Crib Chatter

Do you like lofts but need the space of a single family home?

This unique property at 2106 W. Superior in West Town is for you.

(Sorry about the bad picture- as there was no way for me to really get the full flavor of it with the tall trees in front of the building.)

This 3-bedroom single family home was formerly a welding factory.

Built on a 23×123 lot, it has exposed brick walls, 12 foot ceilings, and steel and timber joists.

The house has a central courtyard and also a 1000 square foot rooftop terrace that is accessed from the master suite.

The kitchen has white and light oak Arclinea cabinets with polish stainless steel counters as well as Subzero and Miele appliances.

All 3 bedrooms are on the second floor.

It has central air and 2-car parking.

Currently listed at $1.075 million, can this neighborhood command this asking price?

Robert John Anderson at Baird & Warner has the listing. See the pictures here.

2106 W. Superior: 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 4000 square feet, 2 car garage

• Sold in April 2003 for $769,000
• Currently listed for $1.075 million
• Taxes of $8977
• Central Air
• Bedroom #1: 13×28 (second floor)
• Bedroom #2: 20×15 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 11×19 (second floor)
• Family room: 19×15 (main level)
• Atrium: 17×17

As Gary and G have already pointed out in other threads, the July sales data did not see much of a rebound from 2010’s dismal number which was bad because the tax credit had expired.

Basically, everyone who wanted to buy in the spring/summer of 2010 did so before July so sales fell off a cliff afterwards.

What was the excuse this year?

There are still record low mortgage rates.

From the Illinois Association of Realtors:

In the city of Chicago, July home sales (single family and condominiums) totaled 1,655, up 4.2 percent from 1,588 homes sold in July 2010. The city of Chicago median home sale price for single family and condominiums in July 2011 was $210,000 up 6.9 percent compared to July 2010 when it was $196,500.

Here is some data from the last few years (taken from the IAR’s prior press releases):

• 2007: 2738 sales
• 2008: 2226 sales
• 2009: 1975 sales
• 2010: 1588 sales
• 2011: 1655 sales

Here is the median price data since 2007:

• 2007: $300,000
• 2008: $299,999
• 2009: $245,000
• 2010: $196,500
• 2011: $210,000

“This is the first month, year-over-year, where we are without a federal tax credit and are encouraged by July’s sales, hopefully a positive outlook for the remainder of 2011,” said Mabel Guzman, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and a REALTOR® with Envision Real Estate LLC, Chicago. “There is an ongoing absorption of units throughout the city, specifically in the performance of the condo market over 2010, as well as compared to 2009. We will continue to monitor inventory, FHA changes to loan limits and accessible and affordable mortgages for qualified buyers.”

“The market, like the economy, continues to struggle even though interest rates and prices would appear to suggest favorable conditions for housing purchases,” said Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) of the University of Illinois. “It would seem that until the economy signals a clear rebound—with sustained employment growth of the order of 200,000 jobs added per month—can we expect to see a sustained uptick in housing sales and some modest recovery in prices. Since April, the unemployment rate has not shown any definitive movement.”

Adds Hewings: “The forecast over the next three months indicates good news for the total number of sales, which will be positive year-over-year in August, September and October for Illinois and the Chicagoland region.”

Illinois Association of Realtors [Press Release, Aug 18, 2011]- this links to the press release on the Sacramento Bee’s page because the IAR’s own link isn’t working on its web site.

We last chattered about this 3-bedroom single family home at 3729 N. Hermitage in Lakeview in May 2011.

See our prior chatter here.

It had been featured previously on Crib Chatter in December 2008 but never sold.

It was withdrawn and rented for $3000 a month.

In the spring, it came back on the market listed $80,000 under the 2008 list price at $619,000.

One of you guessed it would sell for $560,000 and another guessed that $600,000 would get it done even though it did not have a garage (though one could be built in the small backyard- as the house was built on a smaller than standard lot of 25×108.)

The house recently sold for $580,000.

If you recall, the house had new paint and staging.

The kitchen had granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

It had a partially finished basement.

2 out of 3 bedrooms were on the second floor with the third on the main level. There was also an open loft space on the second level.

Mitch Gordon at Baird & Warner had the listing.

3729 N. Hermitage: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 3100 square feet

• Sold in November 1990 for $126,000
• Sold in September 2000 for $380,000
• Originally listed in June 2008 for $774,900
• Reduced several times
• Was listed in December 2008 at $699,000
• Withdrawn and Rented
• Was listed in May 2011 at $619,000
• Sold in August 2011 for $580,000
• Taxes of $8972
• Central Air
• No garage
• Bedroom #1: 15×12 (second floor)
• Bedroom #2: 14×13 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 10×10 (main floor)
• Loft: 13×12 (second floor)
• Partially finished basement

This 2-bedroom townhouse in Harbor Square at 1502 S. Prairie in the South Loop has been on the market for a year.

(This is a picture of the complex- and not the actual townhouse on the market- as this townhouse is, I believe, in the interior of this gated community.)

In that time, it has been reduced $70,000 and is now listed $71,000 under the 2008 purchase price.

It is even listed $9,000 under the 2004 purchase price.

