In the late ’90s, lofts so dominated Chicago’s downtown residential real estate market, we almost got sick of them. Every day, it seemed, a developer was announcing a new loft condo project, and the only the reason we never quite got bored was that many these developments were, and remain, among the coolest in town. In the fall of 1997, New Homes Magazine counted around 60 loft developments totaling 4,000 units with at least some of their loft condos on the market.
Three years later, about half as many developers’ lofts were on the market, and the flood continued to shrink until it was no more than a trickle. Developers lamented that the best buildings in the best locations either already had been converted or were priced too high. So when we did a quick count of current loft developments this morning, we were surprised to find that there were nearly 30 loft condo developments totaling more than 3,000 units with at least some homes on the market.
There are some sizeable developments in the bunch, including the 175-unit Shoemaker Lofts, 3927 W Belmont Ave, and the 266-unit No. Ten Lofts, 1040 W Adams St – both of which have been on the market for some time. University Commons wins the size prize, however, with 824 loft condos at 1000 W 15th St.
Buyers in the current loft market will find some new locations. Rogers Park, McKinley Park, Bridgeport and Woodlawn aren’t the first neighborhoods that spring to mind when you think lofts, but in a way, it’s fitting that lofts are being built in these areas. Lofts were always a pioneering form of housing and catered to buyers more concerned with creative spaces than trendy locations.
Pricing is pretty middle of the road, with most units currently priced from the low $200s to the high $300s. McKinley Park Lofts, 2323 W Pershing Rd, has some homes starting as low as the $180s, and at the high end of the market, 2105 Concord has a starting price in the $420s.
Here, in no particular order, is a list of current loft developments. If you can think of one we missed, e-mail us, and if you’re first to name it, we’ll send you a free YoChicago tee shirt:
Citizens State Bank, 1623 W Melrose: nine lofts priced from the $360s to the $740s
Tru Lofts, 2525 N Sheffield: 28 lofts priced from the $300s to the $590s
Casablanca Lofts, 1736 S Michigan: 17 lofts priced from the $560s to the $850s
Paramount Lofts, 130 S Ashland: 207 lofts priced from the $210s to the $370s
Plymouth Lofts, 417 S Dearborn: 30 lofts priced from the $240s
Odyssey Lofts, 918 W Washington: 75 lofts priced from the $260s to the $620s
University Commons, 1000 W 15th: 824 lofts priced from the $220s
No. Ten Lofts, 1040 W Adams: 266 lofts priced from the $230s to the $540s
Chantico Lofts, 1061 W 16th: 42 lofts priced from the $260s to the $390s
Van Buren Lofts, 1224 W Van Buren: 189 lofts priced from the $240s to the $600s
University Station, 1500 S Blue Island: 231 lofts priced from the $250s
15th Street Lofts, 1503 S State: 78 lofts priced from the $200s to the $360s
Chess Lofts, 20 E 21st: 119 lofts priced from in the $200s
Huron Street Lofts, 225 W Huron: 100 lofts priced from the $250s
Hubbard Street Lofts, 1050 W Hubbard: 21 lofts priced from the $440s
Grand Timber Lofts, 500 N Damen: 21 lofts priced from the $230s (this project, as astute reader, WoodlawnChuck, pointed out, is new construction. We’ve included it anyway because we’ve never seen a newly built development reproduce the industrial features of traditional timber-beam lofts so well.)
College Lofts, 1521 W Haddon: 23 lofts priced priced from the $320s to the $520s
PAC Lofts, 1735 N Paulina: 95 lofts priced from the $300s
2105 W. Concord: seven lofts priced from the $420s to the $520s
North Beach Lofts, 1225 W Morse: 43 lofts priced from the $270s to the $290s
Rogers Lofts, 7377 N Rogers: 16 lofts priced from the $180s to the $340s
Belmont Lofts, 4131 W Belmont: 54 lofts priced from the $220s
Bridgeport Place, 1038 W 35th: 158 lofts priced from the $250s to the $480s
Living Green Lofts, 1501 E 65th: 25 lofts priced from the $200s
McKinley Park Lofts, 2323 W Pershing: 163 lofts priced from the $180s to the $360s
Northpoint Lofts, 7506 N Damen: 16 lofts priced from the $200s
Shoemaker Lofts, 3927 W Belmont: 175 lofts priced from the $250s to the $400s