Luxury Property Sales Booming in Chicago, But So Are Foreclosures


Chicago is still the second city when it comes to foreclosures, but at the other end of the real estate spectrum, luxury property sales are booming.

For the first half of 2018, the area has about 19,500 homes in foreclosure. New York leads the nation with 34,500.

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Meanwhile, the inventory of homes available for sale in the city remains low. According to Crain’s Chicago Business real estate reporter Dennis Rodkin, “tight inventory breeds tight inventory.”

As far as prices, the median price of a home sold in Chicago during the month of May was $306,000 – up just 0.1 percent from the previous year. “The flatness should be a signal to sellers not to be ambitious in pricing their homes,” Rodkin writes.

On the luxury end of the market, sales are booming. Almost 1,500 houses in Lincoln Park sold for over a million dollars. Yet, many expensive homes are selling for less than what they owners paid or even listed the house price.

A condo in the 101-story Vista Tower, designed by architect Jeanne Gang, just sold for $18.5 million – even though the development won’t be finished until 2020.

Another property in Lake Forest just sold for $12 million. But high-end homes in that suburb had been selling so slowly that the town launched a “Welcome Home” marketing campaign last year to attract buyers.

Rodkin joins us in discussion.


Related stories:

The Rise of College Dorm-Style Co-Living in Chicago

After Homeowners Complain, Cook County Assessor Defends Higher Property Assessments

Taking the Property Plunge: A New Guide for First-Time Homebuyers


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