Rent Versus Buying: The Mansion at 2461 N. Geneva Terrace in Lincoln Park
Should you rent or should you buy?
This 6-bedroom new construction mansion at 2461 N. Geneva Terrace in Lincoln Park is both for rent or for sale.
The house was custom built in 2007 with a limestone facade, custom kitchen and guest quarters.
Right now, I could only find a rental listing for the property, but at the bottom of that listing it says it is also for sale.
Maybe it’s time to pull out the New York Times rental/buying calculator to see how this mansion home fares?
Does it make sense for the rich to simply rent luxury properties?
Melina Michelin at Rubloff has the rental listing. See all of the pictures here (including interior pictures.)
2461 N. Geneva Terrace: 6 bedrooms, 5.5 baths, 4 car parking, 7800 square feet
- New construction in 2007
- Currently available to rent for $18,000 a month
- OR
- You can purchase it for $6.25 million
- According to public records, a lis pendens was filed on the property in March 2009
- Central Air
- Two wood burning fireplaces
No brainer to rent vs. own any of the properties over $2mm, with taxes going to go up significantly on the wealthy, potential of losing mortgage interest deductibility on luxury homes and the general state of the economy the odds of a $6mm home appreciating much over the near-mid term are not looking very good. And an $18,000/month payment is closer to the payment on a $3mm home not $6mm. Not that I can get anywhere near this house!
Damn if it was around 9k a month you and 5 college buddies could have a good old time there that’s for sure…
House will neither rent nor sell at noted prices; there is way too much inventory that provides a comparable lifestyle at a fraction of these prices. Plus, ostentatious living has fallen out of favor; even if a “master of the universe” can afford this, he would be reluctant to expose himself to the potential ridicule and question.
Is this a certain prominent hedge-fund owner’s house whose fund suffered serious losses last year?
Sorry, I think this is architect Lucien Lagrange’s house. There are no other architects practicing “french beaux arts hotel” architectural styling. His Chicago practice is devoted to spec high-rise condo projects in the faux “french” motif. Another sign that speculative development is truly dead, and its practioners are in a precarious financial position – not just its real estate developers. Remember that first Prudential Building was in 1955 the first high-rise building constructed in Chicago after 1933. 22 years of no high-rise construction in Chicago.
what would be an example of a faux french motif high rise?
The one big change in my attitude about homes over the last couple of years is that I now consider them purely an expense. The days of appreciation are gone for now. So as an expense I weigh the quality of experience of living in a home against my income. I find myself not willing to pay as much, which is a very good thing by the way. The reality is that you can rent for at least 50% less than buy cost without any of the risks of buying (special assessments anyone). As a case in point, my fiance is going to law school (why I started following this blog) in Chicago and we are looking for an apartment for her. Initially my thought was to buy something cheap for her for the three years and then I ran the numbers. The monthly expense to buy the cheapest two bedroom downtown (walking distance to school) is at least $2.5k. A top tier building or a large assessment could push that to over $4k. For $1.5 to $2k a month you can rent in virtually any building now. Heck for $2400 you can get a 1BR in the trump with parking. The buy cost of that unit is easily more than twice that amount.
Ah yes I remember this house, its the one with the Purple cabinets everywhere. The only room I find attractive is the marbled bathroom with the plant in it. The rest of it looks meh to me… I wouldn’t buy this if I was a billionaire.
A Lincoln Park 5 mm+ SFH really only works in blocks between Willow and Armitage / East of Halsted.
I think the house looks great, but to be honest, I have no idea on home values at this end of the market, so I have no clue how much this house would be worth.
Nobody on cribchatter could afford to live here for even a month. lol
Rent vs. Buy is tricky in reality, but easy in the abstract.
