September 1, 2010 - After a lot of speculation about whether or not the second tower at Walton on the Park would be built, Chicago real estate developers Ronald Shipka Sr. and Richard Stein of Enterprise Companies have stated that they will not build the other high-rise. They are now planning on putting up a small commercial building where the second tower would have stood.

The developers also announced in a Crain’s report that they did lock in an extension for the $129.5 million construction loan. The loan had a payback date of January 2011 but that was revised to March 2011 and may be extended to September of 2012 if needed.

Enterprise Cos. has also revised their property report to state that they may rent any of the unsold condos in the 31 story high-rise. The 201 units have one to four bedrooms and are priced anywhere from the $400,000s to over $1 million. Of those 201 condos in the first and now only tower of Walton on the Park, 81 are under contract and about 22 buyers have closed, according to the article.

Because of the new rental option, two investors are suing Enterprise to get out of their sales contracts on two units. Investors and buyers often believe that a large number of rental units in a high-rise can bring down the value of the other Chicago condos in the building. The lawyer representing the two investors in this case told Crain’s that having almost 100 units in the tower convert to rentals, “Changes the entire character of the property.”

Renters interested in Walton on the Park may want to wait and see what monthly rates may be offered at this development. Or you can check the Chicago real estate listings to see what other options are available.

Technorati Tags: Walton on the Park, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate Listings

August 31, 2010 - It looks as though some Chicago real estate developers still have more confidence in the rental market than in selling market rate Chicago condos. According to a recent Crain’s article, RMK Management Corporation is planning to construct a new 44 story rental tower on 73 East Lake Street. The high-rise will have 321 units and cost around $120 to build. Locking in a construction loan is probably the biggest challenge for the developers, but if they can they expect to start work on the tower next year and finish in 2013.

Tony Rossi, who is president of RMK, is motivated by the success of the River North rental tower his company recently completed. The 21 story Parc Huron with its 221 apartments on 469 West Huron Street started welcoming renters in June and is about 60% leased at this point. According to the article, monthly rental rates at the Parc Huron are up around 5% more than the developers had estimated.

“The leasing pace has been really good,” Mr. Rossi was quoted as saying about the Parc Huron. “I don’t want to uncross my fingers, but we’re pretty happy right now.”

The Parc Huron is the first downtown Chicago rental tower to score a Gold LEED certification. Finishes on the one to three bedroom apartments include hardwood floors, floor-to-ceiling windows, 9.5 foot ceilings, stainless steel appliances, granite kitchen counter tops and bath vanity tops, wood cabinets and private balconies.

Leasing rates as advertised by RMK are listed below. You can also print off a coupon from the development site and get $100 off your first month’s rent.

1BR/1Bath/614 Sq Ft/ $1,840 - $2,295
1BR/1Bath/729 Sq Ft/ $2,130 - $2,585
1BR/1Bath/770 Sq Ft/ $2,235 - $2,690
1BR/1Bath/790 sq ft/ $2,238 - $2,715
1BR/1Bath/825 sq ft/ $2,265 - $2,720
1BR/1Bath/868 sq ft/ $2,370 - $2,825
1BR/1Bath/877 sq ft/ $2,370 - $2,850
2BR/2Bath/1,120 sq ft/ $3,055 - $3,510
2BR/2Bath/1,100 sq ft/ $2,980 - $3,435
2BR/2Bath/1,274 sq ft/ $3,115 - $3,570
2BR/2Bath/1,318 sq ft/ $3,400 - $3,855
3BR/2Bath/1,443 sq ft/ $3,605 - $4,055

If you’re looking to rent instead of buy, there are lots of Chicago Apartments available right now.

Technorati Tags: Parc Huron, Chicago Apartments, Chicago Real Estate

August 30, 2010 - Since we’ve been talking about some of the units still available and prices of Chicago lofts, we thought we’d mention another Chicago real estate development that falls into that category. The Lofts at 1800 is a 91 unit building on West Grace that still has quite a few condos left for sale. Deliveries began late last year and the last figures released by the developer The Kopley Group put the number of sales somewhere between 60% and 70%.

There are one, two and three bedroom units at the Lofts at 1800. One bedroom lofts are priced from $259,900. Two bedroom condo lofts start at $304,500. The remaining unsold duplex lofts are priced from $439,500.

There are more than 40 floorplans with either timber, concrete or duplex lofts. Kitchens come with Bosch stainless steel appliances, granite counter tops and double bowl stianless steel sinks. Baths have granite vanity tops, marble or porcelain tile and surround and Whirlpool tubs. The lofts also have a Whirlpool washer a dryer, floor-to-ceiling-windows, hardwood flooring, ceilings up to 15′ high and a balcony, terrace or patio.

Building amenities include a 24 hour doorman, fitness center and a rooftop sun deck.

The Lofts at 1800 was a runner up for the Best in Class Bruce Abrams award given yearly by the Chicago Association of Realtors this past spring. And you can compare other Chicago lofts with the ones at 1800 to find the best deals.

Technorati Tags: Lofts at 1800, Chicago Lofts, Chicago Real Estate