Will 4-Bedroom Row Homes Just Under $1 Million Sell in West Lincoln Park? 1500 W. Montana
Crain’s is reporting that Belgravia is under contract on lots in the 1500 block of West Montana in West Lincoln Park.
The developer plans to build 14 four bedroom rowhomes on the properties and price them at just under $1 million each.
Belgravia Group Ltd. last week signed a contract to buy 14 vacant lots on the 1500 block of West Montana Street for about $3.6 million, or just under $260,000 per lot, says Belgravia founder David “Buzz” Ruttenberg.
The seller, a venture managed by real estate investor Robert Birkmeyer, was hit with a foreclosure suit over the lots in December by BMO Harris Bank.
Belgravia Group plans to build attached, single-family row homes on the lots, with four bedrooms, two-car garages and 45-foot private yards, pending approval from a community group, Mr. Ruttenberg said. He expects to list the homes for just under $1 million.
“We think there’s a niche play for 14 of those,” he said.
The lots had been for sale for more than two years and had been marketed individually, with a 25-foot-wide lot listed for $539,000 and a 50-foot lot offered for more than $1 million, said listing agent James Kramer of Koenig & Strey Real Living.
“It’s one of the few spots where you can get so many lots together,” Mr. Kramer said. “The location is good, but we’re working with a not-great economy.”
In the past, many of you have derided the West Lincoln Park location as not “real” Lincoln Park.
Mr. Lowe said there’s “a real market” for row homes in the neighborhood. New freestanding single-family homes in the area run from $1.4 million to $3 million or more, making row homes an attractive alternative, he said.
“People don’t mind attached housing if it gives them a yard and two-car garage,” he said.
The location, near the intersection of Fullerton and Ashland avenues, is desirable because of its proximity to Wrightwood Park, Mr. Lowe said. On the downside, the lots are “a little bit of a walk” to public transportation and retail locations, he said.
The lots were a tough sell individually because buyers don’t like to purchase without knowing what will eventually surround them, said Dusanka Verschuur, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage who was not involved with the sale but who had considered the lots for clients.
“You need a developer to buy all that because no individual is going to buy not knowing who their neighbors are going to be,” she said.
Belgravia would need a zoning change from the city to move forward with the project. The developer would then build a sales model and begin marketing the homes, building them as it sells them, Mr. Ruttenberg said.
With buyers seemingly willing to buy nearly any “new” single family home- will row houses be equally as popular despite the location?
Is this development the first sign of a housing recovery?
Row homes planned for distressed Lincoln Park lots [Crain’s Chicago Business, Mary E. Morrison, November 8, 2011]
If high quality brick construction, I think they will sell. They will actually be wider than a SFH on the same sized lot. Many of the rowhomes in LP are kind of tired so I suspect there will be a market for this. Many families who want a SFH can’t afford the taxes, but these will have a lower tax rate.
They’ll sell.
‘If high quality brick construction, I think they will sell.’
From Buzz Ruttenberg? Seriously? This is the same person who built that piece on crap @ Belden & Clark discussed here the other day. If you think you’re buying ‘quality’ in ‘west LP’ (oh God, where do I begin), then by all means buy and continue feeding Sabrina more stories about yet another failed development. It’s like watching The Real Housewives of Herman Cain… you just can’t make this stuff up.
So when it says its under contract, does that mean they have contingencies like if they cannot get the rezoning, or cannot find 14 people to buy these row houses?
Belgravia is known as a pretty solid builder, no? At least, in a condo building near me, the listings always mention that they are built by Belgravia.
Buzz must have confidence in the economy to plan something like this. Don’t know if I agree, but hope he’s right. Today’s market action certainly didn’t give me any confidence things will get better soon.
There’s certainly demand for nice, move-in ready, 4 bedroom rowhomes with two garages in LP for just under $1 million. And if the project were half as far west (i.e., around 7 or 800 W. Montana), they wouldn’t even need to have yards (just big decks).
