Vintage Beauty in Lakeview: 3740 N. Lake Shore Drive
We’ve chattered about several of the large condominium and co-op building on North Lake Shore Drive.
3740 N. Lake Shore Drive is a condominium building with 62 units that was built in 1924.
This 3-bedroom unit is on the market but also has a lis pendens filed against it.
Dennis Shaffer at Baird and Warner has the listing (more pictures on his website.)
Unit #14A: 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2448 square feet
- Sold in September 2002 for $525,000
- Lis pendens filed in February 2008
- Currently listed for $725,000 (parking available but extra)
- Assessments of $1,412 a month
- Taxes of $8,579
- W/D in the unit
- No central air- window units
Quick question:
Wouldn’t a Lis pendens on a property make it a harder sale regardless of the area it’s in?
You have to be a f-ing idiot to list a property with NO CENTRAL AIR for 3/4ths of a million.
No central air, no parking, huge assessments. Yeah this is one of the most ridiculously overpriced properties I’ve seen showcased on this site in awhile. My guess is this thing is worth 450k tops (mostly due to huge assessments).
You can buy a spot (sold separately) or lease one. the condo association just built a large garage on the rear of the lot – there is ample parking to go around.
CA for this unit (space pac) would cost about $20K to install.
These units are really gorgeous – extremely gracious room sizes and nice flow. There are three large rooms facing the lake (living room, library, and dining room).
i agree assessments are kooky, but not as bad as some of the neighboring properties.
i would be very surprised to see this unit selling for less than $650K.
The units in this building compare unfavorably with other nearby vintage buildings. Units here that I viewed a few years back seemed badly lit, badly arranged, and strangely claustraphobic.
For comparison’s sake, there is a larger and more attractive unit at 3534 N Lakeshore, with a much better floorplan, that is not selling at $374K, and it’s been listed for months.
This building is also, like most vintage buildings, a maintenance horror.
You guys with a Central Air bug up your ass need to stop and think for a moment.
Window Units = lower electricity bills, better zonal climate control (assuming the central A/C isn’t zoned)
The main plus side to Central A/C as I see it is aesthetics: do the “window units” actually take up a large chunk of a window, or do they have a sleeve under the window so they don’t eat up lights and view?
Me, I’m happy with my $40/month electricity bill. I turn on the air in the room I need it, and the units are actually under the window ledge so its not unsightly. But at the same time, Central A/C is nice because obviously you can set up various timed programs, etc… but it almost never cools evenly and it uses a great deal more power than simply using a window unit on an as-needed basis. As bubbleboi points out, it is not that expensive an upgrade in the scheme of things, so it can hardly be a “deal-breaker” except for the people who aren’t actually think through their position.
“aren’t actually *thinking”
And yeah, that high assessment probably should depress the price a bit more than the seller seems to think it should.
2002 price, with reasonable inflation, would be around $610K.
Laura –
3534 and 3730/30 LSD are simply not comparable buildings. The highest sale price at 3435 in the past three years per the MLS is $405,000, versus a high at 3730/40 of $880,000. 3534 has NO parking and NO lake views. I’m not sure what the premium for a lake view is but i know that it’s substantial, as is parking, particularly in this neighborhood.
5C at 3534 is listed at $374,900. According to other C tier listings the square footage is 1,750 to 1,800 sf, versus 2,448 SF at the A tier in 3740. If you look at the room counts, 3740 has two beds plus a maid’s PLUS a LARGE libary. the unit at 3534 has no library (or equivalent room).
If you look at the listing photos you will see that the rooms are FLOODED with light – i believe there are 6 large windows overlooking the parking and lake with totally unbostructed views.
the rear units at 3740 aren’t as desirable (slightly smaller) and no lake views, but are still gracious old units.
Is it possible you’re thinking about a different building?
David the first–I’m 100% with you on window units, as are many people (I have a friend who bought a window unit for his bedroom, even though he has central air, because it costs so much to use.
On the other hand, most people DO prefer it (like in-unit W/D, parking, non-garden units), so of course, it does demand a premium. Be grateful! It means you and I get the bargains!
No, I’m thinking of 3730 and 3740. However, I viewed a smaller unit, which had three beds, two baths, the third bed and second bath meant for a live-in servant. This unit felt like about 1700 sq ft, badly arranged. At the time I looked at it, it was going cheaply (1991) for there were three special assessments on it, which are long behind it now.
The unit struck me as claustrophobic, and badly laid out, and not nearly so attractive as the units at 3530 ( same building as 3534 but on LSD and facing the lake). I also liked the architecture and millwork better at this building. But you are correct, there is no parking, which means nothing to me but is a very major thing for most people. Parking spaces are very difficult to obtain in Lakeview.
FYI on SpacePacks – I looked into a unit 3520 next door, and all the walls were facing the front of the building, and since that was the case there was no place to put in a SpacePack. SpacePacks can go in the rear of the building, and the association does permit it. Also (speaking from experience) if your unit faces LSD it’s much more desirable to have a SpacePack because there is a LOT of street noise (ambulances, etc.)