Preservationists Want to Save Parts of Historic Lakefront Mansion

The owners of a historic Winnetka home will have to wait another two months for a demolition permit.

  When John and Patricia O’Brien purchased the lakefront mansion at 1175 Whitebridge Hill Road they intended to live there but they later found structural problems and now are seeking a demolition permit so they can rebuild on the lot while preserving parts of the historic home, Chicago Tribune reported.  Winnetka’s Landmark Preservation Commission recently delayed voting on the demolition permit for two months so they could work with the owners to preserve the front façade of the home; while the O’Briens are willing to work with the preservationists, the house is not designated as a historic landmark so they could demolish the house without regard to preservation at all, Chicago Tribune reported.  The historic home, which ranked among the…

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Which North Shore Community Has Most Mortgage-Free Homes?

More than 30 percent of Winnetka and Glencoe homeowners own their homes outright.

  Communities with a large segment of senior citizens or high median incomes tend to have the highest percentage mortgage-free homes, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.  In Winnetka, 32.4 percent or 3,591 of homes are mortgage free; in Glencoe that figure is 37.7 percent or 2,823 homes, according to Crain’s analysis. Here’s a look at other North Shore communities:  Community     Percentage of Mortgage-Free Homes Glencoe 37.7% (2,823) Northbrook 35% (10,851) Wilmette 34.6% (8,272) Kenilworth 34.4% (752) Skokie 34.4% (17,179) Glenview 32.7% (13,699) Winnetka 32.4% (3,591) Chicago 26.6% (484,122) Evanston 25.5% (16,896) Related Coverage

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Winnetka Home Sale Prices Edging Up

Economists told Chicago Magazine now is the time to buy. Take a look at median home sales for homes in the area and find out when prices will start to go up in the area.

Economists are now on board with what real-estate agents have been saying for years— when it comes to buying a home, now is a great time to buy, according to an article in Chicago Magazine.  Even though Winnetka home sale prices in 2012 were up 4.8 percent compared with 2011, it’s still down 24.7 percent from 2006. The median sales price of a Winnetka home in 2012 was $1,050,000, according to the article. Zillow Chief Economist Stan Humphries told Chicago Magazine the Chicago housing market has hit "rock bottom" and is not expected to rebound too quickly. The summer is exported to be an opportune time to buy when more houses typically go on the market, according to the article. From there, home prices are expected to increase by .8 percent…

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Winnetka Bears Fans, Jay Cutler’s Renting in Your Hood

The Chicago Bears quarterback and his fiancé Kristin Cavallari have rented a nine-room mansion in Winnetka.

  Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and his fiancé, Kristin Cavallari, have rented a 6,718-square-foot mansion with nine rooms in Winnetka, Chicago Tribune reported.  The home features a three-car garage, seven fireplaces, six full baths, a wood-paneled library and a kitchen with marble counters, Chicago Tribune reported. “I’m a suburbanite now…In L.A. you have to be so careful about what you say and who you trust. It’s such an awful way to live. [In Chicago] people want to get to know you for you. I feel like I can just breathe,” Cavallari told Splash on her move to Winnetka. 

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Winnetka, Wilmette, Glencoe Had Few Distressed-Home Sales in 2012

Fewer than 12 percent of home sales in the three North Shore suburbs were distressed-home sales.

  Winnetka, Wilmette and Glencoe were among the five suburbs with the fewest number of distressed-home sales in northern Illinois in 2012, Crain’s Chicago Business reported.  Distressed-home sales, such as foreclosures or short sales, accounted for 46.7 percent of all 2012 home sales in northern Illinois but in the three North Shore communities distressed-home sales accounted for fewer than 12 percent of all home sales—only 8 percent of home sales were distressed sales in Winnetka, that figure was 10.1 percent in Wilmette and 11.9 percent in Glencoe, Crain’s Chicago Business reported.  Related Coverage

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Margaret Goss

11:34 am on Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Potential buyers often call asking about good deals for distressed properties - it's good news that I have to tell them they are few and far between. Yes, there have been some amazing sales, but those numbers don't surprise me at all.   more ›

Winnetka Demolition is on the Rise

Four more Winnetka homeowners applied for demolition permits recently.

