Chicago · Cook County · IL
Homes for sale in
Olympia Centre.
- Active listings
- 1
- Median list
- $799K
- Avg time on market
- 38 days
- Sold · last year
- 16
Active listings
1 home on the market
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About the community
Full-service luxury residences high above the Magnificent Mile.
Olympia Centre is a mixed-use skyscraper at 161 East Chicago Avenue, at the corner of Michigan and Chicago Avenues in the Streeterville and Gold Coast area on Chicago's Near North Side. Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill and completed in the mid-1980s, its reddish granite tower rises 63 floors and holds three uses: a Neiman Marcus retail base, office floors in the middle, and private condominium residences on the narrower upper section, roughly floor 24 and above. The residences pair floor-to-ceiling views of Lake Michigan and the skyline with full-service amenities in one of the Magnificent Mile's established prestige addresses.
At a glance
SOM granite tower
A 63-floor Skidmore, Owings and Merrill skyscraper in reddish granite, completed in the mid-1980s, cited as Chicago's tallest mid-block building.
Full-service building
24-hour door staff and concierge, on-site professional management, and a building engineer.
Pool, spa, and fitness
An indoor swimming pool, whirlpool and sauna, exercise rooms, a sun deck, and a party room with a kitchen.
Lake and skyline views
Upper-floor residences with north and east exposures over Lake Michigan and south and west views over the skyline and the Mag Mile.
Residences floor 24 and up
Condominiums occupy the narrower upper tower above the Neiman Marcus retail base and the mid-tower office floors.
Neiman Marcus at the base
The tower rises directly above the Neiman Marcus store on North Michigan Avenue.
Chicago Public Schools
Served by CPS, with Ogden International commonly cited nearby. Confirm the exact attendance boundary with the CPS locator by address.
Streeterville and Gold Coast
Steps from the Historic Water Tower, Water Tower Place, the lakefront, and Northwestern's downtown campus and hospital.
What’s close
Olympia Centre anchors the corner of Michigan Avenue and Chicago Avenue in Streeterville, on the Magnificent Mile and bordering the Gold Coast.
- Building amenities
- The indoor pool, whirlpool and sauna, exercise rooms, sun deck, party room, and 24-hour door staff and concierge.
- Dining and shopping
- Steps to the Magnificent Mile flagship retail, Water Tower Place, and the restaurants of Streeterville and River North.
- Lakefront and culture
- A short walk to Oak Street and Ohio Street beaches, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and Navy Pier.
- Schools
- Chicago Public Schools, with Ogden International commonly cited nearby. Confirm the attendance boundary by address with the CPS locator.
- Transit
- CTA bus service on Michigan and Chicago Avenues, the Red Line Chicago Avenue station a few blocks west, and quick access to Lake Shore Drive.
- Hospital and university
- Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Northwestern's Chicago campus are within a short walk.
What it’s actually like to live here
Life at Olympia Centre is vertical Gold Coast living: you step out of a granite Skidmore, Owings and Merrill tower and directly onto the Magnificent Mile, with Neiman Marcus in your own building and the best of Chicago retail, dining, culture, and lakefront within a few blocks. Days are defined by convenience and services, a door staff who know you, a concierge for packages and reservations, an indoor pool and fitness rooms for the winter months, and garage parking so you are never circling the block. For a buyer who wants a lock-and-leave home with big lake or skyline views and a near-zero commute to downtown, Northwestern Medicine, or the near-north office towers, it is a hard address to beat.
The residences sit high in the tower, roughly floor 24 and up, which puts nearly every home well above the street with open exposures. Unit types run a wide range, from spacious one-bedrooms through three- and four-bedroom homes and dramatic two-story duplex residences with tall picture windows, so buyers can find very different homes inside the same building depending on the tier and whether a unit has been combined or renovated.
The honest tradeoffs are the tradeoffs of any premier full-service high-rise. Monthly assessments are substantial because the staffing and amenities are real and always on, and Cook County property taxes are separate on top of that carrying cost, so a buyer trading in from a house should underwrite the full monthly picture. The Magnificent Mile is one of the busiest shopping corridors in the Midwest, so the immediate streets are lively and can be congested in peak season, which is exactly why residents value the quiet upper floors. As with any building of this era, individual units vary from original to fully renovated, so condition and any recent building projects deserve a close look, and this is condominium living with a board and shared decisions, so review the rules, financials, and reserves.
