5450 S Indiana

5450 S Indiana Ave

Washington Park · Chicago · Ward 3

Building: Built 1906 · 3 stories · 24 units
Prepared: September 2026

1 Executive summary

This report synthesizes public information to provide insights on building condition and potential deferred maintenance relative to peers.

5450 S Indiana is a 1906, 24-unit three-story mixed-use building in Washington Park occupying the corner of Indiana Ave and Garfield Blvd. It has burned at least once and probably twice, the first around 2000 and the second around 2010. Then in 2015 the city found the south wall bulging over the sidewalk and ordered it shored. The city has taken the building to circuit court five times since 1996.

Against 8 Washington Park walk-ups of the same age and size, permitted work per unit runs 392% above the median, and the city’s file holds more violations than six of the eight. Of the permitted work counted, $200,000 is the masonry the city ordered in 2015 and $126,000 the porches and storefront legalization it ordered in 2019; there is an additional $400,000 permitted for the rebuild after the fire. The file since shows heating, water-intrusion and pest complaints, one of them open today.

GI 5450 S Indiana LP bought it in November 2020 for $2,650,000, four months after the seller paid $1,800,000; the Assessor now values it on income at $3.5M. Ground floor businesses: Merce Collection LLC (132 E Garfield Blvd), Shaun's Barber Shop (120 E Garfield Blvd) · Opulence Beauty (118 E Garfield Blvd) lapsed September 2026.

Building condition

Permits since 2006 show $506k of building-scale work, about $21k a unit, more than the comparable buildings in section 3.

2000Fire-damage repairs to the walls and porches on permit, with new windows.

2005–2009A 1,000-amp electrical service, a new roof ($98,000) and new porches — the "new roof, new decks, new service" of the sale listing.

2010$400,000 interior rebuild of all 22 apartments and 7 storefronts after the second fire; sold for $305,000 in 2012.

2015The city found the south wall bulging over the sidewalk and the lintel over 118 rusted through, and ordered a sidewalk canopy, an engineer’s report and a masonry permit.

2016$200,000 masonry and lintel permit; the 2015 citations marked complied.

2018–2019Citations for the parapet, the storefront lintels, twisting porch columns and unpermitted storefront buildouts; still open on the record.

2021$126,000 permit to legalize and bring to code six storefronts and rebuild the porches.

2023Three no-heat or no-hot-water complaints, June to November, each closed as no cause.

Sep 2025Conservation inspections at 120 and 132 failed: missing smoke and CO detectors, a water-damaged ceiling with mold, an undersized exit, no entry to the upper floors.

Aug 2026Exposed wiring reported at 120, closed; an active ceiling collapse from a water leak reported the same day, open.

Pests · leaksInspect1 pest report in Mar 2024, at least one tied to a water leak; the city found no cause. 3 leak or water-intrusion reports, Mar 2024 and Aug 2026.

Hot water · heatInspect3 reports of no hot water or heat between Jun 2023 and Nov 2023; the city closed every one as no cause.A recurring pattern points at the domestic hot-water plant or its risers rather than at any one unit.

FacadeGoodRepair phases 2016, about $200k reported.

City inspectionGoodNo violation from the past year is open on the city record. 99 inspections since 2001, 31 failed, the last failure Sep 2025 (conservation complaint). 8 administrative hearings and 5 circuit court cases on the building's record since 1996.

RoofGoodRoof replaced Nov 2008, $98k.

Porches · stairsGoodPorches replaced Feb 2021, $126k; earlier porch permits 2009.

Fire systemsGoodNo fire-protection citations on record.

Boilers · mechanicalGoodMechanical permits 2012.

Comparable rentals

8 Washington Park walk-ups built 1893–1914 with 10–25 units: the capital work the city holds permits for, per unit, beside each building’s inspection record. Permitted work per unit runs 392% more than the cohort median; the city’s file holds more violations than six of the eight peers.

5700 S Michigan ($49k a unit, mechanical job of $1.1M in 2018), 227 E 51st ($16k a unit, roof job of $80k in 2025) and 368 E 53rd ($11k a unit, risers job of $97k in 2007), and one more, are the peers with building-scale work on permit; the other four sit under $3k a unit.

5450 S Indiana holds 41 violations on file; 368 E 53rd with 75 and 5700 S Michigan with 44 carry heavier files. 2 of 8 peers carry a violation the city opened in the past year, and seven have been to circuit court.

This buildingA peer, shaded by permitted work per unit — darker is moreNumbers are the rows in the table below.

