February 28, 2008 – For those who bought a unit at Motor Row Lofts, the construction finish line is in sight and first deliveries are pretty much on target for this spring. Motor Row Development Corporation scored a triple play of sorts with the conversion of these three classic buildings. Not only are they architecturally unique, they occupy a great South Loop location on Michigan Avenue and buyers will receive a substantial tax break because the buildings are part of the Motor Row Historic District.

Anyone who bought one of the lofts will qualify for an eight year property tax assessment freeze and may also be able to get a three to four year partial freeze after that. The Motor Row Lofts development was featured in the February edition of New Homes Magazine and a representative of Koenig and Strey GMAC confirmed that the tax break has proven to be a big incentive for buyers.

You could call these units the Cadillac of lofts since the largest of the three buildings once housed a showroom for that particular automobile. There are a total of 52 lofts and 36 different floorplans, so there isn’t much repetition in this development. The lofts vary in layout from one bedroom and one bath to three bedrooms and two and a half baths. Dens are optional. Ceiling heights of 13 to 21 feet, 12 foot high windows with low E glass, a choice of bamboo, maple or oak flooring, KitchenAid appliances, lots of exposed brick and timber plus 2 Otis high speed elevators are just a few of the features that make Motor Row Lofts one of the best additions to the Chicago Condo Lofts inventory this year.

[tags]Motor Row Lofts, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 27, 2008 – Chicago developer Terrapin Properties LLC received some free press from the Sun Times today, but not the kind any developer wants. The article disclosed that due to an unusual foreclosure suit filed by Indymac Bank over a project in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Terrapin could possibly lose control over their other developments in Chicago and other states. The loan in dispute is for over $13 million, but because Terrapin’s executives personally guaranteed the loan, resolution in Indymac’s favor may mean the bank can lay claim to some of the debtor’s other projects and force the dissolution of the company.

Terrapin is still marketing apartment units in their 545 N Dearborn tower conversion as well as condos left in Madison 901. But the biggest backlash may come over the fate of Burnham Pointe, their newest project on 710 S Clark Street. The development is under construction and will contain 298 condos, which according to the article are more than 50 percent sold. First occupancies had been expected to occur sometime in the spring of this year.

The article also went on to claim an unnamed source told them Terrapin’s executives were attempting to convince their lenders to give them more time and that they had a prospective buyer who was willing to take over the Burnham Pointe project. Apparently that claim was not substantiated either, and other sources expressed some doubt as to the validity.

Until any more information becomes available, the best course of action for anyone who bought into one of these projects is to try and contact the developer. News like this may make some buyers of Pre Construction Condos in Chicago check out the financial stability of the developer before purchasing a unit.

[tags]Burnham Pointe, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 26, 2008 – If you want a better than average sneak peek at what condo life at 1720 S Michigan is like, you can tour 15 furnished models that developer CMK Companies has opened. The high-rise still has between 50 and 60 units left for sale, according to figures reported in a recent Yo Chicago article. CMK is hoping that the large selection of models will convince potential buyers that there is a perfect space for them at 1720 and move those final condos into the sold category.

The 33 story tower has a total of 498 units and was designed by architectural firm Brininstool and Lynch. The residences have the expected luxury details like select hardwood flooring, plush carpeting, European style kitchens and baths, expansive floor to ceiling windows and lofty 10 foot high ceilings. A one bed and bath condo will run from the very low $200,000 mark and a three bedroom, two bath layout is priced from the low to mid $400,000 and up.

Building features include indoor parking as well as roof top parking, a luxuriously detailed lobby, 24 hour doorman, dog run, landscaped garden area and bike storage room. The lower level of the tower will contain retail space in excess of 8,000 square feet and a restaurant is also in the works.

With 15 models to visit, a prospective buyer should be able to find one that feels comfortable and imagine how life would be like in these Chicago Condos.

[tags]1720 S Michigan, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 25, 2008 – The hotel condos at Trump Tower only began closings a few weeks ago, but the Chicago Tribune reported today that the first independent resale of a unit has taken place. With a good percentage of new developments closing on contracts, there are units that immediately come up for resale and sometimes sit on the market for weeks if not months. The fact that this first available secondary market hotel condo at Trump’s was grabbed so quickly may well be a good sign for investors who bought units there with the sole intention of selling.

