Ski Homes for the 1%

Here's an interesting piece from CNBC.

Those with a few million dollars to spare should consider investing in luxury ski chalets, for which prices have risen by nearly 6 percent over the last year, according to a new report from international estate agency Knight Frank.
Knight Frank's annual Prime Ski Property Index,which tracks prices across 20 of the world'stop resorts, increased by 5.9 percent in the year to June 2014. This was led by North America, where luxury ski home prices rose by 13.3 percent, far higher than Europe's average growth of 1.0 percent.

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HUD Announces $5 Million Settlement with Wells Fargo

Here's the press release from HUD

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced that it has reached a $5 million settlement with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, the nation’s largest provider of home mortgage loans, resolving allegations that the lender discriminated against women who were pregnant, or had recently given birth, and were on maternity leave. Under its authority to enforce the Fair Housing Act, HUD has conducted an intensive campaign to end maternity leave-related lending discrimination. Since 2010, 190 maternity leave discrimination complaints have been filed with HUD, resulting in more than 40 settlements for a total of nearly $1.5 million, prior to today’s settlement.

Ace Hotel Coming to Chicago

Curbed Chicago has the full story.

It's been just about a year since developer Sterling Bay purchased an old industrial building at 311 N. Morgan St. in the Fulton Market District, and now the company has finally found a tenant for the property - Portland based Ace Hotel. The upcoming Ace will be located literally right across the street from the old Fulton Market Cold Storage building, which Sterling Bay is also developing. The Fulton Market Cold Storage facility, now called 1K Fulton will become the future home of hundreds of Google employees, as well as the new global headquarters of Chicago-based SRAM Corporation. In addition to all of the office workers coming to the greater West Loop area, the neighborhood is booming with new restaurants and hotels. This year, another hot hotel property, Soho House opened in the area, and Nobu Hospitality Group unveiled a proposal to build a 12 story hotel and restaurant on a vacant lot at Randolph and Peoria. No word just yet on any formal numbers or timelines for the new Ace Hotel, however, the location and timing could not be any more perfect for either Ace or Sterling Bay.

A major makeover underway at Park Lincoln apartments

Here's the scoop from Yo Chicago.

The apartments are being upgraded with entirely new kitchens and baths, wood-look floors and in-unit washer / dryers. The new kitchens have granite counters, glass tile backsplashes, under-cabinet lighting, under-mount sinks and a stainless steel appliance package that includes a dishwasher and built-in microwave.

More Homebuyers Take Advantage of Falling Rates

That's the analysis from CNBC.

The upside to the selloff in stock markets is lower interest rates for the housing market. A drop in rates last week boosted mortgage applications for both refinances and home purchases, and interest rates continues to slide.
Total mortgage application volume for the week ending October 3^rd rose 3.8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Refinance applications were 5 percent higher than the previous week, and purchase applications were 2 percent higher. On an annual basis, however, refinance applications are down 32 percent and purchase applications are down nearly 8 percent.

Loft from High Fidelity Up for Sale

It's being listed for $1.19 million.

High Fidelity protagonist and hopeless romantic Rob Gordon (John Cusack) may have finally figured out that his ex-girlfriend Charlie (Catherine Zeta-Jones) was awful during his quest for closure, but her 4,000 square foot Ukrainian Village timber loft was pretty great. The three bedroom, two bathroom loft makes a cameo in the classic movie, when Rob is invited over to one of Charlie's dinner parties after reconnecting with her long after their breakup. And the space doesn't appear to have changed too much since 1999, when the movie was filmed either, as the finishes in several of the listing photos match up with the scene in the movie. Beyond being spacious, the loft features a huge row of windows towards the ceiling on the top floor, allowing heaps of natural light in. The space is perfect for wine nights and dinner parties, obviously, but the home is seeking a non-awful resident.

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Chicago’s aptly-named Frontier Ave

Check out the story on Yo Chicago.

When real estate developers are given the opportunity to influence a street name they often engage in flights of fancy or indulge themselves with the name of a son or a daughter.

Chicago has a rare instance of a reality-based street name: Frontier Ave.