A Lake Forest mansion has been added to the rush of ultra high-end listings in wealthy Chicagoland suburbs drawing out big ticket sellers.
The 3-acre estate on East Onwentsia Road features an eight-bedroom, 13-bathroom mansion that spans more than 11,500 square feet, with its current list price at $7.5 million, or $648 per square foot, according to public listing information.
The North Shore market has struggled with particularly low inventory this year and Lake Forest specifically saw a nine percent decrease in the number of new listings this year over last year, according to multiple listing service data. Yet there are several Lake Forest homes testing the upper reaches of the market, with three other homes seeking more than $10 million, while the Onwentsia estate is the only other on the market asking more than $6 million.
Last week, the estate of the late Posy Krehbiel listed a nearly 12,000-square-foot mansion originally built in 1905, on 9 acres at 930 East Rosemary Road, for $15 million. That property hit the market just days after a 2.1-acre Bluffs Edge Drive home was listed for nearly $12 million. And former Motorola executive Ron Garriques and his wife, Karena, earlier this year started asking just shy of $13 million on the lakefront.
A little further south on the North Shore, a former Goldman Sachs executive this month began seeking $35 million for a Winnetka home on Lake Michigan, which would mark one of the priciest home sales ever if it sells for anywhere close to the ask.
However, no Lake Forest home has sold for more than $7 million since November, when the $7.8 million sale of a 7,500-square-foot home at 1421 Lake Road marked the priciest deal in the affluent suburb in a year.
Demand remains high with luxury buyers willing to pay top dollar for land near the lake shore. The Onwentsia Road estate is a short drive from the lake, but current listings on the lake shore are priced upward of $1,000 to $1,200 per square foot.
The Onwentsia Road estate sold for $6.4 million the last time it traded hands in 2017 when former owners Michael and Linda Keefe, who built the home, sold it to JPMC, an LLC managed by a trust that obscures the identity of the buyer. Back then, the home was first listed for $7.9 million, higher than its current asking price seven years later.
Now, the home is back on the market at a time when North Shore properties are selling fast and a potential interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve could bring new buyers to the market.
The estate has a vast lawn, pool and spa area, movie theater, wine cellar and outdoor kitchen. It was built in 2010 and designed by renowned Chicago architect and designer Darcy Bonner.
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The property was listed publicly this week by Compass agent Elizabeth Wieneke who said she thinks the property is priced well for the current market given its recent construction, size and proximity to downtown Lake Forest. She declined to identify the sellers.
“I’m pretty confident because it is such a unique property and it offers such quality,” Wieneke said Wednesday. “This home would be impossible to duplicate today for the money that we’re asking.”