Crib Chatter

This 2-bedroom unit in Park Place Tower, the massive high rise at 655 W. Irving Park Road in Lakeview, has been on the market since August and recently reduced $10,750.

It is bank owned.

There are absolutely no pictures with the unit and no description other than “sold as-is.”

So, we have no idea of the condition of the unit.

It appears that this tier faces Northeast.

We do know that it is currently listed for $187,500 under the 2005 purchase price.

For comparison purposes, Unit #3210 is also on the market (presumably in the same tier.)

It is intact with an updated kitchen and listed for $260,000 (parking extra.)  It sold for $317,000 in 2004.

You can see those interior pictures here.

Even though we don’t know the condition of the unit, it is currently the cheapest 2/2 in the building and is listed for less than several 1-bedrooms on lower floors.

Is this a deal?

Kenneth Rusin at Four Seasons Realty has the listing. See the listing here.

Unit #5310: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed

• Sold in January 2005 for $402,500
• Lis pendens filed in March 2009
• Bank owned in June 2010
• Originally listed in August 2010 for $225,750
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $215,000
• Assessments of $675 a month (includes heat, air conditioning, pool, doorman)
• Taxes of $4247
• Looks like there is deeded valet parking in the building
• No mention of in-unit washer/dryer
• Central Air? (looks like it)
• Bedroom #1: 12×16
• Bedroom #2: 12×12

We last chattered about this 3-bedroom townhouse at 5252 N. Rockwell in Budlong Woods in January 2010.

See our prior chatter and pictures here.

It was withdrawn from the market but has since come back on and it looks as if it is now a short sale.

The townhouse has been reduced $110,200.

It has a fenced back yard and parking.

Yes, that is pink carpet but that is a cosmetic change.

The townhouse also does not have central air- but only window units.

With the price now approaching the 1995 purchase price, is this now a deal?

Ifeta Faye Redzovic at First Gold Realty (which, in the listing, says she is a certified short sale professional) has the listing. See the pictures here.

5252 N. Rockwell: 3 bedrooms, 1.5 baths, 1232 square feet, assigned parking

• Sold in August 1991 for $114,000
• Sold in October 1995 for $120,000
• Originally listed in May 2009 for $279,900
• Reduced
• Was listed in January 2010 at $269,900
• Withdrawn
• Re-listed in August 2010 for $199,700
• Reduced several times
• Now a short sale???
• Currently listed at $159,700
• Taxes of $2734
• No assessments
• No central air- window units
• Finished basement
• Bedroom #1: 12×11
• Bedroom #2: 10×10
• Bedroom #3: 12×11

This vintage 3-flat at 2509 N. Halsted in Lincoln Park has been on the market since March 2010.

It has been reduced $30,000 in that time.

The listing calls it a “charming property” but it is also available as a tear down to “create 3 upscale residential units and 1 commercial space.” It is apparently zoned B1-2.

Already looming over the house right next door is a newer constructed condo building.

The units are as follows:

1. Unit #1: 1 bedroom, 1 bath, washer/dryer in the unit, window air conditioning, rented for $2000 a month
2. Unit #2: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, washer/dryer in the unit, rented for $1300 a month
3. Unit #3: garden unit- with 1 bath. Listing says it can’t guarantee legality of the garden unit. No rental income listed.

The listing says the house has a newer roof, windows and appliances.

It also has a 2-car garage on a standard 25×125 Chicago lot.

Will someone save this 3-flat from a developer’s wrecking ball?

Judi Weintraub at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.

It is agent owned.

2509 N. Halsted: 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, 2 car garage, 2-flat

• Sold in January 1988 for $185,000
• Sold in July 1992 for $200,000
• Sold in April 1998 for $40,000?? (to same owner as 1992)
• Originally listed in March 2010 for $829,000
• Reduced
• Currently listed at $799,900
• Taxes of $11,611
• Looks like no central air

This 2-bedroom unit at 536 W. Belmont in Lakeview just came on the market after being bought from the bank.

The listing says it’s been rehabbed and is now “priced under market.”

The building was converted to condos in 2006 so the units have all the bells and whistles including new kitchen cabinets, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, central air and in-unit washer/dryers.

The prior listing for the unit, when it was bank owned, said it needed work but had tons of potential.

