540 W. Belden Avenue in Chicago

This Belden Avenue Condo is the polished gem of the neighborhood. A sparkling 2 Bedroom 800 square foot sanctuary in the heart of Lincoln Park, 540 W. Belden is just steps from the Lake, the Zoo, Cafes, and Fine Dining. Relax on the outside private deck or just lay back inside and absorb the vintage details of this high first floor unit; up-to-the-ceiling windows, exposed brick walls, and beautiful hardwood floors. Prepare a gourmet meal in the stainless steel and granite kitchen or have a glass of wine at the breakfast bar (...okay, wine bar). This is the only 2 Bedroom currently on the market in the building.

(pssst...what do you think about the fake snow on the deck I brought in? hehe)

CLICK HERE FOR VIRTUAL TOUR AND ADDITIONAL INFO!


CLICK HERE FOR 540WBELDEN.COM WEBSITE



Call, Text or Email Geno

773-720-2634

GPetro@CHEmail.com


$324,900 JUST REDUCED

Geno Petro

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2nd Quarter 2009 Chicago Real Estate Stats

Remember dear readers and real estate enthusiasts across the neighborhoods of Chicago: What went down will come back up. Hopefully, the following can help you figure out when. Just Subscribe in the sidebar to the right for the latest Chicago real estate trends >>>>>>>

CHICAGO SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES



CHICAGO CONDOMINIUMS




NORTH SIDE CHICAGO REAL ESTATE SNAPSHOT

Geno Petro

Kwai Chang Caine R.I.P.

Sad to read this today. In the early 1970s I roamed the burning cinder halls of my high school in Earth Shoes and a Tibetan canvas gi over my football jersey emulating the fictional world wanderer on ABC. David Carradine's character was an early mental imprint that led me to getting a black belt in martial arts of my own and eventually going bald. They say he hung himself in a Bangkok hotel room last night.

Hmmm...I think I'll follow my own enlightened path and just keep trying to kill myself selling Chicago Real Estate instead. Idol Worship FAIL at age 52. Kung Fu FAIL at age 72.

R.I.P. Caine. Personal demons are a biatch.

Wax off,

Geno Petro

follow me on twitter@genopetro

My Top Ten Chicago Real Estate Deals For June

Here is my Top Ten Condo & Luxury Chicago Real Estate List for June. Also, click onto the mother-ship in my sidebar for other Top Ten Luxury Lists throughout the country.

(for some reason it lays out better on Firefox than on Internet Explorer so if jumbled, switch browsers for a clear report. bo dereck looks the same, though)


ALSO.....

Geno Petro

follow me on twitter@genopetro

Chris Hahn, Mortgage Guru at Large

My good friend across the pond, the talented Mr. Hahn, has become quite the Blackberry photo-journalist since embarking on his well deserved sabbatical from Bank of America loan origination. He and his love, Nicole, have been hanging in Londontown these days since leaving Chicago, accepting a job assignment overseas, renting out their Wicker Park Wood Street duplex, and going for the proverbial brass career ring in Corporate Ameri...er...England.

Anyway, Chris and I share an appreciation for funny street signs and postings. Here is a collection of his that he's forwarded on to me over these past few months. Too funny.


And One For The Road

"Feeling slightly safer on this flight to Lisbon." christoper t. hahn

ps...Chicago Real Estate hasn't been the same since he's left.

Geno Petro

follow me on twitter@genopetro

all photos by christopher t. (for talented) hahn

Cut the @#%&* cord...again!

I can feel my wife Mona's double eye roll on the back of my neck a mili-second after I hear the pop!; that very distinct circuit breaker snap!followed by a whiff of ozone that crackles! everytime I cut the extension cord with my electric hedge clippers. Silent darkness in the front rooms of our house always immediately follows. Clocks stop, digital plasmas get reset and blink!, animals whine and bark. The Lord's name, usually in vain, passes through my lips in a clumsy whisper. I've been doing this for years...

