This 3-Bedroom Just Raised Its Price $100K: 250 E. Pearson in Streeterville
This 3-bedroom unit in The Pearson, at 250 E. Pearson in Streeterville, has been on and off the market since 2008.
Originally listed in November 2008 for $1.34 million it was reduced as low as $1.298 million in 2009 before being withdrawn from the market.
It was re-listed in early April 2011 for $1.25 million only to see its price raised several days later to $1.35 million.
It is now listed for $10,000 more than 2008’s list price.
The unit has south and east facing views with 2 terraces.
The kitchen has granite counter tops and black appliances.
There are hardwood floors.
The unit is listed $225,000 over the 2003 purchase price.
Will this unit sell for more than the 2003 purchase price (which is when it was new construction)?
Chezi Rafaeli at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #2705: 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, 2017 square feet
- Sold in October 2003 for $1.125 million
- Originally listed in November 2008 for $1.34 million
- Reduced to $1.298 million by September 2009
- Withdrawn
- Re-listed in April 2011 for $1.25 million
- Raised
- Currently listed at $1.35 million (parking is extra)
- Assessments aren’t listed but Unit #2606 with 1900 square feet pays $946 a month
- Taxes of $13166
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- Parking is extra
- Bedroom #1: 13×12
- Bedroom #2: 11×12
- Bedroom #3: 11×12
Nice view of the helipad at the new (Lurie)Children’s Memorial Hospital and the sirens of the medical campus. This is one unit that definately needs to be staged if they would like something close to the asking price. Again the finishes are mundane to low end and the furniture is abysmal. Closer to 350-375 per square foot is the highest I would go- it simply isn’t prime and needs work.
Meh.
Oh my, definitely not decorated like a million dollar apartment. And the kitchen looks like rental quality!
But- killer views! That said, that kind of railing on the balcony is terrible, if a buyer has kids that would be a huge deterrent… kids love to climb those horizontal bars.
The location is great (across the street from the park/track/tennis courts, CMA, etc) however, I agree that the unit needs to be elegantly staged and the appliances need to be upgraded.
Dumb move raising the price….Good luck to you, sellers!
Good view, good light (corner) but the finishes are not better than an apartment. This buyer was banking on location. In my opinion, the neighborhood is okay but actually getting worse. The new hospitals (Prentice and Children’s) only add to the noise, tourists, vistitors. There are so many institutional buildings (hospitals, northwestern, U of C) and hotels, I would think that it would be hard to feel like a real neighborhood where you get to know your neighbor.
I would not worry about the balcony. Its not really that large so I don’t think you will spend that much time on it. Plus, most downtown families are moving west a bit due to the fact that lots of kids activities are near the new Whole Foods (North Ave/Kingsbury) and many of the buildings in RN have kids group activities in their buildings as well as strong parent group that meets in Erie Park. If you go a little west in RN, especially by the River and Erie Park, you get more sf for the dollar (better for families), more kids in the neighborhood, kids amenities (kingsbury and East Bank) and still get the Ogden School.
Probably just me, but I don’t get the price on this one. If it were West of Michigan, the price would be what, maybe $750 to $800k? Is a view of the Lake really worth around $500k?
For 1.3mil, i guess the price is for the “potential”.
as i guess in 1991 that bath a kitchen were state-of-the-art and over mount sinks were all the rage. And i know when i rented i dreamed of cabinets that would line up perfectly like these.
so what has been the 3 year selling strategy? is it use the motto “we need more cow bell, more cowbell”?
So let’s see… I can’t sell, so maybe I should RAISE the price…
?????
The only time I could see raising a price in this market is if you go under contract immediately and then it falls through, which would indicate you can get more than your original asking.
I ditto Ed’s comments verbatim.
I love its location and it does have a million-dollar view. But that is pretty much it. The kitchen is tiny and has low end GE appliances.
The building does not have a pool, but has a very large gym. But gym semms to be under ground, has no windows and smells very bad. I would never work out there.
I am not willing to pay a premium for this one.