Built in 1995, this townhouse had a new kitchen and bathrooms put in before the 2008 sale.

The kitchen has ebony wood and milk glass cabinetry along with granite counter tops, an undermount sink and stainless steel appliances.

There is a large private stone paved patio along with a 1-car garage plus a parking pad for a second car.

The two bedrooms are on the second floor with the living space on the first. These townhouses don’t have the lower level family room which you sometimes find in the townhouse layouts.

Is this a deal?

Eve Heffer at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit B: 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1500 square feet

• Sold in March 1995 for $207,000
• Sold in October 2004 for $367,000
• Sold in September 2008 for $430,000
• Originally listed in August 2010 for $429,000
• Reduced several times
• Currently listed at $359,000
• Assessments of $365 a month (includes cable)
• Taxes of $5341
• Central Air
• 1 car garage parking (and 1 car on parking pad)
• Bedroom #1: 14×12 (2nd floor)
• Bedroom #2: 11×10 (2nd floor)

This 1-bedroom authentic loft at 407 N. Elizabeth in West Town came on the market in July 2011.

At 1399 square feet, it has 12 foot timber ceilings, exposed brick and large industrial windows.

The west facing loft has polished concrete floors and a lofted bedroom reached via a spiral staircase.

The kitchen continues the minimalist look with just the lower level cabinets and what looks like a half-sized mini-fridge (if anyone can tell any differently- please let me know.)

The kitchen also doesn’t appear, from the listing pictures, to have a dishwasher but maybe that is the angle of the pictures.

It does have other features buyers look for including washer/dryer in the unit, central air and one gated secured parking space.

This building is in a tucked away location near the railroad tracks and Ogden Avenue in West Town.

The loft is currently listed $39,500 above the 2005 price.

Will this loft command a premium over the 2005 purchase price?

Robert John Anderson at Baird & Warner has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #101B: 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 1399 square feet

• Sold in December 2005 for $310,500 (included the parking)
• Originally listed in July 2011 for $350,000
• Currently still listed for $350,000 (includes parking)
• Assessments of $190 a month
• Taxes of $3226
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• Bedroom: 18×17
• Great room: 52×28
• Kitchen: 14×10

We last chattered about this 5-bedroom single family home and coach house at 1863 N. Bissell in Lincoln Park in March 2011.

See our prior chatter here.

Listed as a short sale after having been on the market for 2 years, the house recently sold for $30,000 above the last list price of $1.85 million at $1.88 million.

If you recall, the house was built on a rare oversized lot of 48×125.

It was 6500 square feet and had a 3-car garage as well as a 3-bedroom coach house with its own parking pad.

There were no lower level bedrooms in this extra wide house. All 5 of them could easily fit on the second and third floors.

The kitchen had granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

Did someone get a steal?

Emily Sachs Wong at Koenig & Strey Real Living had the listing. You can still see the interior pictures here.

1863 N. Bissell: 5 bedrooms, 4 baths, 3 car garage, 6500 square feet plus a 3/1 coach house with parking pad

• There is no prior sales price- but it looks like it was originally sold in 1999
• Sold in May 2002 (couldn’t determine the price- but see our prior chatter for more discussion of prior sales prices)
• Sold in July 2008 (couldn’t determine the price)
• Originally listed in January 2009 for $3.795 million
• Lis pendens foreclosure filed in September 2009
• Reduced
• Listed in June 2010 for $2.45 million
• Was listed in March 2011 as a “short sale” for $1.85 million
• Sold in August 2011 for $1.88 million
• Taxes of $21446
• Central Air
• Bedroom #1: 22×22 (third floor)
• Bedroom #2: 11×14 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 10×13 (second floor)
• Bedroom #4: 12×11 (second floor)
• Bedroom #5: 13×13 (second floor)

According to Crain’s, new construction condo and townhouse sales downtown for the first half of the year were at their lowest since records began in 1998.

According to Appraisal Research Counselors, there were just 261 sales in the first 6 months of the year down from 406 in the first half of 2010.

“This is probably the new norm,” says Appraisal Research Vice-President Gail Lissner.

The firm’s numbers reflect sales contracts, not closed sales. Appraisal Research also tracks closings, which totaled just 385 units in the first half of 2011, down from 1,116 a year earlier.

There is one bright spot in an otherwise gloomy market: Developers continue to convert condo buildings into apartments amid booming rental demand, reducing the once-large supply of unsold condos.

Since 2008, eight downtown projects that were built as condos have gone rental. Developers are now sitting on just 1,911 unsold units, down from 7,689 in second-quarter 2007, according to Appraisal Research. It is the lowest supply since 1997, when the firm began tracking unsold condo inventories.

Most of the sold units were in developments that slashed prices like The Silver Tower, 757 N. Orleans and 200 N. Dearborn in the Loop.

But what about all those unsold units in the Museum Park Towers buildings, The Legacy, 60 E. Monroe and Aqua?

Don’t expect a “deal” anytime soon.

Many buyers expect a deal whether developers are advertising them or not. Magellan Development Group, the developer of the Aqua tower near Millennium Park, gets about four or five offers a week, one or two that are “pretty credible,” the rest from “bottom feeders,” says David Carlins, president of the Chicago-based firm.

