West Town views of downtown Chicago

Wow factor from my phone! This photo doesn't do this rooftop justice.

My partner Bob and I met with potential clients this evening. They are looking to sell their West Town top floor condo in the Wicker Park neighborhood just a couple blocks from the Division and Milwaukee Blue Line stop. One huge benefit to top floor units in this neighborhood is the rooftop views. It's rare to have unobstructed downtown views for under $400,000. This place has it! I had to use my Blackberry to snap the photo as I could not resist.

We had a great meeting by discussing in very straight forward terms what we felt needed to be done to prepare the condo market. This consultation ranged from pricing, painting, furniture placement and minor repairs. The owners could not have been more accommodating and we look forward to helping them meet their goals. One thing was for sure... don't change the view!

Southport Corridor Jewel progress... but how are Southport Avenue sales?

A new, "greener" Jewel goes up at the corner of Southport and Waveland.

Many residents of the Southport Corridor have been waiting for some time for the new construction Jewel Food store to be completed. This store will replace a smaller existing Jewel that was raised for this project. The neighborhood is one of the more desired and pricey in the city due to many restaurants, boutiques, schools and shopping. Although single family homes can reach up to $3,00,000, there are affordable condos as well.

With recent home sales at 4110 N Southport for $262,000 (just two blocks north of the Corridor) and 3616 N Janssen for $552,500 right in the heart of the neighborhood and in the Blaine Elementary attendance boundaries, I thought we'd take a look at home sales on North Southport Avenue itself near the new Jewel store. North Southport Avenue is a mecca for shopping and nightlife. It's a terrific stretch of the city to live.

The median price of a closed or under contract attached home (condo) on Southport from 3200 North to 3900 North Southport was a whopping $624,000! Several of these condo homes are new construction and enormous. The lower end condos that sold in the last 6 months we're two bedrooms, two bathrooms homes with garage parking and decks for $425K and $435K.

Only one single family home closed on this stretch of Southport over the last 6 months. It was a frame four bedrooms, three baths home on a standard city lot for $780,000. Not a bad price for this neighborhood. There are not many single family homes remaining on the commercial strip of Southport.

Open House: For Sale or Rent! 522 W Oakdale in East Lakeview Chicago

Open House Saturday 5/29/10 from 1PM to 4PM:

522 W Oakdale #2W, Chicago.

For Sale: $365,000

For Rent $2,000

Two beds, two baths, parking, deck, storage... like new!

Buy a home this Memorial Day holiday weekend... or rent your new pad in a top location in the City.

New Construction: Lincoln Park double lot single family home raises from the dead

This double lot new construction home caught the eye of my business partner Bob DePalma as he walked in his Lincoln Park neighborhood. He noticed the workers cutting the stone on site for what should be an distinct facade. The original specifications in 2008 on our MLS for this home on the 2300 block of North Janssen called for an 8800 square foot home listed at $4,300,000. We don't have a price on this version, but it is being built by a new developer with a different design from the drenderings in 2008.

We have been writing and talking a lot about new construction, new conversion and renovation projects we have see all over the North Side. There is definitely a buzz for those with cash and those who have owned there homes for quite a long time. Developers and home owners that sat out the the run up and slide of the last five years are now making moves in the housing market.

What's exciting to us is finding truly enjoyable housing at better prices. It's also exciting to know some of our clients can develop and renovate again.

Ravenswood Station, Sears development passes community vote 100-4

All those in favor say "Aye"! Ravenswood residents in the voting area show their cards.

The Magellan lead Ravenswood Station retail development project planned for the intersection of West Lawrence Avenue and North Ravenswood passed a community vote tonight by a count of 100-4. My wife attended the meeting for our household and voted for us... and took the photos! View the project plan from the May 3rd, 2010 meeting earlier this month.

According to Jillian, the meeting seemed much more cordial compared to the past meetings. The development team addressed several features that were brought up in the last meeting such as; more bicycle parking, full green roof, set back issues from Lawrence, stop lights, and number of parking spots, etc... Overall, the community was reported as being satisfied with the project and it was reflected in the vote.

The project now goes to committee in the City Council (pronounced "da city caahn-sill" by Chicagoans)
47th Ward Alderman Gene Schulter was quoted by my wife as saying he would have the 26 votes in the general City Council to get this passed. The time estimate for completion of the project is about 18 months. So, grocery shopping will get a bit easier around here in summer of 2012.

