It took a while, but condo hotels seem to be catching on in Chicago. Teng & Associates, the development and architecture firm behind the new Waterview Tower, planned for 111 W. Wacker, is the latest to join the fray.
Teng has decided to include a 190-room condominium hotel in the 85-story tower. The condo hotel units will be located on floors 12 to 24, replacing a commercial component originally envisioned as part of the development.
Hotel condos are deeded and owned in fee simple – real condominiums that can be bought and sold at any time. The owners generally have private storage where they can keep belongings when they’re away, and when they’re in residence, they have full use of their units – as well as the perks of an upscale hotel, on a fee-for-service basis. When they’re not in residence, their units can be rented out through the hotel program and earn income.
There are monthly assessments and real estate taxes, as in any condo building, and hotel condo owners also share in the costs of operating the hotel. The trend is catching on in Chicago, where Trump Tower, the Elysian and two projects by Falor Companies are adding hundreds of hotel condo units to the city market.
The 233 regular condos in the development are priced from the $640s to more than $6.3 million for a top penthouse. A sales center for Waterview Tower, www.WaterviewTower.com, is located on the 35th floor of the LaSalle-Wacker Building, 121 W. Wacker, immediately west of the development site.