According to the article, the unit that was resold is a studio on floor 21 with 607 square feet. It has exposures on the east, west and north, but parking isn’t included. It is however one of the lucrative residences in the hotel condo rental rotation, which means that the owner will receive an income from the unit if they put it in the pool. Whomever stays in the residence also has rights to use the in-unit kitchen and access to all of the Trump Hotel services.

In the Tribune article it stated that the brother and sister team of investors that sold this unit also own two others. They listed the asking price at $1,025,000 but accepted $890,000 and still claim to have made a profit. They listed the unit with an agent on February 15th but located a buyer themselves and closed the deal by the 21st. According to advertised prices, Trump is selling similar units from the low $800,000s and up. For those of you who want to Sell your Chicago Condo, all you need is a great building, location, good timing and maybe a bit of luck.

[tags]Trump Tower, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 23, 2008 – Avenue East began first deliveries last fall but a few statistics about the development have surfaced lately and are interesting to note. Last week the Sun Times mentioned that 101 condo closings took place in 75 days at Avenue East. Chicago Agent Magazine had a similar story, stating that those numbers were part of a record year for sales for developer Residential Homes of America. They describe the 160 E Illinois tower as “a 27-story pet-friendly luxury condominium building with 133 total homes.”

Most of the remaining units left for sale are located on the 9th through 23rd floors and are two bedroom or two bedroom plus den plans. These units are dubbed either Avenue homes which run 1,390 to 1,716 square feet or Tower homes that are 1,100 to 1,716 square feet in size. They range anywhere from the high $300,000s to $900,000s. Parking is an additional $50,000. If you check around a little though, there are quite a few units for sale by buyers, including one bedroom condos. A few unconfirmed reports even put the number of potential ‘flips’ in the building as high as 40 percent.

The condos have the standard luxury finishes, including GE appliances and marble baths with soaking tubs. Building amenities include a 6,000 square foot multiple level green roof and the Avenue Club, which contains a fitness center, surround sound theater and catering kitchen. But what may be the most attractive feature of the development is the location. It sits practically on Michigan Avenue and is close to Navy Pier, Lake Michigan, Grant and Millennium Parks. That alone is a big selling point for these Chicago Condos in Streeterville.

[tags]Avenue East, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 22, 2008 – Draper and Kramer’s proposed Lake Meadows redevelopment that we posted about back in mid January is back in the news again. It seems the project received a less than enthusiastic response from the residents who packed a local church to listen to a presentation from the developer last Tuesday night, according to a Crain’s report.

Even if approved, the development wouldn’t begin construction for at least 3 years and would probably take 20 to complete. It would involve first tearing down the Lake Meadows Shopping Center to make way for a new retail complex that would consist of lower level shops with low-rise condos or apartments on top. All of the area’s more than 1,800 current apartments would be torn down and eventually replaced with around 2,000 new apartments and about 5,845 condos and townhomes. D&K intends to build a combination of several low-rise building plus four high-rises, and join the complex to a nearby 15 acre park by way of a new bridge.

Current residents fear they will be pushed out of Lake Meadows permanently and not be able to afford new housing there, despite D&K assurances that they would be given first choice of renting there as well as have a selection of senior housing at what they termed affordable pricing. Interestingly, D&K was the original developer of Lake Meadows more than 50 years ago, building many of the Chicago Apartments that are still there today.

[tags]Lake Meadows, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 21, 2008 – X/O Condominiums, probably best known at this point for its developer’s battle with Alderman Robert Fioretti, was presented with the National Association of Homes Builders Gold Award for design. The “dancing towers” were designed by famed architect Lucien Lagrange and when built, the two towers of differing heights should appear to lean in towards one another.

Other awards that the project, its developer and marketing team garnered were Best Digital Marketing Tool and Best Interior Merchandising for model of a unit with a price between $400,000 and $650,000. On top of those accolades, X/O also snagged the Gold Key for interior design from the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, according to a recent Yo Chicago post. That’s a lot of awards for a development that hasn’t even broken ground yet.

Sales at X/O have stood at 200 for some time. Developer Keith Giles of Kargil Development blamed delays caused by Alderman Fioretti’s attempts to downsize the project, but even after that proposed zoning change was dropped back in November, sales still didn’t rebound. The two high-rises will contain a total of 486 condos and share an upscale amenities and fitness building called Spa X/O.

