CHICAGO | General Developments

[Ryanrule]

Originally Posted by marothisu

You obviously didn't read through the very real life scenario I set out of someone (or maybe a couple of people, without kids) making $120K/year as a household which ton of households make.



I'll write it out more clearly, on a $120K/year salary:

(1) Amount of money after state tax, federal tax, 5% 401K contribution, and health insurance: $6100 per month
(2) Amount of money after $2500/month rent: $3600 per month.


(3) Amount of money $3600/month equals per year: $43,200.

So let's just think about this for a minute. After all taxes, 401K, and health insurance on that salary, and paying $2500/month rent you will still be taking home $3600 per month, or $43,200/year which is basically disposable income at that point. You know what percent of Chicago households don't even make above $35K per year BEFORE taxes, rent, etc? 37.5%. And there's probably another 4 or 5% that don't even make above $43,200 (11.7% of Chicago households make between $35K and $50K per year). I mean hell, the median HH income of Chicago is $50K/year and that's before taxes. This $43,200 is after all of that AND rent - and you'd still be not terribly far from the gross city median.

So in what world is having $3600/month (and for many many people, that would be more) in disposable income close to a "whole paycheck"? It's not - maybe you don't know a lot of people who make this kind of money, but there's tons of people in Chicago who make enough money to support themselves to live in places like this. I don't know how you could think that living on money like $3600/month after pretty much all taxes, insurance, housing, etc is paid for is living paycheck to paycheck.

Not to mention that every single one of these buildings have income checks on them to make sure you can actually afford it and ARENT living paycheck to paycheck. Do you seriously think they just let anybody rent apartments from a tower they just spent over $100M building and have a big loan out for?




Yeah, thought I covered the "couple" thing but maybe not. Totally agree though - though it depends on what you study, but yeah. Let's just show some stats too of various downtown tracts and percentage of households in the making at least $150K/year:

* http://www.usa.com/IL031081402-income-and-careers.html 37.72%
* http://www.usa.com/IL031081500-income-and-careers.html - 33.38%
* http://www.usa.com/IL031081600-income-and-careers.html - 32.39%
* http://www.usa.com/IL031081403-income-and-careers.html - 30.04%

do you actually make this much, or guessing? i find your numbers a bit loose.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Ryanrule

do you actually make this much, or guessing? i find your numbers a bit loose.

I'm not going to tell you how much I make, but yes somewhere in this range. Not to mention that you can figure out how much state tax (3.75% flat for illinois) and federal income tax you would have to pay, as well as medicare/medicaid (flat tax up to $118,500 per year). 5% 401K - flat again, not that hard, and most good corporations or companies that have opted into good health care plans have you paying in the same range for health care.

I live downtown in a luxury building and know the process of what they require for you to be able to rent out their units (and my building's turnover is very quick when someone leaves. According to my management office, especially in summer they will have a person sign a lease for a place within 2 days of someone else leaving). $120K/year is a very fair salary for someone say in the software dev business who's senior (maybe 9-10+ years experience), senior consultants, lawyers, doctors, etc. In fact, even Accenture pays junior consultants in Chicago coming right out of college (undergrad) $85,000 per year starting salary right now.


Anyway, you cannot rent an apartment at any of these buildings unless you have verifiable income - the monthly rent at any one of these buildings downtown cannot exceed 33% of your gross monthly income. If it does, they will deny you - it doesn't matter how good your credit score is. So for example, if you want to rent a $2500/month apartment and make $85K/year - you will be denied from living in that building due to the fact that $2500/month is 35% of your gross monthly income. If you were making $90K/year, you could rent it out but if you were competing with someone else for the same apartment making $150K/year , they'd probably be more willing to rent it to the other person and not you since they have more padding.

If anybody living at these places downtown are living paycheck to paycheck in a luxury rental building, it is because of their pending habits at places like bars, restaurants, etc - not with how much money they make as a salary.

[Ryanrule]

ugh i hate that term "luxury." means nothing anymore.

all i know is i dont like to spend more than 33% of my NET take-home on rent.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Ryanrule

ugh i hate that term "luxury." means nothing anymore.

all i know is i dont like to spend more than 33% of my NET take-home on rent.

