May 30, 2009 - West Roscoe Village is home to Fletcher Row, the 24 townhome complex on 2424 West Fletcher Street. Right now there are homes ready for move-in, according to a press release in the Tribune. Bluestone Development is also tossing out some buyer incentives to boost sales at this Chicago real estate project, so it might be a good time to visit the sales center and check out the furnished model this weekend.

If you go with Bluestone for your financing, you can purchase a townhome with a 10 percent down payment plus buy-down interest rates of 4.99% on “jumbo loans,” according to the advertisement. You can also get as much as six months of free interest and mortgage principal payments, which Bluestone estimates will save you $10,000.

The Fletcher Row townhomes are positioned in two groups of ten units with a green courtyard between them. The homes are designed with three or four bedrooms and three or 3.5 baths. The floor plans measure out between 2,179 to 3,044 square feet of living space so you’ll have plenty of room to grow or entertain guests. Finishes include hardwood flooring, skylight, kitchen balcony, granite kitchen counter tops and island, fireplace, laundry, walk-in closets in the master bedroom and marble master bath with separate tub and shower plus double vanity. The townhomes are pre-wired for high speed Internet and can be wired for surround sound.

Prices for the three bedroom townhomes at Fletcher Row start at $499,900 and at $749,900 for the four bedroom homes. You can also compare other Townhouses in Chicago and see which development best fits your tastes and needs.

Technorati Tags: Fletcher Row, Chicago Townhomes, Chicago Real Estate

May 29, 2009 - A few posts ago we told you that Aqua may have finally hooked a hotel chain for the 15 vacant floors that need to be filled. If the deal with Kimpton goes through it will certainly be a boost for the 82 story Lakeshore East tower, especially with hotel rates down and vacancies up. And now another Chicago real estate development claims to have hotel prospects. According to Crain’s, the proposed Huron to be located on 8 East Huron Street in River North may attempt to convert to a hotel instead of a 28 story Chicago condo building to avoid foreclosure.

Developer Paul Stanley announced plans in 2002 to build the luxury high-rise that would have housed only 4 units per floor with two to five bedrooms and price tags of $1 to $5 million. The building plan was to have a Zen rooftop garden, dog run and fitness center. The condos were designed with master bath saunas, fireplaces, walk-in closets and large terraces and balconies. The article stated that only 9 of the 47 luxury units went under contract and Stanley stopped marketing the Huron last June.

Stanley didn’t name any hotel chains, but says he has had several offers. “I’m fully expecting to make a deal,” he told Crain’s. “I’m trying to make lemonade out of lemons here,” Stanley explained, indicating that he needs to sell the site to pay off the loan that came due this past January. The $8.8 million foreclosure suit was filed by Geneva Capital Associates in April.

It will be interesting to see if a hotel brand does step in and purchase the Huron site. River North is a trendy neighborhood and the site would normally be a good spot for a new boutique hotel or Chicago Luxury Condos, but the timing is questionable. With an eye to a future economic and housing market recovery, a hotel chain may step in and save Stanley from foreclosure.

Technorati Tags: The Huron, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

May 28, 2009 - Broadway 3030, like several other planned Chicago condo projects, won’t be making it past the groundbreaking stage unless a successful bidder at the upcoming auction for the building site picks up where developers Michael O’Connor and Jonathan Zitzman left off. Crain’s reports that the developer duo refinanced the parcel in part with a $7.9 million loan from Urban Broadway Mezz LLC and have defaulted, setting in motion the auction. O’Connor and Zitzman also owe $10 million to First Bank in St. Louis. Urban Broadway Mezz is an affiliate of DV Urban Realty, which is currently being investigated because of $68 million in city pension fund investments.

The site, which is located on 3012-3036 North Broadway Street, will be auctioned on June 5th at DLA Piper LLP law offices. According to Crain’s, any bidder will have to make a $250,000 non-refundable deposit to the winning bidder. The project also has a $213,283 lien against it from architectural firm Hartshorne Plunkard Ltd. for work they state they were never reimbursed for on Broadway 3030.

Broadway 3030 actually broke ground in late 2008 and if completed, this Chicago real estate project would have had 53 condos and a new 40,000 square foot Dominick’s store. The old Dominick’s was totaled in 2005 by a fire and the chain had already leased the space, according to the article. Local residents may be more disappointed by the loss of the new store, rather than the condos. Developers are almost always optimistic down to the last minute though, and Michael O’Connor told Crain’s that, “We continue to work with all interested parties to find a solution for the problem caused by the frozen credit markets. We are still committed to bringing the Dominick’s store.”

With yet another development off the map and no big projects in the works, the list of Pre Construction Condos in Chicago probably won’t be getting any longer any time soon.

Technorati Tags: Broadway 3030, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate