Billionaire Michael Krasny Buys Condo in Chicago’s Lincoln Park

Tech billionaire Michael Krasny has acquired a Lincoln Park condo with a history of well-known owners.

Krasny, founder of Computer Discount Warehouse, bought the 5,200-square-foot unit on Lakeview Avenue for $5.1 million, $985 per square foot, just shy of the nearly $5.4 million, or $1,043 per square foot the property listed for in June, Crain’s reported. The address wasn’t reported.

Sellers Michael and Deborah Szymanczyk purchased the four-bedroom unit for $4.5 million, or $869 per square foot, more than a decade ago. Linda Levin of Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty represented Krasny, while Tere Proctor of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate represented the Szymanczyks.

Krasny, now worth an estimated $1.3 billion, according to Forbes, first gained prominence in the 1980s when he founded MPK Computers, which later became Computer Discount Warehouse. Under his leadership, CDW grew to dominate the personal computing market, eventually going public in 1994.

He stepped down as CEO in 2001 but retained a significant ownership stake. CDW was sold to Madison Dearborn Partners for $7.3 billion in 2007. Krasny now serves as the president of Sawdust Investment Management, based in Chicago’s Loop.

The Lincoln Park condo was also previously owned by billionaire Nicholas Pritzker, former president of Hyatt Hotels Corporation and cousin of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker. Pritzker purchased the property for $4.16 million, or $803 per square foot, before selling it to the Szymanczyks in 2013.

Michael Szymanczyk is the former chairman and CEO of Altria Group, the parent company of tobacco-giant Philip Morris.

Krasny’s latest real estate move comes just a year after selling his longtime Highland Park home for $3.53 million.

— Andrew Terrell