The rundown 3-flat apartment buildings on both sides of my 3-flat condo building are renting their 2 bed/1 bath’s for $1200 per month and they are always rented. My brand new gut rehab 2 bed/2 bath duplex has a total housing payment of $1900 per month. So we are looking at a $700 delta, but the quality is not the same. My frugal self would want to rent the cheaper one, but I have lived in cheap rentals for too long in order to save money. The condo I purchased is in reality too big for me, and probably too nice. But my goal is not to make money off of appreciation, its to pay off the loan and not have a housing payment each month outside of taxes/HOA. I should have it paid off in 10 years on a 30 year note.
Just some thoughts….
Not a bad plan given the investment alternatives these days.
dee – i for one am in the market for $62,500, not $6,250,000.
the interior is way off, way too personalized, and most buyers would look at it as a re-do, imho.
per public records this is not Lagrange’s house. My guess is he has a tasteful house in lincoln park or in an old beaux arts building in the gold coast.
The interior of this house is a letdown. The “mansions” built these days don’t look or feel like the real thing. The interior appointments are nice, but not what you would expect, and the exterior stone should have carried all the way around the building- the stone front looks “pasted” onto a plain brick house.
For anything like $6M, I’d expect really fine walnut wainscoting, intricate parquet floors, a geothermal heating system, and much better interior architecture.
And a rental of $18,000 a month translates to about $3M, for what market there is for a house that expensive these days.
I thought that this looked familiar.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123783052349616069.html
Someone posted this link a while back when this house was featured in the WSJ. It the house of a chicago architect Peter Bukowski
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123783052349616069.html
This house screams “BREAK IN AND BURGLARIZE MY STUFF”.
I live around the corner from this monster. It really makes no sense in the neighborhood, which is mainly condos, small townhouses, and college kid rentals…lots and lots of college kid rentals. The seller is a regular Don Quixote.
Speaking of quixotic, I’d be interested in a post on the building on the sw corner of Geneva and Arlington. Until last year it was small but serviceable rental apartments, but for the past few months they’ve been gutting the place and–ugh–“opening it up” for condos using what looks like really cheap materials and, um, “non-union” labor. Last month there was a fire on the third floor late one night that I called in before it destroyed the place. The look of disappointment on the faces of prospective buyers as they leave the weekly open house sums up nicely my opinion on the quality of rehabs over the past few years.
I used to live near this monster toom, while it was going up. I’m glad to have seen the appointments on the inside, but they are, indeed, underwhelming. Also built with a bunch of “non-union” labor. But seriously, Mitchell has a good point: Geneva Terrace behind the LP Market is hardly a decent road to live on. it’s 1 lane wide, always packed with cars, no view, an array of rat communities behind the market, small yard, I really can’t imagine the view from the roof top is good, and tons of students.
I’ve had a few early morning walks on this street. When I ran…a rat would dart by me…..when I walked….a rat would dart by me. It was a brutal way to start the day.
This house is a joke. The pictures of the side “yard” do not do it justice: It is hideous, with strange stairways and elevation changes that make it look like an Escher drawing. Also, Geneva Terrace north of Fullerton is basically an alley, and for $6 million plus, I would expect my home to be on a real street. Good luck to this seller!
Yikes… It’s like the Oakbrook Nordsrom from the outside. I can’t believe how blah the inside is for this price. The living room bears a striking resemblence to an admirals club lounge w/ those airport tiles on the wall. There’s no character or unique qualities in any of the rooms at all (except the admirals club room, and that is not a plus). It’s like the same thing you’d see in a 400k 2/2…plus a few built ins. I wonder though… if an architect built it for himself, he probably made sure things were done properly… which is a big issue in a monster like this where 100 things can go wrong.
no one commented that this property is already in the beginning stages of foreclosure. Who wants to rent this place just to get evicted by the bank in 9 months; at which point I’m sure the old landlord will promptl return you security deposit.
Two questions
1. how does leasing of such expensive properties work. I have a few units and I get first month rent and 1-1.5 months security up front. Now my units only range from $500-1400/MONTH. What about at this prove range. Do you write a $36000 check to move in?
2. if you’re in a apartment/condo that is foreclosed on. How long between the bank getting the dead back and the sherif actually showing up to evict the tenant. If this building does become REO, can the tenant get a few month of rent free before the eviction?