I did it twice this past weekend; Once on Sunday. Once on Memorial Day. I've already matched my previous season high in the summer of 2008 with a score of two. Including the one I'm buying today on my way home, that makes seven 50ft extension cords I've accidently biten through while trying to cut a path through the Forest Glen jungle we call our yard. And the rainy season is still the proverbial young lion in Chicago during these last days of May.

Now, I'm either gas or battery powered for all my other garage kept machinery; lawn mower, various trimmers, leaf blower, compressor. Only my power washer and my hedge clippers are electric. (I haven't found a way to mess up the power washer yet although my attempt to blast a half foot of snow from my porch and front steps last winter when the wind chill was 10 below zero almost ended in disaster.) I swing a pretty mean sickle as well, and have the scars to prove it. On a positive home improvement note, I did manage to pull a missing silver baby spoon from the bowels of my garbage disposal this morning so at least that annoying noise is gone.

You see, I'm usually the Realtor hired to buy and sell Chicago real estate, not maintain it. Having an oversized 80 x 120 foot lot to care for along with all the other loafing around I do on a daily basis is a little too much to expect from someone who has lived in one condo or another for the past 10 years. I'm wearing my single family home ownership like a loose garment (ok, boxer shorts) these days. I just need to remind myself to not get it chewed up by my hedge clippers while I'm still in it...the loose garment, that is.

Geno Petro

follow me on twitter@genopetro

Chicago Real Estate Cyber-Cred

If you Google my name on any given day, 25,000 or so entries pop up saying pretty much the same thing; Chicago, blah blah blah: Realtor, blah blah blah; Writer/Weblog Commentor, yada yada yada. By simply placing two " "s around the name, the number instantly gets whacked by 66%. Click on the last number at the bottom of the search page and the total amount of entries under "Geno Petro" gets trimmed to either side of 100 after all the 'duplicate' articles and threads get filtered out. Google 'Chicago Real Estate Blogger' and this site can usually be found on Page One, First Position; but by adding a simple 's' to the word 'Blogger,' I fall down below the fold if not off of Page One completely. ("wtf?" he whispers under his breath.)

Now, I'm no Al Gore (al-gor-ithm? hmmm...) but I have to suspect all those wasted characters are how somehow contributing to this global warming mess we're apparently in. I know for a fact that I personally am very wasteful when it come to commas, semi-colons, and dashes. I'm also a big fan of the '...'. I use ... a lot. Those little cyberkinetic dits and dots are like pistachio nuts to me; I can't put them down no matter how detrimental red dye is to the environment. See, I just did it again. I just snuck another semi-colon.

On a positive note, at least I make good use of the Recycle Bin. Google is both smart and stupid at the same time. It thinks I'm important in some ways but doesn't really know or understand why. It's always messing around with my Page Rank 3, 4, 5, 4, 3. I consider it a fickle friend who does and doesn't know I exist. It talks a big game at first then betrays me the nanosecond someone else puts quotation marks around my name, ready to trim (laser) the fat right down to the bone for whomever dares to go (click) the distance. The question remains; where do all those wasted words end up? Just a lazy thought for a dreamy Monday. (This is a re-post)

Geno Petro

follow me on twitter@genopetro

It's Not Just About Chicago Real Estate

I just posted on the Bloodhound Blog. (ps... follow this link to check out my entire Bloodhound Archives.)

G

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She's riding on my behalf

Hello all you Chicago Real Estate mavens, pundits, and blog hounds. I'm posting the following message from my lovely wife, Mona, who will be riding the Multiple Sclerosis Tour de Farms 2009 on my behalf. We greatly appreciate your support if you are able to contribute. (And if not, good wishes and encouragement will be gladly and equally accepted!)

On June 12 – 14, I will be riding on behalf of my Husband, Geno Petro in the National Multiple Sclerosis Bike for MS Tour de Farms.
(No animals attending except for, perhaps, our Dog Elvis.) My Riding Goal is 150 miles! OH MY THIGHS!

