NEW LISTING ALERT! 3Bed/2Bath Single Family near O’Hare!

Just listed and ready for a quick closing.  This 1.5 story English style single family home, located at 3636 N. Page Avenue has three bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.  If you’re looking for a ton of living space, you’ve got it here.  Large living room and large family room great for your family and friends.  Tons of storage space, a large basement with finished walls and ceilings, a great two-car garage, and a fenced in backyard.  All for $250,000.  You’re close to country clubs, a forest preserve, parks, schools, tons of shopping, transit, and even places of worship.  If you or someone you know are looking for a great home, just message me!

Check out the photos and full virtual tour HERE!

If you’re ready to buy a home, sell your current place, find a rental apartment, or rent you home in Chicago, contact me and we can get started!  jeffstewart@atproperties.com.

eeNEW LISTING ALERT! 2Bed penthouse near Loyola University in Rogers Park!

I just teamed up with another @properties agent to bring our new 2Bed/2Bath corner penthouse onto the market!  This home is located at 1242 W. Pratt Blvd in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood and is only blocks away from Lake Michigan, Loyola University, two ‘el stops, a Metra stop, and a bounty of restaurants, shops, and theatres. 

This home features a large, open living and kitchen area with a ton of windows that let in a lot of sunlight.  The kitchen features granite counters, undermount sink, S/S appliances, a breakfast bar, and 42″ cabinets for extra storage space.  The master bedroom is quite large, over 17′ long and as an added bonus, a very large walk-in closet and on-suite bathroom with double vanity.  Right off the living room is a large deck and since this home comes with roof rights, you can build out an amazing roof deck!  Secure parking and extra storage is included in the price of this home, $260,000.  Also offering a $4,000 buyer’s bonus!

Feel free to share your feedback or comments about the listing.

Check out the full virtual tour HERE!

If you’re ready to buy a home, sell your current place, or even find a rental apartment in Chicago, contact me and we can get started!  jeffstewart@atproperties.com.

Shelbourn Development scales back its Chicago Spire sales center.

Not too exciting or surprising news coming from Chicago Breaking News but at least Shelbourne’s doing the smart thing by downsizing their sales center operation to the Shelbourne Development offices at 111 S. Wacker Drive.  During the Spire’s peak in sales, their lease took up the entire 18th floor at NBC tower but for the past nine months, we have seen some legal drama going on when NBC Tower sued Shelbourne in order to evict them from the building.  I’m really curious to find out if anyone is buying in the building still.

Chicago Spire developer scales back on sales office

Published on May 17, 2010 9:52 AM | Submit a comment

The developer behind the Chicago Spire closed its posh sales office over the weekend, relocating the marketing arm for the long-stalled project to a much less grand office space nearby.

Shelbourne Development Group, which has been battling the owner of the NBC Tower for nine months, consolidated the sales function into its own office space at 111 S. Wacker. A spokeswoman for Spire developer Garrett Kelleher denied that the move signaled that the project was dead.

“He’s being smart,” the spokeswoman said. “If you’re in a situation where things are slowing down, you need to consolidate and you need to be smart. Clearly the economy has been tough and he’s had to focus on areas of his portfolio that are doing well.”

The sales office in the NBC building, which occupied the entire 18th floor, opened in early 2008 and included touches designed by Spire architect Santiago Calatrava and a built-out model of a Spire condominium.

The owner of the NBC Tower sued Shelbourne to evict the developer last August, charging that the company had not made a rent payment since April. In March, the case was dismissed by agreement, and a $55,082.06 judgment for NBC Tower was voided.

Instead of touring a model unit, potential buyers will see samples of materials and three-dimensional computer models, the spokeswoman said.

The sales office’s closing is likely to cast more doubt on whether the twisting, 2,000-foot-tall skyscraper will ever rise from the circular hole in the ground that now exists alongside 400 N. Lake Shore Drive. Shelbourne has been beset by financial problems since starting the skyline-defining project just as the financial and real estate markets were seizing up.

