Just take a look at Everyblock. Bunch of car thieves, burglars, pickpockets, and that is just in the past ten days!”
So this is some lame attempt to say that crime happens in every neighborhood? That Uptown ain’t that bad? First, I think you are really misinterpreting the data if you think they are even comparable. Second, when you see a scene like this at Halsted and Wellington, I’ll take your point seriously:
http://vodpod.com/watch/2064635-video-uptown-chicago-gang-fight
Well there is a baby’s crib and the mortgages were in only one person’s name…
Again, this is at Sheridan and Leland, a lousy spot. (Alderman Shiller called this fisticuffs.)
@Dan, i think they can get firewood from the home depot on Halsted…or they could simply use last year’s Potery Barn furniture that ELP/ELV peeps discard for the latest Crate & Barrel
you wanna know something else wasteful?
phone books… I mean wtf who uses a phone book anymore? Every few months or so, we wind up with a huge pile of them in our condo lobby and nobody takes any!
perhaps I should invent a phonebook-burning fireplace… it would be a hot seller!
groove:
Slightly more than 1 hour 33 minutes is the answer.
Combined living room dining room kitchen is waaaay too small.
How it compare to this unit? at least it has parking
http://cribchatter.com/?p=8834#comments
“groove,
The trend is not their friend. ”
G,
well when you show that it looks to be more of a rough ride for 841 #2 than 839 #3.
Personally i would pay extra for this somewhat “uniqueness” amongst the muck of blandness. but thats me…
.. cuase its seems the people that are buying in this market “ova dare” dont value what i do and would rather have a extra 500sqft cinderblock leaky box that looks like a town home in hoffman estates.
A gas fireplace is even more inefficient than wood. You are basically just burning money up your flue.
Even using it for just 30 minutes ends up costing a lot of money. You don’t get nearly the heating value that you would with a natural gas furnace.
“groove:
Slightly more than 1 hour 33 minutes is the answer.”
we should have wagered i was thinking like 20, surprised it took as long as it did, i thought sonies would have came through for us right away.
“Anyone know what it costs to turn a wood-burning fireplace into gas?”
with a decent unit and labor, given all is kosher, your looking at around $1,000.
you need to run a gas line (easy to do but pricey for some odd reason), fit a different flue inside the stack and roof top access most likely be needed.
*now this is for a house no clue on condo
crib jokes are so 2010…
“you need to run a gas line (easy to do but pricey for some odd reason)”
Because plumbers all charge the same rate, or more. And that’s definitely plumbing work.
I like its proximity to Illinois masonic. I’ve always wanted to live right near a busy ambulance area as I enjoy those loud sounds as well as the sounds and fumes of idling ambulances, which is a continuous occurrence around here.
“phone books… I mean wtf who uses a phone book anymore? ”
The other day I did. Great kindling for a firepit.
“perhaps I should invent a phonebook-burning fireplace… it would be a hot seller!”
Meh you had to preemptively steal my joke huh.
“Because plumbers all charge the same rate, or more. And that’s definitely plumbing work.”
union pipe fitters always charge a arm and a leg and a whole torso. should have got my union card done half the work i do now and get paid double.
“I like its proximity to Illinois masonic. I’ve always wanted to live right near a busy ambulance area as I enjoy those loud sounds as well as the sounds and fumes of idling ambulances, which is a continuous occurrence around here.”
ambulances turn off the siren one block before all hospitals, quiet zone ordinances.
you would think the idling would fall under that too but sadly it doesn’t, umm diesel.
My current fireplace (an old coal burner) is sealed. I prefer it that way. It’s still pretty to look at and everyone comments on it when they walk in. I’ve had functioning fireplaces. I would use it maybe a few times a year. It just seemed to suck all of the cold air from outside into the room from what I remember. I would turn of the furnace sometimes while it was on. You have to have them cleaned every so often also.
Worth it to some for sure but not me.
Calling Sheffield and Belmont ELV = the funniest thing I’ve ever read on CC.
The cut off is and always will be Halsted. In fact, only the East side of Halsted is ELP/ELP. We don’t claim or want The Store, Ba Ba Reba, Kingston Mines or any of the other garbage on the poors’ side. The dividing line would be even further in than Halsted had our good friends on Burling not turned their block into the finest street in the Midwest.
You can claim eastside all you want, but you’re going to get your face laughed in by real eastsiders when we find out you live past Halsted.
“I could get a 3 bedroom house in Uptown for less than that.”
Sure, you could, Jason. But you don’t have shootings nearly every WEEK anywhere in Lakeview. There is no way you can compare the two neighborhoods- Lakeview is absolutely prime and Uptown is a total sump. People who think that Uptown is the “next Lakeview” make me howl with laughter. I don’t even go into Uptown around the area bounded by Montrose, Lawrence, Sheridan, and Broadway because the daytime shootings have become so regular, and innocent civilians have been hit.
