Is the Sizzle Still On in Andersonville? 5622 N. Wayne

This 3-bedroom unit at 5622 W. Wayne in Andersonville came on the market in late February 2010 and has already gone under contract.

5622-n-wayne-approved.jpg

It was a new conversion in 2007.

At 1800 square feet, it is nearly the size of many single family homes.

The unit has crown molding and 2-panel doors. There is also a full-sized in-unit washer/dryer and garage parking included.

The kitchen has 42 inch Alderwood shaker cabinetry, granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

This property is just a few blocks from the shops and restaurants on Clark and near the Bryn Mawr El stop.

Unit #1 in the same building has been on the market since January 2010 and is still available. It’s priced at $339,900 but is the first floor unit. See the pictures here.

Recently, other similarly priced condo units have gone under contract quickly in the neighborhood.

Is Andersonville the hottest market on the North Side right now?

Brian Brak at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #2: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1800 square feet, 1 car parking

  • Sold in May 2007 for $417,500
  • Originally listed in February 2010 for $429,900
  • Under contract
  • Assessments of $158 a month
  • Taxes of $5198
  • Central Air
  • In-unit washer/dryer
  • Bedroom #1: 16×13
  • Bedroom #2: 11×13
  • Bedroom #3: 11×13

77 Responses to “Is the Sizzle Still On in Andersonville? 5622 N. Wayne”

  1. One pending sale doesn’t constitute a trend; unit seems overpriced for an Edgewater 3-bedrm gut-rehab with a reconfigured and aqkward floor plan. Original unit layout and architectural character are unfortunately gone; this condo has a conventional “concrete block/pick-up contractor” new condo layout.

    Other unit for sale is located in the basement; check out the window sizes and placements. Cellars weren’t intended for human habitation, particularly now that sewer-restrictors in streets have increased sewer back-up incidents in basements.

    I like this three-flat’s exterior, and wish the condo developer had restored the original units (usually quite generous in size and characteristic finishes/detail) rather than the hatch-job here. Beyond the usual granite counters and stainless steel appliances, it’s conventional, builder-grade, small developer stuff.

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  2. Looks pretty decent to me. Close to the el and the beach. No glaring issues with construction/layout. low HOA fee. About the only negative I see is that the balcony’s view is lacking. What am I missing?

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  3. Pretty typical for Andersonville although the location being north of Bryn Mawr is not really the heart of the neighborhood. Properties with that amount of space and rehabbed are rare in the area.

    I know people often forget north of Irving Park isn’t Wisconsin. A lot of people would get a much better neighborhood with amenities and better value units if the considered A’ville over the crappy parts of Lakeview/Lincoln Park.

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  4. Balcony view is not lacking. Its typical. You get a balcony in a 3 / 6 / 8 unit building and its going to overlook your back alley where you park your car.

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  5. That is a really awkward floor plan.

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  6. Architect: I agree that one quick sale does not make a trend but it’s not just this property.

    Check out this lovely 1910 vintage property right down the street. Listed for $399,000 and under contract in only a few weeks.

    http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/5632-N-Wayne-Ave-60660/unit-2N/home/21807097

    These are LP/Lakeview prices and these units aren’t anywhere near the lake.

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  7. Sabrina: 5632 N Wayne seems much nicer – sunroom, back porch, two parking spaces, higher-grade finishes and appliances, and more intact architectural character. Units with architectural character and high-quality finishes appear to retain value and sell faster than “plain vanilla” units. Perhaps the buyer of 5622 Wayne was outbid or too late at 5632 Wayne, and was swept away by momentum.

    We lived in Edgewater a decade ago, and are familiar with the pluses and minuses of the neighborhood. Though retail has improved in Andersonville’s Clark Street corridor, up farther north at this location it’s still Edgewater and not Lincoln Park – as you noted.

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  8. The pictures make unit #1 look like it’s misnumbered. Looks more like a garden unit to me.

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  9. Looks like a slightly bigger version (1br bigger) of a condo you can buy near the lake and the el in rogers park for 175k….

