Selling Designer Spaces

About a month ago Jim McKinney and Louise Study of Baird & Warner listed unit 4501 in the Pinnacle (21 East Huron). It is a 5500 square foot three bedroom 3.1 bathroom penthouse with over 2000 square feet of exterior space. This is one of the best spaces in the city.

My friend Allen Villanueva was the architect and designer of the penthouse residence, and a couple weeks ago he was kind enough to give me a personal architectural tour. Allen thought out every space, finish, and architectural detail ahead of time and the builder delicately executed them all.

While I’m guessing the owners have at least $9 million into the residence. In my opinion, it is still a couple million overpriced. Unfortunately, this is one of the problems with very high-end properties. Pretty much all buyers who are looking to spend $9 million for a property would prefer to spend $3.5 million for a space and then customize it for $1000 per square foot. Occasionally the perfect buyer will come through, but this is rare.

If this sounds like your ideal property then you might just be that perfect buyer. However, I could point you towards many other properties in the Chicago area that are more affordable, and then introduce you to Allen or another designer who could customize it to be your dream home.

For additional photos of this penthouse unit in the Pinnacle visit: http://tours7.vht.com/Viewer/PhotoGallery.aspx?ListingID=1259594&Style=IDX

Where are luxury properties turning in the Chicago area?

Many homeowners have been asking me lately, "In which areas are properties selling, and which areas are they stagnant?" Lincoln Park and Winnetka would generally be my first answers, however after that I was a little unsure. So today I finally found some time to further research this. This is the product of today's study.

Some things were expected, however others came as a surprise to me. As with any statistics you really must read between the lines, though.

The Loop being at number three was my biggest surprise. When I thought about it and looked into it further I realized both properties that sold in the last year were located in the New East Side (the area east of Michigan, south of the river, and north of the park). In the proper Loop there have been no sales and there are three properties currently on the market over $3 million.

Hinsdale was another major surprise to me. It is the only suburb not on the North Shore that is continuing to hold strong (you could maybe consider Burr Ridge and Oak Brook but I would consider 1:5 average at best).

In general, your prime luxury markets are continuing to be centered around Armitage and Clark in Chicago. On the North Shore, Winnetka continues to be in high demand. The further north you get, though, the lower the demand for properties.