Read the Center Square Journal post here

See related posts and comments here

Ravenswood town homes offer value to buyers

The Ravenswood Park town home community shown here continues to be one of the best values in the Lincoln Square community area.

I've long enjoyed area of Ravenswood near Winnemac Park and the Ravenswood Metra station. There are several town home communities that will give your family room to grow in this great Chicago neighborhood.

I've watched the Lincoln Square and Ravenswood neighborhood market like a hawk over the past four years. The best home value at $400,000 or less in my opinion are the Ravenswood Park town homes. Just this past month, several have been re-sold again as people are taking advantage of low mortgage interest rates. The development built in 1999 is attractive, well run, and in a great location.

If you are interested in an alternative to condo living under $400K, please call me for this option and others.

You are HERE!

Sheffield Garden Walk and Festival in Lincoln Park: July 17-18, 2010

Visit and support one the most popular local Chicago events in Lincoln Park!

Mark your calendar for the 42nd Annual Sheffield Garden Walk & Festival on July 17-18 when more than 100 Sheffield neighborhood gardens will open for your enjoyment. The wide array of urban gardens in my neighborhood has earned Sheffield residents the title “Garden District of Chicago”.

Chicago Association of Realtors: Chicago median home prices rise

We here on this blog expected a large increase in unit sales to occur the first half of the year over 2009 (not hard to do). We also felt (and feel), pricing in top tier neighborhoods would stay pretty flat over the next 3 to 5 years.

This uptick in median price is good for sure, but I would not expect sustained gains to compound. We still think a lot of distressed homes will become a little easier to buy and this will keep pricing statistics flat. I do think think this is a sign that the most desired Chicago neighborhoods like Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Lincoln Square are stabilizing.

According to the Chicago Association of Realtors and the Chicago Sun-Times today:

"The median price of homes sold in Chicago rose 3.2 percent in April from a year earlier, the first annual increase in nearly two years, the Illinois Association of Realtors said today.

Prices also rose statewide amid soaring sales.

The median price of existing single-family homes and condominiums sold in Chicago was $225,000 last month. Sales spiked 41.1 percent to 1,985 as buyers took advantage of federal tax credits. April was the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year sales gains."

Click here to read the story

Three first-time buyer trends we've observed in 2010

We want this kitchen and we want it cheap!

1. Many first-time buyers have been using FHA loans for properties under $300,000. We see 3.5% to 5% down getting done all the time.

2. Most first-time buyers want a "finished unit" and do not want to do renovation or improvements. I think they need to be more open to this to get real value. Prices have to be real low (bottom 10% of pricing) for a first-time buyer to purchase and make material replacements in a kitchen, bath, on flooring or to make extensive mehanical repairs such as replacing HVAC.

3. Most first time-buyers (and most buyers in general) will not "low ball" or just offer what they feel is market price on an over-priced home. First time buyers are waiting for a comparable price in the lower 50% of the market before making offers. The reason is many sellers priced too high from the beginning don't have the ability to sell at market price (they owe more than the home is worth) or will not come down to true market pricing for a long time. So offering on higher priced properties and trying to negotiate is unattractive and usually the results are not good... no deal!

New construction and flips back in Chicago

An infill new construction project is poised to break ground in the Ravenswood Gardens neighborhood in Lincoln Square. This is a pricey area where new construction single family homes on a standard lot can fetch $1M-$1.5M. (Infill is the process of developing vacant or under-used parcels within existing urban areas that are already largely developed).

We've seen a lot of infill new construction, over-taken conversion projects and flip action (I hate the word flip, but people understand it) over the last few months. For the first time in almost two years, we've observed a couple successful flips in tertiary neighborhoods west of downtown where distressed houses can sell for under $100K but can be re-sold for over $300K (Irving Park, Albany Park). Are developers and investors back in?

Personally, I just met with a contractor/developer of two recent successful flips at one of my for sale listings. A lot of these guys have cash... and many are contractors who sat out the bubble and are now realizing their opportunity. While these individual contractor/developers are back in, we see bigger money flowing too in the form of infill new construction in prime city locations on the north side ratcheting up.

Better yet, I think the opportunity to buy and renovate your own personal residence is the way to go, be it a house, town home or condo. We are seeing two-flat buyer clients getting back in to convert the properties into their own single family homes. It's safe to say two-flat prices have probably come down 20% in Lincoln Square, Lakeview and Lincoln Park since 2006 peak prices. Short sales and foreclosures can be bought at higher discounts but generally have several offers and the competition is steep while outcome uncertain.