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  10. I lived in A’ville proper 10 years ago and the neighborhood was pretty hot then and pricing hadn’t caught up wit the rest of the city relative to the amenities available. The shops and restaurants on Clark from just south of Foster up till about Bryn Mawr are phenomenal. Dare I say it is better than many parts of Lakeview and Lincoln Park. The places West of Broadway and East of Paulina and North of Argyle and South of Bryn Mawr have always been pretty pricey.

    Stuff was in the mid 300’s almost 10 years ago for a large 2/2. I definitely think there is a “trend” as this pricing isn’t any different from what I saw prior to the bubble even kicking off hard.

    There has always been a lack of inventory in the neighborhood of fully rehabbed units. A lot of the condos in the neighborhood were done in the early 90s. You also can’t build new construction as the land is limited and the residents are fiercely opposed to teardowns/new construction.

    Close to the Redline, plenty of $1 million homes in Lakewood/Balmoral. Shops and restaurants (the residents are fighting to keep all the shops independent so it isn’t run over with bland chains). Not far from the lake. Quiet tree lined streets. Plenty of street parking if needed. Best of all, IT AIN’T Lincoln Park which is why a lot of people move there.

    The Wayne properties are a tad north and not really the most desirable part of the neighborhood. It is kind of a stretch to even call it Andersonville, but it is walking distance albeit probably a little further than most would consider.

    This is a very quirky neighborhood and the boundaries can have a dramatic effect on pricing.

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  11. 5632 is lovely. I’ve never seen an interior that so clearly says, “Two 40-something gay men live with good jobs live here.” I bet Eric Massa would love to host his next
    “tickle party” there.

    As lovely as it is, I have no idea why someone would pay LP/Lakeview prices for that. I’ve noticed a serious lack of bargains around Andersonville lately (aside from that two flat greystone on the double lot I’m still crying over). Come to think of it, a lot of the cheapest SFHs and two flats I’ve had my eye on for a while in LV, LP, and North Center seem to have gone under contract recently.

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  12. i’ve lived in andersonville for four years and agree that it has historically been an undervalued neighborhood. the amenities are outstanding, and unlike many other north side areas, andersonville remains an eclectic and diverse community, which is why my husband and i love it. we used to live in lakeview (and lincoln park before that), where we got sick of seeing people who looked like us.

    from a property perspective, andersonville (thankfully) has not fallen prey to the tear-down / mcmansion trend that gobbled up so many of lakeview’s and lincoln park’s prime streets. therefore, andersonville has retained much of its vintage character, which (again thankfully) doesn’t always attract the “power couples” that flock to the shiny new construction and cavernous properties on the north and near west side.

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  13. Danny,

    Would you consider this a bargain in North Center? It needs a LOT of updating, but is in a nice neighborhood. One caveat: there are several two-flats on this block that have a vacant rental unit and the neat-term revenue expectation should be risk-adjusted because of the immediate competition nearby.

    http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/4243-N-Winchester-Ave-60613/home/13391276

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  14. “Would you consider this a bargain in North Center? It needs a LOT of updating, but is in a nice neighborhood. ”

    Not a bargain, but it’s the right initial listing price–might sell for that. If you’re buying it as a rental (or expecting reasonable rental income to defray the mortgage), it’s *way* too much (or merely quite a bit too much).

    Watch the taxes–without the senior exemptions (but w/ H-O), expect taxes to be around $8k–AV went down for 09 by ~1.5%.

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  15. I like Andersonville, but I wouldn’t want to live there. I have two friends that live in the better part (a few blocks south of this place) and they both tell me their commute to the Loop is an hour door to door. That’s a dealbreaker to me.

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  16. An hour door to door. Wow! Do they take the 22 bus at rush hour or crawl to the red line? I have a 12 min walk to the BrynMawr stop, transfer to the brown line, get off at Washington and Wells and walk 5 mins, and on a bad day it takes me 45 mins. If I was closer to the “better part” of Andersonville, I can only see the commute being shorter. Shorter walk to the RedLine and probably 1 or 2 stops closer to the Loop.