And that's great - and a lot of people living in these places aren't even spending 33% of their NET. One of the tracts I linked to has over 25% of households making a MINIMUM of $200K/year.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by KWILLSKYLINE

Anyone have any updated shots of United Center & Blackhawks training center?

They're still doing foundations on the training center. It's a pretty big, dumb tilt-up building with parking lot.

I'm very jealous of the Nets' new training facility though... too bad the Hawks couldn't get their hands on a big ol' warehouse somewhere on Fulton or Kinzie. Obviously 1 block from the stadium is convenient, but right next to an L stop is not a great place for a facility that literally everyone will drive to.

At least in New York and Chicago, the move of training facilities from suburb to city seems to reflect the growing desirability of cities as a whole. If you're a professional athlete making millions, it used to be that you wanted a big mansion in the suburbs with a 10-car garage. Each of the training facilities were in the suburbs to be close to players, even though the teams themselves always played downtown.

Now if you're a professional athlete making millions, you're buying a pimped-out townhouse that's a short drive away from clubs and entertainment, and also a short drive away from your workplace. The training facilities move back into the city to be more convenient. The Hawks actually started the trend by moving to Johnny's in 2009.

Nets Training facility:

src

[Ryanrule]

I imagine they still keep a big house in the burbs to store the relatives when they pop in.

[Via Chicago]

Originally Posted by marothisu

After state and federal taxes, and say 5% 401K with decent health insurance - you'll be taking home around $6100/month.

not maxing out a 401k on that kind of salary seems insane to me. or hell, go above and beyond with the savings rate and reach financial independence/early retirement 20 years early. but thats just me.

[Rizzo]

Originally Posted by ardecila

They're still doing foundations on the training center. It's a pretty big, dumb tilt-up building with parking lot.

I'm very jealous of the Nets' new training facility though... too bad the Hawks couldn't get their hands on a big ol' warehouse somewhere on Fulton or Kinzie. Obviously 1 block from the stadium is convenient, but right next to an L stop is not a great place for a facility that literally everyone will drive to.

At least in New York and Chicago, the move of training facilities from suburb to city seems to reflect the growing desirability of cities as a whole. If you're a professional athlete making millions, it used to be that you wanted a big mansion in the suburbs with a 10-car garage. Each of the training facilities were in the suburbs to be close to players, even though the teams themselves always played downtown.

Now if you're a professional athlete making millions, you're buying a pimped-out townhouse that's a short drive away from clubs and entertainment, and also a short drive away from your workplace. The training facilities move back into the city to be more convenient. The Hawks actually started the trend by moving to Johnny's in 2009.

Nets Training facility:

src

The hawks could never afford that, they've barely been profitable year over year. The building is probably designed to pay itself off from ice fees since it will be primarily used by the public.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Via Chicago

not maxing out a 401k on that kind of salary seems insane to me. or hell, go above and beyond with the savings rate and reach financial independence/early retirement 20 years early. but thats just me.

I don't disagree, especially in a city like Chicago - if it were NYC or SF then it would be harder. Regardless, even if it was $120K salary and a 10% 401K contribution let's say, that's about $5600 instead of $6100 - you could still get a nice place downtown for $2200/month and you're still about the same as what I was stating before. Actually my "luxury" 1 bedroom is under $2K/month in Gold Coast.

Of course - I do agree. if you want to retire early and are single making some decent money like that - you'd want to live somewhere else like Lakeview if you still want the balance of fun and saving a little more.

[sentinel]

Please stay on topic

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Hayward

The hawks could never afford that, they've barely been profitable year over year. The building is probably designed to pay itself off from ice fees since it will be primarily used by the public.

I guess it would be wishful thinking that Wirtz would make something like that, but it would be cool seeing that in the city.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Hayward

The hawks could never afford that, they've barely been profitable year over year. The building is probably designed to pay itself off from ice fees since it will be primarily used by the public.

The Nets don't own that building. They're just marquee tenants on the 8th floor. Lower levels are flex industrial/office space.

http://www.yimbynews.com/2016/04/ind...nset-park.html

Back in Chicago, it'd be cool if the Park District invested in more neighborhood outdoor rinks. Montreal has 273, Chicago has only 10... The fees and overhead of an indoor facility have to be enormous. Add that on top of the high cost of gear, and you've got a sport that only rich kids and yuppies can afford to play...

