Third Biggest Story of 2012: Affordable New Construction Makes a Comeback
In the last few months of 2011, we’ve been chattering about more new construction projects than we did the prior years. These include new construction million dollar homes and 3 and 6 flat condo developments.
Sure, it’s not like it was during the boom time but with prices still falling for the current crop of existing properties, it’s surprising to see developers still willing to put up more of the new.
But one new construction home has really stood out in 2011 and, from the looks of things, appears to be in play again in 2012.
This house pictured below is being built all over the west side, from Humboldt Park, to Logan Square, to Avondale and everywhere in between where a cheap lot can be secured.
(This picture was taken of the house built at 1214 N. Rockwell in East Humboldt Park.)
For you House Hunters fans, this is the model of the house that the couple bought on the recent Chicago episode of House Hunters (theirs was in Humboldt Park.)
It is also being built at several addresses around Avondale include 2967 W. Nelson (I drove by the address and didn’t see any construction so perhaps it won’t get built until there is a contract on it.)
The North Clybourn Group has been handling all of the sales. The house and interior pictures are the same on each listing.
2967 W. Nelson is listed for $349,000.
Buyers love “new”.
Will “affordable” new construction be one of the big stories of 2012?
(Anyone know how many of these houses have now been built on the west sides? 10? 20?)
You can see the pictures of 2967 W. Nelson here.
2967 W. Nelson: 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2400 square feet, 2 car garage
- New construction currently listed for $349,000
I get really nervous when I see these houses…and their sides made of what appear to be Hardipanel. Not many local builders know what they’re doing installing that stuff. And I see some really questionable seams on one near my house.
I think this is great. If people want to live in these neighborhoods, it’s nice to have a new construction option. Good for them!
Decent affordable housing at a good price: I would only hate to see solid homes being torn down as these are “throw away” as the times change…
“I would only hate to see solid homes being torn down as these are “throw away” as the times change”
we have become a “throw away” society. I don’t think that is necessarily bad – people are more mobile and less attached to their material goods. They realize it is more convenient and better for their lifestyle to be able to buy something cheap/new, use it , throw it away and buy something new again. Just look at the popularity of Hyundais-
I find it sad that quantity has replaced quality. It is just not sustainable given the limited resources we have and the population explosion.
As for the property, it is nice to see that there is an element of design rather than same old same old, but the orientation of the kitchen isle gets on my nerve. It needs a 90 degree rotation. Also what’s up with small windows in the bedroom?
“we have become a “throw away” society. I don’t think that is necessarily bad – people are more mobile and less attached to their material goods. They realize it is more convenient and better for their lifestyle to be able to buy something cheap/new, use it , throw it away and buy something new again. Just look at the popularity of Hyundais-“
I think these are very tasteful for the price and aren’t surprised they’ve been selling. The trouble comes once the builder has made them ubiquitous instead of novel and has run out of buyers for less than prime locations. Perhaps no construction yet is a sign they realize they may be getting close to that point.
We also discussed the Noah Properties homes, three of which were built in the 1800 block of West Erie and all sold within 30 days. They also built the home at 1529 W Wolfram which we discussed and that also sold quickly. I did a short blog post on these a couple of weeks ago to summarize the situation: http://www.chicagonow.com/getting-real/2011/12/new-homes-selling-fast-in-chicagos-west-town-neighborhood/
I thought it was really interesting that they all sold so quickly. These guys obviously know what they are doing.
The price of raw land tends to fluctuate a little more than the price of improved real estate. If you’re holding land that is nothing but a money pit you are more likely to just meet the market and sell it. Yet obviously we’re all aware that many people who are holding finished homes think they can “wait out” the market. This provides an opportunity for developers to buy land, build solid homes, and actually undercut the market which is being set by delusional home owners. I think this will be the case for a while (several years). So far we’ve seen it mostly in single family builders but I look for the trend to move into condo markets soon.
@Buster: So is “HardiPanel” the cinder block of the 2010s? I’m really curious about this material, because, being in the market to buy, I want to have a sense of whether to avoid or embrace it.
@shortwithhighceilings
here, I google-fu’d it for ya
http://www.fibercementsidingzone.com/information/pros-cons-hardie-siding.php
Here is the site for Hardie board: http://www.jameshardie.com/main.shtml
It sounds promising but I don’t know about installation problems. Coincidentally, the house at 1848 W Erie, mentioned above, had Hardie board. My wife didn’t like the way it looked but I was OK with it.
They’ve got another one in Noble Square at $489k: http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/743-N-Elizabeth-St-60642/home/21905887
I toured the one in the picture on Rockwell. While they are touted as LEED certified homes, there are corners being cut on finishes, which is of course to be expected, for the price. IE the stairs are raw plywood semi-covered in carpet, and the basement ceiling finish is simply a layer of paint for the first level’s floor joists.