But it seems a bit “overly optimistic” to think there’s going to be 14 would-be buyers ready to drop close to a $1 million at the proposed location. I’d venture that a few of such buyers would hold out for a place farther east (even if it’s smaller or “tired”), a few would just assume drop $1 million on a SFH in North Center/Lincoln Sq/RV, etc., and a few would just say why bother and head to the burbs. That leaves just a few buyers who don’t want to spend more than a million (and want the lower tax bill) but want a two car garage and a semblance of SFH or rowhome living, all within “Lincoln Park.”
Agreed. Maybe they won’t be too similar, but it seems that they’re going to be all pretty much the same thing. It can be difficult to sell a bunch of the same thing for competitive prices. However, that pricing sounds pretty competitive, probably due to the fact that they got the lots for pretty cheap.
There are 3 SFHs on Cullom in the first block west of Western that have been on the market for 5 years. They finally sold one, but the other two are still languishing. Same sort of thing – if there had just been a single one, they probably would have sold it a lot faster and for a better price, but having 3 (or 14) available hurts the market.
Not sure that things are as bad as some say here. In good neighborhoods things are moving quickly. A 3 condo new construction was just finished on Foster between Broadway and Clark. Two of three sold in a month.
Belgravia (a client of ours) built Tamerlane in the 26-2700 block of Greenview and other expensive rowhouses in that immediate neighborhood more than 20 years ago, and understands it very well. Tamerlane and Embassy Club townhomes have resold in this price range.
38% of the households in the Census Tract that includes this parcel had an income over $200k per 1999 American Community Survey data, making it the second most affluent tract in all of Lincoln Park.
I’ve seen my fair share of Belgravia THs that were built in the last 10 years in person (by chance, not that we sought them out), their build quality all seemed pretty solid w/o cutting a lot corners like a lot others we saw, and they do a really nice job of giving realistic assessments from the front-end, so owners don’t see a 50% jump in assessment once management is turned over to owners. Just my personal anecdotal observation.
Builders build. That’s what they do. If they’re not building then they’re not making money. So they build anywhere and anytime they can when they think they’ll make money.
These days, who knows, the 1% seems to be having a rockin’ year, so maybe they will. Hell the other day some buyer spent a mil to live on an alley.
A million is nothing – definitely NOT in the 1%, moron….
Hahah!
“Tamerlane and Embassy Club townhomes have resold in this price range.”
These aren’t as far west- although for some people they are in the middle of nowhere as well. The new development is even farther west. Both of these developments have a good track record. Embassy Club has always been marketed as being more of a “luxury” development though. People love townhouses- especially 4 bedroom ones. They don’t have the maintenance of SFH.
“Not sure that things are as bad as some say here. In good neighborhoods things are moving quickly.”
People LOVE new. They will buy something new before something older and cheaper right next door. You can’t dispute the sales figures though. They just aren’t there. And things that are selling are mainly the distress sales. I continue to see prices falling.
“But it seems a bit “overly optimistic” to think there’s going to be 14 would-be buyers ready to drop close to a $1 million at the proposed location.”
You can get a SFH just two or three blocks away for $1.2 million (list- so the sale price is probably less.)
You’re both probably a little bit right. The top 1% makes around 500k. I would guess the more frugal of them live in 1m houses.
I’m sure Buzz will build a very nice product, he understands what you need to do in this market to sell units. But the one thing he can’t control is the location, it just plain sucks! Nothing to walk to other than the park and for some reason this particular area has seen crime skyrocket unlike other parts of LP…maybe because it is just off Fullerton/Ashland so there is an easy escape rout for thieves.
If the units were in the 800-900 range I think they would fly off the shelves, but 1M may be tough.
Really? Walkscore at 1500 W Montana is 95, and “nothing to walk to other than the park”? I thought people on this site loves walking and 10min walk is “nothing” for a lot L commuters on this site. The whole webster/clybourn xsection with starbucks, barns ‘n noble, Pequod’s, Macku, Vanille patisseries are 1/5 mile away, god forbid one has to cross Fullerton.
