Tower Crossing

Rising Home Sales & Prices in The Glen

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Recently I was asked to give a presentation about the real estate market to a group of business men and women.  While preparing my presentation I was struck by the words I saw on my laptop’s screen, words that I had written, but startling none-the-less:  sales are up, prices are up, time on market down, far fewer distressed properties.  Seeing these words on the screen put a smile on my face.  I decided to create another slide that I would have prepared not very long ago:  sales stagnant, prices flat & still falling in some areas, time on market still way too long, too many distressed properties dragging down prices.

Bob Dylan was right, The Times…they are a-changin’

Real estate in The Glen is doing quite well.  Most north shore communities saw increases in prices in 2012 of between 2% – 3%, most of those gains being won late in the year.  But prices in zip code 60026 (dominated by The Glen) rose 4.5% last year, in contrast with greater Glenview (zip code 60025) at 2.9%.  While there are many reasons for The Glen’s superior price performance, I believe the attractiveness of our community’s lifestyle is at the top of the list.  Glen Town Center’s many shops and restaurants (as well as its theater, spa, book store and art gallery), along with Lake Glenview, Gallery Park and golf courses, make this a particularly wonderful place to live.  Our variety of homes, from stately single family homes in Southgate, Chapel Crossing, and Landings to stunning townhomes and villas Tower Crossing, Cambridge, and Regency also attract buyers.

Improving prices are welcome news to Glen homeowners, but buyers have reasons to smile as well.  Prices are still well below their peaks of 5 years ago.  North shore communities are still between 20.5% and 26.1% below those highs.  So this is a great time to buy a Glen home while prices are still below their peaks and before they get any higher.

Margaret Ludemann, resident of The Glen, @properties Realtor

Glen Home Types: Something for Everyone

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I’ve heard some residents suggest that there are far too few townhomes, condos, and villas in The Glen.  I’ve heard others say that the development is over populated with attached housing.  The truth?  Well, they’re both…wrong.

The Glen is a development within Glenview, Illinois on land that was once Naval Air Station Glenview.  But calling it a development doesn’t do it justice.  It’s really a village within a village as evidenced by Glen Town Center (the shopping and dining “main street”), multiple neighborhoods, parks, two golf courses, commercial offices, and a lake, school, and movie theater.  And just like any other town or village, it has a variety of housing types.  One of the brilliant strategies of the Glen’s master plan is the balance of single family homes and multi-family, attached home types.

My research shows that approximately 52% of Glen properties are single family homes.  Currently there are 670 such homes ranging in size from about 2500 sq ft to nearly 7,000 sq ft.  The largest SFH neighborhood is Southgate with 237 properties, followed by Chapel Crossing with 167 homes, Landings with 143 homes, and Cambridge with 123 homes.

This leaves approximately 48% of the Glen’s properties as multi-family.  Within this broad category are 5 different home types.  There are 409 townhomes, 99 condos, 64 villas, 35 duplexes, and 13 two-flats.  These 620 homes range in size from under 2,000 sq ft to over 4100 sq ft.  Multi-family housing is found in the Tower Crossing, Southgate, Cambridge, Glen Shore, Patriot Commons, and Regency neighborhoods.

So there is something for everyone in The Glen, whether you are looking for a comfortable condo or a majestic mansion…or anything in between.

Margaret Ludemann, resident of The Glen, @properties Realtor, email margaretLudemannl@gmail.com

Update on Patriot Commons in The Glen

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Patriot Commons is a beautiful housing development in The Glen, Glenview, Illinois.  The developer is highly respected Toll Brothers.  This development of condos and townhomes (near Glen Town Center’s many restaurants and shops) really took off a few years ago, but like many new construction projects it hit the wall during the recession.  After completing and selling out phase one, construction stopped, and I haven’t seen activity at the sales center in some time.  Since I occasionally receive emails and calls about Patriot Commons, I decided to do some investigating.

