Vintage 3-Bedroom Lincoln Park Duplex Down Sells 1 Year Later for $24K Under 2005 Price: 1849 N. Cleveland
We last chattered about this 3-bedroom duplex down at 1849 N. Cleveland in Lincoln Park in January 2011.
See our prior chatter here.
At that time, it was listed at $749,000, which was $13,000 above the 2005 purchase price.
Many of you thought it was overpriced and would “sit” for a long time.
Lots of you thought it was too much to pay for a duplex down and that there were others in the $400k-$500k range in Lincoln Park and Lakeview that were better deals.
If you recall, the unit had crown molding and 2 fireplaces.
The kitchen was open to the living area and had granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.
2 bedrooms were on the main level and the third was in the lower level along with the family room and a wine cave.
The unit had a landscaped private patio and an assigned parking space.
The unit recently closed for just $24,000 under the 2005 purchase price at $712,000.
Karen Peterson at Coldwell Banker had the listing.
Unit #1N: 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, no square footage listed
- Sold in July 2002 for $615,000
- Sold in August 2005 for $736,000
- Originally listed in April 2010 for $779,000
- Reduced
- Was listed in January 2011 for $749,000
- Sold in April 2011 for $712,000
- Assessments of $240 a month
- Taxes of $7995
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- Parking included
- Bedroom #1: 17×12 (main level)
- Bedroom #2: 12×12 (main level)
- Bedroom #3: 11×10 (lower level)
- Family room: 25×18 (lower level)
Nobody should be surprised about this – but all the nay-sayers and doomsday people will come out now and you will see words like “knife-catcher” and “ignorant” and “bad decision” from all the CC regulars……
Congrats to the buyer and the seller.
You have to believe nice properties in prime LP will be worth the same or more in 5 years. good deal for someone who wanted the vintage LP feel but could not afford the ideal. There should always be a market for this type of LP property, as opssed to the 80’s town hmes.
Very lucky seller. Seems like a high price for a 2-bedrm unit even for Lincoln Park. Given number of Chicago’s wet basements, living space converted from basements should be a discounted “freebie”. Basement-owners have risk of at least two insurance claims per decade for flood damage, given Chicago’s turbulent summer rainstorms and frequent flooding due to storm sewer restrictor covers water back-ups.
“frequent flooding due to storm sewer restrictor covers water back-ups”
You think that Lincoln Park has over-surface basement flooding? When?
Sewer back-up, sure, but that problem is *lessened* by the restrictors (which are mostly gone on the northside, anyway). If the reno did not include overhead drains–no way to tell from limited pix.
Wonderful place congrats to the sellers,
its just to narrow for me to say hey guys come over to my new 3/4 of a million place i just bought. oh but dont drive there is no parking and please dont stand shoulder to shoulder facing east or west because noboday will be able to walk past to get to the bathroom or dining table. but still enjoy as i paid 3/4 of a million.
wow, can’t help but think that the sellers really lucked out finding someone who was actually willing to pay their inflated 2006-era asking price. can’t imagine the seller actually expected to sell at that price.
I guess this is why we still see so many people trying to list their place for sale as if it’s still 2006… if they think there’s even the slightest chance they’ll get it, maybe they’ll try, but likely to their detriment.
Indeed, Groove. Your guests would have a much easier time parking at your would-be home in Galewood.
Hope they enjoy their place for a long time. It just doesn’t look like a 700K plus place to me.
Architect….First off it is a 3 bedroom condo…I’m quite sure you do not live around this Hudson Street condo. Having lived in 2 different homes with garden/below level units within a 5 block radius of this place, I can assure you in 30 years I have not had ANY water no matter how bad the storm. I would like to see the source for the info on 2 insurance claims per decade! I think you must be a newbie if you think basements should be freebies.
I don’t understand the whole LP basement flooding thing. In all the years I’ve been in my house, I’ve never had a drop in my basement. A few years ago, a neighbor had some water in their basement only because the drain in their door well got covered with leaves, and the excess water went under the door into the basement. The only reason there was excess water was because their roof gutter drains into the door well – totally illegal in the city.
I can only think of a few houses in the neighborhood that *don’t* have a renovated basement. They’re as common as flat roofs around here (which are much more trouble than any basement issue). When I dug up the basement floor to increase the ceiling height, there was nothing but sand under the old slab. Same case under the thin layer of dirt in the parkway, and a reason I have to water it so often in the summer: the ‘soil’ never seems to hold any kind of moisture, as most of LP is nothing but one big draining sand dune.
Just out of curiousity, how many 1M to 2M homes have sold in prime LP lately? Do they move quick or linger in a buyer seller stand-off?
The price this place sold at is attests to what anonny has been saying about LP holding values much better.
“Given number of Chicago’s wet basements, living space converted from basements should be a discounted “freebie”.”
I didn’t look at this one but if it has an overhead sewer system and drain tile system with a combo sump/ejector (into the city drain, not outside), you are good to go. That is perfectly viable living space and should not be discounted at all.
In fact, there were a few posts several months back where all bedrooms in the duplex were below grade. Should it be marketed as a zero bedroom?
Jason – in the last six months, there were 17 SFHs between 1M-2M sold in the area bounded by north, diversey, and sheffield. If you push to Racine, there were an additional six or so.
To me yes. Basement is not a leaving space. It is for storage unless you are a hobbit or a vampire of course : )
“where all bedrooms in the duplex were below grade. Should it be marketed as a zero bedroom?”
“The only reason there was excess water was because their roof gutter drains into the door well – totally illegal in the city. ”
There was a 3 or 4 year stretch where the city was encouraging people to disconnect their roof drains from the sewer system. Maybe they cut it off then?