    I do take issue with the “better part” of Andersonville though. We are only 1/2 block east of Clark near Gethsemane (north of BrynMawr). Not a bad place to be. Even in the dead of winter with a 1 year old, this did not cause me to say to myself, “Damn I wish we were 4 blocks closer to the better part.”

    The whole commute issue becomes moot to me when Metra adds the Peterson/Ridge stop.

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  17. “I like Andersonville, but I wouldn’t want to live there. I have two friends that live in the better part (a few blocks south of this place) and they both tell me their commute to the Loop is an hour door to door. That’s a dealbreaker to me.”

    Depends where you are on both sides of the commute, doesn’t it? I think train ride is only 30 min or so (just from looking at schedules to figure out whether it was a plausible commute for me, have never ridden the red line up there). So if you were a block or two west of Broadway and close to a stop, and worked close to a red line stop in the loop, it might be 40 min. Some of the houses on Magnolia and Lakewood are very appealing.

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  18. Never took me an hour to get to the Loop. I caught the Berwyn stop and then later the Argyle. The commute was a breeze. The other nice thing was you could always get a seat. You are what… four stops from Belmont? Good lord, that is like commuting from Madison, WI!

    People really need to get out of their little Lincoln Park bubble.

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  19. I’m just telling you what my friends who live in the hood say. 1 hour door to door. A little faster on the way home, but 1 hour in the morning. I don’t know why they would lie to me about that.

    Not wanting an hour commute is not living in a “Lincoln Park bubble.”

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  20. “Not a bad place to be. Even in the dead of winter with a 1 year old,”

    So GB what are your plans for school for the youngin?

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  21. “I like Andersonville, but I wouldn’t want to live there. I have two friends that live in the better part (a few blocks south of this place) and they both tell me their commute to the Loop is an hour door to door. That’s a dealbreaker to me.”

    this sounds peculiar to me. i’ve never experienced an hour commute to the loop. i can take one of several bus routes, which range from a 25 – 45 minute commute. i can also take the train from ravenswood, which is around a 12 minute trip (after a 10 – 15 minute walk).

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  22. “I’m just telling you what my friends who live in the hood say. 1 hour door to door. A little faster on the way home, but 1 hour in the morning. I don’t know why they would lie to me about that.”

    Thoroughly plausible, but as was said above, it all depends on when they live and where they work–if you don’t work in the same building and you aren’t buying next door, ymWv. I have had a work/home combo that could take an hour normally, involving North Center and West Loop, but that’s b/c of a 10+ minute walk on each end.

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  23. I’ve already discussed, although months ago. The best way to out it is ‘burbs early in elementary grades and no later than end of 4th grade, unless life changes. (See below)

    Although I have heard anecdotal evidence that Pierce is good and getting better.

    My job which brought me back to Chicago (born and raised in the burbs) from the Pacific NW may take me back there. This was not expected when we moved. So, who knows?

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  24. Oops, my previous post is in response to…

    Bob on March 16th, 2010 at 1:36 pm
    “Not a bad place to be. Even in the dead of winter with a 1 year old,”

    So GB what are your plans for school for the youngin?

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  25. alanon… no one is doubting they said it, but you literally would have to have no legs and walk the whole way on your hands to the El and live on the far west side of the neighborhood at Paulina to make a commute to the “loop” take an hour.

    I was three blocks from the Berwyn stop and would also go get a cup of coffee every morning at a little coffee shop right at the EL stop and then even change trains at Belmont and it would take me maybe 40 minutes at most to get to the Merchandise Mart where my office was at the time.

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  26. I lived three blocks north of the Loyola stop which is three stops north of Bryn Mawr on the red line. I commuted downtown 5 days a week during the school year and during the summer. It averaged 50 minutes door to door to get to the CBOT when I worked part time during school and full time during summers. On a bad day if there were delays or slow zones or if the weather was bad, it took over an hour.

