Five Prominent Chicago Office-to-Residential Conversions

Office conversions in Chicago are growing. As major markets continue to battle high vacancy, more and more owners are turning to adaptive reuse as a potential solution to revitalize these assets and avoid too much loss of value. The metro has joined several other hotspots that have implemented public financing incentives for office-to-residential conversions, resulting in a quicker pace for these projects.

The Conversion Feasibility Index, powered by Yardi research data, which assesses the potential of office buildings to be transformed into residential use. The CFI score is split into three tiers—properties between 90 and 100 CFI are in Tier 1, making them ideal candidates for conversion; Tier 2 is between 75 and 89, still a great candidate for conversion, but may require more adjustments; Tier 3 contains everything else, from 74 CFI and below, with far less potential for conversion.

Based on a RentCafe study released in February, we identified five gateway office markets that have the highest potential to see major growth in terms of new office-to-residential conversion projects—Chicago, Los Angeles, Manhattan, Boston and Washington, D.C. Here’s a breakdown of what those markets have to offer in terms of amount of office space that falls within the highest two CFI tiers:

In April, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson launched the Build Better Together initiative, which focuses on citywide growth, revitalization of underutilized areas and new development. A component of this plan is the LaSalle Corridor Revitalization, which was launched earlier last year and is specifically aimed at a portion of downtown—the historic LaSalle Street Corridor—and the adaptive reuse of the office buildings in that area.

“The scope and long-term goals of this project include increasing residential development, particularly mixed-income housing and activating street-level spaces with a mix of retail, lifestyle service establishments, cultural attractions and restaurants. The core objective here is to create a 24/7 environment and shift away from the traditional 9-to-5 business district model,” Chicago Deputy Mayor of Business, Neighborhood and Economic Development, Kenya Merritt, told Multi-Housing News.

As of early 2025, the city had advanced six adaptive reuse projects in the LaSalle Corridor initiative, collectively representing nearly $900 million in total investments, with an additional $300 million in TIF support from the Community Development Commission. Five of these are either already under construction or are about to break ground. These represent some of the largest office-to-residential conversions in Chicago that are proceeding with support from the city, but they are by no means all of them.

79 W. Monroe St.

In March, R2 Cos. and Lagfin—Campari Group’s holding company—broke ground on the redevelopment of 79 W. Monroe St., a 14-story, 183,147-square-foot, vacant office building. Of the total, 100,000 square feet—floors 7 through 14—will be converted into 117 units, of which 41 will be affordable.

Development costs rose to $64.2 million, while city authorities approved $28 million in tax increment financing. According to Yardi research data, the property has a CFI score of 100, placing it in the highest bracket as an ideal candidate for conversion.

Ware Malcomb is the project’s architect. Plans call for a renovated lobby with a separate entrance only for residents and a new indoor/outdoor amenity area—with features such as gathering and meeting places, fitness center, bike storage, dog wash station and gaming area. Completion is scheduled for the first quarter of 2026.

The downtown Chicago asset is “an incredibly strong candidate for office-to-residential conversion not only because of its location but also because of its existing structure, total potential housing capacity and workable floorplans,” Merritt told MHN. Natural light, high ceiling heights and floorplate depth are all features that will support a functional and appealing living environment.

111 W. Monroe St.

The Community Development Commission approved Prime Capri Interests’—a partnership of The Prime Group and Capri Investment Group—plan to redevelop the asset at 111 W. Monroe St. into The Monroe Residences & Hotel. Half of the 740,000-square-foot property will be converted into 349 residential units, while the other half is set to become a 226-key hotel. Of the total, 105 units will be set aside for residents earning up to 60 percent of the area median income. Completion is scheduled for January 2027.

The developers estimate $202.8 million in total costs, according to a CDC presentation from June last year. The partnership requested city assistance in the form of $40 million in TIF. The property has a CFI score of 88.

“Office buildings, and particularly historic office buildings, have deep floor plates which can be challenging to lay out with apartments needing natural light into each room,” Jesper Dalskov, principal architect & residential market leader at Stantec, told MHN.

