River North will likely soon be seeing the construction of yet another condo high-rise following last week's Chicago Plan Commission meeting. The building, from developer Smithfield Properties, will be located at 800-820 N. Wells and will feature 55 units in a total of 23 stories. Antunovich Associates is the architect on the project. For more renderings on the project, head over to Curbed Chicago here . Rendering via Curbed...
A new 35-story luxury apartment tower in the Gold Coast has officially broken ground. The tower, by developer Fifield Companies and known as "The Sinclair" was previously known by the informal moniker "Tower of Jewel" because of the supermarket that currently occupies the site at 1210 N. Clark St. The project is estimated to cost $200 million and will include 390 residential units anchored by a new 55,000 square foot Jewel right on top of the Clark/Division Red Line stop.
The Fed today announced that it was raising a key interest rate for the first time in nearly a decade. Short-term interest rates have been held by the Fed at near-zero since the financial crisis and while the interest rate increase may, at first, seem like bad news for borrowers, it shouldn't have a big effect on the housing market, as long-term interest rates will continue to remain at historic lows for quite some time...
As the end of the year approaches it's the right time to find ways to lower your tax bill. Here are some of the most popular tips from advisors and the Internal Revenue Service. 1. Defer income: if you're owed money in 2015 and you expect to make less the following year, see if you can delay that payment a couple of weeks and not owe the tax until 2017. 2...
It's a building known for its height, its architecture and its great location on the Chicago River. It's also known for its name: Trump Tower. Residents of the building love the views, but Donald Trump's presidential campaign has left many of them shaking their heads. In a recent story, the Chicago Tribune residents sounded off on living in the tower during the presidential campaign...
A new tower will soon be replacing the iconic Ed Debevic's restaurant in River North. Demolition of the restaurant is underway and a new tower will soon begin to rise in its place. The 22-story building will feature 251 rentals, 117 parking spaces and 12,000 square feet of retail. For more, head over to Curbed Chicago here . A new report out from Freddie Mac suggests that an unlikely culprit is keeping supply of real estate for sale at the current low: baby boomers.
A new report out from Freddie Mac suggests that an unlikely culprit is keeping supply of real estate for sale at the current low: baby boomers. The generation has been breaking all sorts of rules since they were young and the newest rule they're breaking seems to be that they aren't interested in downsizing as they reach retirement...
According to the latest report from CoreLogic, home prices in Chicago are holding steady and have seen healthy grow, especially as compared with several other metropolitan markets. The report specifically singles out Houston and Miami, where overvaluation is becoming a problem. Chicago, by contrast, saw prices rise 3.4 percent in October from the previous year, consistent with the growth pattern of the last several years. Read more at Chicago Agent Magazine here .
The latest exciting development for River North was unveiled last night - a 24-story tower could soon rise at 300 W. Huron St. The tower would take the place of a surface parking lot and would include a mere 71 apartments with one parking space for each. The tower's plans are from Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture. It will also include 16,000 square feet of commercial space. Read more at Curbed Chicago here .
This year has been a good one for new construction throughout the Chicagoland area. Residential construction spending in October totaled $735 million, a 36 percent increase from the previous year according to the latest reports. Meanwhile new construction for the year exceeded $4 billion, a similar, 32 percent increase from 2014. For more, head over to Chicago Agent Magazine here .
Property taxes are always an important consideration when it comes to a decision to buy a home and with the recent tax hike in Chicago, owners and buyers still don't know what the full result will be. But Crain's recently put together a feature detailing which three neighborhoods will see their tax bills rise the highest. Not surprisingly, they're neighborhoods that have seen the most dramatic price increases in the last few years...
From our family to yours, we want to wish everyone a healthy and happy Thanksgiving holiday! Thanks to all for making 2015 a very special year for us! Cheers!
While the news out this week was the housing sales for the Chicagoland area were down, that simple fact glosses over the bigger picture: the market is returning to normal after years of irregular patterns. Sales in October dropped 2.0 percent year-over-year from 9,344 to 9,155 but the market was still positive by year-to-date measure, 7.4 percent above 2014. Distressed housing sales as a portion of the market also continue to decline: they're now back to 2009 levels...
Would you move to River South? Or Riverline? Developers behind a massive riverfront project south of the Loop are hoping you will as their proposal moves through the city planning process. The project would be built on a little over six and a half acres of riverfront property that has functioned as a de facto park since the demolition of Grand Central Station in 1969...
Gorgeous Northeast Corner 2 Bed / 2 Bath with Magnificent Views of Navy Pier, Lake Michigan, Parks, Harbors, and the City Skyline . White Kitchen with Stainless Steel Appliances and Granite Countertops. Granite Floors in the Entry, Hallway, Kitchen and Second Bathroom. Washer and Dryer In-Unit. Tandem Garage Space for $50k. Great Building with Excellent Amenities! Directly Across from the New Maggie Daley Park, Millennium Park, and Michigan Avenue...
Plans for what would become the city's third-tallest tower cleared the Chicago Plan Commission, bringing the Wanda Tower that much closer to construction in the booming New Eastside. The tower, which would be a combination of 210 hotel rooms and 410 condos, would rise to 1,186 feet, replacing the Aon Center as the third tallest in the city. It's designed by famed architect Jeanne Gang who designed the nearby Aqua tower...
A new report out today from the DePaul University Institute for Housing Studies shows that it's been a good opening to the 21st century for homeowners in many Chicago neighborhoods. It's been particularly good for a set of four: West Town, Logan Square, Avondale and Lincoln Square. According to the report each of those neighborhoods saw price increases of more than 100 percent since 2000. For the top three the percentage increase was 126.9. For Lincoln Square it was 109...
A new condo tower has been proposed for a site next to the Trump Tower on the Chicago River in River North. From developer Belgravia Group and bKl Architecture, the tower, which was first proposed about a year ago, would be built atop a parking garage at 403 N. Wabash Ave. It would rise 17 stories and feature only 45 condo units ranging from 2,200 to 3,300 square feet. Sales are expected to begin next year with prices beginning at over $1M...
After years of back and forth and two earlier iterations, a residential and retail tower could soon rise in Uptown. The project, from JDL Development, now calls for 381 apartments, 289 parking spaces and almost 40,000 square feet of retail space along Montrose at the intersection with Clarendon. If it moves forward the plan would also include a city-funded rehabilitation of the nearby Clarendon Park field house. For the whole story, head over to Curbed Chicago here .
The internet always seems to be reinventing the way we interact with everything from shopping to reading to watching television. While it's not necessarily a huge innovation, news website DNAinfo has added a nifty feature to their site, where readers can review real estate sales in an interactive "heat" map. To check it out, head over to DNAinfo here. The foreclosure rate in Chicago continues to decline, according to the latest report from CoreLogic...