Building	Year	Units	Permitted work since 2006 / unit	City record
5450 S Indianathis building	1906	24	$21k a unitinteriors 2010, $400k	none open41 violations · 5 court cases
15656 S IndianaWashington Park	1893	20	$950 a unitno permit on file	none open6 violations · 2 court cases
2227 E 51stWashington Park	1898	16	$16k a unitroof 2025, $80k	none open20 violations · 3 court cases
3360 E 61stWashington Park	1904	10	$3k a unitno permit on file	none open33 violations · 3 court cases
45601 S MichiganWashington Park	1906	25	$2k a unitno permit on file	3 open13 violations
5368 E 53rdWashington Park	1906	16	$11k a unitrisers 2007, $97k	none open75 violations · 4 court cases
65700 S MichiganWashington Park	1907	23	$49k a unitmechanical 2018, $1.1M	6 open44 violations · 2 court cases
75300 S MichiganWashington Park	1908	25	$6k a unitporches 2018, $60k	none open22 violations · 3 court cases
85854 S MichiganWashington Park	1914	20	$2k a unitno permit on file	none open18 violations · 1 court case
Cohort median			$4k a unit0 major systems	21 violations

Peer notes

15656 S Indiana. An 18-unit building renovated inside on a $270,000 permit in 2011, with its wood porches replaced in steel; two basement units were added on a 2016 permit, to 20.¹
2227 E 51st. Mixed-use like the subject: 227–239 E 51st, 16 apartments over storefronts.²
3360 E 61st. Mixed-use, 360–376 E 61st: ten apartments over storefronts, by the 2015 electrical permit for an eleven-meter service (ten apartments and one public).¹
45601 S Michigan. Marketed as 5609 S. Michigan Apartments, 5601–09 S. Michigan / 109–115 E. 56th, 25 units.³
5368 E 53rd. A corner building at 53rd and Calumet, 16 units by the city inspector’s own count on a 2018 heat complaint (61 degrees in apartment 2B).¹
65700 S Michigan. Mechanical $1.1M in 2018.
75300 S Michigan. A 25-unit building of three- and four-bedroom apartments, marketed by Pangea.⁴

Ownership & lot

GI 5450 S Indiana LP has held 5450 S Indiana since November 2020. The county holds eight transfers since 2000; the price fell from $1,540,000 in 2007 to $305,000 in 2012 and has since passed the earlier high. The Assessor’s value more than tripled at the 2019 reassessment, to $227,387 for 2026. The 2024 reassessment was appealed: the Assessor’s record shows the value adjusted from $349,600 to $315,000 on appeal, and the certified 2024 value stands at $227,387. The Assessor values it on income at $3.5M: $279,700 of net operating income capitalized at 8.0%, above the last price.

Ownership

TaxpayerGI 5450 S Indiana LP

Assessor income card 2024market value $3.5M · NOI $280k · cap rate 8.0% · 32,339 sq ft · multifamily-mixed use, low rise (3 floors or less)

Assessed value$44,643 (2017) → $227,387 (2026), +409%

Ground floorMerce Collection LLC (132 E Garfield Blvd), Shaun's Barber Shop (120 E Garfield Blvd) · Opulence Beauty (118 E Garfield Blvd) lapsed September 2026 · 23 past licenses on file

Programs47th / State TIF district · Enterprise Zone 6 · Opportunity Zone

Subsidized unitsNone on file

Lot

ZoningB1-3 · Neighborhood shopping district

Homes40 on this land at one per 400 sq ft · 24 on record

Floor area3 × the lot = about 48,324 sq ft · 32,339 sq ft on the Assessor’s card

Land16,108 sq ft

TransitGarfield-South Elevated (Green Line), 3 min on foot · transit-served: parking minimums relaxed

FloodOutside the FEMA flood hazard area

Permits since 200610 · 12 older in the city archive, 1944–2005

City inspections99 since 1996, 31 failed, 8 administrative hearings, 5 circuit court cases

311, building, 5 yr16: Building Violation (5), Buildings - Plumbing Violation (5), Rodent Baiting/Rat Complaint (2), Tree Emergency (2), Fly Dumping Complaint (1), Sewer Cave-In Inspection Request (1)

Sale history

Date	Price	Buyer	Seller	Deed
November 2020	$2,650,000	GI 5450 S Indiana LP	5450 Indiana LLC	other
June 2020	$1,800,000	5450 Indiana LLC	5450 S. Indiana LLC	other
March 2017	$1,675,000	5450 S. Indiana LLC	T2 5450 S Indiana	other
September 2012	$305,000	South Side Holdings LLC	Blue Sky T&S	warranty deed
May 2008	$550,000	Blue Sky T&S LLC	Granpas INC	warranty deed
January 2007	$1,540,000	Granpas INC	Chicago Title Land Trust CO TR	trustee deed
March 2004	$925,000	Chicago Title Land Trust CO.	Cole Taylor Bank	trustee deed
May 2000	$315,000	—	—	trustee deed

Quick questions

Questions to put to the seller and the property manager (feel free to ).

Rent roll Ask for the current rent roll, the leases and two years of operating statements; the Assessor’s income card carries a net operating income of $279,700 capitalized at 8.0%, and the rent roll should reconcile to it.
Pests · leaks A leak complaint filed 15 Aug 2026 (active ceiling collapse from water leak) is still open with the city: what did the inspector find, and has the source been repaired?
Hot water · heat Residents reported no hot water or heat 3 times between Jun 2023 and Nov 2023: what was the cause each time, and what has been done to the hot-water plant or its risers since?

Also worth asking The city has taken this building to circuit court 5 times since 1996: what were the cases, and are any still open?