I learned that Toll Brothers does indeed plan to complete this development; however no schedule has been established at this time.  Construction may begin again sometime in 2014.  At that time, the company plans to build 51 more homes, 35 condos and 16 townhomes.  Assuming the configurations remain the same, there will be 6 different condo models ranging in size between 1141 – 1388 sq ft and 3 different townhome models.

I toured the models a few years ago.  They are close to my Tower Crossing home in The Glen.  The homes were stunning, and some had breathtaking views of the championship golf course at The Glen Club.  The materials and workmanship were of very high quality.  I’m sure existing owners love their homes and the Glen lifestyle.  When Toll Brothers begins building in Patriot Commons again, the homes will compete with row homes, condos and villas in several existing Glen neighborhoods including Regency (Pulte’s new development), Cambridge, Southgate, and Glen Shores.  The townhome/villa development recently announced by Edward R. James Partners for the Glen will be coming online next year, too.

Margaret Ludemann, Resident of The Glen, @properties Realtor

New Glen Homes On the Drawing Board

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With less than 1% of The Glen’s existing homes currently for sale, it was encouraging to hear of a new development on the drawing board.

Glenview officials preliminarily approved a plan to sell 29 acres of land in the Glen to Edward R. James Partners.  Upon final approval and closing, the James group proposes to build a new housing development north of West Lake Avenue and west of Shermer Road.  This would place the development to the southeast of the new Pulte development called Regency and within a couple of blocks of two golf courses, The Glen Club and Prairie Golf and Paddle Club.  It will be a 5 – 10 minute walk to Glen Town Center.

While James has not as yet released details, I do know that two and three story townhomes are planned in addition to “cluster homes” which will offer first floor master bedroom suites.  Each home is likely to include three bedrooms.  The target market for the new James homes is empty nesters.  In fact, James predicts that the development will add only 22 children to school districts 34 and 225.  Edward R. James Partners has a reputation for quality, and has won numerous awards during its 50+ years of home building.  It also has experience in the Glen; it was the developer of the very popular Southgate neighborhood.

The James development, unnamed as yet, will compete with other new construction in the Glen.  Regency and Patriot Commons both plan additional phases.  Regency is currently selling phase 2.  Patriot Commons’ development schedule is unknown.  3 existing developments, fully built and sold, provide other town homes and villas, sold by current owners. These are Tower Crossing, Cambridge, and Southgate.

Margaret Ludemann

Glen Resident and @properties Realtor, 847-401-1802

How fast are Glen homes selling? REALLY FAST!

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Don’t blink your eyes or you’ll miss the sale of a home in The Glen.  Really!

The days on market for homes in The Glen have gone from a snail’s pace a couple of years ago to “not bad” last year to warp speed in 2013.  About a month ago I put a Tower Crossing townhome (Blackstone model with 3840 sq ft) on the market at $789,000, and it sold the same day.

A couple of weeks ago I put a single family home on the market in Glenview.  The next day I had 50 people tour the home with appointments, and a day later over 70 people attended my open house.  A contract was signed within 4 days.

A couple of days ago I put another Tower Crossing townhome on the market at 11am.  I received my first call  36 minutes later.  I showed the home over the lunch hour, and a purchase contract was in by 3pm.  It took 4 hours to sell a property listed at $699.000.

The same dynamic is occurring throughout the several neighborhoods in The Glen and in greater Glenview.  So, what’s going on?  Well, the real estate market has turned.  Buyers used to have all of the leverage.  So they made low ball offers, many of which were accepted by desperate sellers.  But now…well, there are only 2 homes for sale in the uber-upscale Southgate neighborhood of 299 homes.  Not a typo.  TWO!  In Tower Crossing’s 154 home development only 5 homes are for sale.  Limited inventory and high demand can be seen in other Glen communities such as Chapel Crossing, Landings, and Cambridge.

So anyone interested in buying into The Glen needs to move fast.  But…it’s worth it to live in this magnificent community.

Margaret Ludemann (847-401-1802)

Resident of The Glen, @properties Realtor