I commend the seller for the years of diligent dumpster diving it took to furnish this place. You try to get a matching cornflower blue 1980s couch and loveseat! Not easy. I think they should raise the price even higher!
“as i guess in 1991 that bath a kitchen were state-of-the-art and over mount sinks were all the rage. And i know when i rented i dreamed of cabinets that would line up perfectly like these.”
Except this building was built in 2003 (not 1991.)
On the positive side, the building is very well run and has a strict 10% rental cap in place and 5 units (or less as you get higher) per floor.
“Plus, most downtown families are moving west a bit due to the fact that lots of kids activities are near the new Whole Foods (North Ave/Kingsbury)”
Yeah, the kiddos can climb the poles at V.I.P.s.
And the teens can sprint over to Weed Street to try to score some Bolivian marching powder the second you leave to go out on the weekends.
I think it’s easy to see past the decor, it doesn’t need “staging” to sell. The bathroom sinks and the kitchen appliances can be very easily replaced. This place is a commodity, a nice one, and it shouldn’t be that hard to look at all the higher end neighborhood comps and come up with a price psf and apply it here. Nice light filled unit.
““as i guess in 1991 that bath a kitchen were state-of-the-art and over mount sinks were all the rage. And i know when i rented i dreamed of cabinets that would line up perfectly like these.”
Except this building was built in 2003 (not 1991.)”
now that makes the listing and my post that much more Hilarious. (when saying “hilarious” please say it in the way Balki Bartokomous would say it)
I agree. cookie cutter unit. Pretty blah. $699,999.
“#Dan on April 15th, 2011 at 7:58 am
I think it’s easy to see past the decor, it doesn’t need “staging” to sell. The bathroom sinks and the kitchen appliances can be very easily replaced. This place is a commodity, a nice one, and it shouldn’t be that hard to look at all the higher end neighborhood comps and come up with a price psf and apply it here. Nice light filled unit.”
I don’t see any reason why the sellers should get MORE than the 2003 price.
annual inflation is at 3.25%
http://bpp.mit.edu/daily-price-indexes/?country=USA
that would explain the 100k price increase!
buy this now and sell it for another 100k next year! easy money!
The strange pricing “strategy” would turn me off to dealing with these sellers. I don’t like feeling as though I’m getting scammed when I am making a large purchase. There is nothing particularly special about this unit that could make up for having to deal with idiot sellers.
“the appliances need to be upgraded.”
What would you suggest they put in that would not require reconfiguring cabinets? White? Carbon fiber? Because I keep hearing that stainless steel is far to prole and passe to be anything but a negative at this sort of price point.
^^^
Iridium
How can a view like that be “cookie cutter”????!!!
Yes…at this price point you expect more bells and whistles. But for people who want this sort of thing…its not bad. Many may not mind updating it for a slightly lower price.
Actually Sonies, depending on who you listen to, inflation could be closer to 10%!
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Inflation-Actually-Near-10-cnbc-357695506.html?x=0
Hey CC peanut gallery what do you think of this:
http://www.trulia.com/property/map/3046707932-42-Edison-Dr-Montauk-NY-11954
Montauk, LI 4 bedroom 3.5 bath constructed in 2004 with an ask price of…250k?! What is wrong with this property? I can’t figure out.
Ohhhh HAHA it’s actually 2.25MM!
http://www.frontdoor.com/listing/168018-3YD-MLSLINY-2378436/42-Edison-Drive-Montauk-NY-11954
Trulia is funny.
trulia and zillow are essentially useless, I have no idea why anyone would use them
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4royOLtvmQ
“trulia and zillow are essentially useless”
It was useful to me. For a good 10mins I thought I was going to move to Montauk and live in that house.
haha you’d be a perfect fit on long island
There’s nothing wrong with this place that $50k or so of cosmetic work couldn’t fix, but it’s hard to see this over a million.
Or there’s this place for $4,500
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/1300-W-Fletcher-St-60657/home/12771123
Do you think they take Amex?