Four Winnetka homes have applied for demolition permits recently, according to a Chicago Tribune article. The reported stated that at a recent Landmark Preservation Committee meeting, four of the homes that applied for permits were approved, one was tabled and one — a home at 1190 Westmoor Rd. — was unanimously voted to be delayed 60 days. The delay, the committee hopes, will convince the homeowners to reconsider as they look into alternative options. There were 34 demolition permit applications in 2012, compared to 26 in 2011 and 19 in 2010, Mike D'Onofrio, Winnetka's director of community development, told the Tribune. The numbers, the article notes, are climbing back to the pre-recession average of 40 demolitions per year. For more news…

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Winnetka Mansion Sells for $12.25 Million

The sale of the Sheridan Road home that includes 150 feet of lakefront is one of the highest-priced residential sales in Chicago-area history.

An unidentified bank trust has purchased an 18-room Winnetka lakefront mansion for $12.25 million, one of the highest-priced residential sales in Chicago-area history, Chicago Tribune reported.  Patrick Haynes, a private-equity executive, first listed the home for $13.9 million in July 2012, ChicagoRealEstateDaily.com reported.  The Sheridan Road house, built in 1928, includes an elevator, six-car garage, six bedrooms, eight full baths and three partial baths. Plus, there's a pool overlooking the home's 150 feet of Lake Michigan frontage. Want to peek inside more mansions? Check out our Wow House column. 

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Winnetka Mansion Headed for Demolition

The lakefront mansion at 1175 Whitebridge Hill Rd., served as a hospital during the 1860 Lady Elgin disaster. Winnetka’s Landmark Preservation Commission is expected to discuss demolition permit application for the property at its January meeting.

A Winnetka lakefront mansion that ranked among the most expensive homes sold in 2010 could be bulldozed to make way for a new home scheduled for completion in May 2015, Chicago Tribune reported.  The historic home at 1175 Whitebridge Hill Rd., Winnetka — which served as a makeshift hospital during the Lady Elgin steamer wreck, when about 300 out of the 400 people aboard died in 1860 — looks like it’s set to join a list of other demolished properties, such as Winnetka Woman’s Club, as demolition permits in Winnetka are on the rise, Chicago Tribune reported.  The 7,600-square-foot lakefront mansion with five bedrooms and five bathrooms was sold for $6.5 million in December 2010, according to Zillow.com. Want to stay up to date on Winnetka …

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Chi-an Chang

8:04 pm on Thursday, December 20, 2012

Hi Mark, Thanks for sharing more about the historical significance of the house. Best, Chi-an   more ›

Wow House

Winnetka’s Lurie Mansion Listed at $9.75 M

The 14,600-square-foot mansion modeled after the Beverly Hills Hotel was built in 1991 for Chicago philanthropists Ann and Robert Lurie.

The former Winnetka home of Chicago philanthropists Ann and Robert Lurie is back on the market, according to Zillow.com.  Listed at $9.75 million, this 14,670-square-foot mansion features 10 bedrooms, 11 bathrooms, a swimming pool with a lake view, an outdoor tennis court, a wine cellar, a home fitness center and elevators to each floor, HuffingtonPost.com reported.  The lakefront mansion at 973 Sheridan Rd. was last sold in 1997 for $5.5 million, according to Zillow.com. Built in 1991 for the Luries, the home was modeled after the Beverly Hills Hotel and features a full apartment in the lower level, Chicago Real Estate Daily reported.  Several Chicagoland spaces are named after the Luries, including the Lurie Garden in Millennium Park and…

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Quirky Historic Winnetka Home for Sale

The 1920 Lola Maverick Lloyd House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's for sale for $699,930.

Lola Maverick Lloyd was a social activist whose grandfather's refusal to brand his Texas cattle inspired the term "maverick." So it's no surprise that such a freethinker would build a uniquely charming home. That arts-and-craft-style house on a wooded lot is for sale in Winnetka for $699,930. It has been preserved by her family since she died in 1999. The home, at 455 Birch St., includes a large mural in the living room of a ranch scene, turquoise window trim and lots of hand-carved wooden details and furnishings. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. A 2009 Chicago Magazine article on the home, listed then at $990,000, pointed out the difficulties of buying a protected home that has rehab restrictions in place…

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