They changed their minds b/c there’s no place for the water to go when you dump it into everyone’s backyards.
Thanks Nat. I don’t see many sitting. Do they get pulled if they aren’t selling after 6 months or so?
There are combo ejector / sumps in a few of our buildings that goes straight to the city sewer. Grandfathered now I believe, and totally awesome.
This is what we paid for with the deep tunnel. We should get our $ worth.
I have never ever understood this duplex down debate. My guess is that most buyers interested in a 3-bed duplex down will be families? If that’s the case, the thinking goes: here’s a dark, quiet space the kiddos can play that isn’t in my hair or over anyone’s head.
I grew up in sprawling suburbia and as a youngster never spent more than a few minutes/day at home and above grade, nor did so at any friends’ houses. We were all relegated to the rumpus room. As a parent, it seems ideal, as a kid it was idyllic – I can’t count the things we got away with in those suburban basement dens.
BTW, I went to Spacca Napoli and the pizza was great. Thanks to those who recommended it.
“There are combo ejector / sumps in a few of our buildings that goes straight to the city sewer. Grandfathered now I believe, and totally awesome. ”
Current city code is roof drain to city sewer, sump to roof drain line, ejector to soil line, two lines combining near front of house.
Combining the ejector and the sump has some advantages (mainly in floor area and drain runs), but whether it’s the best solution depends on relative level of flows–when separate, the ejector pump is a much heavier duty pump, and (usually) cannot run efficiently on a battery back-up, where a sump can, so pump “failure” during a storm and backup flooding from the sump pit becomes a possibility.
“As a parent, it seems ideal, as a kid it was idyllic – I can’t count the things we got away with in those suburban basement dens.”
It is totally ideal. Plus on city lots without the third floor you put the 4th / 5th bedroom down there as a guest BR or for older children. You really cannot get 4 decent BRs up on a standard lot. So the quality of the below grade build out is key.
Most SFHs I see have in basement: family room / entertainment area, wet bar sometimes dishwasher, sometimes 2nd laundry, 1-2 rooms (bedroom, exercise room), walk out to backyard, mudroom, full bath, storage, utility room with mechanicals. With the walkout footprint, kids can play in yard and come inside to the family room in the basement.
That is a lot of value. On most footprints you are talking 1300 square feet, none of which is “lived in” full time.
“and (usually) cannot run efficiently on a battery back-up”
As a practical matter, if you lose power on a newer home with drain tiles, the tiles will fill up once the waterline exceeds the discharge point. The tile system will take quite a bit of water first, then water will seep against the footing once the tiles are full before you get an overflow in the sump. The bigger issue here is not with overflow but with backflow contamination in the tiles from the sewage in the pit. I think this is the reason for the code. In the unlikely event this happens, you can always flush the tiles after the fact — a pain but no more so than rodding a sewer line.
Or just get a genset and put it under the deck. Figure $2.5k for an 8kw system which is all you need to run vitals in a temporary situation. The marine cells you need for a battery backup will run you 500 or more installed and is not nearly as cool of a solution.
Unfortunately, I know a lot about generators as we have a crappy piece of the grid close to the lake. Burying the power lines was cool in 1900, not so cool 110 years later.
Jason, I have 16 $1M-$2M attached & detached closed since 11/16/10 btwn North-Diversey & LSD-Sheffield. Average market time of 197 days with a range of 7-533 days. There are currently 53 active, 3 contingent and 9 pending listings. The active listings have an average market time of 204 days with a range of 1-1033 days. There were 31 expired & cancelled listings in the past 6 months.
“backflow contamination in the tiles from the sewage in the pit. I think this is the reason for the code.”
True.
“In the unlikely event this happens, you can always flush the tiles after the fact — a pain but no more so than rodding a sewer line. ”
I’d feel comfortable (but wouldn’t, except emergency) renting equipment and rodding my lines; power flooding the drain tile, notsomuch.
Thanks G. 31 expired and 16 closed maybe another 7 soon to be…seems to be a stand-off.
Maybe all the 1.3M properties should be closer to 1m. If that is the case, maybe this should have been 600-650. LP is hard to tell because there is shadow inventory in the fact that sellers can hold…
These knife-catchers were ignorant and made a bad decision.
natural gas generators are the best
Also, if they were buying this place with a mortgage, wouldn’t they have trouble getting a loan unless they put down at least like 300k?
Even if the buyer was willing to pay 700k, surely at least the bank would be smart enough to say: no, this is a 500k place at best, maybe even less.
“Even if the buyer was willing to pay 700k, surely at least the bank would be smart enough to say: no, this is a 500k place at best, maybe even less.”
On the basis of … what? How much a bunch of people on the internet say *they* would pay for it?
ps: recorded mortgage for $569,600. 20% down.
“On the basis of … what? How much a bunch of people on the internet say *they* would pay for it?”
Of course not, I would presume it would be on the basis that they normally use. I’d be curious how ‘in flux’ that process is these days given the current market direction.
It would be interesting if, for the purposes of giving out a new loan, they would appraise a place at, say $500k, but for a comparable place that they hold, they still try to ‘hold out’ to get $700k.
I think this is best location in Chicago, think the buyers might have paid a bit too much, but who cares, they will love living in that area. I argued with people last post about how nice this area really is. You have, Wells St, Armitage, Lake, Zoo, close to downtown, across the street from a small family park, it doesn’t get any better than this.
Well shut my mouth. Ha! I thought this place would take a while to sell.
Hat to you, Flo. Even though I still do not care for Old(!) Town.