    I say subtract 5 or 6 minutes off the red line commute if you get off at the Bryn Mawr stop which would be about a 44 or 45 minute commute on an average day.

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  27. Russ, your 40 minute commute sounds about right because you worked just outside of the loop whereas I worked at the south end of the loop.

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  28. mgm, your North Center two flat has many of the things I look for: very close to the train but not right next to it, brick, original woodwork, close to Trader Joes, very close to Jewel, not too far up the Brown Line.

    With that said, I keep reminding myself that buildings like this are still a long way away from making sense as rental properties. I really don’t want to buy another place thinking that it doesn’t matter if I can’t rent both units out for a return comparable to what I’d get on my downpayment if I put it in some conservative dividend-paying stocks. I’d like to get a deal on a two-flat fixer upper that I know I don’t have to sell right away if I decide to move out of it one day, and I’m not sure this one fits the bill. What’s the best case scenario for rent in this building if it was redone very nicely?

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  29. I love Andersonville and I’m all for diversity, but leaving Lakeview because “we got sick of seeing people who looked like us” seems like a very odd reason to leave. I’m not sure why there are so many LP/Lakeview haters on here and why people like to cite these PC reasons for leaving, as though every street in Andersonville is a veritable UN meeting of culture-mixing just because there are plenty of white gay guys with French Bulldogs and there’s no Best Buy. Why not admit that you prefer to be around people who make about the same amount of money you do, have a similar level of education and have similar political views? Surely there are more diverse areas in Chicago than the intersection of Clark and Foster.

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  30. “What’s the best case scenario for rent in this building if it was redone very nicely?”

    Duplexing down the first floor unit? Or with the space, essentially, as-is? Basic rent for 3/1s in the ‘hood would be 1200-1400, don’t know that you’d get too much more w/o adding 2d baths, or more space, no matter how nice.

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  31. “Although I have heard anecdotal evidence that Pierce is good and getting better.”

    I have Peirce as one of the things to check out in more detail sometime. Have heard very vague positive things (along the lines of what you wrote) about it.

    My interest in Andersonville is actually in part because the commute is better in some ways for me than from parts of North Center. I’m close close to a red line stop and figure I can do some work if I have a seat.

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  32. This seems like a silly debate, but, since people seem so in to it . . . I went to the CTA trip planner and put in:

    – arrive by 9am

    – leaving from 5400 N. Glenwood (the approximate center of the “good” part of Andersonville as most people seem to be defining)

    – arriving at 100 N. Wells (the approximate geographic center of the business center of the Loop (i.e., not counting State and Michigan Ave)

    The CTA’s own website says it will take between 44 and 54 mintues. Anybody want to bet on whether the CTA site over or under estimates travel times?

    For kicks I also checked the time if you did the same trip by bike. 48 minutes according to google. So I guess my complaint is more with CTA than with Andersonville! My new slogan for CTA: “slightly faster than a bicycle.”

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  33. “Why not admit that you prefer to be around people who make about the same amount of money you do, have a similar level of education and have similar political views? Surely there are more diverse areas in Chicago than the intersection of Clark and Foster.”

    danny — WOW! you clearly read a lot into my earlier statement, “we got sick of seeing people who looked like us”. this was not our only reason for leaving lakeview, and i am not a lakeview or a lincoln park hater. i think both neighborhoods are wonderful, but they no longer best fit the the lifestyle that i wanted to be leading.

    of course i like to “be around people who make about the same amount of money you do, have a similar level of education and have similar political views”, BUT i also like being exposed to people from different economic circumstances, with different political views and education backgrounds. this is why i choose to live in the city, instead of the suburbs.

    also, of course there are far “more diverse areas in Chicago than the intersection of Clark and Foster”. to say that andersonville is the most diverse neighborhood in the city would be idiotic. i was not trying to suggest “every street in Andersonville is a veritable UN meeting of culture-mixing”. what i was trying to say is that the diversity in andersonville works for me. i appreciate the artsy and eclectic vibe, which i really missed when living in lakeview and lincoln park. compared to lakeview and lincoln park, andersonville better suits me. yes, there are plenty of “white gay guys with French Bulldogs”, but there are many families, young professionals, older couples and heavy middle eastern, scandanavian and mexican influences.

    the point is that there is a neighborhood in the city that suits pretty much everybody’s interests and lifestyles, which is why chicago is so fantastic. it’s very ignorant to say one neighborhood is “better” than another. it’s all about which area suits you and where you feel most at home.

