We Love Authentic Lofts: Brick and Timber at 616 W. Fulton
This 2-bedroom loft in the China Club Lofts at 616 W. Fulton is strategically located in the Fulton Market District which makes it easy to walk to work in the Loop.
A lot has happened to the area since this building was converted in 1997.
The loft has 14-foot timber ceilings and “real” (as opposed to manufactured) diagonal wood floors.
Neither of the bedrooms in this unit has windows but the kitchen has newer cherry cabinets and granite counter tops.
It also has been reduced $40,000.
Chris McComas at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #405: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1265 square feet
- Sold in June 2001 for $266,000
- Sold in June 2005 for $347,000
- Sold in May 2007 for $377,500
- Originally listed in February 2009 for $390,000
- Reduced several times
- Currently listed for $350,000 plus $30,000 for parking
- Assessments of $346 a month
- Taxes of $4174
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
at $350k, it’s 3.5%/year over the ’01 price. Pretty reasonable asking price.
But I think it’s hard to justify owning an apartment like this at this price point. Its a hefty ownership premium.
Those balconies do not go with the exterior at all. In fact the exterior reminds me of a federal post office is you change the coloring. It does have all the modern amenities most timer lofts seem to lack at least one of, though.
No windows in any of the bedrooms? This whole place just screams blah to me.
I’ve lived in that building for 6 years in one of the duplex penthouse units. This building is very well run by a board that is very proactive and fiscally conservative. The assessments have barely changed since I lived there and look like they only went up about $50 in the past 10 years.
When I lived there (3+ years ago), the neighborhood was still a little underdeveloped. I never saw the appreciation I had hoped for but it was a very convenient location — right by the green line, a quick hop onto the expressway, etc. White hen is in the bottom retail unit and a new grocery store is a block away (on Des Plaines I believe).
You can generally hear the people walk above you in these units (not true on the 6th and 7th floors) — but I think that’s typical with these style lofts.
These units all have very open floorplans. There are no doors on the bedrooms and the walls do not extend all the way.
It appears to have all the original fixtures that the builder put in (kitchen is builder upgraded). I can’t tell if this is a south or north exposure unit. Southern facing units don’t have another building directly in front of it. There is a highrise on Wayman.
I really liked living here and would love to get back into one of the units on the 6th or 7th floor if they come on market at a good price.
Oh.. and in my honest assessment… $380 for unit and parking is wayyy optimistic. Unit 510 (similar configuration) is currently pending. It was listed at 335 WITH parking. I’m assuming it’s going to close lower than that…
If the owner of this unit wants to sell, bringing their price to $325 with parking is probably right.
i currently live up the street from here and i agree w/ chitownguy that the neighborhood and location is the best. i love it.
problem is, i dont think thats enough for the pricing asked for at this place. not only $277/sqft but all w/o parking included, nor full walls (i personally NEED full walls in bedrooms). i wonder if its not a deal breaker for most people for both bedrooms not to have full walls.
shame cause im currently looking to buy and the area is great but $350k is a bit much for basically a loft studio!
I saw the Romantics at the china club a long time ago. Funny this used to be ground zero for chicago nightclubs… china club, drink, shelter and elixer all right there. and there was this odd bar called at the tracks sort of in the middle of a field overlooking the train tracks. these lofts were the first developed iirc.
bunt – those that want a condo with full height bedroom walls wont be looking at this place or any loft for that matter so i don’t think that will be a deal breaker.
No windows and partial walls in both bedrooms is going to be a deal breaker for tons of people
I live in China Club and I’ve been here for 5 years. The bedrooms can be built out for under $4K, the low assessments and bonus rooms are a big plus. 226 N Clinton is the other timber building in the area and China Club blows it away. The area has improved a lot, if it were not for the down market these units would be around $400K…still their holding their own. If you like timber lofts, you’re love China Club, if you need window’s in your bedrooms, you can go to 226 N Clinton, but you’re going to pay about $150 per month more in assessments without a bonus room.
According to http://www.chinaclublofts.com, unit 510 is a bedroom unit so you can’t think you’re getting a 2br/2ba unit at a 1br price. And I LOVE the way the building looks…but I can understand everyone has an opinion.
