A couple of weeks ago the home at 1951 W Huron in Chicago’s East Village sold for the second time in 3 years. However, this time the sales price of $1,345,000 was $630,000 above what the sellers paid for it in 2013, which really got my attention since it’s right around the corner from me. So let’s take a closer look at what went down here to find out if these sellers really struck gold.
First, the most recent sales price seems high for a 4100 SF, 5 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath home with older 2007 finishes. Despite the fact that the market time shows as 168 days the house actually went under contract after only 2 months on the market but then the deal fell apart 2 months later. Did the buyers realize they were overpaying? In the end it sold at 96% of list price without any price reductions.
Here is the description of the home from the listing:
This Stunning Traditional SFH is set on a Beautifully Developed Block & has over 4,100 sq ft of Living Spc. Meticulously Maintained 5 BED/3.1 BATH West Town Home w/ Abundant Outdoor Space. Home Features: 2Car Garage w/RoofDeck, 5 Outdoor Spcs inclds a 1900 sq ft Full Roof Top Deck w/Entertaining Spc & Magnificent Skyline Views, a Gorgeous Stone Patio off Kitchen w/Ecosmart Biofuel Dry Firepit, Custom Cabinetry Throughout, New Remodeled Chef Eat-in Kitchen w/High-end Appliances (Thermador Gaggenau and Meile) Custom Stonework, 8 FT solid doors, Custom Staircase, Open LRoom w/Wood Burning Fireplace, Hardwood Flooring, Whole Home Sound System for Each Level Outdoor spcs, Spa Baths Complete w/Steam, WHRLPL, Soaking Tub. Master Bedrm w/ Balcony, Large Spa-Like Bathrm, Lrg Walk In, Custom Closets Throughout Home. Lower Level: Radiant Heated Floors, Expansive Family/Rec Room w/ Gas Fireplace, Walk-Out Front Private Patio, Full Wet Bar w/140 Bottle Wine Fridge, Gourmet Ice Maker, & Wine Rack
It’s not exactly the same house that the sellers bought in 2013 for $715,000. That house was bank owned and had been stripped of all appliances and all plumbing fixtures. It’s also interesting to note just how badly the home was marketed back then, as is par for the course for these bank owned properties (I don’t get why banks put up with this crap):
- Underpriced at $575,900 it was a de facto auction with multiple bids
- The listing had no descriptive information
- The photos were just terrible. Dark. Horrible angles that don’t capture the essence of the room. Strange photos of hallways, walls, and doors. Standard focal length (not wide angle).
- Incorrectly listed as 3 bedrooms
- Incorrectly listed as 2400 SF
I’ve included a slideshow below that contrasts the before and after photos of the home. (If you are reading this via email or RSS feed you will need to click the post title to access the original post in order to see the slideshow.) I think it’s safe to say that the sellers invested at least $200,000 in the rehab of the house, assuming no structural issues. They had to buy all new appliances and plumbing fixtures. The whole house needed to be repainted. They probably refinished all the floors. All new kitchen cabinets. New wet bar in the basement and I’m going to assume that firepit and the closet organizers were new. Heck…they could have spent more than $200,000.
So if the sellers were into the home for around $915,000 that’s basically a tad cheaper than I think new construction was going for in East Village in 2013 but it was outdated compared to new construction. And 3 years later the house sold for what those circa 2013 new construction homes are selling for. So it does look like the sellers struck gold.
#EastVillage
Gary Lucido is the President of Lucid Realty, the Chicago area’s full service discount real estate brokerage. If you want to keep up to date on the Chicago real estate market, get an insider’s view of the seamy underbelly of the real estate industry, or you just think he’s the next Kurt Vonnegut you can Subscribe to Getting Real by Email using the form below. Please be sure to verify your email address when you receive the verification notice.