Nearly Sold Out Within 40 Days: 842 W. Belle Plaine in Uptown
Not everything is gloom and doom for developers. This 11-unit vintage conversion at 842 W. Belle Plaine in the Buena Park neighborhood has seen 9 of its units go under contract within only 40 days.
What’s its secret?
Is it the price point?
The finishes?
The size of the units?
All of the above?
It appears that all the units were 3 bedroom/2 baths. They ranged in price from $289,000 to $399,000. Parking was $20,000 extra.
The units have 10 foot ceilings and crown molding.
Buyers want new, new, new. Clearly, there’s something attractive about 842 W. Belle Plaine.
Mario Greco at Rubloff has the listings. See more pictures and the virtual tour here.
See one of the floorplans here.
Unit #1W: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed
- New construction
- Currently listed for $349,000 (parking is $20,000 extra)
- Assessments are $165 a month
- Taxes are “new”
- Central Air
- Bedroom #1: 13×12
- Bedroom #2: 12×11
- Bedroom #3: 12×10
- Fireplace
- There is an open house on the 2 remaining units this Sunday, Feb 22 from 2:00-4:00
All of the above! Very nice unit.
Don’t realtors call that area of the city “Buena park” and not Uptown? lol Pretty nice place and not too insanely overpriced, although you’d probably have to drug me to buy a 3br in uptown for 400k.
nice units. the way they slapped the balconies on the front could have been better. but nice to have the outdoor space.
The layouts arent that bad, and I ahve seen worse use of space, but honestly I dont get it, seems a bit high in this neighboorhood, for this amount of space. I will be curious to see what they actually sell for
and yeah I think this is Beuna Park
This developer knows what they’re doing they actually did the finishes right. You can definitely tell good finishes from crap ones and this was done right. I love that bathroom too.
And yeah its Uptown but its far southern Uptown. Its 1000ft from Irving Park road so should a property 1,050ft south really command a huge premium?
This areas screams more like Lakeview to me than ghetto redline that we see farther north.
Better than most. I wouldn’t pay that much to live there… I would go a few blocks north up to A’ville where at least you have amenities and similar price points. Way too many halfway houses in that part of Uptown.
Man, I guess it’s just me but I really don’t get it. If I’m going to live in a “vintage” place (and I do), the open kitchen would be a dealbreaker. I hate it. It spoils the flow of the unit and really cuts back on the space available for kitchen storage. There will always be a clutter of pots and pans visible, as well as a thin layer of dusty grease over everything in your living room. Why do developers want to turn every place into a fake loft?
Nine out of 11 units under contract in less than 40 days in Buena Park? I’m not saying it’s suspicious, but you know…
I liked the looks of this place one I first saw it on Realtor.com, I am going to go see it next Sunday during the openhouse (if it is still available). I would like to see what they are closing for to see if there is any discount given. Anyone have any insite on price here?
something seems fishy here. I mean, i won’t lie, i can also tell that the finishing and trim of the units is great. the kitchens , bath, crown molding, everything looks fantastic. however, the problem isn’t the building, it’s the location….almost 400k to live in buena park? really? I don’t get it. i understand maybe theres a bit of gentrification taking place but I still wouldn’t want to live in this neighborhood for that kind of cash…..i’d take my money to wicker park or bucktown if i really wanted that neighrborhood feel for a 350-500k price range.
MitchellD: the combined Kitchen/Living Room/Dining Room layout has becoming very popular in the last 5-10 years. I think it is great for entertaining (if you cook yourself), but there are some serious drawbacks (as you pointed out).
I think this is most likely a case of developers following market demand. Don’t blame the devs, blame the preponderance of people who like this style of layout.
riz: I agree. These units don’t seem that great for 400K in Buena Park. I think you could get the same amount of condo for a similar price in a more established neighborhood.
