Former Cubs Pitcher Kerry Wood Sells $4.15 Million Winnetka Home

WINNETKA, IL — Former Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood and his wife, Sarah, completed the sale their Winnetka mansion this week for $4.15 million. After spending less than nine months on the market, the 11,000-square foot house sold Wednesday for over 9 percent more than the price the Woods paid for it as new construction. It's the second Winnetka home the couple have sold since Wood, 42, retired after spending 14 seasons in Major League Baseball.

The custom home on two-thirds of an acre on Higgenson Lane in was completed in 2014 and built by Heritage Luxury Builders, whose founders Leo and Milena Birov purchased the site for $1.42 million. Kerry and Sarah Wood paid $3.8 million for the six-bedroom design in June 2015.

The main floor has a white marble kitchen with a 13-foot island and two butler's pantries, its listing says. Its first-floor office opens up to gardens, while outside there's a dining patio with a pergola, a full kitchen, brick oven and fireplace.

Other interior features include an indoor sports court, a media room, a wine cellar, home theater, sauna and the "best craft room ever designed," according to the listing, which credits Julia Buckingham with the home's interior design. The master suite has one of the home's five fireplaces, as well as an oversized closet, luxury bath and balcony.

The Woods, who owned the house through a limited liability corporation managed by a trust they control, listed the house in June 2019 for about $4.4 million. In September 2019, they dropped the asking price to $4.3 million.

The sale was marked as pending in January and was announced as closed Wednesday at 3.5 percent below the final list price. The new owners are not yet identified in public records.

The property's estimated 2019 market value for taxing purposes was $2.53 million, according to the Cook County Assessor's Office. Its property taxes were successfully appealed, so the annual bill is now below $69,000.

The Woods purchased their first Winnetka property in 2010, spending $4.625 million on a Tudor revival mansion designed by Edwin Hill Clark. They sought and received permission to raze the home from the village's preservation committee, which was powerless to do anything beyond impose a 60-day delay on issuance of a demolition permit. But in July 2013, the Woods withdrew their demolition application without explanation, Chicago Magazine reported. They later sold the home for $4.175 million, taking a $500,000 loss on the transaction.

In recent years, the Woods have unloaded at least two other residential properties in the greater Chicago area, according to Crain's Chicago Business, which first reported the latest sale. They sold a house in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood for $3 million in May 2017 and a waterfront home in Lake Geneva for $4.75 million in September 2017.

• Address: 884 Higginson Lane, Winnetka
• Square Feet: 11,000
• Bedrooms: 6
• Bathrooms: 7 full, 2 half
• Built: 2014
• Last Sold: $3.8 million in June 2015 (furnishing not included)
• First Listed: $4.4 million in June 2019
• Sale Price: $4.15 million on Feb. 26

Listing information originally appeared on realtor.com. For more information and photos, click here.