It looks like most every other high rise apartment. Simple construction, open floor plan, no crown moldings or fancy woodwork, looks very simple. You could put these interior pics (no window shots) side by side with interior pics from a cinderblock three flat on Damen Ave and have a difficult time distinguishing between the two.
“#cominghome38 on April 15th, 2011 at 8:32 am
How can a view like that be “cookie cutter”????!!!
Yes…at this price point you expect more bells and whistles. But for people who want this sort of thing…its not bad. Many may not mind updating it for a slightly lower price.”
Does anyone remember the sales center for the Pinnacle, it was in the now-closed Japanese restuarant in RN? Well, they had fully built-out models of kitchens, with fake windows (high-quality photos) of skyline/lake views which were backlit. Someone could just reconstruct the views from here on the Damen mccrapbox instead!
“It looks like most every other high rise apartment. Simple construction, open floor plan, no crown moldings or fancy woodwork, looks very simple. You could put these interior pics (no window shots) side by side with interior pics from a cinderblock three flat on Damen Ave and have a difficult time distinguishing between the two.”
“It looks like most every other high rise apartment. Simple construction, open floor plan, no crown moldings or fancy woodwork, looks very simple. You could put these interior pics (no window shots) side by side with interior pics from a cinderblock three flat on Damen Ave and have a difficult time distinguishing between the two. ”
I agree. BUT…this place is all about the views! You cant get that on Damen Ave. That being said…I do think its overpriced. I dont see anyone paying over $1M for this. But $699K is an insult to the sellers.
How is this an insult to the sellers? I have low valuations, they have high valuations; I don’t feel insulted when sellers have ridiculous asking prices, why should sellers feel insulted when buyers have ridiculously lower bidding prices? I knew understood the insulted feeling when it comes to RE valuation.
“I agree. BUT…this place is all about the views! You cant get that on Damen Ave. That being said…I do think its overpriced. I dont see anyone paying over $1M for this. But $699K is an insult to the sellers.”
EPIC FAIL. I wouldnt even pay $699k for this
the tourists on this block arent super bad. hospital/mca arent big draws. but you go west to mich avenue and it’s a cattle call. also, all the eateries nearby are priced for tourists except chestnut cafe and it closes at 2.
NU used to have a dorm on mich and chestnut with a nice gym. pickup hoops available at most times. when they shut that down a big part of the areas appeal to me was lost. but i suspect it had little impact on this units value. lulz
correction, lsd and chestnut
‘Someone could just reconstruct the views from here on the Damen mccrapbox instead’
But why? Someone obviously bought the place with kitchen and bath looking as it does, so why should the architect and developer strive for anything more than *common* when this is what sells? Had the public demand for true quality/scale/proportion been there all along, places like this would have never been built, as there would be no market for *expensive* crap. Why spend the time studying music when you f’ing rock at guitar hero?
Someone made a comment on another post that white kitchens were so 90’s… tell that to Christopher Peacock http://www.peacockcabinetry.com/ where handmade, hand painted *white* classic kitchens will set you back 6 figures, and a years worth of waiting; every Park Ave/ELSD apartment floor has one or two. I have a friend in LA who bought a $1.8mm bland 60’s ranch house with Ikea kitchen cabinets. I said that for that price you should expect Bulthaup http://www.en.bulthaup.com/ because after all, that’s what Ikea knocks off.
This place (and other kitchen conversations) is yet another example of what easy money and overnight fortunes leave behind: bad imitations that *never* age well. Hell, even the idea of a condo (like this) was to offer the masses an opportunity to buy their modest rental when a co-op was out of their reach… the Big Mac dressed up as a tenderloin, and it sold. Why bother with anything better?
“$699K is an insult to the sellers.”
Do you also feel that short selling a stock is an insult to the company and its management?
“I never understood the insulted feeling when it comes to RE valuation.”
I agree! As a seller last year, I would much rather have received a lowball offer early on than to have to read minds of buyers and play games with price reductions. As a buyer this year, it feels like there’s an unwritten law that I shouldn’t make an offer until the list gets to within 4-8% of what I’m willing to pay.
