Posts Tagged ‘Residential’

Mr. Obama’s Neighborhood

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

You can be President Barack Obama’s Chicago next-door neighbor for just $1.85 million. That’s the listing price for the 17-room 1906-vintage brick house at 5040 South Greenwood Avenue owned by Bill and Jacky Grimshaw since 1973.front2-thumb-580xauto-19524

The house had been on the market for an unspecified sum since September, but a price had to be set since it is being placed on the local multiple listing service.  The house is a relative bargain for upscale Kenwood because it requires substantial renovation.  Large Kenwood houses in good condition can cost between $2.3 million and $2.4 million, according to Matt Garrison, the Grimshaws’ real estate agent.

Garrison says that the premium for buying a house located next to the home of a sitting president is a few hundred thousand dollars.  “It’s probably going to sell to a traditional Chicago buyer,” Garrison said.  “Right now buyers aren’t doing anything fast and the seller wants to sell the property.”

Potential buyers of the Grimshaw house will require security clearances by the Secret Service.

Cornerstone Gets the Green Light

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009

Cornerstone’s launch fulfills William A. Alter’s 30-year vision that began when the legendary real estate titan acquired the first of what now comprises 650 acres in central Lake County.

As a mixed-use development pioneer, Bill Alter understood that differing residential products could- and would — flourish, complete with nearby stores.  Cornerstone is taking Bill’s vision a step farther by creating an environment where industrial, research-and-development and office and retail jobs will coexist within walking distance of housing, entertainment opportunities and shopping.  rtkl_cornerstone_eyelevl2sign1

Costing  an estimated $750 million,  Cornerstone is a significant project which will take early 12 years to complete.  It is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs.  At completion, we expect that Cornerstone will add more than 9,000 jobs within the project, as well as almost 7,000 supporting jobs throughout Lake County.  Currently, our development plans call for 3 million SF to 3.5 million SF of light industrial/office space, 500,000 SF to 600,000 SF of shops and restaurants and 800 homes, mostly townhouses, apartments and condominiums.  Located west of Illinois Highway 83, Cornerstone is expected to be annexed into the village of Grayslake.

The Grayslake community is embracing the concept of Cornerstone.  At public hearings and planning commission meetings with Village officials, we’ve received consistently positive feedback, with comments such as “Well-balanced land use plan.”, “This is what Grayslake needs - NOW.” and “We need more amenities locally.”

We still face some challenges as we move forward, but I have every confidence that Cornerstone will become the most sought-after destination in central Lake County.

Will Surge in Mortgage Applications Find a Home?

Wednesday, December 17th, 2008

The residential mortgage market is experiencing an unexpected - but welcome — boom, a result of interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate loans falling to 5.47 percent from 5.99 percent.  According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly review, the average rate for a 15-year fixed-rate loan - popular when refinancing - fell to 5.13 percent from 5.78 percent.  A one-year adjustable-rate mortgage decreased to 6.61 percent from 6.87 percent. The existing-mortgage refinance rate tripled during Thanksgiving week, while purchase volume increased 38 percent.  Refinance applications were 69.1 percent of the total volume, a significant increase over the 49.3 percent reported during the previous week.  The survey covers approximately 50 percent of all weekly residential mortgage originations.

The MBA reported that the application rate more than doubled during the short Thanksgiving week.  The trade group’s application rate rose to 857.7 in the week ending November 28, compared with 404.4 the previous week.

Clearly, part of the demand is being driven by buyers locked into floating-rate or short-term debt or adjustable-rate mortgages looking to refinance into fixed-interest vehicles.  While Frannie and Freddie should fill some of the void in light of their $20 billion bailout, the market will still have a financing shortfall with the disappearance of CDOs and the securities market.

Industry Mourns Passing of Bill Alter

Monday, August 18th, 2008

Bill Alter, founder of The Alter Group, passed away peacefully Friday, August 8, in his Winnetka, IL, home of complications from Alzheimer’s at age 78.  Named one of the most influential people of the 20th century by National Real Estate Investor magazine, Alter presided over the development of more than $1 billion of space over a half century.

Alter’s Realty Company of America began building homes for post-war, first-time buyers.  In 1959, Alter developed the first residential community for middle-income minority buyers, Kingston Green in Markham, IL.  With Olympian Jesse Owens as his national spokesman, Alter brought the dream of home ownership to hundreds of families.

Dubbed the “sky broker”, Alter was known throughout his native Chicago for using a twin-engine plane to scout land sites.  His son, Michael, who succeeded his father as president in 1995, said “his was a uniquely American story.”

Over the decades, The Alter Group developed millions of square feet of speculative office, industrial, research-and-development, and healthcare space in a variety of business parks.  A recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Urban Land Institute, Bill helped create the now widely copied concept of the professional planned industrial park.

Bill is survived by his wife, Evelyn.  He was the father of Michael, Harvey, Jennie, Jonathan, and the late Rhonda Alter.  Additionally, he had two step-children, Nicky Bliwas and Tony Winski, as well as 13 grandchildren.

Construction-Loan Delinquencies on the Rise

Monday, June 30th, 2008

The surge in the construction-loan delinquency rate - both residential and commercial - suggests that lenders will remain reluctant to make loans for new construction.

Developers usually finance projects through short-term construction loans.  Once the project has stabilized, the developer seeks long-term debt.  With the current economic downturn, developers are finding it difficult to obtain capital.  This is compounded by a lack of liquidity in the mortgage market.  As a result, projects are worth less than they were a year or two ago.  Lenders also are more stringent in their underwriting standards, preferring highly stabilized projects with significant pre-leasing.

Short-term, the outlook is negative, as maturing loans may have problems refinancing if liquidity is non-existent.

The silver lining is that seasoned developers with strong lending relationships and leased portfolios are better positioned to develop product on an “as-needed-and-warranted” basis.