Tall & Urban News

The trend of condo deconversions in Chicago is continuing to shift, as exemplified by two recent proposals in the planned transition of The Hensley apartment building at 707 North Wells Street to the Chateau on Wells and a historic 1927 Gold Coast building on North Lake Shore Drive is going from apartments to condos.

The first, Chateau on Wells, is 12-story building that intends to convert the 43 rental units into for-sale condos priced between $400,000 and $1 million USD. Units, meant to be competitive with condos, will feature an average of 1,150 square feet (107 square meters). The developer has responded that there is an opportunity at the lower price points, which can attract younger buyers working downtown, in contrast to the sluggish sales of downtown condos priced over $1 million USD. This shift follows Crescent Heights' recent decision to convert the 19-story, former Lakeshore Athletic Club at 850 North Lake Shore Drive into condos.

In the River North area, there is a four-month supply of condos priced under $1 million, compared to a 15-month supply for those over $1 million, supporting the developer of the Chatueau on Wells project. Additionally, weakened demand for apartment investments and higher interest rates have influenced this move. Designed to compete with condos, features units averaging 1,150 square feet. Renters have been notified of the upcoming conversion.

A key takeaway in these recent deconversions is that the new units are priced cheaper than the typical condo inventory of new construction, expanding the field of obtainable housing real estate.  

Learn more about this at Crains Chicago Business.