Chicago Condo Directory

Some exciting big-ticket news in the high real estate world today: Terrapin-Taxman LLC bought a 79,000 square foot site at the intersection of Madison and Halsted in Chicago. Working togeter with The Taxman Corp. from Skokie, IL., they have bought the property they plan to develop on from MB Financial Bank.

The price of the primo property hasn’t been disclosed, but they have announced that there will be $100 million in new development in both condos and retail.

The bank that owned the property had it sitting around as surplus real estate, and the new developers are excited to acquire the property. Seeing as the land is highly visible and in a great location, whatever they paid for it will likely pay off in spades. Near downtown and visible to several major thoroughfares, good planning and development will definitely lead to a wise investment on the part of the new owners.

The development group has been doing other developments in the area that have been shaping up well, leading to an interest in this property.

The plans so far are to have two separate buildings. One will feature 100,000 square feet or more of retail. The developers would like to have a “great retail corridor” under their belt to compliment their mostly-residential portfolio so far. Taxman Corp. has much more of a retail bent, and their expertise is being called upon to make sure this is a success.

The Walgreen’s across the street is already interested in moving in, as is an as-of-yet unnamed high-end grocery store. The community so far seems interested in the development.

The other building will contain up to 230 condominiums. If you like keeping track of under-development real estate, be sure to take a look at the Chicago Spire which looks to be one of the most ambitious real estate projects in history—and almost definitely the biggest in Chicago.

Technorati Tags: New Developments, Taxman, Chicago Properties, Chicago Real Estate, Skokie, Future Development

As an adult living in Chicago, working day in and day out, living on your own the thought of establishing a financial foundation should be a priority, and part of that includes purchasing some insurance. There several reasons insurance companies can find to disqualify you for the more cost-effective plan…that’s why it’s important to establish a record of financial stability, responsibility and protection of your valuables.

What does protection of your valuables have to do with insurance?  Well most insurance companies evaluate things on a scale and underwriters just do it at an extreme.  If you show a history of purchasing, say…car insurance and you don’t have any accidents, at least none that were your fault; this is favorable in terms of begin evaluated for other types of insurance.

So what’s this got to do with YOU and owning a home?  Well, the first step before you own, is you rent!  Everyone has done it, but very few take the time to take advantage of building a history of being insured early on.  Renting is your first opportunity, while on your own to establish and insurance history.

People who rent their home often make the mistake of thinking that the
landlord’s insurance covers their possessions in case of a fire or
other catastrophe. Not true, you need your own insurance. Relatively
inexpensive, renters insurance protects the things that you own. It
provides liability coverage, protection from lawsuits resulting from
harm that you, your pets or your family cause to other persons or
damage to their property. Renters insurance also helps you establish a
good insurance track record, or loss history. If you show that you are
a responsible insurance risk, you’ll have no trouble getting insurance
when you eventually buy your own place.

If you are living in a condo or coop, you depend on
two insurance polices for protection: your own coverage and the
insurance purchased by the condominium or co-op board for the common
areas of the property that you share with the other owners, like the
roof, basement, elevator, boiler and sidewalks. The condo or co-op
association may be responsible only for insuring a unit up to its bare
walls, floor and ceiling. The owner may have to insure kitchen
cabinets, built-in-appliances, plumbing, wiring, bathroom fixtures and
so on. Read the association’s bylaws and/or proprietary lease to better
understand where the association’s responsibility ends and yours begin.

If you’re buying a home, and have a mortgage, in
most cases you will need to purchase homeowners insurance. The cost
will vary according to the size and construction of the home; where it
is (proximity to the coast or other natural hazards, e.g. fault line,
wildfire zone); fire safety features; anti-theft devices; and the
property’s loss history. Insure your home for the cost of rebuilding
it, not the market price. And make certain that the value of your
insurance policy is keeping up with increases in local building costs.

Technorati Tags: home buying, home owner’s insurance, chicago condos, chicago homes

Parkside of Old Town, a multifamily development with over 760 townhomes, condos and apartments, is now under construction on Chicago’s Near North Side. This $225 million venture will replace some of the Cabrini Green housing projects. The buildings that composed Cabrini Green once held 35,000 people, but only about 1,500 are left.

The redevelopment of this area–bordered by Seward Park and Larrabee, Division and Oak streets–is part of the $1.5-billion CHA “Plan for Transformation,” which has demolished high-rise public housing towers and developed mixed-income, mixed-use neighborhoods in their place.

Former residents have formed a development partnership with two companies, and Kimball Hill Urban Centers, to build Parkside. When it is finished, the project will be made up of about 20% low-income housing, 30% rental housing for current and returning Cabrini residents, and 50% market-rate housing and apartments.

Parkside will replace three of Cabrini’s high-rise buildings, but Peter Holsten, president of Holsten Real Estate Development Corp., says that it shouldn’t carry with it any of the stigma of the gang-infested former projects. A similar project managed by his company, a development called North Town Village, has been quite successful, with about the same combination of market-rate and affordable homes and few vacancies. “If it’s a strong area, people will want to live there,” Holsten says.

Construction has begun on 280 homes–townhomes starting at $499,000 and condominiums priced from the low $200s. The company has about 100 contracts for the for-sale units, and once the firm sells another 14 units, Holsten said construction can begin on the second condominium high-rise building.

Chicago real estate, Chicago condos, Chicago homes, Chicago townhomes, Old Town, Near North Side

Technorati Tags: Chicago real estate, Chicago condos, Chicago homes, Chicago townhomes, Old Town, Near North Side