Townhouses are often thought of as the affordable alternative to detached single-families, but a number of new townhouse developents have units priced at $1 million or more. The three rowhouses at 2055 N Orleans in Lincoln Park, marketed by Coldwell Banker’s Gold Coast office, start at $1.675 million. The Parkhomes, the townhouse component of Magellan Development Group’s massive, 28-acre Lakeshore East development in the Loop, begin at $1.7 million. And attached units at Lincoln Park’s Hartland Park project (pictured), developed by Belgravia Group and designed by Pappageorge/Haymes, begin in the $800s and go up to $2.5 million.
The paucity of options at this price point begs the question: if you’re lucky enough to have $1 million or more at your disposal, why wouldn’t you choose a single-family house? A quick survey of Yo’s list of nearly a hundred new single-family home developments showed most to be in the $1 million to $2 million range. But prices are substantially higher in these hot neighborhoods, making townhouses comparative bargains – even at $1 million-plus – according to the people selling them (admittedly, these sources are less than objective, but they have done some homework on the market).
“You can’t get a nice, detached, single-family house in this neighborhood [Lincoln Park] for under a million,” says Laura Anderson, who has been a broker in Lincoln Park and Lake View for 17 years and is currently a sales representative for Hartland Park.
Arda Talu, also a sales rep for Hartland Park, argues that the difference between a city detached house wedged among other buildings and a townhouse with a shared wall is close to negligible, especially when the price per square foot is comparable. Hartland Park’s walls are “very thick” he says. “We cannot make the noise disappear, but we offer very comfortable living conditions.” As evidence, he points to the speed at which Hartland Park is selling – the first phase is sold out and the second phase is 70 percent sold, with first deliveries planned for August.