Shelbourne and Kelleher remain in litigation with Bank of America Corp., which filed suit last August, charging the developer with defaulting on a loan and said it was due $4.9 million. Bank of America said Kelleher personally guaranteed the loan. Kelleher and his company fired back in a countersuit, claiming the lender committed fraud and deception in arranging a loan used to start the building…

Check out the full article by clicking HERE!

NEW LISTING ALERT! Great 3Bed loft near UIC in University Commons!

Check out my and Jodi Faulkner’s new listing at 1111 E. 15th Street in University Commons.  Located just South of the UIC campus, University Commons acted as the South Water Market for about 75 years. 

This 3Bed/2Bath corner AND top floor loft boasts 12′ ceilings, huge windows, large bedrooms with full walls, and a spacious kitchen and living area with a lot of storage.  The master suite is quite large with a great sized master bath with double vanity, a large soaking tub, and seperate shower.  The kitchen has 1 1/4″ granite, undermount sink, S/S appliances, and there is no shortage of cabinet space!  University Commons is a full amenity community.  Each building boasts a gym, party room, roof deck with spectacular views of downtown Chicago, and even an in-ground swimming pool. 

This home is priced at $369,900 and parking is below ground and secure for an additional $30K.

Check out the full virtual tour by clicking HERE!

If you’re ready to buy a home, sell your current place, or even find a rental apartment in Chicago, contact me and we can get started!  jeffstewart@atproperties.com.

View from University Commons just South of UIC!

This view is taken from the roof deck of a new listing that I’m partnering up with another @properties agent, Jodi Faulkner, in University Commons.  University Commons stands on five blocks that, for over 75 years, was home to Chicago’s South Water Market.  The developer, Enterprise Companies, did an amazing job transforming these once dilapidated marketplaces into a vibrant neighborhood.  Kudos to them!

@properties opening a new office in Winnetka with 50 agents!

@Properties follows customers as they head north

Mary Ellen Podmolik Local SceneApril 23, 2010

Ten years after co-founding @Properties in Chicago, Michael Golden and Thaddeus Wong are firming their commitment to the North Shore with a second office.

Last week, the duo bought a building along Green Bay Road in Winnetka near the Indian Hill Metra station and they plan to open an office there in August with 50 agents. That follows @Properties’ first step in suburbia last summer when it opened an Evanston office now staffed by 75 agents. And if all goes according to plan, they want a Highland Park office in 2011.

Moving into a north suburban market that is largely dominated by Coldwell Banker Residential is a challenge they say they’re up to, particularly because the Evanston office has done better than expected.

In one respect, @Properties is growing up with its client base. The firm made its mark selling condos and new developments within the city and a decade later, some of those clients have married, started families and begun moving to the suburbs.

Following customers as they move north, rather than in another direction, is a bit easier because of the consistent demographics of the North Shore. “We felt like we can get a lot of traction here quickly,” Golden said, with Wong adding “This is the most natural progression for us. It’s growth during a period of time when everyone tells you you shouldn’t be growing. There’s nothing that can be forced right now.”

Growing organically, rather than through acquisition in an industry where consolidation continues, will remain @Properties’ strategy, the pair agree. “When you buy a company, the agents that come with that company don’t have a choice. [Then] you’ve got agents who have changed their business card and the agents don’t love that,” Wong noted.

Last year, @Properties’ sales volume totaled $1.78 billion with 859 agents, compared with $1.88 billion and 738 agents at year-end 2008. Based on data reported to Midwest Real Estate Data LLC, Broker Metrics gave @Properties a leading 12.48 percent market share within Chicago last year….

Check out the full Chicago Tribune article by clicking HERE!  Feels good to be #1!  Feel free to contact me with any of your real estate needs:  jeffstewart@atproperties.com.

NEW LISTING ALERT! 3Bed/2.5Bath duplex in the heart of Lakeview!

