Aug. 05--A four-bedroom, 7,588-square-foot mansion in Wheaton sold on July 27 for $2.65 million, tying the all-time record for a residential home sale in that suburb.
Located on the city's north side and built in 2005 by Patrick J. Murphy Builders, the French Normandy-style mansion sits on a 1.3-acre lot. It was first listed in 2013 and listed with a different agent in March for $2.975 million. Listing agent Michael LaFido of Conlon: A Real Estate Company credited his success at finding a buyer with a video that he shot and distributed on the Internet and social media showing hired actors and rented luxury cars.
"The days of taking still photos or even putting those still photos in a video are I believe a thing of the past," LaFido told Elite Street. "In the Chicago area, high-end luxury homes are very difficult to sell. There had been no sales in Wheaton above $2 million for the past eight years. I wanted to paint a picture that this isn't just some McMansion but a great home."
In LaFido's two-minute video, the hired actors are shown playing football in the yard and sitting in the home drinking wine.
The mansion has 6 1/2 baths, a wine cellar, an office with coffered ceilings, a five-car garage and a motor court.
The sale price ties former Amoco CEO H. Laurance Fuller's 2004 sale of his home near the Chicago Golf Club as Wheaton's highest-priced sale on record.
Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
