Inside Chicago’s Most Luxurious Mansions | Open House Home Tours (Full Episode

Open House Chicago is sponsored in part by Carrie McCormick Luxury Group, Ben Cohen at Rate, and Chicago Title & Trust. Chicago's North Shore is known as an enclave of affluence, and it actually all started in the industrial age when Chicago was becoming overcrowded, so the wealthy created a way to escape, building a railroad that would take them away from the city. Thus, the North Shore was born. I love either riding my bike or walking along the lakefront to take in the stunning landscape and the peaceful sidewalk. Dang. Rolling past everything from the home where Kevin McAllister fought off two burglars, You guys give up or you're thirsty for more? to architectural marvels like the Baha'i Temple. Wait, now I feel a little underdressed. That's better. I've always wanted to know what these places look like inside, and I'm guessing you do too. So, we are meeting up with our fabulous real estate team and get some valuable info. Today, we're going to check out two amazing properties. One, an elegant home in the elite suburb of Kenilworth. Oh, and there's a trampoline! There she goes. The other, a spectacular lakefront estate that will make your jaw drop. I feel like I need to pick up your jaw. We're going to say that a lot in this episode. Plus, a look back at the home of the North Shore's most famous former resident. But first, I know you're wondering whose private beach that is. So, let's go check out the listing. Lake Forest is commonly thought of as the crown jewel of the North Shore, and I have a feeling we're about to find out why. Are you ready to see a $27 million home? Yes, I am. Let's go. I am going to introduce you to my colleague, Anne Lyon. Hello, Courtney and Terry. Hi. I can't wait to show you this amazing estate. I'm already stunned. My jaw is on the ground, Anne. It is a spectacular property. You have 5.27 acres with 570 feet of beach frontage, and the home is 15,000 square feet of the most luxurious living space. You will just love seeing it. And it has a little secret 22-car garage. Wait, a little secret 22-car garage, she says. Just a little secret. But I love that we start with the leg lamp. And the fish. Isn't that fun? See? They're just like us. They are. Let's go. One of the first things I want to show you are the amazing views. Oh my gosh. Truly spectacular. I feel like I need to pick up your job. We're going to say that a lot in this episode. That is what attracted the owners to this property. And they spent four years designing and building this magnificent estate. Wow. Let's just take a moment for this chandelier. Gorgeous. And I love how it's like modern mixed with kind of like this traditional design. That was really important to them. They wanted to build a home that has all of the benefits of geothermal heating and cooling, radiant heat floors, but yet have traditional elements in a current modern home. And they accomplished it. One of the things you'll love about this Christopher Peacock kitchen are the hewn timber beams. These are called hewn timber? Yes. What does that mean? Reclaimed timber from an old barn on the east coast. And tan hewn. So you see the marks within the timbers themselves. And again, the blue accents with the gorgeous marble. Like, wait, something so old can make something look so expensive. My mind is blown. Yes. And one of my favorites, Le Corneau. Look at this stove done in blue with this hood. Oh my gosh. For all of your cooking extravaganza. But you know what? This, I didn't know how to pronounce it. It's Le Corneau? Yes, of course. Wow. Gorgeous. Yeah. I also can't wait to show you the loggia. There are three loggias that have balconies off of the bedrooms up here. And what is a loggia? A loggia is a space that is defined by three walls and open air. And you'll see some of the historic elements are the growing vault ceilings and all of the loggias. This is truly a special home. Yeah, that will teach you a new vocabulary. Yes, it's called a loggia. Okay. There are so many things down here that are my favorite. Wait, another fireplace? Another stone fireplace? I mean, duh. We've got this temperature controlled wine cellar that houses thousands of bottles. But pay attention to the ceiling detail, which is just spectacular. It speaks to a wine cellar. I feel like I'm in Italy right now. I love this wine cellar. But you said that there's a garage down here. How special could a garage be? Well. How special could a garage be? If you enjoy your wine. Yeah. And you want to see and look at your cars. You could just. No! What? Ferrari, Bentley, Rolls-Royce. What's your choice? No big deal. You can pair your car with your wine. So come and get your tickets for the theater. What are you talking about? This is so special! Wait. I can tell the owners have a sense of humor here. They do. Red leather doors. A full-on theater. Wow. I love a theater room. And this one does not disappoint. There is seating for 16 people in here, 10 of which are reclining chairs. And if you look up, you'll see these spectacular stars on the ceiling. We're dorks. And we've arrived. Oh my gosh. I love a primary with a fireplace. It's like a must. It's a must now. It's a must. Let's check out down here. Absolutely. Every room in this home has these incredible views. You feel like you're on vacation. You do. Let's go check out the terrace. One of the great things about this room are these triple French doors that lead you to a private terrace. Why have one when you can have three? Right. That's right. And look at this, the view. Carrie! I mean, this is just