奥巴马芝加哥邻宅待售 估价超百万美元

Want to live next door to US President Barack Obama? The colonial mansion next to his Chicago home is now available - for the right price.

So far, the real estate broker handling the sale won't even guess at what that price might be.

"We don't know what premium the Obama factor will have," said Matt Garrison of Coldwell Banker.

"If it was a block away it would be somewhere in the (neighborhood) average of 1.2 to two million dollars."

Garrison's phones have been ringing off the hook since the house was put on the market on Friday.

They've had at least a handful of serious inquiries - one from as far away as London - and expect more to pour in as word gets out.

But those hoping for an invite from Obama or the chance to swap recipes with the First Lady might be setting themselves up for disappointment.

Despite vowing to come home to Chicago as often as possible, the Obamas spend most of their time in Washington and have chosen Camp David and Martha's Vineyard for recent vacations.

The new owners will also have to contend with roadblocks and screening by the Secret Service, what Garrison calls living in "the ultimate gated community."

Viewings of the 6,000 square foot brick home will be scheduled only after potential buyers show they are financially capable of closing the deal.

Built in 1906, the brick colonial mansion has eight bedrooms, a coach house on its ample grounds and has maintained many of its original details and stained glass windows.

It is just a few blocks away from the University of Chicago and the proposed site of the 2016 summer Olympics in the prestigious Kenwood neighborhood on Chicago's south side.

The current owners bought the house for 35,000 dollars in 1973 and are looking to downsize to a condominium.

想与美国总统巴拉克．奥巴马做邻居？目前，与奥巴马在芝加哥老家的住宅相邻的一处殖民建筑风格的豪宅正待售，而且价格公道。

到目前为止，代理豪宅出售的房地产中介公司甚至都无法预测这套房子能卖到多少钱。

科威房产中介公司的马特．加里森说：“我们不知道‘奥巴马’这张牌能为房子加价多少。”

“距离这里一个街区的房屋的均价大约在120万美元至200万美元之间。”

这套豪宅于上周五开始出售后，加里森的电话都被打爆了。

咨询者们至少要问几个严肃的问题，随着消息的传播，咨询电话会更多。这两天还有一位远在伦敦的买主打电话咨询。

不过那些希望受邀去奥巴马家里坐坐，或者有机会与第一夫人交换食谱的人可能要失望了。

尽管承诺要尽量多回芝加哥老家，但现在奥巴马一家大多数时间都住在华盛顿，而且最近的度假地也选在了戴维营和玛莎葡萄园岛。

此外，新房主还得应付路障，还会受到美国特勤局的审查。加里森称住在这里等于住在了“监护最严密的小区”。

只有当潜在买家证明自己有经济实力购买这处6000平方英尺的砖房住宅后，才会安排看房。

这座殖民建筑风格的砖房豪宅建于1906年，共有8间卧室，在宽敞的院内有一间马车房，整套住宅保留着其原有的大部分特色以及彩色玻璃窗。

这处豪宅距芝加哥大学，以及有望举办2016年夏季奥运会的赛址仅有几个街区的距离。这处赛址位于芝加哥南部著名的肯伍德区。

这套房子的现房主于1973年花了3.5万美元买下这处住宅，如今房主希望将其缩小为一套公寓。

Vocabulary:

colonial：殖民地式的，美国殖民地式住宅，是侨居美国的欧洲殖民主义者到北美洲后，利用当地建筑材料，建成一种既简洁又实用的住宅，形成独特的建筑形式。

premium：a bonus, gift, or sum additional to price, wages, interest, or the like（溢价，额外费用）

ring off the hook：of a telephone, to ring constantly or excessively（电话铃响不断，铃声大作）

condominium：共管式公寓，套房私有，其它地方属业主共有。