North Side Apartment Building Values Are On Rise Despite Downturn

The end of the Bull Market and stock-market declines sparked by the coronavirus economy are driving more and more serious buyers into investment real estate.

“Despite the economic downturn and rising real estate tax assessments, small income property values are on the rise in hot North Side neighborhoods such as Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Bucktown, Wicker Park, Ukrainian Village, Logan Square and Avondale,” noted Realtor Sara E. Benson, president of Chicago-based Benson Stanley Realty.

“Well located income properties returning high rents are extremely attractive to small investors,” Benson said. “It’s about cash flow, scarcity, and demand.”

Housing analysts noted that affordable mortgage rates also played a major role in igniting the market in late 2019. On November 7, 2019, benchmark 30-year-fixed mortgages averaged 3.69%, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey. A year earlier, rates averaged 4.94%.

With 30-year mortgage rates moving lower this year, experts say 2020 could be another solid season for investing in multifamily properties. On March 26. Freddie Mac reported that 30-year rates fell to 3.5% from 3.65% a week earlier.

At any point in time, Benson noted there typically are less than 2,800 small income properties listed for sale in Northern Illinois. At the same time, there usually are about 36,000 single-family home listings and 15,000 condos for sale.

Compass Real Estate’s X-Plus Team, specialists in marketing two-unit to 12-unit properties, compiled the following comparison of 2017 and 2019 three-unit and four-unit building sales by zip codes on Chicago’s North Side.

Recent sales include a broad mix of Victorian brownstones, red brick and peaked-roof frame three-flat and four-flat properties built mostly between the turn-of-the-century and 1920s:

• 60614: In this zip code, encompassing Old Town and Lincoln Park, 22 three-unit properties were sold in 2019, each for an average price of $1,166,864. In 2017, 21 three-unit properties were sold for an average price of $1,014,952. Average market time in 2019 was 73 days, down from 118 days in 2017.

Ten four-flats in the 60614-zip code sold in 2019 for an average price of $1,313,712. In 2017, 14 four-flats in the 60614-zip code sold for an average price of $1,269,628. Average market time was 46 days in 2019, down from 86 days in 2017.

• 60657: In Lakeview, 26 three-unit properties were sold in 2019 for an average price of $962,487. Twenty three-unit properties were sold in 2017 for an average price of $968,646. Average market time was 48 days in 2019, down from 73 days in 2017.

Nine four-flats in the 60657-zip code sold for an average price of $1,142,056 in 2019 with an average market time of only 35 days. Fifteen four-flats in the 60657-zip code sold in 2017 for an average price of $1,267,308 with an average market time of 56 days.

• 60622: This zip code includes Bucktown, Wicker Park and Ukrainian Village. Twenty-nine three-unit properties were sold in 2019 for an average price of $815,451. Average market time was 56 days. Twenty-seven four-flats in the 60622-zip code sold for an average price of $911,676 in 2019 with an average market time of 49 days.

In 2017, zip code 60622 posted sales of 34 three-unit properties for an average price of $750,956. Average market time was 74 days. Eighteen four-flats in the 60622-zip code sold for an average price of $978,993 in 2017 with an average market time of 64 days.

• 60647: In Logan Square, 53 three-unit properties were sold in 2019 for an average price of $666,953. Average market time was 44 days. Thirteen four-flats in the 60647-zip code sold for an average price of $773,958 in 2019 with an average market time of only 32 days.

In 2017, zip code 60647 posted sales of 46 three-unit properties for an average price of $582,050. Average market time was 83 days. Twenty-six four-flats in the 60647-zip code sold for an average price of $774,230 in 2017 with an average market time of 50 days.

• 60618: This zip code includes West Roscoe Village, Avondale and Albany Park. Fifty-five three-unit properties were sold in 2019 for an average price of $605,450. Average market time was 36 days. Twenty-five four-flats in the 60618-zip code sold for an average price of $731,487 in 2019 with an average market time of only 29 days.

In 2017, zip code 60618 posted sales of 68 three-unit properties for an average price of $557,491. Average market time was 64 days. Twenty-three four-flats in the 60618-zip code sold for an average price of $693,768 in 2017 with an average market time of 33 days.

Led by Weston Harding and Gloria Wiekert, and based at 2350 N, Lincoln Ave. in Lincoln Park, the Compass X-Plus Team has sold properties valued at more than $250 million, ranking it in the top 10% of all producing Realtors in Chicago for the past six years. For more information call 312-669-4343, or visit www.xplusrealestate.com.

For more housing news, visit www.dondebat.biz. Don DeBat is co-author of “Escaping Condo Jail,” the ultimate survival guide for condominium living. Visit www.escapingcondojail.com.