Roughly half of the apartments in downtown’s seven newest rental high-rises are now under lease, according to Appraisal Research Counselors‘ latest Downtown Chicago Residential Benchmark Report.
The buildings comprise 2,324 apartments, 1,135 of which are under contract. The lease-up rates for these buildings through the end of October were:
- Trio, 670 W Wayman St: 49 of 90 units (54%) leased since February
- Alta at K Station, 555 W Kinzie St: 449 of 848 units (53%) leased since March
- Flair Tower, 222 W Erie St: 156 of 198 units (79%) leased since March
- 215 West, 215 W Washington St: 230 of 389 units (59%) leased since May
- Parc Huron, 469 W Huron St: 146 of 221 units (66%) leased since June
- EnV, 161 W Kinzie St: 92 of 249 units (37%) leased since June
- 200 Squared, 210 N Wells St: 13 of 329 units (4%) leased since October
As Crain’s reported earlier today, ARC predicts an 8- to 10-percent increase in rent by this time next year, as demand for downtown apartments increases. According to ARC’s report, “the current credit situation had dampened the potential for additional supply,” but two or three new developments could launch within the next six to nine months, delivering as many as 1,300 new apartments in total.
ARC also expects more unsold condo inventory to convert to rental, “as there is clearly no imminent recovery for condo sales apparent, and there is a push for cash flow on struggling projects.” Two developments mentioned as candidates for conversion are the Lexington Park Condominiums Tower and Astoria Tower, both in the South Loop.