The Abandoned Corner Shops Getting Transformed Into Million-Dollar Homes

The homes have plenty of awkward angles, windows that lack privacy and entrances that are too close to the curb. But owners love them.

In Chicago, decades-old corner stores, bars and other shops have new lives as converted residences in some of the city’s residential neighborhoods. Some boast newer renovations and standout for a mix of vintage charm and open layouts—making them a draw for buyers looking beyond new construction. Many have a smaller footprint and can cost less than homes on adjacent lots. Owners say the older brick combined with new windows make them soundproof, despite their proximity to the street.

Matt Nardella, a Chicago-based architect, says he was specifically looking for a corner store to repurpose into a live-work space. In 2016, Nardella and his wife, designer Laura Cripe, purchased an abandoned 6,000-square-foot, corner building that was once a store in the Logan Square neighborhood. The $550,000 property offered plenty of sun exposure but needed extensive work. “It was generous to call it a grocery store, by that time it was more of a liquor store that sat empty for years,” he says.

It took the couple six months to renovate initially at a cost of $350,000, including adding a second story. The space now functions as an office for their firm, Moss Design, a showroom, a small art gallery, a rental apartment and a two-bedroom home where the couple lives. They kept the vintage marquee sign that says Logan Square Food and Liquor on the exterior. Once in a while, it attracts unwanted visitors. “It happens from time to time—and they are mainly looking for liquor,” he adds.

Inside their home, the couple added built-in storage throughout and created an open living space with heated concrete floors and exposed brick, says Nardella. He says Chicago’s shopkeeper-type buildings have always been of interest to him. The couple must cross a central courtyard to get to their office. “It still tells a little bit of a story of what it used to be without having to explain it all,” he says.

Joey Sabani says he was excited by the storefront facade of his 1880s Wicker Park home as soon as he walked up to the showing. He loved that it didn’t look like the newer homes on the street. “It was sticking out like a sore thumb and had a yellow door,” says Sabani who purchased the 4,000-square-foot home, which he learned was a former butcher shop, for $1.24 million in 2022.

Sabani, an engineering executive, and his wife, Charlotte Sabani, embarked on a yearlong $1 million renovation, unearthing original green tiles in the wall that are now built into the side of the living-area fireplace. They kept the interior brick, painting it white to match the home’s Nordic feel. An exterior spiral staircase from the third floor leads to the backyard. They repaired the exterior and kept the oversize storefront windows that are partially matte for privacy. “The front of the house was always some sort of commercial space, and that was cool to us,” he says.

The home sits on a lot that is oversize for the area, creating a backyard for the family dog and the couple’s toddler. Inside, they added an office while modernizing the bedrooms and baths. A dining setup is at the front of the home to take advantage of the storefront windows. They also combined the kitchen and living area. “We wanted a bit of a first-floor entertaining space and made it as open as we could,” he adds.

Asher Kohn, a Chicago-based urban planner who has researched store conversions, says many of the original stores were built in Chicago before World War II and are on residential streets near the city’s historic boulevards. At the time, more family members shared apartments, which meant the area had a higher population density. This helped the stores to thrive. But, after the 1950s, the city’s neighborhoods became depopulated, decreasing the need for this type of retail. “There weren’t enough people to keep commercial stores in business,” says Kohn. “But you could rent them for more money.” Many of the stores were then converted to residential housing, coinciding with an effort to rezone underused commercial properties to mixed use, he adds.

While many of the former shops were turned into rental apartments haphazardly, some of the stores were converted more thoughtfully to create vintage single residences, Kohn says. Currently, there are hundreds on Chicago’s north side; many have been converted to smaller apartment buildings and a small portion have become single-family homes, he adds.

Today’s buyers are looking for the open space and high ceilings that some of the conversions retained. The homes are priced comparably to similarly sized homes in the neighborhood, with a higher premium on those that were recently renovated, adds local real-estate agent Vincent Anzalone, who is working with Sabani. Their home is privately listed for sale because Sabani says he is willing to downsize if the right buyer comes along.

When Ken Lunsford purchased an 1880s home in Chicago’s Bucktown neighborhood for nearly $700,000 in 2017, he was “on the hunt for something unique,” he recalls. Though Lunsford rented in the past, he was quick to bid on a former candy store converted into a single-family, two-bedroom, two-bath home that sat on a corner lot. It had plenty of quirks, but he was drawn to the exposed brick walls for his growing art collection. The 1,600-square-foot home was priced more like a large condo than a single-family home, but still offered the perk of not living in a condo building with neighbors, he says. There was also a two-car garage, original tin ceilings and a deep basement “that almost feels like a speakeasy.”

Being on the corner of a residential block was a plus, and he outbid multiple offers. After the sale, neighbors worried that the home that has been a staple on the block would get renovated beyond recognition. “They were nervous that I’d do something to it,” says Lunsford, who owns a storm cleanup business.

Luckily, it wasn’t in the plans.

He updated the floors and kept the open layout, which he finds perfect for entertaining despite a smaller kitchen area in the back of the home. He painted the front door a bright orange and added an outdoor pendant light to make the home’s facade more inviting. He swapped out the clear floor-to-ceiling windows for green tinted ones to create a sense of privacy while still letting in the light. “You can kind of look in and see life,” he says. He plans to add a roof deck on top of the garage this year.

For Nardella and Cripe the project is ongoing. Currently, the couple is repurposing the store’s former walk-in cooler into a wine cellar. “It was the worst part of the building,” he adds.