Chicago Mag's Dennis Rodkin has an item of interest in today's Deal Estate column. He's covering the recent auction sale of a handsome Tudor revival in Oak Park, known as the Norman Smith House. The intrigue runs much deeper than that: the home was the former long-time residence of Joe and Jory Shapiro, founders of the MCA. Up until their deaths in the mid-90s, the home boasted one of the most astonishing collections of 20th century art found anywhere. Unfortunately, we have no pictures from that era. And today, after several ownership changes, the interiors are sufficiently destroyed. Enough that even the realtor said so. Although the 6,300-square-foot home sold for just $904K at least $700K in rehab is needed, per the realtor's estimate. Getting more than $1.6M in resale is a tricky proposition. In other words, we hope the buyer bought for love. [Chicago Mag, image: flickr/Chicago Geek]
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