July 20, 2010 – For those of you who are searching for Chicago townhomes, you may want to check out the Parkhomes at Lakeshore East. There are 25 townhomes in this Chicago real estate development and there is still a handful of these residences left for sale.

The Parkshomes at Lakeshore East come in floor plans with 4 bedrooms and five baths plus den or 3 bedrooms and 3.5 to 4.5 baths plus den. They range in size from around 2,400 to 4,040 square feet with prices starting from about $1.2 million. Features include a private roof top terrace, attached garage, balconies and elevator.

The townhomes themselves come with stainless steel appliances, hardwood flooring, marble baths and

There are quite a few perks to living in these townhomes. Residents have access to Aqua’s Shore Club and the Lakeshore East Park, which has more than 100 different types of plantings. The park’s botanical garden has everything from illuminated fountains, 500 trees and ornamental gardens.

The children’s park at Lakeshore East has a water fountain to splash in, playgrounds, seating and plenty of shade.

The dog park is fenced and also has water fountains to cool your dog and hills to run over for plenty of exercise.

The Parkhomes at Lakeshore East may be a good fit for you if you’re looking for luxury townhomes in a great location. But there are also lots of Chicago homes for sale near the Lake that may appeal to you as well.

[tags]Parkhomes At Lakeshore East, Chicago Homes, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 19, 2010 – There hasn’t been much in the news about the Legacy since closings began last September. There are 355 Chicago condos in the 72 story high-rise and those units are about 80% under contract or sold and closed. Previous reports had put the number of contracted units at 90%, so we’re not sure about what is the cause of the drop in number.

But a recent Crain’s article did say that one of the remaining luxury condos in the tower recently sold for just over $2 million. The $2.1 million sale was for a 2,405 square foot condo on floor 56 of the Legacy, which is located on 60 E Monroe Street. So far this has been the most expensive unit that has sold in the tower.

There are fifty some condos left for sale from the developer, and those range from one to three bedrooms and baths. The units measure from about 925 to 2,930 square feet in size. There are also some upper level penthouse units that have three or four bedrooms and 4,378 to 4,757 square feet. Prices have been running from the high $400,000s to over $4.25 million.

Building amenities include a 24 hour doorman, resident storage lockers, bike room, heated indoor lap pool and whirlpool spa, sundeck and garden terrace on floor 15, fitness center and sky garden lounges with gathering rooms on floors 42 and 60. Residents of the Legacy are also connected to the University Club through an adjoining sky bridge.

There are also luxury Chicago homes for sale at reduced prices right now, so be sure to compare a few different residences before you make a decision to buy.

[tags]The Legacy, Chicago Homes, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 17, 2010 – Chicago real estate developer Lennar Corporation is once again advertising another sale on Chicago condos. This time they are calling it a “48 Hour Super Summer Sale” and as you probably guessed, it lasts only two days, this Saturday and Sunday July 17th and 18th. One of their developments that is included in this sale is Library Tower.

The 18 story high-rise is located on 520 South State Street in the South Loop and has a selection of one to three bedroom condos. The project site is also advertising close-out pricing from $259,900 and says that there are only 3 one bedroom condos left for sale. As for the 2 day sale prices, there are no firm numbers advertised, but the old prices on condos at Library Tower had been running anywhere from the mid $200,000s to $700,000s. The sale also states that buyers can potentially lock in a 4.25-percent (4.87-percent APR), 30-year fixed-rate mortgage if they use Lennar’s approved lender, Universal American Mortgage Company. The tower is also FHA approved, so a 3.5% down payment is possible.

This 2 day sale also says buyers can score a free washer, dryer and refrigerator plus get up to $2,500 in closing costs.

Building amenities include a 24 hour doorman, fitness center, business center, landscaped and gated park with walking paths seats plus a roof top terrace and private balcony.

You can get more details about Library Tower and other Chicago New Condos by following the link to our development pages.

[tags]Library Tower, New Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 16, 2010 – As we’ve said before, one of the most common catch phrases in Chicago real estate these days is “developer closeout sale.” The latest project to advertise one is Ivy Hall at University Village. There are 152 Chicago condos, 31 town homes and 36 single-family homes at the $100 million Ivy Hall development. Right now there are three town homes ready for move-in and included in this sale, according to an article in the Tribune.