luxury living at its absolute finest. I am out of breath, y'all. Okay, we're gonna have to take a quick break so I can catch my breath. And when we come back, we're gonna check out the grounds. You know you've made it when you've got grounds and not just a yard. Absolutely. Hey, everyone. I'm back with the trusty tip. I'm Greg Kenner from Chicago Title & Trust. Do you remember what title insurance is? Yeah, yeah. Let me give you a refresher. Think of it in the case of buying a car. You're gonna want to know how many miles are on that car. Has that car been in any accidents? When you're looking at a home, it means things like are there unpaid liens? Are there unpaid taxes? Have there been disputes against the property? Are you buying that property from the rightful owner? And that's important because you're making the biggest purchase of your life. And that's why this trusty tip is for you, first-time homebuyers. The number one question that first-time homebuyers have is, how much house can I afford? Well, I'm going to answer that question when we come back, as well as give you three trusty tips. So stay tuned. This is absolutely stunning. Let's take a seat and talk about this. Well, there are so many wonderful features. You see this expansive bluestone terrace, the fabulous outdoor kitchen, the pool, the spa, three loges. And the thing that drew our clients to this property was the monumental fountain that terraces down the bluff from the Harold and Edith Rockefeller McCormick Estate. McCormick? Yes. I know. I think I need to do a little digging into the history. They actually built this estate. The entire neighborhood is called Villa Turkum. And it was a 300-acre estate with a home with 44 rooms. And the only remaining elements are this monumental fountain that is three terraces down to the boathouse and the tea house that is a few doors down. And that is it. So that drew them to build on this gorgeous property. And you had me at swimming pool. I got to stick my feet in it. There she goes. All right. While Carrie is tracing her family genealogy, let's get a designer's perspective. Check out the designer. Oh, this is warm. Hi, I'm Courtney Choudas. I'm the founder of Studio M. Gene. I'm an artist who also does library curation. And we do specialize in art placement. Today, I'm here to give you four tips on how to bring art into your home. My first tip is to choose art that leads and not matches. So frequently, people will choose art as an afterthought and decorate a room first. I don't believe that. I believe art should always be chosen first, and then the room should be built around the art. My second tip is go larger than you think. So often, I see art that's too small in a room. Scale is everything. My third tip is to let one piece challenge you. A curated home should have friction. I don't believe that you should be purchasing art just because it's safe or pretty. It should provoke some emotion, some feeling. It should challenge you. My fourth and final tip is to let color live through the art. We've all seen a craze in neutral interiors these days. And I get it. I love the restrained interior. But when you're also adding neutral art to that, you start to lose personality in the space. So my suggestion is to bring in a large-scale abstraction with at least one or two vibrant colors and let the space come alive. Well, when you get out here from this perspective, you really see how huge this place is. There's a joke in there somewhere. But yes, I agree. I agree. Carrie, I don't want to leave. But there's so much more Courtney to show you. Oh my gosh. Do we have to go? Yeah, we gotta go. We gotta go. Let's go. We're going. Prepare to be wild. Welcome back. We're continuing our bop around the North Shore. And now we are about 30 minutes south of Lake Forest and about two blocks from Lake Michigan in the beautiful Kenilworth. I'm going to meet back up with Carrie in just a moment. But first, since we're touring this area, I'd be remiss not to take a look back at the Highland Park mansion of Chicago's most famous former resident. No, I'm not talking Oprah. I'm talking the GOAT. Jumpman. Number 23. You get the drift. Well, hello there. Welcome to Champion's Point. Come on in. Let me introduce you guys to the only woman who could show a property like this. Luxury real estate broker, Carrie McCormick. Carrie, I'm already wowed. Just going up the driveway. I know. What is Champion's Point? Welcome. This home is a legendary estate. I can't wait to show you. Well, let's get started. Have you ever seen a full-size regulation basketball court in a house? No. Well, we have to play. Of course you do. This estate sits on over seven acres, 37,000 square feet. Wow. A total of nine bedrooms, 19 bathrooms. Tell me about this. So these doors came out of the Playboy mansion. They are rich in history. They are one of a kind. And just the detail on here is exquisite. It's a piece of artwork. I can't even imagine how much these weigh and how they even got them here. Let's open. Yeah. Sesame. Ready? Yeah. So just off this little speakeasy is another room to entertain in. This one is equipped with a full bar, fireplace, and plenty of seating. Imagine hosting VIP guests. This is like an old school throwback theater that I used to go to growing up. We got another pool table. This one's a little retro to go with this movie theater vibe. Circles are a theme. Okay. Champions are a theme. Yeah. But imagine celebrating your own victory in your very own cigar lounge. Oh my gosh. Welcome to my home. This is my house. They just don't know it yet. Hey everybody. Greg Kenner from