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  34. Danny,
    I don’t see the hate here, just opinions. We chose Andersonville for $/sf, amenities (great Walk Score), distance to public transportation, and because it felt like a great neighborhood. Political views, sexual orientation, animals, wealth, education had nothing to do with it. It’s not like we are asking all of these people to be our roommates. If I was commuting to anywhere west of the city this would be the last place I would choose.

    We don’t hate LP/LV and my wife and I both lived there as single twenty-somethings, but we wanted a change. You are right, we don’t have a BestBuy, but we have a cranky Russian (I think he’s Russian) selling used audio/video equipment and the BrownElephant which always has plenty of audio tapes, VCR tapes, and vinyl.

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  35. Bucktown? LOL, um no.

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  36. “The CTA’s own website says it will take between 44 and 54 mintues. Anybody want to bet on whether the CTA site over or under estimates travel times?”

    All I am saying is it depends significantly on where you live and work. I put in my office and a house on lakewood and get 33 min using the Google tool on CTA (I think it’s not true door to door as it has no wait time). You picked start and end points with longer walks (and the 54 minutes has to have something odd, maybe by bus).

    I find the tool very accurate for my current commute except it doesn’t build in a wait time.

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  37. Danny,
    Look at this West Andersonville 2 flat for 409k.
    If anybody gets in there please report back. No interior pix.
    http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/1739-W-Rascher-Ave-60640/home/13405760

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  38. “also, of course there are far “more diverse areas in Chicago than the intersection of Clark and Foster””

    I dunno, there aren’t many genuinely diverse neighborhoods–just ‘hoods where there aren’t many white yuppies.

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  39. I (over)pay $1550/month + electric. If you updated the kitchens, included a parking space and w/d (shared in basement), I think $1400 could happen. The unit next door to me includes updated kitchen, w/d in-unit, 1 uncovered parking spot and c/a for $1500 with utilities included.

    With that said, I figure you *may* be able to become cash flow neutral (and even positive if you are active in the rental with the losses generated by depreciation), but as soon as maintenance/repairs are needed, your cash flow quickly goes red.

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  40. “Look at this West Andersonville 2 flat for 409k.
    If anybody gets in there please report back. No interior pix.”

    Looks ok from the outside and the parcel next to it is on the market for $309K. Could be a nice house/yard for under a million.

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  41. Diversity is overrated, why people would want to live with people who they have nothing in common with is stupid, and just something that stupid liberals enjoy bragging to their friends about. Like those d-bags that don’t have a TV and just love to tell you about that little tidbit of their lives. Go do the world a favor and please die in a fire.

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  42. “every street in Andersonville is a veritable UN meeting of culture-mixing”

    Well me and my friends call the Dominick’s in Uptown the United Nations building if that makes you feel any better.

    “Why not admit that you prefer to be around people who make about the same amount of money you do, have a similar level of education and have similar political views? ”

    Well Nancy might not be prioritizing this I absolutely do. Except the same amount of money thing I could care less so long as they are attractive females. For all of the “diversity is inherently positive and valuable” efforts by the machine that is the government and MSM reality indicates that people prefer to be among their own kind.

    Go into any prison and see how the prisoners separate at lunchtime. Heck go into any school and see how the kids naturally separate.

    It need not even be racial as a well spoken educated professional go into any Bridgeport dive bar and see how you’re treated by the native white males. See how quickly it takes for you to realize you fit in like a Lion in Greenland.

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  43. Haha yeah! What Sonies said too!