This kind of thinking, which I think is perpetuated by many RE agents btw, contributes to stagnation of the market.
“This kind of thinking, which I think is perpetuated by many RE agents btw, ”
Maybe perpetuated via them not wanting to bring sellers to reality. But even before the bust I had a prof who with wifey liked to put in lowball offers on properties (think clio but not as annoying). He also taught a behavioral finance course.
He was adamant that many sellers would indeed get insulted by his offers. He’d try to explain to them that it needn’t be emotional at all. But I guess a lot of Americans have their self-worth intertwined with their net worth and take offense when someone doesn’t place as high of a value on their property (usually biggest component of net worth) as they do.
“Do you also feel that short selling a stock is an insult to the company and its management?”
If the sellers are in a “crisis”…you take the best you can get at that moment. But if they can wait…I think its worth closer to the $1M.
BUT…This place will benefit greatly from the sellers putting some money into it…upgrades…staging, etc…
“I agree! As a seller last year, I would much rather have received a lowball offer early on than to have to read minds of buyers and play games with price reductions. As a buyer this year, it feels like there’s an unwritten law that I shouldn’t make an offer until the list gets to within 4-8% of what I’m willing to pay.
This kind of thinking, which I think is perpetuated by many RE agents btw, contributes to stagnation of the market.”
Theres low balling….Then there is insulting.
An offer $400K off the asking price is beyond low-balling.
Also, many of my friends are taking a bath on the “cookie-cutter” 2bed/2bath. I understand that.
But those views are not cookie cutter. IMO!
“An offer $400K off the asking price is beyond low-balling. ”
Even you think that it’s only worth “close to” $1mm, and $400k off ask is $950k–so there’s only a marginal diff b/t what you think it’s worth and what you think would be an insulting offer.
That said, $699k is an offer that wouldn’t make it past the realtor, anyway, even if they *are* desperate.
“That said, $699k is an offer that wouldn’t make it past the realtor, anyway, even if they *are* desperate.”
Aren’t realtors required to present all offers? As a seller, I would like to see all offers- and offer usually means the person is interested. Even a low-ball offer can be salvaged (contract sale, owner financing, lease/option, etc.). I personally would be pissed off if my realtor didn’t tell me about every person that calls about one of my properties or makes an offer. I have taken it from there and personally called each person that sees one of my properties. Sure that could be creepy to some, but it has worked out well for me
“Even you think that it’s only worth “close to” $1mm, and $400k off ask is $950k–so there’s only a marginal diff b/t what you think it’s worth and what you think would be an insulting offer.”
Oops….
I meant $400K off of what the sellers paid 8 years ago. I misread the info. Anyway…
$699K is an insult any way you look at it.
i think making an offer, even a low ball one, is doing the seller a favor. At least he should realize for how much others would care, putting emotions aside. If you cannot sell in a reasonable time frame, there is only one reason, high price. Cetaintly waiting may work, if someone who really cares for your house may show up eventually in your life time…
“If you cannot sell in a reasonable time frame, there is only one reason, high price”
Not true – there are many reasons:
1. Staging
2. Cleanliness
3. Marketing – consumer awareness
4. inability to get a mortgage (which can be overcome by contract sale, owner financing, lease/option, etc.)
5. updating (50-100k in almost any house can REALLY make a difference – and when you are dealing with places that are 750k+ – this makes sense.
I agree with Jack, knowing what people are trying to lowball you with is helpful. It gives you a little more of a reality check than your agent may be giving you.
does anyone have a link to the contract form that is most commonly used, so it can be printed out and ready to go?
Clio, maybe you are right. But I would buy any property I like at the right price. I can clean it or remodel it if the price concession makes sense. Maybe not every one is willing to do so. It is not an efficient or liquid market anyway.
#”5. updating (50-100k in almost any house can REALLY make a difference – and when you are dealing with places that are 750k+ – this makes sense.”