This really is a beautiful place. I don’t believe it’s worth the ask price, but I can see $350K for it.
“the other garbage on the poors’ side”
Ah, it had been too long since we talked about the poors.
Who had CB on 1/26? Was that Groove?
“Who had CB on 1/26? Was that Groove?”
noope, I had JMM “indirectly” on the 23rd, and a saw buck on paulj for a comeback tour on the 28th
“I don’t even go into Uptown around the area bounded by Montrose, Lawrence, Sheridan, and Broadway”
Again, the second crappy area. There are two.
“I could get a 3 bedroom house in Uptown for less than that.”
I was trying to be funny…
““I could get a 3 bedroom house in Uptown for less than that.”
I was trying to be funny…”
well i am not,
For that i could get a 4 bedroom house with top schools and not get shot 🙂
Well out don’t vouch for the schools…. you have me there.
I think I am going to start telling people I live in Lakeview (cough) township. Or maybe calling our area “Uptown Square”. Any ideas? Besides “Compton” or “Baghdad”?
Nice finishings, however…. Upon closer look 3 huge NEGS
1)Across Street from Hospital – I lived near hear before and it’s busier than you would think and this stretch of Wellington is kind of ugly. Much prefer Oakdale, George or Wolfram.
2)Small Space – liv/din/kitch is too cramped for 400k+
3)Screened in porch is off Bedroom #2 (dumb). Really only functional if you don’t use Bedroom #2 as a bedroom… Parents aren’t going to like their nursery to have an external door either for that matter even if it is on 3rd floor.
“I think I am going to start telling people I live in Lakeview (cough) township. Or maybe calling our area “Uptown Square”. Any ideas? Besides “Compton” or “Baghdad”?”
Uptown Terrace.
South Edgewater.
Edgewater Glen South.
Graceland Northeast.
The New North Side.
A’ville Terrace Ridge.
Or just use this sub-area map:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Neighborhood_map_uptown_chicago.jpg
how about UpCo?
uptown corridor?
lol
@sad_at_plaza
I suggest you take another look at what the same sq.ft will cost you in RN. Most 2BR’s in RN are much smaller.
“Calling Sheffield and Belmont ELV = the funniest thing I’ve ever read on CC.
…
You can claim eastside all you want, but you’re going to get your face laughed in by real eastsiders when we find out you live past Halsted.”
You can call it what you want but I definitely consider the area east of the El tracks, especially on/near Belmont ELV. This is because that stretch of Belmont definitely has a very dense urban vibe to it and tons of weird folks (gender confused, lost in space, etc). Yeah you can say its technically central LV. But when I think I central LV I think of SoPo & Greenview where there’s less people and there far more normal/no mental cosmonauts running around.
at anon (tfo) Awesome.
@ Madeline – this is a family site.
BTW: I think this whole Lake view, East Lake View, East whatever is BS. It is really about what ward you live in.
Generally speaking, east of Clark is ELV and east of Halsted is ELP (i.e., if the better public transportation option to the Loop is an express bus, you live in ELV). Madeline can always be counted on for witty contributions. This place on Wellington is beautifully done, but for the price and sub-optimal location, buyers right now would expect a garage and a larger living space. And speaking of buyers, as noted above, I just don’t see many DINKs or high-earning singles jumping at this, given what’s out there. So it needs to be reduced to a point where DINKs or high-earning singles can’t resist the “deal.”
“The cut off is and always will be Halsted. In fact, only the East side of Halsted is ELP/ELP. […]
You can claim eastside all you want, but you’re going to get your face laughed in by real eastsiders when we find out you live past Halsted.”
What is this, 1986 boundaries? By your definition, I live in ELV (and I do, baby — just west of Broadway). But I don’t consider a literal three minute walk from Illinois Masonic to Binny’s on Clark moves this place into some nebulous “central Lakeview” region. This is Wellington just west of Halsted and a literal 1/2 block beyond that to Clark. It’s not like this is Lincoln and Wellington.
If you’re close to Clark/Barry, you’re in ELV.
“BTW: I think this whole Lake view, East Lake View, East whatever is BS. It is really about what ward you live in.”
Officially yes. But a few friends live about a mile west of me in LV and there aren’t space cadets walking around. You could say we both live in LV but the parts really are different. So trying to subdivide wards into smaller sections is good for describing neighborhoods, but lends itself to these petty squabbles based on neighborhood perceptions.
But yea I tend to take the ward boundaries as pretty definitive and everything else (ex: school boundaries) as blah and fun to stir the pot about on CC.
The funniest on here about boundaries is definitely anonny. He really thinks ELP is a recognized exclusive place like Manhattan south of 96th (east side) or 110th (west side). I think he named his favorite tree in the park Manhattan actually.
Schools matter too. I understand those being picky about school districts. Even if I don’t even know what school boundaries are in this city–its a wavelength I don’t see.