It may be a busy location as far as vehicular traffic noise is concerned if one gets the unit closer to Ashland, but if not, Montana here is one way east which stops any traffic trying to cut over to Ashland if one attempts to bypass the semi-traffic-hellhole of Clybourn/Fullerton/Ashland, Montana also does not cross Ashland, thus no crossover traffic neither. It seems to be a pretty quiet street whenever I’m over there (I visit Wrightwood Park often).
Anyone know the story behind the weird castle/prison looking building on Montana and Greenview?
Whether $1MM is in the top 1 percent obviously depends greatly on the area. It may not be 1 percent in Chicagoland but it’s probably not way off either. Nationally I’d guess it would be.
They’re a block east, Sabrina. Do you really think that matters to buyers in this location? Have you been there?
Despite Walkscore’s infinite wisdom, I would agree that this is not an ideal location. Notice the struggle that just about every development/retail shop has near the Clybourn/Ashland/Fullerton intersection. If I were advising a buyer, I would have them look elsewhere.
For around $1M you can get a 3 bedroom new construction on Halsted (2117) and those have been sitting unsold for over a year. So, it’s presumably the 4th bedroom that may make the difference, but I would rather just get a SFH a bit farther north or across the highway in Bucktown/Logan Square.
JC, I wonder about that castle too.
“They’re a block east, Sabrina. Do you really think that matters to buyers in this location? Have you been there?”
Yes, I’ve been there. You know better than anyone Joe that a block one direction or another can make an enormous difference to a buyer. Every street, literally, has a different feel and price point. The further west you go towards Clybourn, especially on certain streets, the less attractive it gets to buyers. This location is in a nasty area right near Ashland and Fullerton. The Embassy club is further removed from that madness.
Let’s not forget that there used to be an industrial building on this site. That tells you what you need to know about the neighborhood.
But buyers want “new” – so it probably won’t matter. Buyers are snapping up the townhouses on Lakewood and Diversey even though there are nearby townhouses not on a main road for cheaper (but those are 10 or 20 years old now.)
You’re misreading the location, Sabrina.
Since you credit me with knowing “better than anyone” how much of a difference a block can make, let me repeat that it doesn’t make much difference here.
Many sites in this area were once industrial and are now luxury housing – including the Embassy Club. You don’t learn much that’s relevant to its current value from that.
High-end rowhomes are hard to find and are a great way to live in the city…not too vertical like a townhome and typically less expensive than the same size detached single family home. This location is not ideal for public transportation or enrollment in the coveted LPark public schools but they will be well built and good looking so will definitely sell out in a reasonable timeframe.
I agree 100%.
I dont think its a bad area. I have my eye on a sub-300k townhome nearby. Near to the metra & highway I’m not one of those SWPLs who lives & dies by proximity to el and this may come as a surprise to you scrub plebs but neither are people with the means to buy $1mm homes. People with real jobs drive or take metra to work, or bus if need be. Because we’re not some young 20-something paralegal or admin who earns 55k/yr and likes the hipness factor of fixed rail.
I would take a look at them. These are going to be more attractive to those who drive for their commute rather than walk or take the train, but they are only half a mile to the Clybourn Metra and slightly more to the CTA. Good bus access for those willing to slum it.
Belgravia built a condo building near me and it seems to be aging very well (~10 years old). The owners that I’ve talked to all seem happy.
I just hope they have good floor plans.
People with real jobs use CTA as well. We’re actually smarter than the rubes who pay to park downtown.
“Yes, I’ve been there.” Sabrina, or whatever your name is, then I have to ask you if you know your East from your West? I think you should wonder around West of Ashland a little to see what’s been built there, before making a false and misconceived statement about the micro-location of this site. False, because you simply got it wrong. mis-conceived, because in an area where even West of Ashland has saw an impressive luxury built-out, it wouldn’t have mattered even if you were right.
Good job on keeping your site irrelevant as always.
Thanks Joe! Love having you here. Please go away.