We Love Authentic Lofts: 720 S. Dearborn in Printers Row
We’ve chattered about many of the authentic loft buildings in Printers Row, including this 57-unit building at 720 S. Dearborn.
This 1-bedroom concrete loft with 11-foot ceilings recently came on the market. It doesn’t have parking or a w/d in the unit, but it is 825 square feet and right in the heart of historic Printers Row.
Tom Feddor at Keller Williams Realty- West Loop has the listing. See more pictures and property details here.
Unit #502: 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 825 square feet
- Sold in March 1996 for $91,000
- Sold in June 2000 for $161,000
- Sold in April 2004 for $173,000
- Currently listed for $219,900
- Assessments of $456 a month (includes heat, air, cable tv)
- Taxes of $1952
- No in-unit w/d
- No parking
- Central air
barf…maybe for 90K
So, anyone think they’d settle for covering their costs, just like the last owner? Is this priced at $220k, in order to attract bids at 15% off ($187k)–which would be in line with the last two sales (invalid as that may be)? Or are they, as so many, hoping to find that one perfect buyer?
And, no, I don’t think it’s worth more than abuot the 2000 price, either.
Nice place in nice location. No parking and no W/D is a deal breaker for me however.
I’m usually not a loft person, but I like this place. The white kitchen is so much better than the typical dark McCondo trash. Overpriced, but a good space for the arty singletons.
Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?
For 175k units and below, the answer is no. In my apartment now I have to walk down to the laundry and the rent is equivalent to a 170kish place.
For 220k units yes. I expect a w/d in unit as part of the premium. No way would I drop 220k on a place to still live like I’m in a $900/month rental. And for a 250k+ place I’d expect parking to be included as well.
“Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?”
MitchellD: “Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?”
It’s not the distance. It’s that we don’t want to have to contend with you in your sweatpants to do our own laundry.
I don’t believe any of the converted industrial buildings in Printer’s Row have deeded onsite parking. It’s all offsite rental.
Bri Bri sez:
“It’s not the distance. It’s that we don’t want to have to contend with you in your sweatpants to do our own laundry.”
Zing! I guess I set that up too well.
But seriously: When did Americans become such a bunch of spoiled ninnies?
“Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?”
You’ve never lived in a place with laundry in your unit have you?
I will never, EVER go back to shlepping down 3 stories (or more) with my laundry baskets to pay to use some crappy machine.
Hey, if these units are cheaper for me because everyone else demands a personal washer and dryer, great. Yet another thing, along with the lack of parking, that will yield me a very affordable condo in a very good location without the amenities I don’t need.
MitchellD -It has nothing to do with being spoiled, it has something to do with the large premium you are paying to live better. I am on the same page as Bob, if I’m paying 1000 for a rental then yes, I should schlepp down 3 flights of stairs every saturday morning. But if I am paying a total of $2400 for a condo, I am paying a premium to have my stackable washer/dryer in my condo and be able to wash whenever I please.
I forgot some other hardships of not having w/d in the unit:
1) You need to get change ahead of time. Rolls of quarters and merchants will not break bills to give you tons of quarters. Need to goto the bank for this.
2) You need to trust that your landlord maintains the w/ds effectively. Mine always seems to have issues with the dryers (no heat, low heat, etc)
3) You need to not go when everyone else is using them. Sometimes someone shows up with a huge amount of laundry and ties up all four washers/dryers at once. Also often people leave their clothes in them when they are done. I don’t like handling others laundry when it is left there and putting it on top of a clean surface but have had to do it when someone clearly isn’t coming back any time soon.
Now I don’t mind these inconveniences as like I said my rent is far lower than most condos. But if I’m paying a premium I’m paying it to get rid of inconveniences like this. I truly take no joy in knowing the colors of my neighbors undergarmets.
“Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?”
An in-unit W/D can sometimes be added when it doesn’t already exist.
Depends on the building plumbing, the attitude of the HOA and of course availability of a place to put the machines.
$265/sq.ft. ask. No way. I don’t care that it isn’t “really” South Loop but Printer’s Row. You could get a larger studio in the Vetro, with parking and W/D and outdoor space, AND a cheaper monthly assessment, for less.
I like Dave’s point about how the ever-growing list of Americans real estate deal breakers is creating some great bargains for people willing to be a little more flexible. (I’m not saying this unit is the best example of that, but there are rentals and places for sale that are.) Chicago has some nice neighborhoods with very reasonable rent compared to other large cities, and when you factor in other sacrifices that are possible to make here like not having a car, giving up central air, or living without an in-unit laundry, you can get a place here for about what my friends pay for apartments in much smaller cities in the Southeast. A friend of mine pays 1100 a month for a one bed/one bath loft in downtown Birmingham, AL. I know people who pay similar rental rates for places in downtown Savannah, GA, and I have friends who pay about that much to live in some generic suburban apt. complex outside Atlanta.
Meanwhile, another friend of mine pays $1375 for a 2 bed 2 bath + den in the heard of Boystown…and the only thing that sucks about the Boystown place is that the laundry is in the basement and there’s no parking.
When are people going to wake up and see that they could be saving hundreds of dollars a month by giving up something from their must-haves list? At a certain point, the savings is more than enough to have someone come to your house, clean it, and do all your laundry for you.
correction, *heart* of Boystown. Although I guess *heard* of Boystown might make sense as well.
It is all relative. Moving here from San Francisco, washer-dryer in units added about $500 a month to rentals, and parking in difficult S.F. neighborhoods is easily worth $750 or more a month. Once you get used to doormen, heated garages, and having your own washer-dryer, it is hard to go backwards.
Front loading washer ONLY, Preferably Miele.
All I have to say on the subject 🙂
Dave just goes out and buys new clothes every time his clothes get dirty, thats why he doesn’t mind not having a W/d in unit 🙂
Anyone ever bought one of those ventless dryers? My place has space for a washer dryer but it doesn’t have a vent to the outside.
Bob:
Interested?
http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/apa/1040365650.html
Eh, I just swing by K-mart for another bulk pack of undershirts whenever it gets to be “laundry” time.
Until a couple of months ago I had no W/D in my building; I used a laundromat a couple blocks away. It was admittedly tedious but I’ll still take location over amenities with my self-imposed budget.
HD.. are u asking him to be your roommate??
Dave just do laundry by hand and hang it out the window to dry. The neighbors love that shit!
1/2 of $3,100 is out of my price range. My studio in uptown runs me $450 and it includes lights, cooking gas, cable television and all the sex offenders I could ever hope to meet.
hd you’re such a tease!
Yes this is a great place indeed…effin awesome actually!
Which is why I’m saving my $…I’d like to grow old and die in a place like this, which means I’d need to own it. So maybe in a few years I can pick it up in the low 500s with a 20% down, then mortgage comes out to about 2k (before tax break). Add in HOA, taxes & insurance and we get a monthly nut similar to this lease rate, ‘cept the payments go down after 30 years.
Still this lease rate is so low I think I’m gonna have to start looking for some roommates. Split four ways and thats under 800/month!
hd I can find at least another roommate, possibly two.
If anyone was curious, this unit is mislabeled as a 1bd. It only has three walls, and therefore is a loft studio. A big one, but definitely a studio.
BARF
“BARF”
The loft, Bob’s dream home or both?
I’m usually not a loft person, either, but I like this place a lot. Beautiful old building and nice unit that I could rehab to taste (given the money).
No W/D in unit? No problem. Just get a Heier front-load washer/drier combo with the portability kit, keep it in a closet, and roll it up to the kitchen sink when needed.
About that assessment- I hate it when assessments include “fluff” amenities that add $50 a month each to it, like cable TV, or a T1 line. What if you don’t watch TV? Or have wireless internet? Why have stuff rolled into the assessment that many people want to opt out of to trim their costs?
ROTFLMAO @ some of these comments! Thanks for my morning laugh….
Re: a W/D in unit, A/C and Parking….all must haves for me.
Schleping laundry up and down stairs (I do at least 12 loads a week easily) sweating my ass of for three or four months a year (actually I am running my AC now because the developer insists on having the heat @ 82 degrees now) and the thought of having my baby (car) vandalized on a monthly basis….all things I can do without when I am paying those mortgage payments and assessments.
A girl does have to have her standards….just ask anyone in Boystown!
“Does everyone really have to have a washer/dryer in their unit now? Is putting on your sweatpants to traipse down to the laundry room really such a hardship?”
It’s not even seeing you in your sweatpants, or you seeing me… it’s mixing your microbes with mine. Studies have shown that one of the places in a home with the highest bacteria count is… the washing machine. Seinfeld did an episode on this.
And yeah, the place is way too expensive for what it is.
Sonies said:
“You’ve never lived in a place with laundry in your unit have you?”
Meow. Be careful, Ivana. You might break a nail.
Actually, the last two places I owned had a w/d. And, on the flip side, I once spent several months living in a flat in Paris that rarely even had hot water. Good times. Seriously.
Right now, I rent the second floor of a converted greystone on Arlington Place in Lincoln Park, not far from Clark & Fullerton. It takes me 45 seconds to get to the laundry in the basement. The machines are well maintained by the nice old German lady who owns the building. If I have time, I scoop the walks for her after it snows, and she bakes us streudel. It’s a fair trade.
I also rent a covered, secure parking space in the garage of a condo building about a block away. I know, an entire block! And it’s unheated! Really, it’s like living in the Third World, darling!
Morgan said:
“Once you get used to doormen, heated garages, and having your own washer-dryer, it is hard to go backwards.”
Have you ever actually said this out loud to people? Did they laugh in your face, or did they wait until you left the room?
westloopelo, you do “at least 12 loads” of laundry a week? I’m pretty obsessive about keeping my clothes clean, but unless your last name is Osmond or you just gave birth to octuplets, I’m going to politely suggest that you’re doing something wrong.
MitchellD – you’re such a troll (or, you’re just that big of an a$$).
I think he meant he does 2 loads. That’s what I do a week.
W/D in unit and central air are not necessities, but more and more people are getting accustomed to them. For me personally, having a W/D in unit is more if a hygiene issue than convenience. I don’t really want to wash my underwear after (someone’s dirty shoes, nasty socks, etc.) were in it. But once again…if I decide to do laundry at 1:00am…i can.
Parking is a completely different story.
A lot of people simply don’t have cars. I assume this trend of living in a city without the car will continue to grow, especially with I-GO, etc. car services being widely available should you need to drive. It is a luxury after all…you can use public transit to get to most places – people chose not to.
The biggest reason for having a car in the city isn’t getting around the city; it’s traveling outside the city. Public transit and cabs are great for getting around Chicago, but what are my options for visiting someone in the burbs, Indiana, Wisconsin, etc? And how would I do my big shopping in Indiana to avoid paying more taxes than I have to into the Daley/Stroger family and friends employment program? The savings pretty much pay for the cost of a car right there.