As a follow up to Tuesday’s post on Chicago’s most expensive single family home sales of 2017 I’m looking at the most expensive condo sales today. In both 2015 and 2016 the most expensive condos actually sold at higher prices than the most expensive single family homes. Technically that’s still true for 2017 thanks to the outrageous off market purchase of the 4 raw floors atop 9 W Walton by Ken Griffin in November for almost $59 MM. But that purchase is clearly an outlier and if you ignore it the single family home purchases are left as the most expensive transactions last year.
Furthermore, in 2017 we had only 13 condo purchases in the MLS above $4 MM compared to 16 in 2016 and 18 in 2015. So the high end condo market appears to be in a gradual decline.
The most expensive condo bought last year (through the MLS at least) was a 5400 square foot full floor unit on the 30th floor of The Palmolive – the same building where Vince Vaughn had a penthouse on the top 3 floors for many years – that sold in September for $6.5 MM. It’s a very elegant unit with some spectacular views but it clearly has much more traditional and sometimes dated finishes than that house at 52 E Bellevue that I wrote about on Tuesday. You can check out the slideshow of the property at the bottom of this post.
Some of the key features include:
- Only 3 bedrooms
- 3 1/2 baths
- 2 fireplaces
- 2 garage parking spaces
- Assessments = $5154/ month
- Property taxes only $71,339 – another Joe Berrios travesty since they are based upon a market value of just under $3.9 MM
According to the description in the MLS:
Incredible full floor residence at The Palmolive with expansive views from all directions. Double door entry greets one as they enter off private elevator foyer. Public rooms flank the gracious hallway and bedrooms feature ensuite bathrooms. Chef’s kitchen with butler’s pantry is an entertaining gem. Beautiful ceiling height throughout, tastefully decorated and private library/ den is a true gentleman’s retreat. Two parking spaces included as well as first class service in the one and only Palmolive building.
The condo was sold by Joseph and Pamela Damico. Joseph is a founding partner of a healthcare private equity firm – Roundtable Healthcare Partners. The purchaser is listed as Osiris Investments LLC, which is an Information Technology and Services company. It could be a corporate purchase or the company purchased it for the benefit of one of it’s executives.
The second most expensive condo purchase last year then drops all the way down to $4.55 MM at the Park Tower at 800 N Michigan. It was a half floor unit on the 57th floor and sold after only 5 days on the market, listed for $4.95 MM. At 3950 square feet it had 3 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths and ultra modern finishes. It appears to have been bought by Timothy and Susanne Sullivan. I believe that Timothy is the Managing Director and Head of MDP Health Care at Madison Dearborn Partners.
And the third most expensive condo (actually it was a co-op) purchased was a pretty interesting situation. The entire 9th floor at 2450 N Lakeview Ave also sold for $4.55 MM in August but vs. a list price of $5.495 MM after having been on and off the market since January 2015. It had been initially listed for $8.7 MM, all of which just goes to show you that even the big name realtors don’t really know what these homes are worth.
This 8000 square foot co-op is the largest of the top 3 sales of 2017 and had 6 bedrooms, 5 full baths, and 2 half baths and was described as being “completely renovated down to the studs”. However, the description doesn’t say when it was renovated and the unit already looks a bit dated, though it was clearly very tastefully done. The monthly assessments were $5453, which probably does not include the property taxes.
Unit 30A At The Palmolive In Chicago
Created with flickr slideshow.
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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.