“We still have got a whole lot of people who are looking for an unbelievable bargain, and it’s out there, but it’s just not us,” he says.

Prices at Aqua, an 82-story tower at 225 N. Columbus Drive, range from $306,000 for a studio up to almost $2 million for a penthouse, according to Appraisal Research.

Buyers have closed on 158, or 60%, or the 262 condos in the tower, which also includes apartments and a hotel. Magellan isn’t feeling any pressure yet to cut prices; the project’s construction loan doesn’t mature until the end of 2013, Mr. Carlin says.

Yet considering how hard it is for buyers to obtain financing, Magellan has set up loan programs with two lenders, MetLife Bank and Alliant Credit Union, to finance purchases in the building. Mr. Carlins is also optimistic that sales will pick up when a nearby grocery store and restaurants, along with a new Radisson Blu hotel in the tower, open this fall.

Longer term, he believes rising apartment rents will draw more buyers into the market as they compare the cost of renting vs. owning. But before that happens, the lending market has to open up, and buyers have to be confident that condo prices won’t fall further, he says.

“The condos in my mind are around the corner,” he says. “It’s just a long corner.”

How long will renting remain in vogue downtown and the condo market remain dormant?

First half condo sales fall even further [Crain’s Chicago Business, Alby Gallun, Aug 16, 2011]

This 2-bedroom cottage at 1835 W. Ohio in West Town is currently listed for $399,900.

On the market since March 2011, it has been reduced $15,100.

It has some unique features including interesting exposed brick walls and 16-foot vaulted ceilings on the main level.

The kitchen has stainless steel appliances and tile counter tops.

There is a finished basement with a family room and a full bath.

The two bedrooms are on the main level.

Built on a smaller than normal 24×100 lot, there is one secured, gated parking spot.

Below is the house directly to the west of this cottage.

 How well are prices holding up in this part of West Town?

Megan Ryan at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.

• Sold in January 1999 for $158,000
• Sold in June 2000 for $225,000
• Sold in July 2008 for $420,000
• Originally listed in March 2011 for $415,000
• Reduced in May 2011 to $399,900
• Currently still listed at $399,900
• Taxes of $3298
• Central Air
• 1-car parking in secured, gated spot
• Bedroom #1: 12×20 (main level)
• Bedroom #2: 10×15 (main level)
• Family room: 14×20 (lower level)

This 3-bedroom Cape Cod at 7640 W. Rascher in the Oriole Park neighborhood of Norwood Park recently came on the market.

Built in 1954 on an oversized 40×125 lot, it not only has a finished basement but a main level family room with custom stone fireplace.

The kitchen has white cabinets, granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

The listing says that 2 bedrooms are on the second floor with the third on the main floor along with one of the two bathrooms.

The house has central air, a brick patio and a 2-car garage.

The listing says it is located in the highly coveted Oriole Park elementary school district, is just a half a block from Oriole Park and is near the blue line and Kennedy Expressway.

Is this a good starter home for this location?

Jelena Zande at Century 21 Elm has the listing. See more pictures here.

7640 W. Rascher: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed, 2 car garage

• Last sold before 1986
• Originally listed in July 2011 for $389,900
• Currently still listed for $389,900
• Taxes of $2714
• Central Air
• Custom stone fireplace
• Bedroom #1: 14×11 (second floor)
• Bedroom #2: 14×10 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 10×10 (main floor)
• Family room: 17×14 (main floor)
• Recreation room: 20×11 (lower level)

Several of you have written me inquiring about this bank owned 2-bedroom vintage coach house at 1143 W. Armitage in Lincoln Park.

(This is a picture of the front part of the building. The coach house is in the back part of the lot.)

Up until recently, the listing didn’t have interior pictures but it does now so we can at least see that the kitchen looks to be intact.

It has white cabinets, a white refrigerator but stainless steel stove and what look like granite counter tops.

Built in 1891, the two-story coach house has a first floor living/dining/kitchen with the 2-bedrooms on the upper level.

There is central air, washer/dryer in the unit but no parking.

It also appears from the listing pictures that you would walk down the passageway alongside the building to possibly access your unit.

Originally listed in March 2011 for $274,975, or about $100,000 under the 2005 purchase price, it has been reduced $70,075.

The property is now listed $14,600 under the 1997 price.

Will this go as low as the 1996 price?

David Piche at Re/Max Signature has the listing. See the pictures here.

Coach house: 2 bedrooms, 1.5 baths, no square footage listed

• Sold in August 1987 for $130,000
• Sold in September 1996 for $183,500
• Sold in July 1997 for $219,500
• Sold in July 2000 for $267,000
• Sold in October 2005 for $375,000
• Lis pendens foreclosure filed in December 2009
• Bank owned in February 2011
• Originally listed in March 2011 for $274,975
• Reduced numerous times
• Currently listed for $204,900
• No assessments are listed but it IS part of a condo association
• Taxes of $2235
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• No parking
• Bedroom #1: 12×15
• Bedroom #2: 10×12