[marothisu]

Vacant lot at 600 W Randolph (Randolph and Jefferson - https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8846...8i6656!6m1!1e1) sold on 9/21 for $7.35M. Anybody have any intel on this one? Just north of the new hotel building at 108 N Jefferson and right near 156 N Desplaines which is U/C.

Also, the parking garage at 425 S Wells (Wells and about Congress - https://www.google.com/maps/place/42...633347!6m1!1e1) was sold about a month ago for $4M. Would love to see something else go there..


Random things from October's zoning agenda:
1) Streeterville Hotel that will replace where the Museum of Contemporary Art used to be on Ontario. 20 stories, 383 rooms - Aloft hotel. I mention this because the neighbors are not happy at where the developer wants to put the valet station - in a busy alleyway - according to a Crain's article from today (http://www.chicagobusiness.com/reale...raws-fire-from). Luckily the neighbors aren't against the hotel itself. According to the article, the CDOT already approved the valet station for the alleyway. Kind of a weird place for valet, no?

2) The mostly industrial/warehouse-ish building at 2300 S Archer in Chinatown (Archer & Canal - https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8509...8i6656!6m1!1e1) sold around then for almost $3.7M. That address is on this month's zoning meeting agenda for a 2 story retail building w/parking garage. Of course since it's basically in Chinatown, I'm hoping it's Chinese retail and will expand that in Chinatown even more south along Archer.

3) 3 story office building at 747 N May (May and almost Ogden - near the Chicago Blue Line stop - https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8958...8i6656!6m1!1e1). Looking to convert it to a 22 room hotel.

[Mikemak27]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Vacant lot at 600 W Randolph (Randolph and Jefferson - https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8846...8i6656!6m1!1e1) sold on 9/21 for $7.35M. Anybody have any intel on this one? Just north of the new hotel building at 108 N Jefferson and right near 156 N Desplaines which is U/C.

Do yourself a favor and click on the Google maps link of the picture showing the empty lot. Not only do you get a great visual of the lot and its potential uses on that corner, you get a nice treat in green right in front of the parking lot

[SolarWind]

October 10, 2016

[SolarWind]

October 10, 2016









^ Near 933 W Van Buren

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by Mikemak27

Do yourself a favor and click on the Google maps link of the picture showing the empty lot. Not only do you get a great visual of the lot and its potential uses on that corner, you get a nice treat in green right in front of the parking lot

Seriously?

I did that and obviously you are talking about a nicely dressed blonde whose face is blurred out. Not worth the effort, everyone.

[Ryanrule]

Originally Posted by marothisu

And that's great - and a lot of people living in these places aren't even spending 33% of their NET. One of the tracts I linked to has over 25% of households making a MINIMUM of $200K/year.

I doubt that track is young and single though.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Ryanrule

I doubt that track is young and single though.

It is sometimes actually. There's actually a number of high frequency, algorithmic traders in their 20 and 30s making much more than $200K/year in Chicago - it's actually pretty ridiculous. I have a friend who worked for a firm and some of his friends at his firm were millionaires and not even in their 30s yet - all because of their work. There are lawyers who are making at least $150K in that age bracket - there's even a firm in town that pays its "starting" lawyers $180K/year (it was in Crains because they're willing to pay their people what a lawyer in NYC would start at in a good firm). There are doctors who make that much. I have a friend who works for Northwestern Medical as a doctor, and only works every other week and still makes around $200K/year with that schedule - he's in his early 30s. There's a startup in town that, at least in a job posting, was offering its senior software engineers (which you could get if you work hard enough by 30 years old) up to $190K. I have numerous friends in their 20s and 30s who are in the 6 figure bracket and single. There are consulting firms in town that pay people with 5 or 7 years good experience in consulting at least $120K.

[ithakas]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Also, the parking garage at 425 S Wells (Wells and about Congress - https://www.google.com/maps/place/42...633347!6m1!1e1) was sold about a month ago for $4M. Would love to see something else go there..

This is a really nice site – been thinking about what might go here a lot recently, with that part of the Loop blowing up (Post Office, Riverline, an office conversion to residential on Van Buren, etc.).