The Fata Shackelford Group at @properties recently put this great 3Bed/2.5Bath duplex on our roster!  Located at 3108 N. Racine in the heart of Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood, this duplex boasts a ton of space, 2,500 square feet in total!  I held an open house here two weeks ago and this home actually feels like a home.  The kitchen has a ton of cabinet space and counter space, there are two outdoor spaces, two living rooms and fireplaces, and 2 parking spaces.  Both floors have 10 foot ceilings and sunlight floods every room!

Priced at $575,000.

Check out the full virtual tour of this home by clicking HERE!

Chicago’s Downtown Office Vacancies Have Reached a New 4 Year High.

Downtown office vacancy highest in 4 years

By: Thomas A. Corfman March 29, 2010

(Crain’s) — The downtown vacancy rate has made its biggest leap in seven years, as a sharp drop in demand was compounded by the completion of yet another office project.

The vacancy rate spiked to 14.9% during the first quarter, compared to 13.8% during the fourth quarter and 11.5% during the first quarter of 2009, according to a report by the Chicago office of real estate firm CB Richard Ellis Inc.The jump of 1.1 percentage points is the largest single-quarter increase since the fourth quarter of 2002, when the vacancy rate climbed 2.1 percentage points, to 12.9%, in the wake of another recession.

The vacancy rate has climbed for six consecutive quarters and now stands at the highest level since first-quarter 2006, when the vacancy was 15.1%. During the last decade, the vacancy rate peaked at 16.0% at the end of 2005.

Yet in a hopeful sign, the amount of sublease space fell during the first quarter, the first decline in two years, prompting some landlord representatives to think the worst may be over.

“I think we have nudged off the bottom,” says landlord rep Robert Gillespie, a senior vice-president with CB Richard Ellis. “I am not suggesting that we are on a sharp V-type of recovery, but we are on an upward trajectory.”

Including sublease space, the overall vacancy rate shot up to 17.1% during the first quarter, compared to 16.2% during the fourth quarter and 13.3% during the first quarter of 2009, CB Richard Ellis says.

The increase in overall vacancy is the largest single-quarter jump in five years.

Demand for downtown office space plunged by more than 700,000 square feet during the first quarter, the fourth time during the past six quarters that demand has fallen. The drop in demand is the biggest single-quarter decline since the fourth quarter of 2002.

Demand is measured by net absorption, the change in the amount of leased and occupied space, compared to the previous quarter.

Mr. Gillespie says that first-quarter demand reduction is the result of corporate decisions made six to nine months ago.

But tenant representative Daniel Arends says he expects the vacancy rate to rise another full percentage point this year, adding, “There just doesn’t seem to be a lot of demand.”

More than half of tenants with leases coming due are renewing, compared with just 30% to 35% in 2008, says Mr. Arends, a principal in Rosemont-based Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler Inc.…

Read the full Crain’s Chicago Business article by clicking HERE!

Photo brought to you by delobbo.com

NEW LISTING ALERT! 2Bed/2Bath with tons of space in Wicker Park!

The Fata Shackelford Group at @properties is proud to announce a new listing on its board.  Located at 1227 N. Paulina, this home was built on an extra wide lot so this 2Bed/2Bath has 1,650 square feet.  Thanks to the homeowner’s great taste, this home shows like a model home straight out of a magazine.  Lots of upgrades are included in this home, one example being diagonally cut hardwood flooring, lots of storage space, and lots of light.  Garage parking is also included in the price. 

Priced at $485,000!

Check out this home’s virtual tour for the complete group of photos by clicking HERE!

SOLD – 4Bed/2Bath Single Family Home at a Bargain Price!

Earlier this week, my buyer closed on this 4Bed/2Bath single family home located at 3506 W. Huron Street in Chicago’s West Side for a great price of $15,500, around 80% below asking price!  Now that’s what I call a deal.  Granted, the home needs work and the neighborhood isn’t ideal for most people, but it’s ideal for smart buyers who can fix it up, rent it out, and sell it for a profit at a later date.  Check out some photos of the home.  Unfortunately, there aren’t any inside photos, just outside.

If you or someone you know are interested in buying a new home or selling a current home, feel free to email me at:  jeffstewart@atproperties.com.