Record condo numbers to saturate downtown

If you build it they won't come.

nice.. maybe i can get a great deal.. now only if they still did no money down financing. they should still have those loans for people like me with good credit. 795 score

Have you seen these crappy condos? All glass, cardboard walls and thin concrete between floors. I wouldn't buy one of them for 100 bucks. Condos are going up so fast and the developers knock you out with their Italian kitchens and granite this and that and you can put your fist through the wall to your next door neighbor. Not my idea of living in the city. I like to live in my condo, not walk the streets at night because I hate going home to it.

Welcome to Chicago, Mr. Trump!

POP goes the condo bubble. But its still a great time to buy, right Realtors? Its always a great time for them to make a commission.

At least they'll be cheap!

"Entry-level" is $300,000? Good luck to all of you greedy, short-sighted, clueless developers! You guys have heard of recession, right?

Now please do a story on Edgewater's Sheridan and Broadway condomania. I'd love to see those greedy bast@rds who are ruining views, overcongesting the area and truly uglifying a historic district with their hideous gray boxes LOSE THEIR SHIRTS.

The quality of construction in my gut rehab condo is unmatched today. However, it is not soundproof. The exterior walls are thick as a fortress, but the noise from the upstairs neighbor is intrusive and at times unbearable. Kitten heels, someone with a dropsy disorder, sometimes it sounds like they're bowling. It's very disappointing, but I'm stuck for the duration of the 'credit crisis' I guess. The upside, it is lovely, nice neighborhood, cost half what it would have cost downtown and is only minutes away by x-way, and and, well that's about it.

Of course, we hear the usual story that prices don't go down - which would mean that the promoters are not squeezing their margins to make the sale - why would they ? they'd much rather pay taxes, maintenance, interest and selling costs on unsold units. This is ridiculous (and false)

Hi, I have a condo in my building that went for sale in February and is still not sold. I am not sure but what ive heard is it went from $420K and now being sold for somewhere in the $250K. So I guess its in foreclosure. This is not only in my building but all over LP. 2009 is gonna be worse I heard. Im gonna hold out and save so i can buy a condo then.

I'm waiting until the condo next door to me needs a bailout so I can pick it up cheaply and convert mine into a 4BR/4BA 3000 sqft unit with double balconies.

For several years now, these condo developers were banking on the trend of baby-boom, empty nesters selling their suburban homes and moving into condos. But with their homes decreasing values and mortgages tougher to obtain, this has ground to a halt. And what happens in 20 - 30 years as the baby-boomers die off. Lots of empty condos that they may not be able to guve away.

This could be big trouble.

Don wrote:

Why don't you move to the burbs so you can have something called grass and trees.
I like the City for "events" but living all packed together like a bunch of rats just isn't my thing.
Especially when you see the neighbors...
-The single bike messenger with green hair, and those ratty cargo shorts he wears everyday.
-The two "life partners" who run their interior design business from home. They're nice enough, and their place is immaculate, but just wait till you see the people who show up for the parties. LOL!
-The husband and wife attorney team, that call the cops for everything from footsteps on the hardwood above, to the service door that someone didn't close all the way.
-The old dude that decided to buy that cheaper 3rd floor unit, even though he can't really navigate the stairs. He's cool, but the dings and scuffs on the walls left by his grocery bags banging them isn't attractive.
Yeah, I'll take fighting the housewives with oversized minivans at the mall anyday.

Thanks for a real hoot, still laughing. What you're describing is condo living in or out of the city. See my earlier post. I have three out of the negatives you posted. Very funny but that's communal living no matter the location. Thanks for a good laugh.

LP Trixie wrote:

Hi, I have a condo in my building that went for sale in February and is still not sold. I am not sure but what ive heard is it went from $420K and now being sold for somewhere in the $250K. So I guess its in foreclosure. This is not only in my building but all over LP. 2009 is gonna be worse I heard. Im gonna hold out and save so i can buy a condo then.

"I heard" LOL.

You're so smart.

Developer are going to have to sell the Condos for less money.

So the developers are going to lose money, right?

Nope.

They just use cheaper materials, cheaper labor, and cut corners.

It's not just down in the city--there are tons of unoccupied condos in the 'burbs as well. A development that was just finished about two years ago near my house is still sitting half-vacant. From what I heard, the developers/owners are renting those vacant condos out to recoup some of their investment until someone is interested in buying.

The market is oversaturated everywhere. I don't know who they expected to move into these condos they keep building and building. Most of the older people I know who are retiring and are "downgrading" to smaller housing are buying condos in Florida or Arizona--they're either tired of Cook County nonsense or they want to move where the cost of living is a lot less.

If you own old construction, good luck selling once all those new units hit the market. People believe (falsely) that buying new is best when shopping for a condo. What they don't realize is that condo associations take time to become stable, and new buildings often have a lot of bugs to get ironed out - that usually spells special assessments and a lot more money than you counted on spending. Older buildings are usually out of debt and running smoothly; on average, it takes about 10 years for buildings to establish themselves and not be a huge gamble for owners.

I am extremely glad we managed to sell our place before this latest wave opened! You wouldn't believe how many people passed by our spot to buy into buildings that were 1/2 constructed with 1/2 the units sold. Unfortunately for them, a lot of building companies are going bankrupt and completely screwing their owners in the process. If you're going to buy a condo, definitely sacrifice the shiny new exteriors and rotten interiors for something with a bit more stability.

Another condo glut. Can you say Miami Vice?

The only reason my wife and I want to move to the suburbs is because the Chicago Public School system totally sucks. Yes, there are magnet schools, but to get into them is a crap shoot. If the city improved its school system and mass transit system, I think alot more people would be willing to stay down here. We would. I love the fact that I do not own a second car and I can still walk to the grocery store, restaurants and parks. This city got away from itself by building all these condos without fixing the real problems that they have.

bill wrote:

The only reason my wife and I want to move to the suburbs is because the Chicago Public School system totally sucks. Yes, there are magnet schools, but to get into them is a crap shoot. If the city improved its school system and mass transit system, I think alot more people would be willing to stay down here. We would. I love the fact that I do not own a second car and I can still walk to the grocery store, restaurants and parks. This city got away from itself by building all these condos without fixing the real problems that they have.

same with myself and my husband. I know when it comes time to start thinking about children, we will most likely be moving somewhere with better schools without having to pay more than a year's tuition at a moderately-priced university to educate a grade schooler. I want to send my kids to public school and, sadly, CPS isn't getting it done these days.