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  44. “Go into any prison and see how the prisoners separate at lunchtime. Heck go into any school and see how the kids naturally separate”

    yeah but bob look at any early grade or preschool and see kids dont see race only boogers.

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  45. again, of course i like to be around people with similar background, values and general circumstance. no way would i want to live in a place where i am the “only one of my kind”.

    my point is that i also like to be around people who with different ideas and experiences. i like a balance! i find “different” people interesting. i grew up in a very homogeneous suburban environment, which made me feel very sheltered and lead to a rather limited world view.

    perhaps i am the only person on this board who feels this way, but i don’t think this makes me a “stupid liberal” akin to a “d-bag” without a tv.

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  46. No you aren’t my target nancy you can too well elucidate your preferences and justify them pretty well. My target is more akin to the clueless idiotic hipster at the L&L Tavern.

    G** D*** I hate that crowd but can’t help myself from getting wasted at another bar and going in there and giving them crap.

    I have a semi-insane friend whose a drunk and a raving FoxNews Republican and sometimes after some $1 beers at a different bar we go in there to raise hell. He said I’m not allowed to get us kicked out before he gets his free shot with every third beer though.

    Those kiddos in there are so clueless I wish we could drop them off in the heart of the wild 100s on a hot sunny summer’s day. Sort of like Survivor and the Amazing Race rolled up into one.

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  47. “My target is more akin to the clueless idiotic hipster at the L&L Tavern.”

    I’m not sure the hipsters value diversity that much. They are really as conformist as they come (especially when I see them in line at Logan Sq Auditorium), which I assume they must recognize, but I don’t know any hipsters. There are a couple on our block but they do not mingle.

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  48. “I’m not sure the hipsters value diversity that much.”

    They don’t walk the walk but if you talk to them about their political proclivities they definitely parrot back the left-oriented ideology that diversity is innately a positive.

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  49. oh, the hipster. like DZ, i’m always shocked by how judgemental and conformist they really are. like they follow a guide book and are afraid to be kicked out of the club if they befriend somebody with a coldplay song on their ipod.

    pricks.

    and hypocrites.

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  50. http://www.salon.com/life/pinched/2010/03/15/hipsters_food_stamps_pinched/

    Hipsters on Food Stamps.

    – well educated 20 and 30 something with no money living poor but eating well.

    This bodes very poorly for future RE pricing. Some of our young and well educated, potential first time home buyers are getting $200 a month in nutritional assistance meanwhile, the other half is paying $429,000 for bland and awkward converted condos in Andersonville.

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  51. Oh HD, 1 out of every 8 people in this country and every 1 out of 4 kids in this country are on food stamps, like some lazy nobody straight out of art school being on food stamps is some HUGE surprise…

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  52. I have multiple friends who commit food stamp fraud (like they were on food stamps then got a job but didn’t tell the food stamp people). They recently caught one of them that he was working and back on his feet and the penalty they stated in the letter is he is inelgible for future food stamps for…wait for it(!)…ONE FULL YEAR!

    Wow with draconian penalties like that I’m amazed anyone would commit food stamp fraud! LMAO!

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  53. “the penalty they stated in the letter is he is inelgible for future food stamps for…wait for it(!)…ONE FULL YEAR!”

    No mention of the (possible) referral to AG/USA?

    Because the ineligibility is the only penalty that the food stamp folks are allowed to impose *administratively*. That doesn’t prevent separate criminal/civil-reimbursement action by the relevant authorities.

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  54. “That doesn’t prevent separate criminal/civil-reimbursement action by the relevant authorities.”

    Well if he gets a letter in the mail from the CPD/AG or a knock at his door we aren’t going to be that surprised and we’ll all have a good laugh about it but him.

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  55. For all practical purposes the gov doesn’t go after somebody for the type of food stamp fraud that Bob described. Its like the IRS going after somebody for claiming head of household instead of married or single, or getting the medicaid medical card even though you have private insurance ‘but you don’t like the co-pays’ (as I heard someone once say). I regularly deal with clients who do all of the above and I’ve never once seen that happen.

