West Loop condo median price $460,000 in 2019

Views from the common roof deck at 728 West Jackson in West Loop (all photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty). We've started the year off spending a lot of time in the popular, red hot neighborhood.

An astounding 848 condos (attached units) sold over 2019 in the West Loop neighborhood of the Near West Side. The median price of a sold condo is about $460,000.  This puts you in solid two bedrooms, two bathrooms with a parking spot range.  890 condos sold over 2018 with a median price about $470,000.

71 condos have closed this year (January 1st to February 27th) with a median price of $415,000 so far. At the moment 175 condos are listed for sale this early spring with a median asking price of about $499,900.

We have a current renovation underway in West Loop. The one 1400 sq/ft one bedroom loft will hit the market next month.  The West Loop of my youth was know for industrial lofts and rave parties. New construction condos and top flight retail and dining are the story today.

My clients are looking for a three bedrooms unit.  Well... 167 three bedrooms units sold over 2019 with a median price of $885,000 😬

New construction condos are the real story of West loop over the past five to ten years.  Construction and prices really took off about five years ago. 

Pre- construction condos advertise "Private Elevator Residences 4&5 Bedroom + Den $1.2M to $3.3M" 

Top rate retail, services and amenities surround condos in the West Loop. I swung by the Mariano's for a ready made sandwich and quick groceries after visiting our renovation project. I had my pick of Whole Foods, Mariano's, H-Mart and various small markets all within a few blocks of my location. 

New construction officially begins on Boomer's site, Lincoln Square

The Boomer's property that sat vacant for a very long time along a growing strip of North Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Square (all photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty) 

Construction boom? The Boomer's property in Lincoln Square was demolished a couple months ago.  New construction permits have officially been issued this week for construction. Public info Chicago building permit #100851302 tells us a new six unit condo building with four garage spots and two outdoor parking spots will be built (one of the buildings to be completed on the lot). Boring! LOL

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The Boomer's site is a little more high profile due to it's location and long vacant status. There is a lot of new construction activity in terms of mixed use, small multi-unit and single family homes around the neighborhood.

Over the past 24 months along the blocks of 4800 North Lincoln to 5200 North Lincoln 31 condos have been recorded as sold on our local MLS. The median price of a closed condo is about $530,000 with the top seller closing out at $603,000. 

Conspicuous vacancies in Lincoln Park

The former Gamekeepers to the left closed in April of 2019 and Stanley's to the right closed in March 2018... both remain vacant.

I had some condo showings along North Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Park earlier this month. What sticks most from the day is the continued vacancies of former long time occupied retail spaces.  Gamekeepers and Stanley's leave the tony corner of Lincoln, Sedgwick and Armitage a ghost town. Lincoln Avenue is much quieter these days from the lake all the way to North Halsted!

The John Barleycorn space at 658 W Belden has been vacant for six years.  The building was bought in 2014 for about $4 million dollars. Children's Memorial had been closed and moved to Streeterville affecting many nearby business. The new residential development is about complete and will help make business nearby viable again.

The completion of the large Lincoln Common development on the former Children's site should set the table for more retail business opening in the vacant spaces. 

The Mrs. Green's build out at the Webster Square development opened in 2013 and closed in 2015.  The 20,000 square foot commercial space remains vacant.

The median price of a sold condo along Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Park over the past 12 months is about $305,000. The highest priced condo sale along Lincoln Avenue over the last 12 months was $1,800,000. 

Slow snowy start to Lincoln Square area spring market

My block in Lincoln Square on this snowy morning. Homes in the sub-neighborhoods of Bowmanville and Winnemac Park have been been slow to come on. Many listed homes either need renovations or have been priced over $1 million.

I have clients looking to get into a Lincoln Square house. It's been a slow start for good houses in the $850,000 to one million range. Many houses in the $900s to just over one million are re-treads from the fall and/or sitting on the market. The market does not see them as priced well. We're seeing homes bought over the last five years in Lincoln Square, Edgewater and North Center now listed just over a million dollars that will have to re-sell for less. That reality can slow things up!

While new re-sale listings have dripped on the market I've noticed a healthy dose full gut renovations and new construction homes in the works around Lincoln Square.

Mortgage interest rates are low.  However low inventory and high initial asking prices combined with another whopper national election may bode for a slow year in unit sales. Currently twenty-four houses are for sale in all of Lincoln Square with an eye opening median asking price of $925,000.  Yet the median price for a sold Lincoln Square single family home is about $715,000.   Current listed homes are priced from about $400K to $3.2M. 

Still holding out on Halsted: Lincoln Park condos tower over neighbor

I walked by 2509 N Halsted a couple weeks ago. The building is close to my old Rubloff office I worked in many years ago prior to the the two condo buildings being built. All photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty

We wrote about this building last year when the lot to the north was sold and the property torn down. At the time 2509 N Halsted in Lincoln Park was for sale asking $925,000. The frame multi-unit is now squeezed between two newer construction condo buildings. We see this dynamic occasionally around town but this example along a bustling strip is striking. North Halsted Street from West Fullerton to West Diversey is a mix of residential condos, bars, small retail, restaurants and a spattering of old frame buildings hanging on.