My Fund Raising Goal is $3000.00. Sounds like a lot, but I know that with the support of you, my Friends and Family, it can be achieved or exceeded. Please pledge what you can. Every $ - $$$$ helps. (See attached link below) Geno and I sincerely appreciate your Contribution!

Kind Regards;

Mona Petro
Chicago, IL


PS: After the Bike Ride (assuming I can just walk to the car – HA), I will let you know how I did.

Geno, although not able to ride, will be working as a Volunteer. You know there has to be a story or two in store for the rest of us later!

Mona has shared the following link with you. To view it or to reply to the message, please click below:


Please Visit Here


Gratefully,


Geno

True Chicago Grid

In the early 1900s, Chicagoan Edward P. Brennan proposed a city street system that generally lays out as follows:

Every 8 Blocks equals 1 Mile and House Address Numbers are assigned at a rate of 800 per.

Every 4 Blocks is a major Secondary Street.

Even Numbered Addresses are on the West and North sides of each street.

Odd Numbered Addresses are on the East and South sides of each street.

The intersection of State (0) and Madison (1) is Ground Zero.

Several Diagonal Streets screw it all up.

See picture above. It was taken from my window as I landed into O'Hare last Saturday night.

My house is the one on the corner of 5078 West and 5300 North in the Forest Glen neighborhood of Chicago. (You do the math; I have a hard enough time with spelling.) If you look closely you'll notice a three story Victorian on the corner with a white lamp post in the front yard.

Hint: It's the one with the porch light on. Pretty cool, huh?

images taken from 'first class' seat 1a, somewhere too high in the sky en route to chicago from bloodhound unchained in phoenix. i have now exhausted all frequent flier miles and amex awards points. i guess its 'coach' the rest of the year for me, baby; peanuts, ice water, and wrinkled linen---among other inconveniences.



Geno Petro

Coming Attractions...

NOW PLAYING IN THIS BLOG

I'll be out of Chicago until the first week in May attending Bloundhound Unchained in Phoenix. It's all about web-centric real estate for the new millennium and how I can be more digitally attuned to your needs so it almost goes without saying, I'll be a desert wanderer among RE Web 2.0 geniuses. Hopefully, cyber-osmosis will be in order. Meanwhile, for your perusal, I've updated my following sites and tweaked the Archive pages a little (just in case you miss me). They are all hyper-linked so just click and smile. Also, my Chicago Top Ten Real Estate Deals link for May should be up by this weekend.


Geno From Chicago (my 'best of ' posts from across the internet)

My BloodhoundBlog Archives

My Chicago Top Ten Real Estate Deals

My Facebook

My Active Rain



Geno Petro

Smarter Agent & Chicago Google Maps

View Larger Map



Let this Google Map (now embedded in my sidebar to the right) assist you with your Chicago real estate search. Click the link and follow the instructions. So easy even a 52 year old can do it. And don't forget to subscribe to my Smarter Agent GPS phone app (also embedded in the sidebar). There is no cost to you and it is very, very cool. Isn't the 21st Century wonderful? Go Mobile, my friends.




Geno Petro

Hey Chicago Real Estate Peeps: my gift to you

CLICK HERE or scroll down my side bar to the right for your free cell phone Chicago MLS application (powered by Smarter Agent). It's GPS and very, very cool. Check out real estate listings wherever you are in Chicagoland (or Northern Illinois). Just follow the easy instructions on the landing page. I'm picking up the monthly bill for all my readers.

(ps...your phone doesn't even have to be that smart)


Geno Petro

April in Forest Glen...Balk

Yes, I awoke to a sheer blanket of snowy gauze on my side yard crocuses and granted, there was a bit of chill in the air, but cancelling the south side Chicago White Sox home opener? Come on yooz guys. Man up, howaboutit. Let's play some ball (or at least fill some potholes) so the Streets and San men can get put down the Italian beefs and get back to work and this windy city can get moving again. The freeze might be here but Spring training is over. Time for the real season to begin.