Is the “8 units under contract in under 40 days” stat accurate? Could it reflect flippers who got on the hook pre-construction? I just can’t see these condos selling so much faster than the market at-large.
Something smells fishy here.
I sent this in as a tip because I read the comments about Greco pricing his listings too high. I thought, “huh, not the one I know.” I went to the first open house (even though the non-gardens were too pricey for me) thinking perhaps they’d sit unsold and drop in price. Negative. The open house was swamped (I went at the very end and it was still crawling with people).
So I don’t think the contracts indicate anything fishy – but they do indicate that plenty of people still see ‘deals’ and do not anticipate sustained declines (they could be very wrong). Btw, pictures are of the model, the rest of the units are unfinished.
The local school is subpar, and it isn’t a very nice block (right next to a Senior high-rise and in between Broadway and Clarendon). But as Sabrina says, people love new and these were priced VERY competitively; in fact, they clearly blew out the surrounding competition (check the map). I assume the developer was looking for quick cash. There are other places around where this developer used the exact same finishes (one was in Hyde Park, I forget the address, but it is a replica).
Where is everyone coming up w/ 400k? Units are priced from 289 – 349. Add parking to those and you are looking at units ranging from 309-369. And I’m sure either purchase price was negotiated or parking was included on some of these deals. Lets say the average 3 Br unit sells for around 320k. That’s 3 bedrooms, great finishes, a parking spot, close proximity to the lake, etc. etc. While granted I agree this location isn’t the best, there are some good restaurants scattered throughout the area and lakeview is a stone throws away south, southport corridor lies southwest, and andersonville directly north. I see this as a pretty good deal.
I know this is kind off topic, but I never seem to be able to load any pictures on Rubloff listings, including this one. Am I the only one?
I just noticed that the agent is Mario Greco. What a pleasant surprise. For 3 years Mario Greco had signs up all over the Bronzeville/Washington Park, wanting 300+k for 3Bd/2BA units with cheap finishes. He finally understands that there has to be an incentive(lower prices/better finishes) to get people to buy in less popular areas. Hopefully he can send out the memo to other developers that are wondering why their units aren’t moving.
These units are priced great for the market. That is why they sold so quick. My wife and I looked at a 2B/2B garden back in 07 that the developer wanted $350,000 with parking. The unit was located right on Kenmore across the street from the EL. Presently you can also locate older 2B/2B units that have the EL run directly behind them in Buena Park for the low $300,000 (needless to say these units aren’t selling quickly).
So, Mario and the developer priced the units according to the market. It will be interesting if this is indicative of pricing we will begin to see in other neighborhoods(not called Lincoln Park or Lakeview).
Off topic, but I am watching House of Cards on NBC and it is making me ill.
This doesn’t make sense. There is a plethora of condos out there and you can get a nice two bedroom for anywhere in the city from Lincoln Park to the South Loop for $400K. Okay 3bdrm is a little tougher but $400K for Uptown? This isn’t 2003… people have choices all over the place. Somethings not right.
Yeah, seems surprising – the finishes are quality and the balconies look big, but the bedrooms and bathrooms are small, and there’s not much closet space… doesn’t look like a steal for the neighborhood.
JasonM:
I don’t think it’s as easy as you think to get a 3-bedroom with brand new finishes (that are pretty nice) and parking in this price range. The mid-range units were about $380,000 or so.
And the third bedroom, even if the bedrooms are small, makes a big difference to a lot of buyers.
Don’t underestimate the lure of “new”. It makes a big difference.
Also, this developer was smart to put in the crown molding and other little features. It makes the units look rich for the price.
Just a quick correction (since everyone seems to assume these were priced at 400k):
The top floor units (with private rooftop decks) were 390
The 1st and 2nd floor units were ~350
The gardens were 300
Parking was listed as extra but I’m betting most included it in their offers.
