CHICAGO — When President Barack Obama and his family return to Chicago, they will have new next-door neighbors to get to know.
The 17-room house next to the Obamas in a ritzy South Side neighborhood has sold for $1.4 million after seven months on the market, said listing agent Matt Garrison.
The previous owners, the Grimshaw family, bought the 6,000-square-foot home in 1973 for $35,000. The market for homes in Chicago priced above $1 million has been “soft” for about three years, according to Garrison’s office.
The new owners, who want to remain anonymous, are from Chicago and plan to live in the house after a “massive” renovation of the eight-bedroom home, Garrison said. The new owners weren’t drawn to it because of the chance to live next to a president. It simply was the best and nicest house they found, he said.
Living near the Obamas comes with its hassles. The Secret Service keeps tabs on anyone who enters the street, and security increases exponentially whenever Obama is in town, although the family has spent little time in Chicago since moving to the White House.