Geno Petro

He's Back! (in historic Oak Park)

"I'm shakin' the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I'm gonna see the world."

GEORGE BAILEY in It's A Wonderful Life

I was strolling along a side street in Oak Park this morning when I came upon a yard sign with...'the name.' I felt a twinge of contempt for my Banker and sensed a sudden urge to leap from a bridge. Then not. (As everybody already knows, I can't swim.) From the corner of my eye I thought I caught a glimpse of Clarence but when I turned for a closer look, he had vanished... into angel dust. I heard church bells ringing in the distance. My client was due to arrive at any moment. I looked up to the sky and waited for the snow to begin falling. Post-World War II Bedford Falls at Christmas time and early April in Chicago during any era have at least that much in common.

The Frank Capra (uncolorized cut) sidewalk I stood on was circa 1940s Midwest personified. I framed the above posted yard sign, snapped my ironic shot, and decided to hug my wife when I got home this evening. After all, she "could have married Sam Wainright, or anyone else in town..." and she's a lot hotter than Donna Reed ever was.

I guess what I'm trying to indirectly say, without stating the real estate obvious, is that Oak Park, Illinois, is one of the most beautiful towns anywhere in the Midwest. It's a Chicago bedroom burg where Prairie style meets Mission meets Victorian architecture. It's a fusion of the Past and the Now. It's a town where, in the year 2009, a fellow named George Bailey is actually running for office. And there, my friends, is at least one happy ending just waiting to happen--at least the way this Chicago realtor sees it.

Geno Petro

Google Your Mom...Redux

One of the first essays I ever posted on Active Rain back in 2006 was a piece entitled 'Google Your Mom.' At the time I thought it was a clever notion; write a cute, loving piece about my mother (born in the 1920s) and atomically collide her with a present day algorithm for a quick, ironic grin--a Google giggle, as it were. After all, (in blog years, that is), 2006 was a couple Morse Law generations ago and I was but a virtual piker in the constantly expanding Real Estate blogosphere.

I entered the same title into the Google Search Box a few moments ago (just to make sure the idea still had some digital legs, if not originality) and alas, there are now 42,100,000+ entries with the same keyword sequence, Google...Mom. It seems like everyone is writing about what their moms are doing on that 256K floppy up in the third bedroom these days. Still, at least through these biased eyes, my own fore bearer remains an unknowing pioneer of technological ingenuity as it applies to her...ahem, demographic. And while Mitzi Petro may not possess the same genetic motherboard as the matronaly likes of a Mrs. Jobs, Gates, or Wozniak, she is still very special in her own Post-it Note sort of way. Here is the most recent case in point:

Click here to read the rest of the story on 'Active Rain'



Geno Petro

Pole Position

At first glance, this photograph taken on my iPhone near the intersection of Lawrence Avenue and Pulaski is, well....nondescript. Take a closer look and you'll realize that the red-lettered object in the foreground is a utility truck of a company specializing in, among other things, poles. In the background you'll notice a semi-obstructed marquee advertising The Admiral Theatre. Since 1984 it's been every Northwest Chicago 'gentleman's' idea of the Moulin Rouge, if you know what I'm saying. Anyway, No, I was not looking for a parking space. I was just stalled in rush hour traffic trying to serpentine back home to Forest Glen while simultaneously text arguing First Amendment Freedom of Speech and Press rights with a Chicago City worker over something I posted on Facebook. I finally surrendered on all accounts, pulled over, deleted the Facebook post, and snapped this funny shot instead. And my point? Hard to believe anyone (sans clothes to boot) can wear out a dance pole---even over a 25 year period. Or for that matter, sway a proud man's allegiance when he has a dog in the fight.


Geno Petro