Note that Hardie siding is not Hardie board. The siding product is long strips of the Hardie material just like traditional siding. It’s installed from the bottom up in overlapping style to prevent water penetration. The Hardie board product is laid end to end and it is more difficult to prevent water penetration without a qualified installed. I believe they use metal flashing at each junction. Hardie board is much cheaper to install nevertheless, I believe, as they just need to lay a few very large sheets instead of many thin horizontal strips.
The material itself is good stuff, either way.
This is nice for the money at about 150/sq ft. Although the same or similar house is repeated in other neighborhoods, this is a very low price for high design quality. If I was to buy this house, I would carefully check the quality and durability of the materials and workmanship, better yet, get a thorough inspection from an architect in addition to a building inspector. Materials used such as fiber cement siding do not have a long history, so maintenance could become an issue in the future. I’ve seen this material in friends’ new suburban house (simulated horizontal siding) and could already see problems with joints. Perhaps the panels are different. I have not actually seen these houses, so perhaps my concerns are misplaced.
Time will tell whether these were worth it or not. If there are leaks (and mold) then maybe not so much.
I believe they’re using Hardipanel. Same manufacturer as Hardiplank, etc. It’s just large panels instead of long traditional lap siding planks. It’s a good, durable product. But pitiful if not installed properly. I’d love it if someone who’s seen one of these houses, and is in the building trade, could comment. I looked up close at one of these houses near me, and I didn’t seen any kind of metal flashing at any of the junctions…which concerns me. Didn’t give me great confidence in the quality of construction/waterproofing. I’ll try to take a closer look.
Installaton instructions here:
http://www.jameshardie.com/pdf/install/hardiepanel-hz10.pdf
The z-flashing might not be visible from even a moderate distance, or might be covered by some sort of trim piece, but if it ain’t there, that’s a *major* failing.
My bad. Upon closer inspection, they do have the proper z flashing on the horizontal joints. So hopefully they did a nice job. Hardie isn’t used terribly widely in Chicago…and I’ve heard lots of stories about bad installation, which leads to moisture, mold, etc. When done right, it’s a nice choice.
This looks like an ugly Skokie 2-flat from the outside to me.
they’re just about done with one at Wellington & Christiana, the siding material is kinda fugmo, but it’s 1,000x nicer than the prior crapshack which was condemned by the City.
I’ve seen enough crappy old buildings, that I’m convinced new construction is the way to go. However, most of the recent new construction in Chicago has been cinder block three- and six- flats, which are butt- ugly and have lots of documented problems. Plus they take up to much of the lot, much like the photo above.
If I could afford it, I’d build a new construction ranch home made of insulated concrete form (ICF) and utilizing a ground source heat pump and solar/electric water heating. No basement, sump pumps, fireplace, furnace, or hot water heater.
“If I could afford it, I’d build a new construction ranch home made of insulated concrete form (ICF) and utilizing a ground source heat pump and solar/electric water heating.”
On a standard chicago lot? You’d have about a 1000 sf single-level house, taking up *more* of the lot than this place does (w/ ~800 sf footprint, x3).
“On a standard chicago lot?”
Pretty sure ground source heat pump requires double lot to do the drilling (due to the size of equipment). And I agree with most everything being shit out there, when I move to an SFH it’ll be one I build, ICF has been on my wish list too.
These folks:
http://www.owners.com/il/chicago/3615-n-seeley-ave/awm0900?src=odf
either did it on a single, or are misrepresenting their heating system.
You would need at least a 1/4 acre to install a ground source heat pump, and that would be for a vertical design (requiring some deep drilling). Horizontal configurations require even more space.
I definitely wouldn’t be able to do it in the city, unless in a crap neighborhood with big lots. It would have to be in a burb, and most likely an unincorporated area.
That said, ground source heat pumps are great for most new construction that has sufficient outdoor square footage. Schools with athletic fields are a good example. Even the ground beneath surface parking lots can be used.
“I definitely wouldn’t be able to do it in the city, unless in a crap neighborhood with big lots. It would have to be in a burb, and most likely an unincorporated area.”
I’d built a different sort of house, too, if I had 1/4 acre+ to play with, but that has as little to do with affordable new construction in the city as other things drawing ire on the cc today.
“either did it on a single, or are misrepresenting their heating system.”
Looks like they are on a corner, so they had enough space to maneuver the equipment. The wells don’t need much space, it’s the drilling equipment that does and apparently from what I’ve heard that’s a big issue with a standard lot where you have houses on either side.