    However, the AG’s office goes after people in civil court for unemployment insurance fraud and they do on a regular basis. If you work and collect unemployment at the same time, they will find out, and they will sue you administratively and then import the judgment into state court and pursue collection efforts.

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  56. I know one guy who commits unemployment insurance fraud here in IL. Guess what he does? He splits his time between here and Florida and takes pictures of REOs (I crap you not). Cash biz apparently, something like $30/picture.

    I finally realized why REOs were marketed so poorly when I met this person–he is 100% about volume leaving 0% for picking up an object, sweeping, drawing blinds or anything else.

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  57. It’s so nice to have people respond to my comments. Your attention fills a void in me that high-priced male escorts and fistfulls of xanax only cover up for a night or two.

    Sorry for picking on you, Nancy. I’m just so tired of meeting people in Chicago who make fun of me for wanting to live above an Outback Steakhouse and a Super Wal-Mart. I’d like it to be called Super WalBack SteakMart. I know, I know. “But Wal-Mart is making sneakers out of Indonesian baby flesh and they’re ruining American with their affordable prescription drugs and cheap electronics,” you say. Well, fine. But can I at least live inside a Super Target with a California Pizza Kitchen next door?

    Personally, I like being surrounded by people who are well-mannered and smart…or at least well-mannered and funny. It has been my experience that poor folks are really rude, like the guy who threatened to shoot me on the blue line today because I said, “No, sorry” when he asked, “you got 25 cent so I can get me some chicken, man?” He couldn’t let it go. “Sorry? You sorry! Uh huh. How ’bout I shoot you. Then you be sorry.” I guess he really loves chicken.

    Screw diversity. I’ve known some lovely poor people in my day, but if the only way to get away from the chicken man is to live in a co-op where everyone is rich, then count me in. I don’t care what my neighbors look like as long as they’re polite.

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  58. dahliachi,

    I think I’ve seen better deals out there if you’re willing to be on the west side of Ashland. (Not much on the market right now, but there was a brick two flat at 1651 w. Olive that sold for 365K on 12/16.) There have also been some places on Foster for under 450 that I would have preferred. Anything past Ashland is way too far of a walk to the train for me. I guess I could do some bus/train combo, but Bob can tell you all about how much I hate the bus with its random half-hour delays, route cuts, and lack of (semi-)heated shelter.

    I would say sit tight if you’re holding out for a deal in Andersonville. I think some well-priced places have recently been snapped up. I think it’s definitely an area where you’ll want to stay on top of things when the bank puts something on the market because those don’t last long. Also, I think a lot of people on here believe that after the housing credit expires, we’re due for another year or two of pain before the bargains really start to disappear. I’m hoping they’re right.

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  59. nancy:
    “i grew up in a very homogeneous suburban environment, which made me feel very sheltered and lead to a rather limited world view.”

    You’re the product of bad parenting to feel that way. You were brought up in a First World environment in the greatest country on earth, a lifestyle 99.8% of the world envies, and you demean it.

    Did you watch too many hollywood movies growing up? listening to Eddie Murphy scripts that tell you how lame white people are? Nauseating.

    Just who had this unlimited world view then? The illiterate mexican peasants? The Pakis that lived in mountain villages? Vietnamese jungle rice farmers? A Polish carpenter from some village?

    Gimme a break, there is nothing worse than a deluded self-hating white American person. You were able to do and see far more things growing up than most of the immigrants you worship. You still don’t even see it. Bad parenting.

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  60. “Gimme a break, there is nothing worse than a deluded self-hating white American person.”

    While I agree with this statement _in a vacuum_ I do think you’ve picked on the wrong person. Don’t get me wrong there are tons of idiotic whities with no clue to pick on. But seriously I don’t think she’s the audience. She’s said nothing that piqued my radar regarding idiocy regarding life or other views in general. And some people I know consider me a radicalized WN too (I don’t, but whateva).

