At first glance, the news was disturbing-reports earlier this week that downtown condo sales had nose-dived by 46 percent in the first quarter of 2007. But contrary to those early reports, the downtown condo market has not stalled, only slowed. According to Gail Lissner of the Appraisal Research Counselors-the local real-estate consultants that provided the … Read more
List price: $749,900Sale price: $775,000 The Property: Situated on a secluded country lane in Barrington Hills, this 11-room house, built in 1990, has four bedrooms, an in-ground pool and hot tub, and a modern metal barn, as well as access to the local network of horse trails. The previous residents lost the home in a … Read more
List price: $549,000 The Property: A converted coffee and tea showroom beneath an antique copper ceiling, this McKinley Park residence is that rarest of finds: a true industrial loft. “They’ve all disappeared,” says Mario Greco, the Rubloff agent representing the seller. With its great aged factory doors, original hardwood floors, and big storefront windows, the … Read more
If all goes as expected at today’s Chicago City Council meeting, the city will enact legislation to better ensure that people with middle and modest incomes can afford to buy homes in the city. It’s the latest step-and a significant one-in a five-year campaign to stem the loss of affordable housing as the city welcomes … Read more
List price: $5 millionSale price: $4.45 million The Property: This 13-room mansion in a French Normandy style overlooks the fifth fairway of the Indian Hill Club golf course just outside Winnetka. Sequestered behind brick gates and surrounded by formal landscaping, the house has seven bedrooms, five fireplaces, a library, and a chauffeur’s apartment and other … Read more
List Price: $3.999 millionThe Property: Formerly a machine-parts factory, this 10,000-square-foot structure on a residential block in Roscoe Village is being converted into a lavish, contemporary home, complete with a rooftop deck the size of some suburban back yards. When finished this summer, it will have six bedrooms, four fireplaces, an elevator and some serious … Read more
In the past decade, formerly frumpy downtown Des Plaines has undergone a transformation into a lively place dotted with new restaurants and stores, a fantastic central library, and, most noticeable of all, thick clusters of new, mid-rise condo buildings. Standing at the center of town-at Metropolitan Square near the Metra station-you can look southeast along … Read more
List price: $975,000Sale price: $940,000 The Property: This classic red-brick colonial with three bedrooms, two-plus bathrooms, and two fireplaces provided a rare opportunity to get an appealing, nicely updated home in exclusive Kenilworth for under $1 million-and it has played that role twice in the past year. Built in 1929, the house sold for $5,000 … Read more
List price: $1.399 million The Property: Designed by the great North Shore architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, this home was built in 1913 as one half of a pair of twin gatehouses for a lavish lakefront estate on Sheridan Road. When the present sellers, Tierney Danehy and Tom McNulty, bought the place in 1995, it … Read more
Last week, two real-estate projects in the Chicago tradition of “make no little plans” took some giant steps forward, as both plans won approval from the city’s Plan Commission. One is the ongoing proposal to build a twisting 150-story condo tower-the architect Santiago Calatrava’s Chicago Spire-just north of the Chicago River and west of Lake … Read more
