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Where the kids are…in The Glen

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The Glen is a housing and retail development in Glenview Illinois, on Chicago‘s North Shore. It’s filled with luxury homes, restaurants galore, boutiques, a book store, a movie theater, and (drum roll please)…a lot of kids! In my most recent blog I wrote about the new Glen census which tells us that roughly one-third of the 3,921 residents in privately owned homes and rental housing are children. I’ve had a few emails asking which specific Glen neighborhoods have the most.

There are 9 such neighborhoods in The Glen (not counting Navy and senior housing). Naturally the neighborhoods with the most single family homes have the most children. In these neighborhoods about 40% of residents are kids. Chapel Crossing (43%), Landings (44%) and Southgate (40%) have only single family homes. Cambridge (42%) offers single family homes, town homes, duplexes, and two-flats.

2 neighborhoods offer only attached homes and have roughly 20% children:  Tower Crossing (18%) and Patriot Commons (19%). Another neighborhood, Regency, has a high percentage of town homes; and 19% of its residents are children.

Aloft (5%) offers rental apartments in Glen Town Center, The Glen’s shopping and restaurant “main street”. And Glenshore (7%) has condo apartments.

Obviously the large single family home neighborhoods are great for kids. Lovely homes. Big yards. Did I mention BIG YARDS? But before you get the wrong impression, Glen neighborhoods with attached housing are also great for the little ones. I live in Tower Crossing, a development with 154 4-story town homes with 3,031 to 4,105 square feet. We moved here 11 years ago when my son was 3 years old. Our development has a wonderful common area which, to my son, represents his back yard. The additional benefit is that he’s grown up barely one block from all of the fun in Glen Town Center. He walks to the movie theater, meets his buddies for hamburgers at Mooyah, and wanders our wonderful book store.

The bottom line? The Glen is a great place for children whether your preference is for large single family homes or for attached housing. If you would like to learn more about The Glen please email me at MargaretLudemann@CBexchange.com or call me at 847-401-1802. I am an award winning Realtor living in and selling Glen homes.

Margaret Ludemann, @properties Realtor

New census of The Glen tell us a lot about the homes, neighborhoods and residents

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The new census for The Glen has just been completed, and it is interesting reading. For instance it tells us that there are 4,960 residents residing in 2,221 homes in the 13 development areas (read: neighborhoods), as of August, 2014. Of these nearly 5,000 residents, 1,367 are children.

Each year the Village of Glenview (in Illinois) has this census done to calculate payments to various jurisdictions which provide services to Glen residents. So, for instance, the more children in schools means that the village owes more money to local school districts. Let’s dig a little deeper into the census results.

The 13 development areas include 9 with privately owned homes or rented single and multi-family homes. The other 4 include Navy housing and 3 senior housing communities. Navy? Yes, indeed. The Glen resides on the grounds of the former Naval Air Station Glenview; and there remain 112 housing units for Navy personnel of which there are 213 adults and 80 children.

In the 9 communities with privately owned and rental homes, there are 3,921 residents of which 1,287 (33%) are children.   Here is a breakdown by neighborhood:

Chapel Crossing: 167 homes, 368 adults, 277 children

Landings (Concord): 143 homes, 324 adults, 250 children

Southgate: 299 homes, 626 adults, 413 children

Cambridge: 244 homes, 481 adults, 200 children

Tower Crossing: 154 townhomes, 306 adults, 68 children

Patriot Commons: 68 homes, 122 adults, 23 children

Regency: 146 homes, 179 adults, 43 children

Aloft: 181 apartments, 185 adults, 10 children

Glenshore: 31 homes, 43 adults, 3 children

Of the 1,287 children in The Glen, 1,175 are of school age. 82% attend public schools. 18% attend private schools. This last number is particularly interesting because in most suburban communities the percentage of children in private schools averages between 4% and 8%. This variance is likely due to the economic standing of Glen residents. In other words, it is a development comprised largely of affluent families who can afford private education.

There is a lot of additional information in this year’s census, and I will include more of it in future blogs.

Margaret Ludemann, Glen homeowner and @properties Realtor

847-401-1802, MargaretLudemann@cbexchange.com

Westgate at the Glen Update

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It has been a couple of months since I last blogged about Westgate, the new construction housing development in The Glen in Glenview Illinois. At that time I told you about the “reservation event” which allowed early registrants to receive more information about the proposed development and arrange appointments with developer E.R. James Partners to select home types and locations. Two months later the vast majority of homes have been sold, though many are still available. Home construction has not yet begun, though as you can see from the attached photo, the builder has initiated grading. Work on underground infrastructure should begin soon.

Westgate, which is located on nearly 30 acres of land at the northwest corner of W. Lake Avenue and Shermer Road, offers 173 luxury homes. There will be 71 row homes, 68 mews townhomes, and 34 single family homes with first floor master bedroom suites. The development will have professionally landscaped common areas; and it will provide nearly maintenance-free living.

The early interest in Westgate suggests that this will be a popular addition to The Glen which already has 8 lovely neighborhoods with a wide variety of home types including single family, townhomes, row homes, duplexes, two-flats, villas, and condo apartments. In addition to beautiful homes the Glen offers two golf courses, upscale shopping, and over 20 restaurants in Glen Town Center. A local Metra station gets residents into downtown Chicago in 44 minutes. The development is also convenient to O’Hare International Airport by car.

If you are interested in living in The Glen, please contact me at 847-401-1802 or by email, margaret.ludemann@gmail.com.

Margaret Ludemann, Glen homeowner and @properties Realtor

The next phase is now for sale at Patriot Commons at The Glen

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Surprise! The developer Toll Brothers has re-started construction of Patriot Commons at The Glen in Glenview Illinois. This townhome and condo development kicked off with huge crowds and many first day buyers several years ago. After completing much of the development Toll Brothers stopped construction when the real estate market collapsed. But now, with little fanfare, orders are once again being taken for new construction townhomes.

You’ve heard the real estate mantra, “location, location, location”. Well, Patriot Commons has one of the finest locations on Chicagoland’s North Shore. The development borders The Glen Club’s 18 hole championship golf course designed by Tom Fazio, and it is but a very short walk to Glen Town Center. GTC is The Glen’s shopping and dining “main street” where one can find wonderful restaurants, bistros, a pub and numerous retail stores and boutiques. It’s also only a block or two from Gallery Park, Lake Glenview and the Glenview Park Center with pools and a full health club.

Three townhome models will be constructed in this next phase of the development. For buyers looking for a first floor master bedroom, the Hargrove model fits the bill. It is a one level (first floor) home with two bedrooms, two baths, a lovely covered porch, and a below grade garage.

The Brantley model offers three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a study, loft, and balcony.

The Randall model is a more traditional townhome design with two levels. The first floor is the main living area with a living room, family room, dining room, kitchen and powder room. The second floor offers three bedrooms and two baths, one of which is located in the master suite.

Home prices range from the $400’s to the $700’s.  Construction will begin soon with anticipated delivery in 2015. At a future date the final building in the development will be offered for sale, and it will be composed of condos.

If you are interested in Patriot Commons please contact me. I am a long time Glen homeowner and an award winning realtor with @properties.

Margaret Ludemann

Phone: 847-401-1802

Email: MargaretLudemann@gmail.com

Home sales in Southgate at The Glen

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Southgate is a housing development with 237 single family homes in The Glen. It also has 62 townhomes and villas. The Glen is the premier lifestyle community on Chicagoland’s North Shore in Glenview Illinois with 9 distinct neighborhoods offering luxury homes of all kinds, including single family homes, townhomes, row homes, villas, apartment condos, duplexes, and two-flats.

I haven’t blogged about Southgate since February 3rd, so I’m devoting this blog and my next to that wonderful neighborhood. Today I’ll address the sales of its single family homes, comparing with last year-to-date. Next week I’ll write about home prices. (Hint, they’re going up this year.)

So, analyzing sales data from January 1 through June 15, I’ve found that overall activity is similar to last year. That is rather amazing given the fact that we experienced such a long and severe winter. Real estate sales throughout the country were down through March, but started to pick up thereafter.

HOMES SOLD: In this 5.5 month period 4 single family homes have sold, meaning that the transactions are not only under contract, but they have actually closed. In the same period last year, 5 homes had closed.

UNDER CONTRACT HOMES: In addition to the homes that have closed, 5 are under contract (at June 15th) waiting to close sometime in the next couple of months. Last year, 4 were under contract on that date.

FOR SALE LISTINGS: Both in 2013 and 2014 there were 2 homes listed for sale at June 15th.

While activity has been similar in the two years, I’ve noticed that the real estate market in Southgate picked up last year after June 15. In fact, while 5 had closed by June 15, 2013, 8 more closed the rest of the year. Perhaps Southgate will experience a similar increase the rest of this year, though my guess is that 2014 may see somewhat fewer sales as compared with the red hot market in 2013.

If you would like to know more about living in Southgate or anywhere in The Glen, please contact me at 847-401-1802 or by email MargaretLudemann@gmail.com. I am a long time Glen resident and a @properties Realtor.

Margaret Ludemann