Tom, it takes on average between 4 months and a year for the bank to get the deed. Persistent owners can drag it out longer, much longer. A new IL law gives tenants 120 days or until the end of their lease, whichever is shorter, unless a receiver is appointed (often the case in multi_unit props) then the tenant has to pay rent to the receiver or be evicted.
can you say uuuugggggly? What a total mishmash of crap finishes. This designer should never work again and get stiffed on this place.
“This designer should never work again and get stiffed on this place.”
HAHA. The architect is the owner. So, I guess he probably will get stiffed, unless he charges himself a large fee thru the construction loan (which he would have done if he’s at all clever).
Tom,
From what I have read Illinois is one of the most foreclosure friendly states out there. As in if you’re getting foreclosed on, you can literally get yourself nearly two years of free housing by merely playing the bureaucratic process, showing up to court a lot and working technicalities. Probably not nearly as much time if you’re a renter and your LL is the one getting foreclosed on but at least a few months free rent I’d imagine. And remember: no evictions in winter either so try to time that one.
Hello, Meet the architect. I just came across on this forum. Most of you missed the subject – rent vs buy. I thought some of you deserve my comments, after all regardless of liking or disliking you took the time to…in most cases I’m not sure.
to: bjb – I agree but for a few years terms only
to: Architect – you might be right to sell or rent. You wrong though as to the style “French beaux arts”. There are certain similarities but only for an inexperienced eye. “French beaux arts architecture depended on sculptural decoration along conservative modern lines”. If you look closer this building has plenty of clean lines and NO ornamentation, purposefully avoiding basic and crucial elements for the style you mentioned. As to ostentatious living…you might be right, you might be completely wrong but you are absolutely off the subject of the discussion (rent vs buy).
to: Sonies – always interesting to hear how others see my work, even if they dislike it.
to: lol – you’re right even though you had nothing to say on the subject of the discussion. I chose this location simply because I had always liked it. I have lots in the area you mentioned, I just don’t like it. This house was not build as spec home but my own, so argument – live where it’ll pay back, not where you like did not work (at least back then).
to: CH, thanks, at least someone here likes it
to: bubbleboi – it is personalized because it was supposed to be my home for the rest of my life.
to: Laura – your … does not surprise me. I don’t like traditional interiors. They remind me of funeral homes rather the homes. My dream house was contemporary, but in this location (landmark) contemporary had no place. This is how I ended up with more transitional/contemporary interiors with minimum of the details as you’d like to see. I ensure you, that this house is built like no other and no corners were cut anywhere (and I’ve been around high end building for over 20 years)…even the lintels here are stainless steel. And you’re wrong about the stone, unless you had Versailles in mind, but then imagine what architect would say.
to: MitchellD – I’ve already answered to this and I repeat, this was not a spec home. I love the location and the neighborhood. I like the versatility of people including students. You might think otherwise looking at the house, but the other Lincoln Park even though more “hot” and pricy never appealed to me. I love the narrow Geneva Terrace (reminds me of Europe, I came from), and I like closeness to Lincoln Park Market and the pond nearby and lake and Zoo in few minutes. As to Don Quixote, have we ever met?
to: ChiGuy – rats are everywhere, I have couple of buildings by Armitage and Halsted, the problem there is at least the same. As to the non-union laborers; beside being an architect I also own union construction company who build the house. Not that it makes any difference who build it, but why would you say things you have no idea about. You are entitled to your own opinions but not lies.
to: Jan – it’s a matter of opinion I love the street and many people do.
to: Mess – you missed a point of the design but I also get your thinking, some of what I said before might clarify certain ideas. As to things done properly, you could not be more right. A full time, superintendent was there for over three years.
to: Tom – Yes you just write a 36K check and just because it is in beginning stages of foreclosure, doesn’t it’ll be foreclosed.
to: anon – you have no idea on the subject and what’s more alarming is the joy you derive from other peoples “life slides”.