CH – At the Tracks was the bar before it was Elixir, now the infamous Jefferson Tap (where the 3 cops just got off for beating up three guys).
Where was Medusa’s?
Although I am pretty much ‘over’ lofts at this point, this one does seem to be and show very nice. The location is great and convenient to everything. Isn’t that about the going rate in that area? Of course if you are looking for a rental, you could go right up Des Plaines to Echelon @ K Station and pay around $2200 (?) for a nice apt with a killer view….
I am in a similar loft unit now with essentially the same layout, but this one seems to be larger while the rooms are about the same size…the wider hallway is a plus as it is usable. My master bdrm (no window either) does get a good it of light from the large windows that pours in over the kitchen cabinets so no complaint or concern there, but the bonus room is at the opposite end of the apt, so it does stay dark.
lol about the parking though…the original owner here received free heated garage parking as an incentive and asked for $3k for the privilege.
HD, Medusa’s was on Sheffield and School.
Thanks Toonces. Medusa’s was before my time and I never knew where it was.
Now, back in my day Medusa’s wasn’t the scene, although being a juice bar, it had plenty of kids, unfortunately, most of them from the North Shore.
No, the premier dance club ‘back in the day’ was (and I believe still is) was The Smart Bar, underneath The Cabaret Metro (3730 N. Clark), which exuded a much different vibe than Medusa’s, Exit’s, Neo’s, Club 950.
Alas, all gone now. And their patrons . . . worried about their 401ks & reading real estate blogs.
Medusa’s was a juice bar (no booze, filled with hs kids), right? there was one in niles too called MacGreevys.
I lived in this building about 7-8 years ago, and there’s no way in hell I’d ever recommend it to anyone. The walls are *PAPER* thin. My neighbor would sneeze in his unit, and I’d say bless you in mine. You could actually hear someone open a can of beer/soda in the next unit over. From upstairs constant dog nails and high heels, back and forth.
Basically, you have no privacy whatsoever. There may as well be half-walls between the units. If you want to get freak nasty, expect to entertain the whole floor unless you invest in a ball gag.
SKIP.
“… Exit’s, Neo’s …
Alas, all gone now.”
Admittedly, Exit is a different joint now, but I think that you must be the only one that knows Exit and Neo are both permanently closed as of May 10, 2009.
I’m getting a kick out of all the old club references! We probably rubbed elbows at the bar or on the dance floor… Yup, Neo is still there and open. I remember many an early morning breakfast at what used to be a restaurant (Medinah) at Fullerton and Clark… Exit moved over to North Ave. and has a new generation of folks going there. 950/Lucky Number is gone. Metro and Smart Bar are still there, yeah?
Neo…LOL.
Thankfully there is Raven’s next door to prevent Bob, however flawed his decision making process may be at the time (2am), from attempting to gain entry to Neo.
If only the walls could talk of that alley..
when did exit move from wells? it has been on north for at least a decade. I spent 2 consecutive NYE at Cairo (later 720 club). the password for reentry was quiche.
Actually Bob, I’m a regular at Neo, have been so for many years, and given your comments, am also glad that you stay next door at Ravens…I’m sure if the walls of the alley could talk, they’d say ‘Keep walkin’ Bob’. It is, however, occasionally fun to see the drunk ‘tourists’ that come from Ravens and elsewhere fly through the front door head first for making fun of Neo regulars. And by the way, it’s ***NEO*** folks, not Neos, not Neo’s, never been anything but Neo…giggle, giggle.
Not sure which incarnation of Medusa’s harryo went to, but I went there religiously for several years, and I have to disagree with the comment that most of the kids there were from the North Shore…Medusa’s had a very diverse young crowd from all over the city and suburbs. I believe it was a juice bar, although I was too young to drink when I went there, so I don’t remember whether they ever served alcohol or not.
Smart Bar was, and still is, a very cool club. Not sure if I would call it a ‘premier’ club…it’s too small inside to be considered in that league. However, for being located smack dab in the middle of Wrigleyville, it sure is one of the least pretentious mixed crowds around…and, they do bring in pretty good DJs.
