Crib Chatter

Remember the ad from a few years ago? Mini Condos @ Mini Prices These are The Flats on LaSalle (the reference to “flat” is a British thing, according to the website.) 1140 N. LaSalle in the Gold Coast was built in 1924 as a luxury hotel. All of the units are either small one bedrooms or […]

There are some condo units that are listed for a million dollars that you just know aren’t luxury units. And then there are others that when the listing says, “upgraded”- well, it looks it. A unit recently came on the market at The Belvedere,  the popular mid-rise building at 270 E. Pearson in the Gold Coast/Streeterville neighborhood, that […]

I ran across this new listing for a unit at 1366 N. Dearborn, a vintage mid-rise built in 1926 in the Gold Coast that appears to have the key ingredients needed for vintage success: washer/dryer in the unit and parking available. The listing indicates that buyers should book their appointments next week or else they’ll miss […]

There are, actually, quite a number of listings under $250,000 in the Gold Coast, Streeterville areas. Not all of them will be what most people are looking for (many lack parking or a washer/dryer or updating since the 1970s.) But I stumbled across this 1 bedroom in a vintage building on North LaSalle that has […]

The Gold Coast isn’t just about the lovely vintage rowhouses and mansions on Astor Street.  There are some unusual properties if do some investigation. This coach house at 20 E. Goethe is one of them. If the address sounds familiar to you- it should. This is the building you’re thinking of: But behind the building […]

We were discussing in the comments recently about how hard it was to find decently priced rentals if you have a dog over 25 lbs.  Those renters are at the mercy of their landlords (and price increases.) But what about when you’re selling a condo? More buildings than you think actually outlaw dogs (of all sizes) […]

Perhaps you’ve walked up Dearborn in River North and the Gold Coast and seen this black building as I have. It is 1025 N. Dearborn a development of 10 modern townhomes that were supposed to compliment the highrise tower next to it at 30 West Oak.  Smithfield developed 30 West Oak.  The townhomes aren’t listed on Smithfield’s website but they […]

Built 11 years after its sister building to the north, 1000 N. Lake Shore Plaza (not to be confused with 1000 N. Lake Shore Drive) was designed by the same architect and has the same great lake views and gold coast location. According to Emporis, 1000 N. Lake Shore Plaza, at 55 stories, was actually […]

With all the new construction going up around the city, sometimes older buildings get overlooked.  The gorgeous vintage buildings of the 1920s have held their own.  But anything built between, say, 1932 and 1970 is usually much maligned.  But location still matters and 1000 N. Lake Shore Drive has it in spades. Located at the end […]

Foreclosures in a building can be worrisome.  They can bring down prices in the entire building.  But there is a solution.  In Chicago, you can buy in a Co-Op building that requires the buyers to purchase in all cash. Yes, cash is still king in certain cases. And apparently there are some buyers who have […]