Here’s a question; what if you own a *modest* home, say in the $200-250k range. How much updating in $$ should/could you do, if the home is not considered a teardown? If we take a third of clio’s number, it would mean $17-33k in upgrades?
” I can clean it or remodel it if the price concession makes sense. ”
You may be able to look past the dirt, etc. but 99% of the people out there can’t.
You can’t say that any particular amount (like $400k) or % is an unreasonable lowball. If the sellers overpaid in 2003 (say, paid $1.3 mil when they should have paid $1.1 mil) and the neighborhhod has taken a big hit (say, a similar property is going for ~$900,000 now), and they’re asking $1.3 mil, $900,000 (69% of list) is not unreasonable.
As to Clio’s factors, all are offsets to price. By taking care of those things you should get a higher price (maybe not always though), but like Jack is saying, any property in any condition is going to have its price.
The big mistake sellers make is being too attached to the $ they put into a property. The big mistake buyers make is making incorrect comparisons (i.e., distressed properties, dissimilar neighborhoods, using indices in isolation).
I’m not a fan of it…but its probably worth 1 million given the views and location. The remodel would not be that costly if you don’t relocate anything. They should do a high end kitchen with italian cabinets (Arclinea, Verenna, etc…) and top of the line appliances….this will probably cost 50-60K. Retiling the baths might also help. Either way its worth more than 699. I think everyone is focused on the penthouse on Erie street and those are one a million deals…they don’t set the market because there aren’t enough of them for buyers to realistically think they will get that great of deal.
The 1M price tag is for a nice property with great views. Views are great here but the niceness is MIA. I think upgrading the kitchen, bath, and some other features to the 1M level will require 100-200K. So either the seller has to factor that into the price or wait for a long time.
The last ’05 unit that shows as having sold is 2005 for $1.3. But nothing in the building has sold for over $500 psf since 2008. So, especially with the issues noted, I just don’t see how it moves at more than $1.05mm.
Here are the 9 sales in the last year with prior sale amounts, followed by the 05 tier sales histories.
2802 3/16/2011 $730,000 10/20/2003 $639,000
2002 2/28/2011 $695,000 9/14/2003 $567,000
2106 12/13/2010 $910,000 6/8/2006 $860,000
1104 11/19/2010 $431,000 11/26/2007 $510,000 7/13/2003 $399,000
2901 10/19/2010 $730,000 10/16/2003 $780,000
1403 10/5/2010 $835,000 7/28/2003 $889,000
2701 9/2/2010 $750,000 10/21/2003 $799,000
2301 8/18/2010 $740,000 7/1/2005 $720,000 9/22/2003 $724,000
1506 5/18/2010 $640,000 5/10/2006 $669,000 11/18/2004 $604,000
1805 2/7/2008 $1,225,000 9/17/2003 $769,000
1905 9/10/2003 $1,130,000
2005 11/5/2008 $1,300,000 9/25/2003 $891,000
2105 3/2/2004 $1,037,000 9/30/2003 $894,000
2205 9/22/2003 $897,000
2305 6/21/2005 $1,340,000 10/21/2003 $870,000
2405 12/31/2003 $1,050,000 9/29/2003 $873,000
2505 2/23/2004 $1,150,000 10/1/2003 $1,037,000
2605 11/28/2003 $1,038,000
2805 11/3/2003 $1,180,000
2905 1/31/2005 $1,175,000 10/16/2003 $1,038,000
3005 3/5/2004 $1,200,000 11/3/2003 $1,062,000
3105 10/23/2003 $1,185,000 10/22/2003 $907,000
3205 11/25/2003 $924,000
3305 12/7/2003 $934,000
3405 11/21/2003 $939,000
BTW, I have a somewhat irrelevant question. How can someone with a million plus home have such terrible cheap looking furniture and beddings?
@miumiu,
Wow, seriously my eyes are burning. That knockoff Platner dining table with those knockoff Navy chairs. Yikes. Even if they were real, that is a terrible combination. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. The furniture is so awful I have a hard time believing that this is just staging. I think this has to be someone’s personal taste.