One of the town homes is a 2,319 square foot, two bedroom, 2 full bath and two half bath residence on 745 West 15th Street. This unit has a balcony, roof top deck and an attached two car garage. The price for this town home is $825,000.

There is also a 3,001 square foot duplex town home with two bedrooms, three baths, a balcony, storage room, roof top deck and attached two car garage. This unit is priced at $699,900.

The last town home that is ready for occupancy is a 2,148 square foot duplex town home with two bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a balcony, roof top deck and attached two car garage. The price for this home is $544,900.

All of these town homes at Ivy Hall come with granite counter tops, maple cabinets and oak hardwood floors.

You can find more information about Ivy Hall and other Chicago Townhomes by following the link.

[tags]Ivy Hall, Chicago Townhomes, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 15, 2010 – Even architects aren’t immune to the effects of the slow Chicago real estate market. Well-known Lucien Lagrange has decided to retire and has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for his firm, according to a recent Crain’s report. The main reason for the bankruptcy filing being coupled with his retirement was to keep from being personally overwhelmed with debt that his company has accumulated, the article states.

Mr. Lagrange has designed many of the Chicago condo towers that have been constructed over the past twenty years. But he said in the article that he was doubtful that any new major Chicago condo developments would begin again for at least another five years. At age 69 he also debated whether or not he would be up for a major project that far in the future. “I could maybe survive the economy downturn, but what’s the point?” he was quoted as saying.

Bankruptcy paperwork filed states that his design firm has assets between $1 and $10 million with liabilities adding up to about the same total. He told Crain’s that, “Retiring, there would be a lot of liabilities are on my back. I can’t just walk away. Chapter 11 gives you a chance to plan ahead, organize and close in a decent way.”

Some of the best-known high-rise projects that Mr. Lagrange designed include the Park Tower, 840 North Lake Shore Drive, Ritz-Carlton Residences, Lincoln Park 2520, Ten East Delaware and the scrapped X/O Condominiums.

If you’re a fan of Mr. Lagrange’s work, you can find more information about the Chicago condos he has designed as well as other Downtown Chicago Condos in our development pages.

[tags]Ritz-Carlton Residences, Downtown Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 14, 2010 – With July half over already, more Chicago real estate statistics are begining to trickle out into the news. The fact that sales of Chicago condos and single-family homes has increased month-over-month for some time now is no secret, and most analysts attribute that increase to the high number of short sales, auctions, foreclosures priced to sell and the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit. Even closings have increased, which may actually say more about the health of the market than the number of contracts that were signed.

According to numbers released by MRED (the regional MLS service), closings on sales of Chicago condos for the first half of 2010 are up about 45% over the same period last year (2009). Even when you just compare June 2010 to May 2010, there was a 26% increased in contracts that closed. There were 1,083 units that closed in May 2010 and that number increased to 1,365 units that closed in June 2010. The median price from May 2010 to June 2010 also increased, going from $264,900 to $270,000.

Records for the first six months of 2010 showed that there were 5,630 Chicago condos that closed, which was a 45% increase over the first six months of last year. The median sales price dropped however, going down to an average of $263,700 from the median condo price during the same period last year.

With lenders still keeping credit requirements tight and no $8,000 tax incentive, we’ll have to wait and see if Chicago condo sales for the second half of this year can keep up with the pace set in the first half. Remeber that you can use the Chicago MLS search to find information about Chicago homes for sale.

[tags]Chicago MLS Search, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 13, 2010 – About a month ago we told you that there was a weekend “developer’s special” at Chess Lofts where the first ten buyers would get a pretty hefty discount. As is usually the case with many Chicago real estate developments, this limited time offer has been extended. Now the price discount is for the next ten buyers, not just the next weekend.

The discount is the same, with prices cut from about 40% to 50% on the remaining lofts at this South Loop development on 320 East 21st Street. One bedroom, one bath condo lofts can be purchased from $169,900. The one bedroom, one bath plus den units are available from $189,900 to the next ten buyers. The two bedroom, two bath lofts can be bought from $229,900. Indoor parking is $35,000 per space.

The units at Chess Lofts come with 12 to 18 foot high ceilings, hardwood floors, washer and dryer hook-up, stainless steel apppliances, maple kitchen cabinets and granite counter tops. The baths have either granite, marble or ceramic tile.

