We Love Authentic Lofts: 1528 S. Wabash in the South Loop
We’ve chattered about authentic lofts in Printers Row and Motor Row, but there are a smattering of other authentic loft buildings in the South Loop including the Imperial Lofts at 1528 S. Wabash.
This 2-bedroom unit has 11-foot high concrete ceilings, brick and windows in both bedrooms.
It has also been reduced by $15,000.
Elizabeth Sheeran of Ideal Location Chicago Real Estate has the listing. See more pictures here.
Unit#608: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed
- Sold in January 2004 for $268,000
- Originally listed in October 2008 for $299,900 (parking is extra)
- Reduced
- Currently listed for $284,900 (parking is $34,000 extra)
- Assessments of $412 a month (includes heat, gas and cable)
- Taxes of $3327
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- Central Air
- Bedroom #1: 14×12
- Bedroom #2: 12×11
- Living room: 14×18
- Kitchen: 14×9
Seemed like a good deal… until a look at the satellite photo revealed that the building is right next to not one, but two different sets of train tracks(south and west sides of building).
If they threw in parking and made it 280 even we’d have a realistic starting point. Assessments not too bad when you factor in the fact that heating a loft is expensive and this is on par for a regular 2br.
Hmmm train tracks kill it. Nevermind.
Another home-debtor trying to play the parking game. Another 300+k 2/2 in a not-quite-walkable-to-loop-in-winter location. Yeah, no thanks. They’ll be lucky to break even.
Why pay these types of prices here when you can buy a similar place in a more walkable River North neighborhood.
Well, the room sizes are rather large compared to the “golden River North/Lincoln Park” places that are rather loved here, so that is a plus. It does have all of my ‘must haves’ and I do love me a loft. The windows, the concrete and exposed brick are great. Nice floors and it seems, the layout. I take into consideration the vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the above mentioned ‘hoods and to me that is a huge – ….but the trains are what is pulling me away from seriously considering this unit. Currently I live very near the El and even on the 4th fl the noise is distracting…and this is with ‘soundproof windows’ and 18″ concrete walls. I wonder, do any of you know if living on the sixth floor and the distance away from the tracks would really be that much of a problem? Overall, I really do love this place! Even with the requisite kitchen appliances…what is it with ALL condos/apartments using the same SS appliances in Chicago? Just with this market GE must be making billions!!
GE ‘made’ billions (not making)…..but take a wild guess how well you think that division is doing now!
GE? LOL! At least their stock is paying the price for all these crappy pseudo-SS appliances they cranked out during the boom.
Take a regular ‘fridge and tack on some cheap steel sheets on it and walla: +10k resale value!
Looking back I can’t believe how easy it was to make money in real estate during the boom and am surprised noone tried to stop the bubble from growing.
LOL I have to proofread my posts…I am educated…really I am!!
My guess is that GE is not doing well now that Chicago has wiped out all their SS Kitchen appliances products and has left none for the rest of the country. Due to the economic downturn they cannot produce any more of those lovely appliances…I understand now…
Wow – when you say close to RR tracks, you mean it! Crickey…
Virtually everyone and every company involved in ‘real estate’ is suffering, including those companies which made SS appliances.
In semi-related news, if our financial markets are at 1997 levels, real estate should soon follow
* evil grin *
GE has a division which invests in Real Estate and Debt. They have many large portfolios and did fairly well during the boom. I believe that division has laid off half of their employees since then. Not sure how those investments are performing, but I am guessing that their debt investments are underwater and that they’ve lost a lot of equity on their asset purchases.
I live right next to this building and you can’t here the trains unless you have the window open.
Not everyone wants to live in River North and this is just close enough that you can take a 10 minute bus ride to the loop.
Well if it makes you feel any better (it doesn’t for me) GE’s lost 2/3’s of their 300 billion dollar market cap in less than a year.
On a side note AIG is asking for more money after they are going to post a 60 billion dollar QUARTER!!! loss. What the fuck!
This unit seems alright but the stuff north of Roosevelt is going for similar prices. I’d rather be in Printer’s Row.
I know that a NE corner, higher floor concrete loft with 2 walls of windows near here on the west side of Wabash has a lot of noise from the El. This one also appears to be a corner unit with windows on 2 sides. If you are sensitive to El noise, this probably isn’t the place for you.
I have heard that the E-W tracks to the south of this place will cease carrying freight as CN will switch over to their newly acquired EJ&E tracks to eliminate this route. There are still several Amtrak trains per day but they might be going away, too.
AIG is finally being truthful because that is what is in management’s best interest in order to preserve their jobs. Thats how you ascertain why ANY financial company is doing ANYthing these days: all actions are so senior management can attempt to secure their jobs. Just look at any financial firm and how they are petering out losses very slowly, asking for another bailout, then doing the same routine in a couple more months.
Don’t trust ANY of them. Remember Wachovia and ML’s huge losses AFTER they were acquired. You better believe they’d still be hiding those losses had they not been acquired!
Unfortunately our government won’t let these idiots fail! They’re keeping these senior people who earned a ton and made this mess in positions of power at taxpayer expense!
Bob, until the CDS are unwound, AIG will be kept on life support no matter what the cost. Powers that be are scared sh*tless of another lehman like event.
what a joke. monetizing credit swaps so that companies that did not monitor their counterparty risk do not have to take a hi.. let them all go out worthless and the chips fall. If you think it through it is net net zero. Making good on trillions in synthetic contracts. WTF! Only mistake is paying these things.
“what a joke.”
Sure, but you know that’s what’s going on Ze.
I have a good friend who underwrites property insurance at AIG and he says things are slow slow slow. He says he binds only a handful of small contracts per week and he spends the rest of the time surfing the internet. He makes good money there too. It seems like once a company is ‘nationalized’ the general public gives them the ‘kiss of death’ and avoids them like the plague. It is simply application of the law of unintended consequences. Watch the same happen to citi and BofA and the US car manufacturers. It’s the American consumer’s way of rejecting socialism and government ownership of business.
HD: that’s a pretty silly argument. Business mismanages itself to the brink of insolvency, their stupidity is broadcast all over the news, the government steps in and saves the company and consumers start to avoid said company. Is it because the government owns a big chunk of it? Or is it the fact that the business has demonstrated that it doesn’t know how to run itself?
This has exactly zero to do with socialism or government ownership and everything to do with people avoiding bad businesses. Whether or not the government should be involved is a completely separate topic…
“It’s the American consumer’s way of rejecting socialism and government ownership of business.”
Ze has it right. If its net zero who cares if AIG implodes. AIG needs to default like a normal company and pay out their CDS’s. If they can’t pay them out they need to default on them.
Lehman like events? Who cares. Via opposing increasing regulation on these OTC derivatives they peed in the pool now they should be forced to swim in it.
Not just avoiding bad businesses, re: AIG, but businesses whose financial position, policies etc. can change overnight by government fiat. Not a stable business partner.
It’s not silly, people see that the government takes over a company and then instead of instilling confidence it instills fear.
Business and politics don’t mix well, hence the massive selloffs of BAC, C and AIG. BAC and Citi due to rumors of nationalization and AIG because they are fucking idiots.
“If its net zero who cares if AIG implodes.”
Anyone who doesn’t want to see cascading defaults and (unhideable) insolvencies. Most thought that Lehman failing wouldn’t have huge repercussions b/c of netting. Oops.
I looked at this unit in the South Loop for several reasons: i am a student at Columbia and I needed a place where I could get a roommate. This is one of the only lofts that has two enclosed bedrooms both with windows, what a perk. I did like the unit. Was concerned about the tracks until I got in there. This unit is the furthest away from the el and I did hear the same as G about the freight train. Nice unit, but stopped looking because getting a mortgage is a NIGHTMARE!
I thought we were discussing this fab unit on the tracks here????
Is there a possibility, Mr. or Ms. Moderator/Administrator, that we can get a “General RE Discussion” section on this great forum for such Off Topic subjects? I have a hundred RE related questions and would love some educated info and guidance from the lovely posters here, but I hate to hijack a particular home’s chatter? Can that be considered?
“I looked at this unit in the South Loop for several reasons: i am a student at Columbia and I needed a place where I could get a roommate. This is one of the only lofts that has two enclosed bedrooms both with windows, what a perk. I did like the unit. Was concerned about the tracks until I got in there. This unit is the furthest away from the el and I did hear the same as G about the freight train. Nice unit, but stopped looking because getting a mortgage is a NIGHTMARE!”
Annony:
Just wondering- why do you think you need to buy property when you are a student? And how do you think you’ll pay the mortgage when you’re a student? Where does your downpayment come from – if you’re a student?
I don’t understand the incentive for someone going to school to also own real estate. You won’t be living there for long anyway.
He must think he’s gonna sell for a profit when he gets out of school. Real estate always goes up you know.
I was at my buddies place in the south loop last night, and could see this building from his balcony. I have no idea how the EL noise wouldn’t be unbearable since I can sort of faintly hear it from inside my friend’s place in a new construction about 3 blocks south and 2 blocks east. Not to mention the sparks flying off the tracks are frickin bright right there for some reason. And its REALLY noisy out on his balcony. I can only imagine having a BBQ on one of those balcony’s…. you’d need earplugs!
And LOL at the college student at columbia wanting to buy a south loop condo!
@sonies
theres a real Columbia isn’t known as a business school LOL
anonny,
Unless you’re from money I think you’re overstretching to think that you need/can afford a south loop condo. Its hard to get a mortgage with no or little income even if you have cash from student loans for your down payment.
Thats what was so crazy about the bubble, even college students felt the need to own and were given mortgage financing.
“theres a real Columbia isn’t known as a business school LOL”
Yeah my friends and I used to call Columbia “raver college”
Looks to me like a Giles Project (developer). I would not spend my money on anything they have done or are doing.