Related Midwest Slashes Penthouse Price in Downtown Chicago

A penthouse in the Streeterville neighborhood has returned to the market with a dramatically reduced price, the latest price cut in downtown Chicago’s condo doldrums.

Related Midwest relisted the 7,150-square-foot condo at One Bennett Park for just under $7 million ($979 per square foot), less than half the $14.3 million ($2,000 per square foot) that the 66th-floor unit listed for in 2019, Crain’s reported. Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty’s Brad Brondyke and Tim Salm are managing the listing.

The unit, on the 66th floor at 451 East Grand Avenue, is one of three penthouse floors in the building and one of the last unsold properties in the tower. It is being offered as raw space, allowing the buyer to finish it out.

Whether the other two penthouses have sold is unclear.

The 65th-floor penthouse, at 7,590 square feet, listed in 2019 for $15.17 million ($1,998 per square foot) but was taken off the market. The 64th-floor unit, at 8,420 square feet, was offered as a private listing at $16.8 million ($1,995 per square foot), and there are no public records indicating a sale. Jameson Sotheby and Related Midwest declined to comment on the unit’s price cut.

The slashed asking price highlights broader challenges in the downtown luxury condo market as affluent buyers shy away from the city’s core. Prolonged concerns about crime and a slow return to in-office work have also reduced demand for high-end downtown condos.

Other luxury downtown properties that have seen significant price drops include the 95-story St. Regis Tower, which still has unsold units nearly four years after the first residents moved in.

One of the last units traded in the St. Regis Tower, the full 78th floor, recently sold for $7 million, a reduction from the $10 million the unit listed for in 2022. Similarly, the Tribune Tower, at 435 Michigan Avenue, which listed a $7.6 million penthouse in 2019, has not reported any sales above $4.8 million. Private sales may have occurred, but public records don’t reflect them.

Even individual sellers are feeling the pinch. Jonathan Toews’ former condo on Walton Street, purchased for $6.95 million in 2019, is listed for half a million dollars less. Other downtown properties have sold for losses, including a Trump Tower condo that recently went for 14.5 percent below its 2013 purchase price.

While condos are slumping, rentals remain in demand. Related Midwest is moving forward with a 72-story apartment tower near the Chicago River.

— Andrew Terrell