Building amenities include a fitness center, roof top sun deck with grilling area, bike storage room and a dog run.

You can compare Chess Lofts’ prices and finishes with other similar Chicago lofts that are for sale right now and see which offers the best deal for your investment.

[tags]Chess Lofts, Chicago Lofts, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 12, 2010 – In our last post we talked about Donald Trump’s efforts to restructure his over due construction loan. We also told you that there are still 220 Chicago condos for sale in the tower as well as 184 hotel suites, according to an article in Crain’s. What we didn’t mention yet is that there are plenty of investor units for sale at Trump Tower, although only a few have successfully sold at a profit.

Most of the profitible sales have come from buyers who bought into the “friends and family” program that Trump offered in 2003 and 2004, then later discontinued, the article states. Those big discounts are what enabled flippers to turn a profit.

One of the best investments was made on a one bedroom condo located on floor 42 that was purchased in September 2008 for $543,000 and sold in October 2008 for $790,000.

One of the biggest losses was on a two bedroom condo located on floor 36 that was also purchased in September 2008 for $2.68 million but sold in January 2008 for only $2 million.

In all, 31 condos at Trump Tower have been resold, with 18 of those turning a profit of around 12%. There are still 54 condos listed for resale in competition with the developer units.

The article also stated that buyers are having a difficult time finding lenders. The retail to residential ratio is too high for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to back any condo loans in the high-rise.

If you are looking for your own deal on resales, you need to keep up with the latest Chicago real estate listings to see what i

July 9, 2010 – For a couple of years now, many Chicago real estate developers have been restructuring construction loans and negotiating extensions as payback dates came faster than Chicago condo sales. Even Donald Trump is angling for an extension on the Trump Tower loan. According to a Crain’s report, Trump’s attorney Steven Schlesinger was quoted as saying that, “We’re in the last throes of negotiation.” He also said that an agreement, “is probably two to three weeks away.”

This restructuring deal is over the remaining roughly $200 million that is still owed on the $770 million loan from a group of lenders headed by Deutsche Bank Trust Co. Both Deutsche Bank and Mr. Trump have been engaged in leegal wrangling for about a year and a half over the loan.

According to data from the article, there has been about $461.2 million in sales at Trump Tower, although Mr. Trump Claims that just over $500 million has sold. His number is higher because he is adding in the contracts that haven’t yet closed. There are 220 of the 486 Chicago condos and 184 of the 339 hotel units still unsold.Tthere have been 266 completed closings on the contracted condos and 155 closings on the hotel units.

Mr. Trump was quoted in the article as saying that Trump Tower, “Is a good deal for people living in the building and the city of Chicago, but this is not a good deal for Donald Trump. But that’s OK.”

If you’re shopping for a new Chicago condo, you might want to check into Trump Tower. There are also plenty of other Chicago homes for sale with great deals on pricing .

[tags]Trump Tower, Chicago Homes For Sale, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]

July 8, 2010 – Yesterday we told you about the 47 unsold Chicago condos at Odyssey Lofts coming under new ownership as the end result of a foreclosure suit. The same Chicago real estate developer of Odyssey Lofts, David Wallach of W Developments, is also facing an $11.3 million foreclosure suit for his 123 North Sangamon project.

According to a Crain’s report, Speedwagon Properties also took control of 123 N Sangamon and plans to finish the development. Steve Khoshabe, who is managing director of Speedwagon, said in the article that the 45 units in the building are around two-thirds finished. They intend to complete them and then market them as rental apartments.

Back in January of 2009 Mr. Wallach stated in a Crain’s article that 30 of the 45 condos at 123 N Sangamon had been pre-sold at one point, but buyer contract fallout rates climbed as the housing market dropped. He had attempted to switch the project to a hotel, but that never got approved. An original loan payback due date of 2006 was extended to 2008 before Midwest Bank filed the foreclosure and then sold the note to Speedwagon.

These two Chicago condo deals aren’t the first for Speedwagon. According to Crain’s, the company made the largest dollar value bluk condo purchase in June 2010 when they paid almost $20 million for 103 units at 400 North LaSalle Street.

But the average person doesn’t have to have millions to shop for deals on foreclosures. Buyers may want to keep up with the latest Chicago foreclosures to find their own condos at reduced prices.

[tags]123 North Sangamon, Chicago Forclosures, Chicago Real Estate[/tags]