By Brittany Wiley
BAPA Business Liaison
Standard Properties Group [SPG Chicago], 10448 S. Western Ave., was founded by husband–and–wife team Spiro Georgelos and Selena Schrimple–Georgelos. The full–service real estate brokerage firm specializes in helping sellers navigate home improvements to maximize home value and helping buyers when building new, remodeling or expanding.
When the couple met over 10 years ago, they were both working in the real estate industry, Schrimple-Georgelos as a real estate agent with @properties and Georgelos as a longtime mortgage broker and real estate agent.
Four years later, they married and decided to start their own brokerage. “It was a chance for us to grow together professionally as we were starting a family together,” Georgelos said.
In 2014, the duo started Standard Properties Group, dba SPG Chicago (also an acronym for their names). They were excited to start their own boutique firm knowing their intrinsic knowledge of the city and Georgelos’s background in mortgage and development would set them apart from other companies.
“Learning the mortgage end first and understanding the finances really allows you to think differently about deals,” Georgelos said. The company offers the same services as larger brokerages with the added value of flexible selling options and custom add-on services.
Schrimple-Georgelos was born and raised in Beverly/Morgan Park. Though she spent most of her early career up north, business has been expanding in out neighborhood over the past 5 years.
“We are seeing a lot of people move from places like River North and the Gold Coast into neighborhoods and suburbs where they still have access to restaurants and entertainment, but also have more space,” Schrimple-Georgelos said. The new trend in real estate is “surban” living, where families try to find that sweet spot between suburban and urban living. That trend is making Beverly/Morgan Park even more desirable.
As business expanded here, so did the SPG team with the addition of Sarah Schlitz Gilligan in 2016. Schlitz Gilligan has been working in the industry for over 15 years as owner and operator of Schlitz Appraisal Services (SAS Inc) and as a broker. Her primary focus is vintage homes and remodels in the established neighborhoods of Beverly/Morgan Park and Mount Greenwood.
Neighborhood resident Melissa Stehney Schumacher is excited to be join the SPG team as an agent this summer. Stehney Schumacher said she is looking forward to showing prospective residents not only the beautiful, historic homes here but also “the development and evolution we’re experiencing with so many innovative business owners right alongside the tried–and–true establishments that have made our neighborhood what it is for so many years.”
Each team member at SPG Chicago contributes knowledge from different segments of the real estate industry. United, they create a team that can expertly lead clients through every aspect of the buying and selling process.
Through strategic partnerships with contractors, designers and home stagers, SOG Chicago helps clients maximize their profits when selling and building new, renovating or expanding when buying.
SPG is in the process of opening an office in Southwestern Michigan where they have spent summer vacations, along with many other families from the South Side.
Learn more about Standard Properties Group, their team or current projects, spgchicago.com, info@spgchicago.com or 312–593–6777. Follow their journey on social media at facebook.com/spgchicago.
