High-end rental community in Vernon Hills to add 32 more units to original plan
The Oaks of Vernon Hills, a luxury rental community being built north of Route 45 on the southern part of town, will expand its footprint with 32 more units than originally planned and approved.
High demand for rentals and a concern over traffic from a commercial use were among the reasons village officials agreed to rezone part of the property from general business to multifamily residential. The action will allow for construction of a three-story building with 32 apartments on the triangle-shaped parcel next to Route 45 and the main access drive to the development.
“The commercial use would have a much higher traffic volume,” said Joe Carey, the village's assistant village manager/director of community development.
The original approval in 2013 was for 304 apartments, 256 of which are condo-style and 48 row-home style, on the site of the former Kelly's Day Camp north of the Writer Estates and Sanctuary Point single-family subdivisions.
The Oaks consists of eight 3-story apartment buildings and nine row-home buildings, all of which are under construction.
The zoning change will allow for another 32 condo-style units. Advertised rents range from $1,545 per month for the most basic 1-bedroom, 1-bath unit, to $3,377 per month for a 3-bedroom, 2½-bath row home with a den.
The project is being developed by REVA Development Partners LLC and built by the Kinzie Real Estate Group, both based in Chicago. The target audience is young professionals, empty nesters and families. The village began issuing occupancy permits last August.
“Last I checked, we were at 90 units leased. We have 67 moved in, and that is ahead of expectations,” said Warren James, a principal with REVA.
The project is a sign of the interest in rental properties in Lake County and the Chicago area, as the homeownership rate has dropped from the pre-2008 peak, experts say.
“There hasn't been any product of significant size that's hit the market. The newer stuff certainly is going to attract demand,” said Ron DeVries, vice president of Appraisal Research Counselors, a Chicago-based consulting firm.
Prime Property Investors, an apartment development and management firm in Northbrook, said the popularity of homeownership is waning because young professionals, retirees and empty nesters are opting for the flexibility of renting. The rental pool is expected to grow because of college grads entering the workforce and more stringent financing rules for first-time homeowners, according to the firm.
Both said there is an unmet demand for high-end rentals.
“I think the question is, `Why hasn't there been supply added before now?'” DeVries said.
He added that community leaders are becoming more amenable to quality rental projects. With rents increasing, developers are finding it makes more economic sense to proceed, according to DeVries.
Vernon Hills Building Commissioner Mike Atkinson said the newly approved Oaks building should be under construction in early spring and the entire development complete or nearly complete by the end of the year.