The questions buyers actually ask
Olympia Centre FAQ
The questions I get most from buyers shopping Olympia Centre. If yours isn't here, text 224-385-8779, same-day reply.
- What does the HOA actually cover?
- Monthly assessments in this full-service luxury high-rise are on the higher end, reflecting the staffing and facilities. Listing data indicates assessments commonly cover items such as air conditioning, cable, and water, along with the door staff and concierge, on-site management, and the shared amenities like the pool and fitness rooms. Exact inclusions and the current assessment vary by unit, and Cook County property taxes are billed separately per unit, so confirm the specifics on the individual listing and review the association budget and reserves during due diligence.
- What are property taxes like?
- Roughly $10,000 – $30,000 per year, depending on home size and value. Cook County assessor records are the source of truth. Happy to pull a specific bill on any home you're considering.
- When was Olympia Centre built?
- Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (architect); developed by Olympia and York built the community between 1985 and 1986. Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (architect); developed by Olympia and York stopped new construction in 1986, so every sale today is a resale.
- What's the typical closing timeline?
- 45 to 90 days from accepted offer to keys. Cash deals can close in two weeks. Conventional financing is usually closer to 90.
- Who designed Olympia Centre and when was it built?
- It was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill and developed by Olympia and York, with construction starting in 1981 and the tower completed in the mid-1980s. It rises 63 floors in reddish Swedish granite and is cited as Chicago's tallest mid-block building.
- What floors are the condominiums on?
- The residences occupy the narrower upper section of the tower, roughly floor 24 and above, sitting above the Neiman Marcus retail base and the mid-tower office floors. This puts nearly every home well above the street with open exposures.
- What amenities and services does the building offer?
- 24-hour door staff and concierge, on-site professional management and a building engineer, an indoor swimming pool with a whirlpool and sauna, exercise rooms, a sun deck, a party room with a kitchen, and attached garage parking.
- What do the monthly assessments include and how high are they?
- Assessments reflect a full-service luxury building and are on the higher end. They commonly cover items such as air conditioning, cable, and water along with the door staff, management, and shared amenities. Amounts are unit-specific and Cook County taxes are billed separately, so check the individual listing and the live Market snapshot for figures.
- What kinds of units are available?
- A wide range, from spacious one-bedrooms through three- and four-bedroom homes, plus large two-story duplex residences. Exact sizes and layouts vary considerably by tier and by whether a unit has been combined or renovated.
- What do residences cost and how is the market right now?
- Olympia Centre is an upper-tier Streeterville address, so expect luxury-level pricing. Prices and market activity change constantly, so this page shows current numbers live in the Market snapshot tiles rather than quoting a figure here.
- Who is the real estate agent for Olympia Centre?
- Joe Keegan is the local licensed Illinois real estate broker who covers Olympia Centre in Chicago, IL through Subdiview, a neighborhood-first home search for the Chicago suburbs and collar counties. Joe prices and negotiates from the live MRED sold comps for Olympia Centre specifically, not national averages, and can help you buy or sell here. Reach Joe at 224-385-8779 or joe@joekeeganhomes.com.
Your local agent
Joe knows Olympia Centre
Most agents will list anything. I focus on the places I actually know, and the things that move value here don't show up in the MLS write-up: which streets and buildings hold demand, what the HOA or assessments really cover, how the comps read once you account for condition and location, and where buyers consistently want to be.
When you're ready to tour or list, you want someone who has read the last 50 closed comps in this specific market, not a national average, and can tell you what they actually mean for your price. That's how I work. Text or call any time, and I'll give you a real take, not a brochure.
- Licensed Illinois broker
- Comp-driven pricing
- Chicago specialist
- Honest local market take
- Brokerocity
Market snapshot
Olympia Centre, by the numbers
Live MRED data, refreshed daily. The numbers below tell you what this market is doing today, not what Zillow's algorithm thinks it might be doing six weeks from now.
Typical list price
$799,000
Typical sale price · last 90 days
$787,500
Homes for sale right now
1
Avg time on market
38 days
Sold in the last year
16
This representation is based in whole or in part on data supplied by Midwest Real Estate Data, LLC for the period July 31, 2025 through July 31, 2026. Midwest Real Estate Data, LLC does not guarantee nor is it in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by Midwest Real Estate Data LLC may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.
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