Report: Demand for new apartments in Lakeview high but growth remains sluggish

While Chicago developers will deliver a record 4,500 downtown rental apartments this year plus hundreds more in various outlying neighborhoods, growth in the North Side community of Lakeview has lagged noticeably behind the curve. Multifamily brokerage firm KIG recently found that over the past three years Lakeview has only delivered a combined 614 units—representing less than four percent of the total multifamily growth in the Windy City real estate market.

Things don’t look any more bullish in the coming years either. While there are a handful of larger new apartment projects in the pipeline like the 148-unit Addison & Clark development, a 138-unit building rising at 3833 N. Broadway, and a 100-dwelling project slated for 734 W. Sheridan, Lakeview is on pace to account for just four to five percent of the total rental deliveries expected in 2018 and 2019. A visual representation of the neighborhood’s comparatively sluggish apartment growth over the last five years is best illustrated in this video created by KIG.

According to the clip, Lakeview’s high average income combined with its aging residential building stock has helped create a “perfect environment” for a high demand for new luxury rental units. With supply so depressed, it’s little wonder why developments such as the glassy tower at 2950 N. Sheridan charge $3,000 per month for a convertible studio unit.

• Rents in new Lakeview apartment tower start at $3,000 per month [Curbed Chicago]
• Previous Lakeview coverage [Curbed Chicago]