Buying a house in Irving Park by Addision blue line stop. Good Area? (Addison: appointed, real estate)

[ChiCityChiCity]

I'm considering making an offer on this live in investment property in Irving Park right by the Addision Blue Line stop. It's really close to the John Murphy Elementary school and Independence Park.

What can you guys tell me about the area in term of renting, ethnic groups, gentrification, future real estate value and accessibility to nightlife, restaurants, entertainments ... ?

Thank you

[rparz]

(Speaking from experience)

As a general rule buying property within walking distance of any el line is usually a pretty solid investment.

Follow the neighborhood 'turn around' storys. They always radiate out from el stop to el stop, further and further out. First it was wicker, then bucktown, then logan, now avondale, etc.

[Drover]

Go for it. Have a mug of bock at Mirabell while you're at it.

Renting: 1brs start at about $750/mo, a well-appointed 2br should be able to fetch something in the neighborhood of $1000-$1200/mo

Ethnic groups: Mostly white/Hispanic (about evenly split in that particular part of Irving Park perhaps leaning a bit toward the latter) with a sprinkling of "other" thrown in.

Gentrification: Not happening in the immediate neighborhood at the moment but there are signs of life here and there.

Future real estate value: nobody has a crystal ball. But you're the investor, so...

Access to nightlife: it's pretty sparse in the immediate area, but you're a 5-minute walk to a Blue Line stop and another 10 to 15-minute ride to Logan Square, Bucktown, Wicker Park, etc. where you'll have as much nightlife as you need. Or you can take the Addison bus east to Lakeview.

[Thepreacherswife]

Also, Murphy is a pretty good CPS school. If I wasn't locked into a condo right now, I would buy in that neighborhood. Independence Park is a nice asset to the area too.

[MassVt]

Nice area, especially around Mirabell ( the German restaurant); blocks full of bungalows with well-tended lawns, nice for walking through; also has considerable shopping (groceries, pharmacy, etc) right nearby..

[ChiCityChiCity]

Thanks for the inputs guys. Drover, I have seen quite a few replies from you about this area from the other threads. Do you live in the area? Do you think I can realistically rent out a floor of 3 big bedrooms, 1 bath for $1400/month? Thats how much it is going for on hotpads.com. What about a basement with 2 bedrooms and high ceiling? Are there a lot of people looking for rent in that area?

[rparz]

Walking distance to the el?

Slightly lower than market rent, and you'll have people beating your door down and a waiting list.

Basement unit? Not exactly legal without 2 entrances and exits, but people do it. Once again, easy el access would make that one easy rent as well.

[DonOso]

This is not a good area. There's still significant gang activity. You have Netas, Latin Kings and others.

Yes you also have yuppies and middle class, but only because they don't have better options. Property values started cratering in 2009, when folks started moving to the more established areas (when prices dropped in those areas).

Improving area, but I would take a pass. Stick to established North Side areas (esp. south of Belmont and east of Western).

[Chicagoist123]

Originally Posted by DonOso

This is not a good area. There's still significant gang activity. You have Netas, Latin Kings and others.

Yes you also have yuppies and middle class, but only because they don't have better options. Property values started cratering in 2009, when folks started moving to the more established areas (when prices dropped in those areas).

Improving area, but I would take a pass. Stick to established North Side areas (esp. south of Belmont and east of Western).

Are you for real?! Are you from the suburbs or something? Live in Lincoln Park and never leave that hood? This comment is as far off as one when a north shore chick told me that Wicker Park was a "ghetto" neighborhood.

This is real nice area. It's very safe. Gang activity is really only a problem once you start going southwest of the Belmont and Pulaski intersection. The area in and around the Addison Blue Line stop is very nice and very safe. Apparently you haven't been around the neighborhood.

With Avondale, east of the expressway is the nicest part and also the most convenient. West of the expressway you want to stay away from anything southwest of the Pulaski and Belmont intersection. While it's no ghetto, but there is gang activity around there. However, this not close at all to the Addison Blue Line.

That area indeed borders and part of it is Old Iriving Park which is one of the safest neighborhoods in the city. I am not going to say that Avondale is one of the safest neighborhoods int he city, because it's not, but it's not really dangerous. It's a lot like Logan Square where half of the neighborhood is very safe, very affordabel and very convenient, where the other half (the western portions) are not the safest and probably would be better no to live in.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by ChiCityChiCity

Thanks for the inputs guys. Drover, I have seen quite a few replies from you about this area from the other threads. Do you live in the area?

Yes.

Originally Posted by ChiCityChiCity

Do you think I can realistically rent out a floor of 3 big bedrooms, 1 bath for $1400/month? Thats how much it is going for on hotpads.com. What about a basement with 2 bedrooms and high ceiling? Are there a lot of people looking for rent in that area?

$1400 may be a bit of a stretch unless it's in really nice condition with all the latest updates and central A/C and what-not. It's a nice quiet neighborhood but it's not quite an "in-demand" neighborhood. It's not a totally unrealistic asking price so the worst you can do is start advertising it at $1400, and if you don't get any bites, lower the asking price incrementally until you do. The housing stock is a solid mix of owner-occupied homes and rental stock (two- and three-flats with the occasional 6-unit building here and there) so the area is on the rental-market radar.

As for a 2-bedroom garden unit with high ceilings... hard to say really. If it looks like a bona fide dwelling rather than a hastily converted basement, I'd say to estimate what it would rent for if it were a first-floor unit and knock off $100/mo. If it looks more like a hastily converted basement, knock another $100-150 off.