Photo taken in spring of 2019 before the six unit building rose to the north.

I don't see any recent sale records for 2509 N Halsted since the listing last year.  According to public records the current owners bought the property for $679,000 some time in 2013.

Downtown building preservation fight back in the news

I walk by the 42-46 East Superior buildings often. The property owner is entangled in a preservation fight. All photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty

Block Club has followed the story of beloved downtown buildings some preservationists and owners are looking to protect. Other owners object to landmark status as it will hurt their investment. I pass many of buildings in the Block Club story often. 

42 East Superior is the long time home to Sunnyside Up Breakfast and Brunch.

Selfishly, the buildings do make me happy to see. Some seem like "slam dunks" to preserve like 17 East Erie Street (below) while others are definitely grey area. An ordinance or zoning change that affects the the market value of your current property can be life changing! Baring health and safety issues should local government be able to change the status of a building owned for decades by a private owner?

17 East Erie owned by Richard Driehaus is part of a fifteen building list being considered for landmark status. The owner supports landmark status. I took this photo a couple winters ago when the courtyard was getting an overhaul.

Old Town: 633 West North Avenue's 261 apartments close to completion

633 North Avenue progress as seen last week. The large residential development is adjacent to the CTA Brown Line tracks. All photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty

We've been working in Old Town and Lincoln Park early this year.  Here's a look at another large development we were watching over a year ago. We would frequent the Macello's restaurant in the former strip mall and still come to the area often for the Menomonee Club, Lurie Children's offices, Jump Zone, work etc... The residential rental development has taken full form.

261 units are near completion at North and Larrabee in Old Town. The development goes up on the former Father and Son Plaza at 609-657 West North Avenue... also former home of Marcello's Father and Son Restaurant. I went to the restaurant often for industry breakfast events. The new development address is 633 West North Avenue, Chicago IL 60610.

Report! Old Town Treasure Island property sold late last year for $14.7M

I walked by the former Treasure Island store in tony Old Town last week.  The building was recently sold and a large multi-unit development is sure to come. All photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty

One year ago we pondered what would become of the closed and vacant Treasure Island building at 1639 N Wells Street in Old Town.  A report from the Chicago Tribune tells us the building sold rather quickly for about $14.7M (recorded in November of 2019).

Surely a large multi-unit building will be developed. Only questions will be if it is a rental or condo building and how much retail space will be included (another SoulCycle 😀).

Median price of a sold condo within a couple blocks of the Treasure Island building is an accessible $270,000. However that price will only get you a one bedroom unit with relatively high monthly assessment. Condos with two and three bedrooms sell in the $400s to $800s nearby... with proportionally high monthly assessments!

Roscoe Village single family home sales

Roscoe Village is a mix of mostly traditional style newer construction houses, small frame multi-unit apartments and a splattering of modern  house and condo construction. The modern home at the above left sold this past year for $2.7M.  All photos Eric Rojas, Broker, Kale Realty

We recently viewed a private home listing in the Roscoe Village neighborhood or North Center.  Private listings can only be viewed by brokers with access to the MLS.  Sellers list "private" for any number of reasons including seasonal considerations or they simply do not want the home listed on the million third party sites that feed from our MLS.

The neighborhood remains one of the more desirable on the North Side due to well rated schools and outstanding dining, bars and amenities. The median price of a house is nearly $1.2M over the last year. Homes considered a value under the median price sell fast! We have to be on top of all private, pre-MLS and newly listed homes on the MLS every day to give our buyers a chance.

I lived in Roscoe Village in the 90s / early 2000s. The famous kiosk marked the diverse neighborhood of those times.  The socioeconomic demographic has changed in the last 20 years. 

Sixty-two Roscoe Village single family homes closed over 2019.  The median price for a sold home was just over $1.2M. The highest priced sold home was 3310 North Leavitt for $2,700,000. The double-lot modern dream home was built in 2008. The lowest priced house sold in Roscoe Village at 3444 North Damen sold for $432,000. It was a pretty good price for the small frame home on a standard lot bought to tear down and develop a new home.

Looking back at 2015 about fifty-seven homes sold with median price just over $1,000,000.

Looking for Edgewater single family homes (and a peek at sales)

Homes along West Edgewater Avenue last weekend. Several homes are listed for sale on the block.

I was out last weekend with our buyers looking at newer construction homes in southwestern Edgewater. We're creeping through a slow January for home new listings. I tell my motivated clients to hang in there! However a couple of the open houses we went to had tons of foot traffic despite being on the market for awhile.  I've also shown my clients Pre-MLS listings and private listings that will go on the MLS (or not) next month.

Let's take a quick look at Edgewater home sales.

2019 Edgewater single family home sales 

The Edgewater Community Area recorded 64 single family home sales over 2019.  The median price of a home sale was about $700K. The highest sale was an amazing custom renovation at 1341 W Balmoral for $2,155,000.  The least expensive home sold was 6069 N Ridge for $246,000. The small three beds, one bath home on a busy traffic stretch has a long 138' lot.

Five homes closed in the month of January of 2019.  With one more day in January 2020 (a Friday), four homes have closed. Ten homes are currently under contract and I estimate maybe two will close by tomorrow before the end of the month.