I absolutely hate the open living/dining room thing…it’s one thing in a big loft where the dining table and living room furniture aren’t practically touching, but it drives me nuts when developers create spaces like this that are barely big enough to qualify as a combo living/dining space. What’s classy about having a dinner party where you have to move the couch just so your guests can walk all the way around the table? An open kitchen with a family room off it is great, but if you don’t have the square footage for that, I think a private kitchen and a dedicated dining room at the way to go…or maybe a kitchen with a pass through to the dining room.
i agree with sabrina that the developer did a good job making it look “rich for the price” the crown moulding, the solid core doors with raised panel design, the full tile in the bath, double ovens, tile backsplash…yada yada yada. they are finished well. as to beuna park this is indeed a seperate area that in terms of feel is miles from uptown. cross montrose and things change. Montrose is the new Irving Park
however the street this unit is on is a pretty “eh” compared with the streets just north that have all the single family homes on multiple lots and the larger much more expansive multi-units buildings (north of buena, east of hazel and south of junior terrace). the section of broadway right around the corner is pretty slimy, but go the other way to clarendon and there is coffee shop and pizza place
pluses to buena park – leafy and quiet, close to lakeview.
minuses – boring, and Helen Schiller is your alderman
I have two rentals over here so i know the area pretty well.
as to that fishy smell, im not going to comment on this developement but just state in general that its been known to happen to have the developer’s family or friends write up a few contracts on some of the units that then just happen to “fall thru” later to kick start the selling. Im certainly not saying or implying that is happening here, but simply that it does happen. Another thing that could happen in this market would be to accept offers from buyers that the agent knows wont be able to get a loan and close just to make it look like sales are moving quickly. Again not speaking to this property, but just things that could happen in the world.
Where’s G when we need him? What does the MLS say about this building?
It says there are “only 2 left” and it looks like 9 are either CTG or PEND.
Just goes to show, that if you price things right there is a market out there!
To me,?! it seems like a poorly executed foshow-prehype campaign!
Not very truthful to the market at large. It creates disproportion and disillusion on a micro neighborhood level! What’s the sense in that? Block vs. Block Neighborhood Civil War?
Then again, micro economy within the city is doing everything it can to survive until the troubles and vows pass.
o yea, about the sales?
5 units under contract same day?
2 units on another ? one one the first?
yea, ok
It would be interesting to follow up on this to see if the early contracts actually close…
the finishes are nice and the exterior is gorgeous. I don’t like that neighborhood at all.
I found the development in Hyde Park that looks like exactly the same finishes: it’s 5014 S Blackstone. Interestingly enough, it’s priced a bit higher (355k for 1st floor, 320 for the garden units), and they’re sitting unsold for 8 months, with no price reductions. Weichert Realtors has the listings:
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/5014-S-Blackstone-Ave-60615/unit-1N/home/17051886
Maybe the higher price reflects the fact that that area of HP is perfectly nice.
I work with Mario, and no, there is no shadiness going on in terms of the contracts. 1 unit was sold before we listed the property (rear duplex down). Every other unit was sold to legtimate buyers with no relation to the developer or us.
As of right now, only 1 unit is left (west garden unit), 1 has closed (east garden unit), and the rest are scheduled to close by the end of May. We also have a list of people who are interested in any of the upper units (non-gardens) should they fall through. The pricing is VERY good for a 3 bedroom in that area, especially one of this finish-quality. Many of the finishes are what we see our higher-end developers doing. He did not cheap out on anything here, which is refreshing to see in this price point.
kn, 5014 S. Blackstone is the same developer 🙂
Oops… still very early… *legitimate* and *what our higher-end developers ARE doing*
I own 3E top floor on the right in the pic.
Place is ridiculous. Not to mention I negotiated the roof deck into the contract and am essentially having it built for me for free.
Also – BTW
The granite and fireplace in the model were lame. We got a blue colored great with silver specs in it and a traditional mantel. The mantle is big enough to sleep on. The marble was a $600 upcharge but we got that waved.