“Schools matter too. I understand those being picky about school districts. Even if I don’t even know what school boundaries are in this city–its a wavelength I don’t see.”
This one is Alcott, I think — a good ELP school. Not Lincoln, not Nettelhorst, but still good.
Also close to Clement and Carmel Catholic Schools.
“Uptown Terrace.
South Edgewater.
Edgewater Glen South.
Graceland Northeast.
The New North Side.
A’ville Terrace Ridge.”
ha! ha! You don’t know how close to reality you really are with this list.
“ha! ha! You don’t know how close to reality you really are with this list.”
Seriously.
I met a person who managed a building near Broadway/Montrose and was insistent it was in “Clarendon Park.”
No, honey, that’s Uptown.
“BTW: I think this whole Lake view, East Lake View, East whatever is BS. It is really about what ward you live in.”
So when someone says they live in the 32nd Ward, how is that remotely helpful? You could be a resident of the 32nd and live in:
Lakeview
North Center/Roscoe Village
Bucktown
Wicker Park
West Lincoln Park
http://ward32.org/
“So when someone says they live in the 32nd Ward, how is that remotely helpful? You could be a resident of the 32nd and live in:”
Don’t let facts get in the way, Ryan.
But, as to Uptown, the distinction b/t Helen’s Ward and Not Helen’s Ward has been useful for her full reign.
@ Jason
“In honor of these silly hippie I going to go home and enjoy a nice fire. Maybe I’ll burn some cardboard or coal just to piss them off!”
Matters of architecture and design are mostly about context, consideration and functionality. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that NYT article, au contraire, it is a thoughtful article and so it seems, are the people featured in the article. Who cares if they are hippies or not.
First of all, I think, gas and electric fireplaces are really dumb. I hate them. And spending a fortune to convert a real one to a gas one is an abberation, of the likes, I haven’t heard in a very very long time.
So, if there has to be talk about fireplaces, let’s only talk about real wood burning fire places: If you live in a Single Family House in the city or in the suburbs, in a farm house out in the nature, be my guest, have the fireplace you want, but you have to explain to me in what way do you justify the use of a fireplace in a condo building? I wouldn’t know where to start in terms of the potential safety and health hazards involved-I guess, that NYT article would be a good start. There is no functionality to it either, because good condo buildings today, especially well built new constructions, do not have heating problems. Some of these beautiful vintage buildings do have these fire places because in those days they did not have other options to be heated in the winter. So, they actually served a purpose!
“So, if there has to be talk about fireplaces, let’s only talk about real wood burning fire places: If you live in a Single Family House in the city or in the suburbs, in a farm house out in the nature, be my guest, have the fireplace you want, but you have to explain to me in what way do you justify the use of a fireplace in a condo building? I wouldn’t know where to start in terms of the potential safety and health hazards involved-I guess, that NYT article would be a good start. There is no functionality to it either, because good condo buildings today, especially well built new constructions, do not have heating problems. Some of these beautiful vintage buildings do have these fire places because in those days they did not have other options to be heated in the winter. So, they actually served a purpose!”
If you live in a small condo building such as this, most likely converted from townhomes, why not leave it? Sure, you can decide as owners to convert due to chimney maintenance and the like, but lord knows if I lived in a building like this WITH the existing work, conversion would come down to maintenance cost/benefit, and not “Oh, the horrific sensitivities to smoke!”
Many of the larger vintage buildings with fireplaces have been sealed for this reason — maintenance costs (especially if they were rental conversions before going condo). They were not because of fad vanity.
Just like with original woodworking and trim, pocket doors, French doors, or any other “unnecessary” feature by modern standards, certain people will acknowledge and appreciate a true wood-burning fireplace in a low-rise vintage elevation like this.
A wood burning fireplace is a rarity in listings and the aesthetic of it cannot be matched by gas or electric counterparts. Just like those god-awful squiggle bulbs still give off light, I want my incandescents — and those, too, will soon be a rarity.
Wood burning fireplaces for the win.
Boiztwn, I accept your reasoning. You made your case perfectly well. 🙂 All the other horrific words you are using, such as French doors and trims, are only acceptable to me if they are truly original to the building, as I believe in leaving things to the period they belong to, I hate copies of all sorts.
Yes, yes, I agree: Were I constructing a modern building in the city, it probably wouldn’t have fireplaces. And of course, a fire that’s burning nice wood is superior.
That said, if (i) one already has a fireplace (which is aesthetically pleasing, albeit a waste of space) but (ii) is disinclined to use it (transporting wood, making the fire, it draws cold air into the unit, then the mess), why not consider converting it to gas burning?
44th ward east of Halsted REPRESENT.
This location SUCKS. It’s two doors down from a halfway house AND across from the emergency dept and loading dock @ Masonic. ALWAYS busy. I walk by it three times a day.