Stantec serves as the project’s architect. A new, 19-story-tall, 4,200-square-foot atrium with a full-height wall—that will allow natural light to reach both the rental units and hotel rooms—is part of the new design. The units will be a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom layouts, ranging from 477 to 1,091 square feet. The Monroe Club will be renovated and reopened on the penthouse floor. Other additions include a lounge with an outdoor deck and pool.

“The authenticity of historic architecture cannot be replicated, and conversion brings new life to old buildings, revitalizing our downtown neighborhood,” Dalskov added for MHN, noting also that from an architectural perspective, a good fit for office-to-residential conversion has narrow floor plates, windows on all sides, facades in good condition and good bones.

135 S. LaSalle St.

In November last year, Riverside Investment & Development, AmTrust Realty and DL3 Realty received approvals for $98 million in TIF funds for the upcoming office-to-residential conversion of 135 S. LaSalle St. The total cost of development was estimated at $241.5 million, according to the request submitted by the developers to the Community Development Commission. SCB serves as architect for the project.

At 1.3 million square feet and 44 stories, the office property is the largest conversion project on this list. It has a CFI score of 79, placing it in the second tier, Yardi research data shows. The developers plan to transform roughly 624,000 square feet of office space. Stories five through 14 will comprise a total of 386 residential units, of which 116 will be affordable.

Levels five, 25, 43 and 44 will feature 46,700 square feet of indoor amenities, as well as 24,000 square feet of outdoor amenities, according to the same document. Additionally, three lower levels, including the ground floor, will comprise 92,000 square feet of commercial space, medical offices and a health and fitness center.

The Art Deco Field Building came online in 1934, and, in 1994, it was designated as a Chicago landmark. Bank of America occupied most of the office space until 2020, when it moved to 110 N. Wacker Drive. Since then, the property had remained mostly vacant.

Because of the building’s landmark status, the developers also obtained $32 million in historic tax credit equity for the project. Reportedly, construction start is scheduled for next month, while completion is expected in April 2027.

208 S. LaSalle St.

Prime Group’s second development on this list is 208 S. LaSalle St., a 1.2 million-square-foot property. Plans call for the conversion of roughly 222,500 square feet of office space—floors 13 to 16—into 226 residential units, a third of which will be affordable.

The developer requested $26.2 million in TIF funds for the downtown Chicago office-to-residential project. According to its CDC presentation, the total costs would rise to $122.7 million.

Lamar Johnson Collaborative designed the project, dubbed LaSalle Residences. The unit mix will comprise 94 studios, 93 one- and 39 two-bedroom apartments. Plans also call for a new lobby, fitness facilities, resident lounge spaces and penthouse-level terraces with an outdoor pool and gathering areas.

The building is a Chicago landmark, completed in 1914 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The first 12 floors house a 610-key JW Marriott hotel, while the uppermost five floors are occupied by the 232-key LaSalle Hotel, both of which will continue to operate after the conversion is complete—scheduled for 2026.

30 N. LaSalle St.

Golub & Co. will redevelop the 980,000-square-foot, 44-story office property at 30 N. LaSalle St. The project received approvals earlier this year from the CDC. A total of 432,000 square feet of office space—floors three through 18—will be converted into 349 units, of which 105 will be set aside as affordable.

Total development costs for the downtown Chicago office-to-residential conversion are expected to rise to $130 million, of which $57 million is in TIF funds. Golub & Co.’s partners include Corebridge (formerly AIG Global Real Estate) as lender, SCB as architect and Confluence as landscape architect.

The office building at 30 N. LaSalle St. came online in 1975. It underwent two rounds of cosmetic renovations, in 1986 and 1990, and is LEED Gold. According to Yardi research data, it has a CFI score of 70. The conversion is scheduled for a 2027 completion.

The proposed unit mix will comprise studio, one- and two-bedroom layouts, ranging from 586 to 1,177 square feet. Plans also call for improvements to the street-level retail portion, new lobby, a new window wall system and a terrace structure, new street-level plaza and landscaping, a public art sculpture at the corner of LaSalle and Washington streets and energy efficiency upgrades. A total of 14,500 square feet of open space and outdoor amenity space is also planned, as well as 10,600 square feet of indoor amenities. The upper half of the building will continue to operate as office space.