“I think this has to be someone’s personal taste.”
I think it’s as likely someone’s house poor reality.
Telling people that they shouldn’t feel insulted by lowball offers (or high listing prices for that matter) isn’t going to make them feel any differently. Yes, selling a home is a financial transaction. But unless you’re selling or buying as an RE investor, you’re selling your dwelling to someone who’s going to make it their dwelling. That’s personal, especially if you’ve done any upgrading or customizing (which presumably, reflects your personal taste). It’s not the same as shorting stock in a public company, or even selling your car.
So here’s a question: how often does lowballing work? Has anyone done a study that looks at the outcomes of initial offers that come in at say less than 85% of asking? Some of the time, I imagine it shuts the transaction down before it ever starts (the seller’s agent politely tells the buyer-offeror that it seems like they must be “looking for something in a different price range and good luck with that”). Other times, it gets the ball rolling on negotiation but maybe the seller now has a bad feeling about the buyer and isn’t as flexible as he would be otherwise so the parties don’t get to an agreement.
And here’s the question that really interests me but is tough to answer: assuming the lowball offer results in a closing, what value is there in reasonably good feeling between the parties to a RE transaction and does an initial lowball kill that value?
K –
those are excellent points and questions.
in my experience, (and I am talking about investment real estate), low ball offers (offers less than 15% of asking) are welcome – I talk to the people and, in about 20-30% of the cases we actually get to a sale.
also in my experience, the value of a good relationship is absolutely key. if the seller feels like he is being screwed, he will be unlikely to give any concessions to the buyer. However, if the relationship is good, many concessions can be made (move in date, fixing some things found in the inspection, leaving patio furniture, drapes, etc.) –
A terrible but true story about one of my neighbors in Hinsdale: they sold their house in a very bitter back-and-forth negotiation with the buyers. The sellers wanted the buyers to pay extra for the 20k custom living room drapes. The buyers didn’t budge (because they knew the drapes were custom and couldn’t be used by anyone else in any other home) – so the sellers (they were total assholes) actually tore and cut up the drapes in front of the buyers!!!! It was really awful and still makes me cringe to this day (even though I wasn’t involved).
“in my experience, (and I am talking about investment real estate), low ball offers (offers less than 15% of asking) are welcome – I talk to the people and, in about 20-30% of the cases we actually get to a sale.”
That’s interesting, Clio – I wonder if that’s partly because you’re presenting as an investor. Personally, it wouldn’t bother me at all to get a lowball offer from an RE investor because that’s truly just business. But lowball from someone who’s going to move in and live where I’ve been living, enjoying whatever improvements I made to the place, feels different.
“also in my experience, the value of a good relationship is absolutely key. if the seller feels like he is being screwed, he will be unlikely to give any concessions to the buyer. However, if the relationship is good, many concessions can be made (move in date, fixing some things found in the inspection, leaving patio furniture, drapes, etc.)”
Yes, that’s what I’m thinking. I know it’s hard to quantify some of those things, but I’ve seen cooperative transactions and I’ve seen uncooperative and cooperative is a whole lot better. I imagine when feelings are running bad, you get sellers honoring the letter but not the spirit of the contract or you just miss out on the opportunity for free furniture/drapes/etc. or free advice on things you don’t even know you should know about. I can think of a number of ways I could be helpful to someone who buys my place if I feel good about them… or not.
Can you even call this new construction? Not really. This is a wanna be. OK location. Good views, not GREAT. Cheap developer finishes. Single tile tub surround. Overmount sinks, with cheap euro style type facuts. A balcony that is worthless, you can not even fit a grill out there. Looks like stright “blonde” oak floors, yuck. The kitchen is a joke. 3/4″ countertops. Cheap HD cabines. Although they did upgrade the appliances to Black. Not one can light in the whole apartment, only cheap track lights. I know that you can find this exact apartment for under $800K.
Did you notice that the price does NOT include parking???