May 1, 2008

Market for rental units heats up in Chicago

Category: Downtown Condos. Posted by Mike at 11:33 pm.

As sales of Chicago Condos drop around the region, many developers are turning to rental units as demand for apartments rise in the city.

One development that was originally planned to offer luxury condominiums in Chicago will now become rental units. The West Loop development, located at the corner of Madison Street and Racine Avenue, was being developed by Thrush Cos. The development would have had a total of 164 condominiums.

Thrush Cos signed an agreement to sell the property to AvalonBay Communities, the second such deal in less than a year by the company in the Chicago region. The company paid $23 million last summer to Lennar Corp for a property in the South Loop, and plans to build apartment units there.

The project is one of several new apartments underway in the downtown Chicago market. According to data from Appraisal Research Counselors, a Chicago-based firm, a total of 1,676 new apartments will be ready for occupancy in this year alone, the highest number of new units to come on the market. 2009 will be even a bigger year for rental units in the city, with more than 2,500 units planned for completion during the year.

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