Chicago Title & Trust. So as a first time home buyer, how do I know how much home I can afford? Well, the first thing you need to start thinking about is stay away from the total purchase price and think about your monthly payment. There are tools out there that can help you calculate that, and it's something you can rely on your real estate agent for. In my opinion, the best one out there is Chicago Agent, and it's widely used across the country. As promised, I've got three trusty tips for you. These may seem kind of basic, but you'd be surprised. So number one, bring your ID. You're going to need that. You'd be surprised how many people forget it. Also, number two, if you're married, don't forget to bring your spouse. They forget that too. And number three, make sure you've got representation from an experienced real estate attorney. And as a bonus tip, wire in a little extra funds to make sure that you're prepared for any surprises that might come up at closing. And that's the trusty tip. We'll see you next time. Welcome back. So we're continuing our bop around the North Shore, and now we're about 30 minutes south of Lake Forest and just two blocks away from Lake Michigan. We are in Kenilworth. These homes will make you drool. And Keri's got the keys to another stunner. This one looks like a gingerbread house. Scratch that, a gingerbread mansion. Hey, Keri. Hi, welcome to 159 Eppington. Nice. So what's so special about Kenilworth? It is very picturesque. The architecture is amazing. We're steps from the lake. Very exclusive. Only 2,500 residents here. Great school districts. Look around you. This is... I like how when I was just taking a walk down the street, it's fun to see all the houses are completely different. Yeah. It's quite a statement up here, but I'd love to take you in and show you this home. Yeah, let's check it out. Yep. So I know we've been touring around the city, which is, you know, sleek and contemporary. Now in the North Shore, we're a nod to this wonderful architecture. It's a little more classic, a little more traditional. Yeah. I'm loving the ceilings. Yes. This wood panel library is just so sophisticated and handsome. This is a newer construction home here in Kenilworth. 6,600 square feet. Wow. Six bedrooms, five and a half baths. We've got this incredible kitchen, family room. This is the heart of the home. And this is one of my favorite kitchens. Yeah. I like the white cabinetry. So high-end appliances. Again, the ceiling details and millwork in this house are incredible. You get great natural light in here too. What everybody loves is just that walk out from your kitchen, whether you're grilling, playing in the backyard. Keeping an eye on the kids. Keeping an eye on anybody. On anybody, right? Right. I'm going to take you out to the backyard where we have this beautiful stone patio. There's a fireplace out here and plenty of room to play. Oh, and there's a trampoline. There she goes. This is fun. It was fun to see you on that trampoline. Sorry to get me off, right? I know. So we toured two beautiful houses and now it's time to get some practical advice about buying. So we're here with Managing Director at Rate, Ben Cohen. Hey, Ben. Hey, Courtney. Hey, Keri. How are you guys? So how is the lending landscape right now? A little similar to the trampoline we were just on. Oh my gosh. Little up and down. Up and down. Can be a lot of fun. Can be a little bit scary. But that's why it's so important to have someone like you to help guide us and get the deal through. Yeah, I mean, I tend to wear several different hats, whether it's a wealth advisor or their therapist. So I've bought a home and I've always wondered what determines your mortgage rates? Because it seems mysterious and a little judgy. What goes into it? Credit score is the most important thing. Credit, income, assets, and how much you're putting down and what is the price point of the home. So when you talk about credit score, what score? So when somebody calls me and says, hey, Ben, I have an 850 credit score, it really goes in one ear and out the other. Why? Because everybody looks at their app and it tells them what their credit score is. So when you get a mortgage, we pull what's called a tri-merge credit report. So that is from all three bureaus and we use the middle score. So the scoring model from a lender's credit report versus what you see from your credit card or what you see online with the simulator is different. So when you ask me or tell me what your credit score is, it's kind of like right over me. We'll see about that. I mean, it's a great indicator. You should always monitor that stuff. So what is the one piece of advice that you would give a potential buyer today? Well, I would say definitely get pre-approved first. Which is ultimately going to help them understand what they can afford and what they're comfortable spending. And most buyers focus on the monthly payment. And that monthly payment consists of their mortgage, their homeowner's insurance, their real estate taxes, and their monthly assessments if they're looking for a condo. So you have to put all of those together to figure out what your monthly output would be. We want to make sure that the buyer is actually comfortable and they know what they're signing up for. Which is why my takeaway to somebody like Carrie or to the buyer is if you see something that you like before you get emotionally attached to it and fall in love with it, like understand what it's going to cost you. All right. Guys, Ben's information's at the bottom of your screen. Thanks, Ben. Thanks for having me. Thank you, Carrie.