It could be that the legal delays caused the project to miss out on potential sales before the market declined or prospective buyers just lost faith in the project getting off the ground. Kargil is hoping to break ground sometime this autumn and still estimating deliveries for 2010. In the meantime, they’ll have to keep competing with All Condos for Sale in Chicago.

[tags]X/O Condominiums, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 20, 2008 – Lakeview is the future site of the first condominium development by Forman Realty Corporation, which is a division of The Wirtz Corporation. The future 19 story tower would go up on 2950 N Sheridan Road, according to Crain’s. The building would contain 79 condos, 129 parking spots and be designed by architectural firm Papageorge Haymes Ltd. The condos would have one to three bedrooms and vary in size from 800 to 1,300 square feet.

Pricing hasn’t yet been determined for these units, but the developer intends to have a middle of the road approach and target a segment of buyers who are looking for an affordable yet high quality condo. The fact Sheridan Road hasn’t seen any new projects like this in nearly 30 years encouraged Forman Realty to build there, and the lower number of units should also be easier to sell. The new tower would sit a short distance south of two apartment buildings owned by the same company.

Barring any problems, the condos will begin a marketing campaign this summer. The building’s design falls within what is already allowed under the current zoning laws for that site, but the 214 foot height of the tower will automatically have to be reviewed by zoning officials.

The Wirtz Corporation currently owns roughly 1,800 rental units spread out over 24 apartment complexes. According to the article, the company also owns a liquor distributorship and the Chicago Blackhawks, which would make them one of the more diversified Condo Builders in Chicago.

[tags]Wirtz Corporation, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 19, 2008 – Cornelia Court received some attention in the Sun Times this past Sunday in an article that described the reasons behind a new family’s decision to purchase one of the townhomes there. The family of three also just recently moved to their new home, so it also gave a nice inside view of the interior and some features of the development as a whole

The couple said the main reasons their chose a townhome at Cornelia Court were the “unique floor plan and the space.” The home they picked was a Bentley model that contained 3,000 square feet. With that particular design, the three story home has a turreted exterior and if you really want to get extravagant you can even have an elevator installed.

One bedroom with a full sized bath is located on the lower level and the master bedroom, which has a vaulted ceiling, sits on floor three with the two other bedrooms. The laundry area with a washer and dryer is also on the third floor. The second floor is where the living room, dining room and adjoining kitchen which is designed in a U shape. The townhome comes with a 2.5 car garage as well.

The article pointed out that a major stamp of endorsement for Cornelia Court is that Steve Frytz, who is the president of Anchor General Contractors that built this development, has bought a home there that he and his wife plan to live in.

Other perks of Cornelia Court are a private park with over 10,000 square feet of space and eventually a dog run on the southern side. The townhomes run from the upper $400,000s to mid $600,000s, making them some very attractive Townhouses in Chicago.

[tags]Cornelia Court, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

February 18, 2008 – If you visit the website for Pure, you’ll see a sleek, stylish layout, much like the building design that architect Steve Weiss came up with for this development. The site encourages you to “live pure, live distinctively, live intelligently and live harmoniously.” Pale green glass will make up a mostly translucent façade on this building. This is all tied into the green features touted by the marketing campaign, and Pure does incorporate a lot of eco-friendly details like bamboo floors, recycled building materials and fluorescent lighting. But is that enough to sell condos these days?

According to a post on Yo Chicago, sales have reached the 40 percent mark for Pure. The building has climbed to its total of 13 stories and will have 67 condos. That means that about 27 of those units are under contract with the rest still up for grabs. The website advertises condos starting in the low $200,000, and there is a selection of one, two and three bedroom units for $240,000 on up to around the mid $800,000 range.

In contrast to the green features, Pure also has a healthy dose of modern technology. The Pure Portal will connect residents to a central system where you can access email, check out menus at local restaurants, get the weather forecast or find out building information all from a Blackberry or personal computer. The Skai Lounge is designed to be a resident’s private club, complete with a bar, kitchen, plasma televisions and sound system.

It will be interesting to see how quickly or slowly those sales numbers move once deliveries start on these Chicago New Construction Condos.

[tags]Pure, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]