    Also regarding A’ville–I’ve been known to hit on the occasional self-proclaimed non-strait gal from A’ville at random streetfests, too. Nothing to give them away at all that they go that way with regard to physical appearances, actions, etc. Not really ashamed of it and I’ll prolly do it again this summer, too hohoho.

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  61. “Gimme a break, there is nothing worse than a deluded self-hating white American person. You were able to do and see far more things growing up than most of the immigrants you worship. You still don’t even see it.”

    good stuff dan, good stuff. i have forwarded this to most of my friends, good stuff 🙂

    As i always say “too many white people in one place scares me”

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  62. Cribchatter is at its worst when the discussion turns to race, diversity, etc.

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  63. “Cribchatter is at its worst when the discussion turns to race, diversity, etc.” which is much too often.

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  64. “Gimme a break, there is nothing worse than a deluded self-hating white American person. You were able to do and see far more things growing up than most of the immigrants you worship. You still don’t even see it. Bad parenting.”

    dan,

    while i don’t feel the need to justify my beliefs to somebody who i’ve never met, i feel compelled to respond to your comments about my parents. you have no business attacking somebody’s family.

    my parents were wonderful and did the best job they possibly could to raise a healthy and well-adjusted family. they were devoted people who poured every ounce of energy they had into my two siblings and i. i am in my mid-thirties now, and i feel incredibly fortunate to have the parents that i did. it upsets me greatly that you would attack them based on a comment that i made about my desire to open myself up to different ideas and experiences.

    you have absolutely no idea about my upbringing or the things that i was exposed to or was not exposed to. i am not going to waste anybody’s time to further explain myself.

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  65. “a lifestyle 99.8% of the world envies”

    Even if we assume you meant 99.8% of the *rest* of the world (US is over 4% of total world population), you’re still only leaving 13,000,000 who don’t envy the US lifestyle. I think I know more than that many *Canadians* who don’t envy the US lifestyle, nevermind everyone else in the world.

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  66. “I think I know more than that many *Canadians* who don’t envy the US lifestyle”

    does anyone really care they are just canadians or as homer simpson calls it “America Junior”

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  67. “does anyone really care they are just canadians or as homer simpson calls it “America Junior””

    True, true.

    But that doesn’t mean you can just not count them in 100% of the people of the world.

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  68. “But that doesn’t mean you can just not count them in 100% of the people of the world.”

    you are wrong there we do not count them or France and part of Finland (for obvious reasons).

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  69. The only difference between an american and a canadian abroad is the maple leaf on the backpack.

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  70. “The only difference between an american and a canadian abroad is the maple leaf on the backpack.”

    You mean you know Canadians who *don’t* have maple leafs on their packs?

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  71. Exactly my point, you can’t even tell the difference!

    “You mean you know Canadians who *don’t* have maple leafs on their packs?”

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  72. “Exactly my point, you can’t even tell the difference!”

    In the pre-Iraq war runup I was overseas on work. The girls there had animus towards our country and our leader and the way things were going so I quickly switched gears and started identifying as Canadian.

    Which they were guessing me Canadian anyway as I am somewhat pale and its apparently much more common for a commonwealth member country to visit another (UK).

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  73. “The girls there had animus towards our country and our leader and the way things were going so I quickly switched gears and started identifying as Canadian. ”

    That was what I was getting at.

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  74. you can have your own private elevator for just 370k!

    http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/3110-N-Greenview-Ave-60657/unit-4W/home/12600999

    I was considering this place when i was looking but they wanted 400k+ I think, heck another year on the market and it might sell! lol

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  75. Last summer, during the fireworks those balconies were covered with people. But, the traffic noise might make me poke my ears out.

    “you can have your own private elevator for just 370k!”

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  76. “you can have your own private elevator for just 370k!”

    Well its not your own private elevator as presumably people on other floors use it as well. But yeah still having it open into your unit is mondo cool and rare at this pricepoint.

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  77. “Well its not your own private elevator as presumably people on other floors use it as well.”

    That always kills me–like calling the common area roof deck a “private roof deck”. Calling it “personal” (as here) is even worse.

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