But comparing the listing pictures from the bank owned listing to the current listing, the kitchen and bath were intact and the cabinets and countertops in the kitchen look the same now as then. The kitchen now has a backsplash, however.

In the bathroom, the bathtub, tile and toilet look the same as in the prior listing but there is a new sink vanity and mirror.

The unit has also been staged.

The listing says it is “listed @ final & best price for no nonsense win-win deal.”

Is this a deal for someone given the listing prices of other units in the building?

Justin Brown at Jameson has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #3E: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, no square footage listed

• Sold in October 2006 for $265,000
• Lis pendens in October 2008
• Bank owned in January 2010
• Listed in August 2010 for $179,900
• Sold in September 2010 for $163,000 (per the MLS)
• Originally listed in September 2010 for $229,900
• Reduced $100
• Currently listed at $229,800
• Assessments of $209 a month
• Taxes of $3824
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• No parking
• Bedroom #1: 15×12
• Bedroom #2: 13×9
• Living room: 13×16
• Kitchen: 11×8

We last chattered about this 2-bedroom vintage unit at 3515 N. Lakewood in the Southport neighborhood of Lakeview in February 2010.

See our prior chatter here.

Since then, the unit has been reduced $29,925 and is now listed for $11,000 under the 2003 purchase price.

We chattered about how it could be a good first time home buyers property.

It has central air but no in-unit washer/dryer or parking.

The kitchen has white cabinets and appliances.

After more than a year on the market and several reductions, is this now a deal?

Guy Lemenec at Coldwell Banker still has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #2: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, no square footage listed

• Sold in March 1994 for $129,500
• Sold in February 1995 for $136,000
• Sold in September 2001 for $252,000
• Sold in July 2003 for $281,000
• Originally listed in August 2009 for $306,000
• Reduced several times
• Was listed in February 2010 for $299,925
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $270,000
• Assessments of $257 a month
• Taxes of $3217
• Central Air
• No in-unit washer/dryer
• No parking
• Bedroom #1: 12×12
• Bedroom #2:13×9

This 2-bedroom duplex loft at 920 W. Sheridan in Lakeview has all the features of an authentic loft.

It has 20 foot high timber ceilings, lots of exposed brick along and arched windows.

One of the bedrooms is duplexed up and open to the rest of the living space. The second bedroom is fully enclosed.

The kitchen has stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops.

Converted into lofts in 1998, the bathrooms have been rehabbed with marble and quartz.

It has central air, washer/dryer in the unit and parking.

James Buczynski at Real Living Helios has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #305: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, duplex, 1550 square feet

• Sold in April 1998 for $236,000
• Sold in February 2002 for $320,000
• Originally listed in June 2010 for $399,000
• Currently listed for $400,000 (parking $30,000 extra)
• Assessments of $179 a month
• Taxes of $3843
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• Bedroom #1: 15×15
• Bedroom #2: 15×12

The Illinois Association of Realtors just released the August city and statewide sales data and, as expected, sales plunged for the second month in a row primarily due to the expiration of the tax credits.

In the city of Chicago, August total home sales (single-family and condominiums) were down 22.9 percent to 1,486 sales compared to 1,927 homes sold in August 2009. The city of Chicago median price in August 2010 was $200,000, down 13.0 percent compared to $229,900 a year ago in August 2009.

Here is the data for the last 4 years:

• August 2010: 1486 sales
• August 2009: 1927 sales
• August 2008: 2078 sales
• August 2007: 2923 sales

“The market year-to-date in the city of Chicago reflects an increase in the number of units sold by more than 17 percent over the same period in 2009,” said REALTOR® Genie Birch, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and a broker associate with Koenig & Strey Real Living, Chicago. “Consumers continue to find Chicago real estate worthy of their investment, and are making sound decisions regarding how they spend their money and plan for their future.”

Sales were also down year over year in the Chicagoland area and statewide.

“The housing market is waging an epic battle to maintain some hard-earned stability gained in the first half of the year. On one side we have the combination of record low mortgage interest rates and lower home prices making very compelling affordability conditions for buyers,” said REALTOR® Mike Onorato, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS® and broker-owner of Onorato Real Estate in Coal City. “On the other, we are entering a slower season in fall and winter when activity is typically soft. A healthy housing market depends on a healthy Illinois economy, especially in the area of job creation and stability.”

