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Apartments on offer in 1920s Chicago building
Sunday, November 16, 2008 By Gillian Nelis, Property Editor
Irish investors may not be as ubiquitous in overseas property markets as they were in happier economic times, but there are still buyers out there keen to acquire units which they perceive to be good medium-term bets.

One project which is likely to be of interest to them is 1400 Lakeshore Drive, a refurbished 1920s apartment building overlooking Lake Michigan in Chicago. Originally built by the Wrigley gum family, the 22 storey limestone building has been owned by the local firm RDM Development for two years, during which time around $20 million has been spent on refurbishment work. It now comprises 391 apartments, a convenience store, a dry cleaners and a gym, as well as an upmarket hair salon.

RDM has already sold most of the apartments, but 20 are available to Irish investors through the Dublin firm ACAP Group, which has negotiated a 15 per cent discount with the developers. According to Paul McGlade of ACAP, booking deposits have already been placed on nine of the units.

‘‘We’ve had a very good response from people who see the project as a medium-term play,” he said. ‘‘There’s so much going on in Chicago at the moment - apart from the Obama factor, there is also the fact that the city could win the right to host the 2016Olympics. Tenants are already in place for a lot of the apartments, so it’s a hassle-free investment.”

The building certainly has plenty of charm. As well as a stylish, wood-panelled lobby, there’s a roof terrace with panoramic views of the lake and the city skyline. A number of the apartments have the same vista, while others look towards Astor Street, Chicago’s most exclusive address, where properties sell for up to $12 million.

Some of the apartments have already been refurbished, while others are in the process of being modernised - the original 1920s kitchen and bathroom fittings are still in situ in a number of units, as are the parquet floors.

There is a good variety of units on offer, with studios starting from just under €90,000 including the 15 per cent discount. One-bed apartments with between 48 and 69 square metres of living space start from €135,750, while two-bed, two-bath properties start at just over €211,00 and extend to around 98 square metres.

Also available are three-bed, two-bath units with around 143 square metres of space; these are priced at just over €328,000. Rental demand is strong in this part of Chicago, particularly among young professionals who can walk to work on Michigan Avenue and socialise in the evenings in the many bars and restaurants in the surrounding area, which is known locally as the Gold Coast.

Oak Street Beach and North Avenue Beach are just across the road from 1400 Lakeshore Drive, and the roof terrace is a popular spot for barbecues during the summer.

Local estate agent Matt Garrison, who helped McGlade broker the deal with RDM, can organise lettings and management for investors, and estimates that the units will rent for between $850 and over $2,000 per month depending on their size and position within the building.

RDM will pay the annual real estate tax of 1.5 per cent, along with maintenance fees, for three years, and has also agreed to refund the airfares of any investors who visit the project and subsequently agree to buy a unit. Finance of up to 70 per cent is available through ACAP from a US bank.

According to Paul McGlade, RDM will also provide buyers with an Independent Developers Registry (IDR) report, which contains detailed information on the firm including its history and background, checks on land title and ownership, checks that construction guarantees meet local codes of practice, and checks on the security and independence of the escrow facility.

‘‘The IDR report is designed to provide transparency and security for buyers,” said McGlade. ‘‘We don’t deal with developers who don’t provide it.”

More information is available from ACAP on www.acapgroup.com and 01-6799599.

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