Condos in 222 E. Chestnut are being snapped up for a song We already know that location counts — but so does potential. That’s likely why unit 8B, a shabby but spacious condo at 222 E. Chestnut, priced at a mere $525,000 for 2,400 square feet (that’s $219 per square foot right off Lake Shore Drive), sat for three months but just got white-hot now that its stunning upstairs sister, unit 15B, went under contract in five weeks flat. “We’ve had a series of third showings and two serious offers,” says Dream Town Realty broker Brendan Murphy. Considering that 8B’s floor mate 8A, a touch larger at 2,700 square feet (but also in need of work), sold earlier this year for $660,000 (or $244 per square foot), it’s an outstanding value. Unit 12A, another 2,750-square-foot space in good shape, is also for sale and currently priced at $890,000 ($324 per square foot) but the sellers are moving home to the East Coast and are “motivated to sell,” says Baird & Warner broker Jay Elder. When you do the math, none are as good a deal as Unit 13, which spans the whole floor for a whopping 5,200 square feet and…

Condos in 222 E. Chestnut are being snapped up for a song

We already know that location counts — but so does potential. That’s likely why unit 8B, a shabby but spacious condo at 222 E. Chestnut, priced at a mere $525,000 for 2,400 square feet (that’s $219 per square foot right off Lake Shore Drive), sat for three months but just got white-hot now that its stunning upstairs sister, unit 15B, went under contract in five weeks flat. “We’ve had a series of third showings and two serious offers,” says Dream Town Realty broker Brendan Murphy. Considering that 8B’s floor mate 8A, a touch larger at 2,700 square feet (but also in need of work), sold earlier this year for $660,000 (or $244 per square foot), it’s an outstanding value. Unit 12A, another 2,750-square-foot space in good shape, is also for sale and currently priced at $890,000 ($324 per square foot) but the sellers are moving home to the East Coast and are “motivated to sell,” says Baird & Warner broker Jay Elder. When you do the math, none are as good a deal as Unit 13, which spans the whole floor for a whopping 5,200 square feet and is priced at $1.09 million — or $210 per square foot. “It’s the best deal in the area for all that space,” says the unit’s broker, Ed Hester of Dream Town Realty.

Unit 8B: Brendan Murphy, Dream Town Realty, (312) 423-5508; Unit 12A: Jay Elder, Baird & Warner, (312) 640-7010; Unit 13, Ed Hester, Dream Town Realty, (312) 698-8550 

Unit 15B at 222 E. Chestnut sold in just five weeks after a rehab.

Unit 12A

STAR SOURCING

Design maven Denise Stefan, a shopping center developer by trade, did a total and relatively economical rehab on Unit 15B at 222 E. Chestnut with the help of Chicago- and Milwaukee-based interior designer Jeff Schmidt, plus a crew of expertly picked pros. V&A Custom Cabinets, a company out of DePere, Wis., did the custom millwork and cabinetry, including a Christopher Peacock-quality kitchen, “for half the price,” says Stefan. Adds Schmidt, “a trompe l’oeil marquetry floor painted on top of the original parquet was way less costly than the real thing, and I did glazes and striping on other walls myself.” Contact Jeff Schmidt at JLS Designs, (414) 514-8296, Jlsdesigns.net.

Unit 15B