Smart Bar, Neo, and Exit (at the North Ave. location) are still around. I believe Neo is the longest running dance club in the city at this point. Medusa’s exists in some incarnation in Elgin. The space Club 950 was in has turned into just another personality-free sports bar (as if the city didn’t have enough places to watch the Cubs on thirty TVs simultaneously)…
Exit has been on North for a long time now…I’m really not sure when it moved, but it’s gotta be at least a decade ago.
Toonces,
I’ll call Neos whatever I want, dawg. And if you think Wrigleyville is overall pretentious maybe you need some social anxiety medication or something. Okay they did just open a Rockit there, but we’ll see how long that lasts. I really hope it doesn’t as we don’t need the real pretentious RN crowd jonesing my buzz.
W’ville is about as unpretentious as you get. Unless you’re confusing pretentious with drunken frathouse tomfoolery. But thats a pretty big mix up. Stay in Neos.
Hey Bob, are you serious dawg? So you’re saying that instead of being filled with pretentious trixies and chads, they’re actually filled with fratboy morons and the like. Oh yeah, that’s a lot better…definitely changes my opinion of things.
Are you aware that the term Trixies and Chads was coined for the yupsters living in Lincoln Park? Do you think that bars in Wrigleyville are really that different from Lincoln Park? Please dude, there’s a lot of blending between the bar scenes in these two neighborhoods.
I’ll agree with you that LP/LV isn’t RN as far as the pretentiousness of the bar scene goes, but to suggest that there’s little pretentiousness in Wrigleyville (especially at the big bars) is silly.
What I was trying to point out is that the crowd going to Smart Bar doesn’t fit into either the trixie/chad nor fratboy scenes that, from what I’ve experienced, lie right in the heart of Wrigleyville.
And yes, I’ll stay at Neos, thanks. Funny how people make fun of the handful of places in the city that are unique and don’t figure into their idea of a proper bar/clientele, yet there’s like ten thousand other places they can go.
Just defending my turf, Dawg…
Sorry for the off-topic Sabrina.
I challenge you Toonces to name a bar like Tropico in Lincoln park…lol.
What is Tropico CH…not familiar.
most unpretentious spot in wrigley. makes smart bar look snobby.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/tropico-chicago
Yeah, so I looked it up too. What point are you trying to make?
bars in wrigley are different than bars in LP
CH, are you really trying to equate ONE CLUB that appears to cater mostly to spanish speaking clientele that enjoy Tejano music to the general club vibe of Wrigleyville? Tropico had four reviews on Yelp, not exactly a well-travelled hotspot of the type I was thinking of in my posts.
Neo is located in Lincoln Park, and yet is not at all representative of what the general club scene there is.
Every neighborhood is going to have its unique gems, and that is EXACTLY the point I was trying to make to Bob about Neo…in an environment of also-rans, it’s one of the few places that stands out as being unique. And yes, it is definitely not for everyone, as I’m sure is the case for your Tropico reference.
I was speaking about the scene on a more general level…not about a few particular places here or there. Dude, I lived in Wrigleyville for six years and went out a lot in that time…I’m not your casual club goer. Sorry, I just don’t see a lot of difference between the bars there and LP, but that’s just my opinion.
it was partly a joke and partly a challenge that I hoped you’d meet by pointing out a Tropico style bar in LP that I wasn’t aware of. But if you lived in wrigley for 6yrs and don’t know tropico, my hope was misplaced.
CH, I ***lived*** (past tense) in Wrigleyville for six years…haven’t lived there since mid-2006. I believe that may predate Tropico.
Dance clubs I could probably help you out with, but I’m not really familiar with places like Tropico.
fair enough.
(fyi, pretty sure tropico has been there since at least ’93)
I immediately missed Karma when it shut down.
My wife loved Karma and Shelter. She knew quite a few of the club kids, and so had some good hookups at those places…back then, Dome Room, Smart Bar, and Crobar wednesdays were my main hangouts. Sadly, a lot of the really cool big clubs (power clubs, as I call them) are now gone.
“I’ll call Neos whatever I want, dawg.”
Well, then Bob, I’ll see you at Mentos Stadium to catch the Bruins playing the Pastors this evening. We’ll have some Old Fashion beers and hope the home team scores enough points to win, dawg.
Crobar used to be a lot of fun 10 years ago. I can’t even imagine going there now!