December 31, 2011 – For quite a while we were hearing about Chicago real estate developments that were either hit with foreclosure or had to file bankruptcy, but the trend seemed to have slowed down a bit. But now Crain’s is reporting that 1555 Wabash is the latest to experience financial trouble. The high-rise was developed by a group headed by former Alderman Ted Mazola, according to the article.

With only 35 condos (20%) of the total 176 units in the 14 story tower closed, the development group has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The condos that weren’t sold have been rented, according to the report. But that move must not have generated enough revenue to keep the venture afloat financially.

The article also states that a construction loan of $46.2 million was taken out in 2007, although the bank hasn’t filed a foreclosure suit on the development.

Appraisal Reasearch Counselors commented in the article that there have been quite a few South Loop condo towers that have either been converted to rentals or sold to investors. As of the end of the third quarter this year (2011), 41% (844 units) of the unsold 2,066 new Downtown Chicago condos were located in the South Loop. And that’s probably why buyers can still find some serious price cuts on those Chicago condos.

Technorati Tags: 1555 Wabash, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

December 24, 2011 – We’ve all heard about how Chicago apartments are the big bright spot in Chicago real estate right now, and rentals in the suburbs are no exception. Investors and developers are keeping busy, and the latest deal has taken place in Buffalo Grove, according to an article in Crain’s.

Amali at Windbrooke is being sold to Mesirow Financial for around $34.2 million. The apartment complex has 236 rental units and was owned by Amali Residential Partners. In the article, Mesirow Director Alasdair Cripps commented that because the suburbs haven’t had nearly as much new construction as Downtown Chicago and thus less competition, the rental market is actually a better investment there.

Other suburban apartment sales mentioned in the article include the 408 unit Brook Hill in Westmont, the 416 unit Aspen Place in Aurora and the 204 unit Avalon Lakeside Apartments in Wheaton, all being bought by Friedkin Realty Group out of San Francisco. Henderson Global Investors is also buying the 296 unit Fordham Glen in Glendale Heights.

Even with so much attention focused on apartments and the increase in renters, there are still some good deals out there for those interested in buying Suburban Chicago condos.

Technorati Tags: Chicago Apartments, Suburban Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

Decmber 17, 2011 – According to a recent article in the Sun-Times, Chicago real estate developers had more to be thankful for than just turkey in November. Sales of Chicago area condos and single-family homes were up 20.2% in the third quarter of 2011 as compared to the same period a year ago, the Illinois Association of Realtors reports. There were 19,847 units sold in suring the third quarter of this year as compared to 16,518 units sold during the third quarter of last year (2010) according to the article.

Chicago home prices didn’t do so well, though. According to the report, the median price for a Chicago area home during the third quarter of 2011 was $174,500. That is a 7.5% drop from the third quarter 2010 median price of $188,666.

Stats for in-town Chicago condo and single-family home sales were more encouraging. Sales were up 10.3% in the third quarter of 2011 and the median price was up 2.6% to $198,000 from the same quarter in 2010.

In Chicago, total single-family home and condominium sales in the third quarter rose 10.3 percent to 4,940 units compared with 4,477 sales in the third quarter of 2010. The existing home median price in the third quarter was $198,000, up 2.6 percent from $193,000 in the same period for 2010.

Technorati Tags: Chicago Homes, Chicago Area Condos, Chicago Real Estate

December 11, 2011 – We’ve heard so much about how difficult it is for buyers to get financing for Chicago condos. Everything from tougher FHA rules and restrictions to reluctant lenders are keeping buyers from making a home purchase. But one Chicago real estate development has bucked the trend and made an impressive number of sales late this year. According to a recent article in Chicago Magazine, 200 North Dearborn had 18 condos close in August alone and all of those were cash buyers.

The article goes on to state that while developer American Invsco had slashed prices by 35% to 50% in an effort to make enough sales to meet Fannie Mae requirements, Invsco CEO Nick Gouletas said that those 18 cash contracts that closed in one month were more than he had seen at once in 43 years of real estate sales.

There have been other reports of cash sales for Downtown Chicago condos in luxury buildings like Trump Tower, so we’ll dig a little and see what we can find out about those. But the moral of the story must be that many of the buyers that are out there are able to come up with the cash when condo prices go down low enough.

Technorati Tags: 200 North Dearborn, Downtown Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

December 3, 2011 – Belgravia Group, the same Chicago real estate developer of 565 Quincy, is starting construction on the second phase of CA23. Belgravia president Buzz Ruttenberg took control of CA23, located on 16-20 North Carpenter Street, after his son lost the development to foreclosure close to a year ago.

The first building at CA23 has 24 condos that have finally sold out, so Belgravia decided it was time to launch the second phase, which will be another building with 24 more units. According to a Crain’s article, six of those condos are already pre-sold.

The article goes on to say that Chicago condo developers are having a hard time finding financing for any projects except small ones, and more banks are now requiring developers to build in stages or phases. Lenders have also been requiring that 70% of the units in a project be sold before the developer can let anyone move in. This is apparently a safeguard in case the developer goes bankrupt before the project is completed or sold out and the lender wants to sell the project or rent out the units that aren’t under contract. It’s harder to do either of those when owners are actually living in a building.

In the case of CA23, Belgravia Group is putting up $1 to $2 million of their own money to build the second phase of the project. Mr. Ruttenberg said in the article that he hopes to get $7 to $8 million in financing, but can cover the entire expense of construction if a lender can’t be found. he also noted that his company is willing to take on that expense only because it won’t put them at financial risk otherwise.

We’ll keep you posted about any other new developments downtown or Suburban Chicago Condos that are breaking ground, whether they’re big or small.

Technorati Tags: CA23, Suburban Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate