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The Glen, not just a home, a lifestyle

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The Glen in Glenview Illinois.  Perhaps you’ve driven through it at one time or another.  You’ve seen our lovely homes…townhomes, row houses, duplexes, two-flats, condominium apartments, and of course single family homes.  Many are quite large.  In fact the townhomes in our Tower Crossing neighborhood are between 3031 sq ft and 4105 sq ft.  These are townhomes!  And the single family homes in Southgate and Chapel Crossing are typically over 4000 sq ft.  Other homes in the Glen are more modest in size, and quite wonderful.  Some in our Cambridge neighborhood have lovely front porches, tidy back yards, and picket fences.  Yes indeed, we have homes!  1,255 of them currently with more on the way.

Our real estate market, however, is only part of the Glen’s story.  People select homes because they like their style and appearance.  But they select neighborhoods based on community lifestyle.  And that’s where The Glen really shines.  Whenever I meet a prospective home buyer I always point out that buying here is much more than buying a home, they are buying a vibrant lifestyle that is unequaled on Chicagoland’s North Shore.  Within walking distance of nearly every Glen home you can find scores of restaurants and shops, a book store, Glen 10 movie theater, art gallery, spa, heath club, Gallery Park, Lake Glenview, Kohl Children’s Museum, walking paths, jogging and biking trails, 2 golf courses, paddle ball courts, tennis courts, playgrounds, our own Metra station, and a feeling of…well, a feeling of community.

My neighbors in Tower Crossing, for instance, have what we call “mailbox parties”.  We drag out our tables and chairs, and set them up in our beautiful common area near our community mailboxes.  We share stories, catch up on one another’s lives, and enjoy the setting sun.  In winter our get-togethers move to one of our homes or perhaps to the Glenview Prairie Club (open to the public) across the street.

Here in the Glen we have the best of both worlds.  There is the vibrancy of urban living yet enveloped by the beautiful suburban setting of the North Shore.  If you would like to know more about living in the Glen please contact me.  I’ve been a homeowner here for over a decade, and I am a leading Realtor specializing in Glen homes.

Margaret Ludemann, @properties Realtor

margaretLudemannl@gmail.com    847-401-1802

2013 sales increase in Southgate on The Glen

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Single family home sales in the Southgate neighborhood increased in 2013, from 9 in 2012 to 13 in 2013.  Further, 3 additional homes went under contract that had not closed by year end.  More impressive is the improvement from 2009 when only 2 single family home’s sold.

Before going further, here’s a little Southgate 101.  Southgate is a housing development in The Glen in Glenview, Illinois on Chicago’s North Shore.  The Glen is an upscale residential and retail community with 9 named neighborhoods, one of which is Southgate, and a shopping & dining “main street” called Glen Town Center.  Southgate has 299 homes of which 237 are luxury single family homes.  Many of these homes border The Glen Club’s 18 hole championship golf course.

Let’s look at the prices of the Southgate homes that sold in 2013.  (Street name, followed by size in square feet, and price.)  I do not provide specific addresses out of courtesy to the new homeowners. 

Kittyhawk ,  4618,  $1,250,000

Independence,  4618,   $1,430,000

Bennington,  3456,  $1,000,000

Kittyhawk, 4080,  $1,250,000

Saratoga,  4080, $1,279,000

Midway,  3814,  $1,315,000

Independence,  4164,  $1,350,000

Saratoga,  3805,  $1,140,000

Cabot,  4700,  $1,310,000

Independence,  3498,  $1,160,000

Bennington,  3796,  $1,100,000

Independence,  4232,  $972,000

Kittyhawk,  4253,  $1,215,000

Digging deeper into the sales data we find two other pieces of very good news.  First, no sales listings expired or were cancelled due to an inability to find buyers.  By contrast, 4 listed single family homes in Southgate failed to sell in 2012 and 1 rental listing did not find a renter.  Second, Southgate had no distressed properties listed for sale last year.  A distressed property is either bank owned or it involves a short sale; and they typically sell for well under market value.

Southgate’s sales performance is consistent with what occurred throughout the country in 2013.   The number of homes sold nationally increased by 9.1%; Illinois home sales increased 18.9%; and in the Chicago primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (+ 23%).  Glenview home sales increased 19%.  I see another strong year for home sales in The Glen and in Southgate in 2014.

Margaret Ludemann, Glen homeowner and @properties Realtor

847-401-1802    margaret.ludemann@gmail.com

No homes for sale in Tower Crossing in The Glen

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That’s right.  There are no homes available in Tower Crossing, the luxury townhome development in the heart of The Glen.

The Glen is an upscale residential and retail development in Glenview, Illinois in the Chicago area’s North Shore.  It is composed of eight residential neighborhoods (not counting retirement and assisted living communities) with a total of 1,349 homes and 3912 residents.  Glen Town Center is The Glen’s “Main Street” with scores of shops and restaurants, along with a movie theatre, coffee shop, book store and Kohl Children’s Museum.

Tower Crossing borders Glen Town Center on three sides which puts its residents within a few steps of dining and shopping venues.  This is one of the key attractions of Tower Crossing.  The homes are stunning, but the lifestyle is perhaps even more important to homeowners.

Tower Crossing has 154 four-story brick townhomes, all of which were sold by the developer years ago.  There are 6 models and 8 floor plans ranging in size from 3,031 to 4,105 square feet.  Home prices currently range from the low $600’s to around $800,000.  Many have views of Battery Park, Lake Glenview and The Glen Club’s 18 hole championship golf course.

Back to my point about inventory.  2013 has been an active one for Tower Crossing homes sales.  19 homes have sold and another is under contract waiting to close, but in a development of this size to have nothing currently on the market is rare.  Winter, of course, is typically slow in real estate, but Tower Crossing since its inception in 2003 has always had homes for sale either from the developer (through 2006) or since then from homeowners.  Another reason for no listings?  Because the people who live here LOVE IT.

Undoubtedly we will see some listings after the first of the year, so if you may be interested in Tower Crossing (where I proudly live!) or anywhere in The Glen, please contact me at margaretludemann@gmail.com.

Margaret Ludemann, Tower Crossing resident and @properties Realtor

“New Urbanism” in The Glen

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If you didn’t see Mary Ellen Podmolik’s story, “Paving the Way for a Vibrant Downtown”, in the Chicago Tribune on November 10th, please go online and find it.  Not only is Ms. Podmolik one of the finest journalists who write about real estate, but she selected a very timely and engaging topic…”new urbanism”.  In a nutshell the term means new homes in close proximity to create a feeling of neighborhood within walking distance of restaurants, shops and public transportation…yet often in suburban communities far from city center (read downtown Chicago).

The examples used by Ms. Podmolic are the School Street homes in Libertyville and the planned development on Floral Avenue in Skokie.  She points to research by the National Association of Realtors that shows that people will trade a large yard for a shorter commute and for a short walk to schools, restaurants and businesses.  But she might as well have written about The Glen, developed with this model in mind, fully a dozen years ago before the concept even had a name.

The Glen is a residential and retail community in the North Shore village of Glenview, Illinois.  The Glen has several neighborhoods, most within an easy walk to the retail hub called Glen Town Center which has scores of restaurants and shops along with a movie theater, coffee house, book store, and Kohl Children’s Museum.  Attea Middle School is also located in The Glen.

I live in a townhome development called Tower Crossing with 154 spectacular homes which border Glen Town Center.  We know our neighbors and see them constantly.  Our favorite activity is what we call “mailbox parties”, informal Sunday night cook outs in the common area by our mailboxes.  All homes are within a few STEPS of dining and shopping, and a few blocks from a Metra train station.  The Cambridge neighborhood with single family homes, townhomes, two-flats, and duplexes is just across Patriot Blvd from Glen Town Center.  Chapel Crossing’s many single family homes are a short walk as well.

If you may be interested in living in a “new urbanism” environment, please contact me.  I would love to show you what it’s like to live in The Glen.

Margaret Ludemann, Glen resident and @properties Realtor

Margaret.Ludemann@gmail.com   847-401-1802

The Chapel in The Glen

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Back in the day…47 chapels were built on naval air stations throughout the United States.  These houses of worship were used for non-denominational services.  So over the course of the many years of their service, particularly during World War II, hundreds of thousands of naval airmen and base staff worshiped in these simple yet beautiful structures.

One is left.

The last remaining naval chapel resides in The Glen, the North Shore’s premier lifestyle community in Glenview, Illinois.  The Glen was built on the former Naval Air Station Glenview after the base was decommissioned and sold to the village.  It consists of over 2,000 homes, nearly 5,000 residents, scores of shops and restaurants, two golf courses, the Kohl Children’s Museum, Gallery Park, Lake Glenview, and numerous beautiful neighborhoods each built by a different developer.

The Glen’s chapel, now called Schram Memorial Chapel, was moved from its original location, and rebuilt at the corner of Patriot Blvd and Chestnut Drive; it is across the street from the highly regarded Attea Middle School.  It is the cornerstone of a housing development called – appropriately – Chapel Crossing which houses 676 residents living in 167 single family homes.

Today the chapel is available for rent for a variety of events.  It is particularly popular as a venue for weddings, but it is also used extensively for baptisms, christenings, memorial services, Eagle Court of Honor ceremonies, and Bar & Bat Mitzvahs.  The main chapel has pew seating for 150; and on the lower level there is auditorium-style seating for 140 or banquet-style seating for 90.  To make reservations or to gain additional information you can call the Glenview Park District at 847-521-2562.

There is a lot to love about The Glen.  For information about homes for sale, please contact Glen resident Margaret Ludemann who is a Realtor with @properties Residential Brokerage, 847-401-1802 or by email margaretludemann@gmail.com.