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Web site now offers peeks at real estate deals in River North Sales volume down at Marina Towers but sales price 14-Feb-09 – A web site that provides real estate data for 14 cities, including Chicago, has expanded its coverage to River North and residential units at Marina City. BlockShopper.com is described by its founders as “one part community newspaper, one part ultimate hyper-local real estate research tool.” The site includes real estate news, information on sales prices, sales volume, taxes, and foreclosures – as well as some detail on transactions including buyers, sellers, and purchase prices.
Brian Timpone of Chicago, who started the site in 2006 with $100,000 raised from a group of investors, says his target audience is “current and aspiring homeowners, home buyers, and home sellers.” Timpone acknowledges the voyeuristic appeal of the site. In 2007, he told the River Front Times of St. Louis, one of the markets BlockShopper.com covers, “People care about other people. They want to know who their neighbors are, what their neighbors do.” According to BlockShopper.com, the median sales price for condo units at Marina City is $250,000. The foreclosure rate is 0.05 percent, with only two foreclosures last year. Sales volume at Marina City in 2007 was down 35.9 percent from the previous year, with 41 transactions. But median sale price of condo units was up that year 3.5 percent from the year before, to $250,000.
Michael Michalak, a Realtor who contributes real estate information to Marina City Online, says BlockShopper.com does a “wonderful” job of publishing information that is focused on neighborhoods and buildings. But Michalak cautions, “While the information is a great starting point for buyers and sellers, one should consult a Realtor to help them interpret this information.” River North data has been available on the site since early February. Timpone hopes to eventually expand to 40 markets.
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