He adds: “Pricing remains the number one issue for sellers. To sell quickly the price must be competitive relative to homes for sale in the area and this becomes even more of a challenge in markets where foreclosures and short sales dominate.”

“Once again the economy has provided little or no inspiration for the housing market,” said Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, the Director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory at the University of Illinois. “Private sector employment gains continue to be far short of the pace needed to accommodate labor force and population growth.”

Illinois Home Sales in August Improve from July; Year-to-Date Sales Up 9.2 Percent Statewide, 15.8 Percent Chicagoland [Illinois Association of Realtors Press Release, September 23, 2010]

This 4-bedroom rowhouse at 1624 N. LaSalle in Old Town was recently reduced $70,000.

It is now listed for $125,000 under the 2005 purchase price.

At 3600 square feet, it looks to currently be configured into two units.

1. Unit #1: 1 bedroom, 1 bath
2. Unit #2: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths

I’m not sure where the fourth bedroom is located but the listing says there are 4 bedrooms.

Built in 1888 on a 25×102 lot, it is attached on one side to the unit next door. There doesn’t look to be central air and there is no parking.

It does have 3 antique gas fireplaces and 10 foot ceilings.

However, the listing says the “bldg needs work.”

In the 2005 listing, it said to “bring your architect” and in the 2010 listing it also says to “bring your architecture and imagination.”

Is this rowhouse a deal at this price?

Mira Kovacevic at Sudler Sotheby’s has the listing. See the pictures here.

1624 N. LaSalle: 2-flat, 3600 square feet

• Sold in February 2005 for $800,000
• Originally listed in July 2010 for $745,000
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $675,000
• Taxes of $12,288
• No parking
• No central air

At the height of the boom, this new construction 2-bedroom penthouse at 932 W. Diversey in Lakeview would have been snatched up quickly.

Instead, it has been on the market since July and has recently been reduced $40,000.

(This picture, by the way, was taken from the Diversey El platform nearby.)

The 1500 square foot 2/2 has all the bells and whistles of new construction.

The listing says there is 2″ of concrete between the floors.

It also has a professional grade kitchen and front and rear decks.

I can’t tell if parking is included or not.

What is the market for 1500 square foot Lakeview 2-bedrooms listed for over $500,000?

Mario Greco at Prudential Rubloff has the listing. See the pictures and a virtual tour here.

Unit #4: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1500 square feet

• New construction
• Originally listed in July 2010 for $549,000
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $509,000
• Assessments of $175 a month
• Taxes are “new”
• Not sure if parking is included
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• Bedroom #1: 16×12
• Bedroom #2: 13×11

Crain’s reported yesterday on the recent sales at the new Ritz Carlton development at 644 N. Michigan in River North (or is this the Gold Coast? I’m calling it River North since it’s on the west side of Michigan Avenue.)

You know the market is bad when it is “news” to report that the Ritz has put 3 units under contract so far in 2010.

There are 88 units in the building ranging in price from $1.25 million for a 1-bedroom to $12 million for a penthouse. There are no plans, apparently, to cut prices.

Despite the uptick, Prism Development Co. faces an uphill battle to meet its goal of getting 66 units, or 75%, under contract by late 2011, when construction is scheduled to be completed on the $242-million project at 664 N. Michigan Ave.

“Many people can’t sell their (existing) homes,” says Tere Proctor, a sales associate at Koenig & Strey Real Living, who isn’t involved with Ritz-Carlton Residences. “That’s going to slow their (Prism’s) ability to sell the units.”

Prism Principal Bruce Schultz acknowledges that sales have been slower than expected but says he’s encouraged by the recent activity.

The three recent sales are the only agreements Prism has signed this year, he says. He declined to say exactly how many units are under contract, other than to say the development is about half sold.

Ritz-Carlton got off to a fast start after sales opened in February 2006, with buyers snapping up 29 units, or nearly 33%, by the end of that year, according to data from Appraisal Research Counselors, a Chicago-based consulting firm.

Since then it’s been a struggle.

“It could always be better,” Mr. Schultz says. “But we anticipate sales will pick up as construction progresses.”

At this sales rate, it could take years to even reach the 75% sold rate, let alone “sold-out” status.

Residential: Ritz-Carlton Residences books 3 recent sales [Crain’s Chicago Business, Andrew Schroedter, September 21, 2010]