A love of old houses led Maryland couple Anastasiia and Gunther to buy an abandoned church up the road from their home. All Saints Church was built more than 100 years ago, but deconsecrated in the 1970s. Three other people owned the structure and added a bedroom here, a bathroom there, but no one tackled a complete overhaul like this couple did. Throughout the renovation process, Anastasiia and Gunther tried hard to keep everything as original as possible. The ceilings in the great hall stretch upward 25 feet. The home was so spacious they had to buy new furniture including a 12-foot-long couch for the great hall. The belfry, which is the tower or steeple attached to the church, has three levels and was left intact. The top level still features a bronze church bell from the 1900s.

Joy Chapel, known locally as Glädjens Kapell, nestles in the heart of the Swedish village Tärnsjö. The home is was previously a Baptist church built in 1889. It still retains many of its beautiful original features. The open plan ground floor layout of the chapel lends an airy feel of the two-story center. Spectacular windows pour sunlight into the uplifting living area that spans almost 4,000 square feet.

A Victorian church in Notting Hill, London, England, built originally in 1853 serves dual purposes. The top two floors of Westbourne Grove Church were transformed into a crisp white loft. The main windows of the church were retained and have since become a main feature of the penthouse. The 4,305-square-foot loft has two stories and a stunning glass staircase stretching between the two floors. The modern amenities in this historic church include glass walls and a giant soaking tub.

Once priced for sale at $15 million, this 6,000-square-foot city mansion boasts four bedrooms, original stained glass windows and an enclosed courtyard with a waterfall. There’s even a gym! One prominent feature happens to be the church’s original arches dominating the great room. The great hall has a kitchen, dining room, living room and grand piano all within that realm. A spiral staircase connects the main floor with the bedrooms upstairs.

A recently retired couple stumbled across the listing for an old church in the paper and, having sold the family business, decided to take the plunge. Inspired by a former colleague who remodeled a church into a home, they took the plunge to give their new home a look that retains much of the original features, like original wooden church aisles. The owners added a swimming pool and created a cozy living area on the upper mezzanine level they constructed. The John Knox Church still features stained glass dating back to 1876 and the church bell that was cast in Glasgow in 1875 still works and was left hanging.

A 19th century chapel nestled in an historic English village has been renovated into a four-bedroom home complete with a study, kitchen, dining room and a two-story living room that originally was the church’s narthex. Original oak parquet flooring and stunning double entry doors dominate the main floor. To accommodate the four bedrooms, the church had to be extended on both sides, providing a visual contradiction to the beautiful brick. Several original features were left, including the choir gallery and timber ceiling.

An empty church sat unused and forlorn until new life was breathed into it, converting the structure into a single-family home with seven bedrooms and six bathrooms. The church’s beautiful stained glass was retained as a stunning wall in the bedroom and the rest of the church was gutted except for the shell. The bell tower also was retained and the rest was modernized. There’s even a climbing wall in the bedroom!

Built in 1930, a gorgeous church located along the river De Rotte in the Netherlands was abandoned in the 1960s and used as a garage. The church finally was rescued and converted into a house within a church. The back side of the church faces the river and the windows all throughout have preserved, as have the wooden arches.

The former Catholic church St. Francis Xavier no longer had the sounds of worship coming forth. But thanks to a massive renovation, the house of God is now a four-bedroom home with hints of its former purpose. The original marble altar and ornate windows were retained, but new additions were crafted such as a sweeping staircase. Sitting on two acres, the back of the property features a spacious garden with a fountain and the church’s original bell tower.

A minister and his wife moved into a Sunday school center attached to a Massachusetts church in 1981, turning into a homey space. When the adjacent church closed five years later, they bought the 4,000-square-foot building for $60,000 and renovated that area, too. They left the sanctuary intact and connect two lofts with a catwalk. The choir area was converted into the main bedroom and a main bathroom was created inside the steeple.

A large garden with two entertaining areas along with a greenhouse, garden shed and more flank Church House, a place of worship active until the 1980s. It sits on half an acre of secluded gardens that beautify the holy home splendidly. Inside the home is equally beautiful. The family room features stained glass windows overlooking the south-facing garden and what used to be the vestry now serves as the famil room.

As the Swedish Evangelical Lebanon Lutheran Church, this building served its congregation until 1955 when the members outgrew the building. It was turned over to the Freemasons in 1960 and served as a lodge for 42 years. Sadly, the building fell into disrepair until it was purchased in 2005 by an ambitious couple who completely renovated the church into a home. They maintained original features such as the stained glass windows and wooden floors. The owners also infused many perks into the home like a steam room.

The designers behind the renovation of St. John’s Church in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, won an award for their successful integration of original historic elements with 21st-century technology. The home sprawls across three floors and keeps the vaulted ceiling, stained glass windows along with the solid wood timbers, beams and arches.

In 1920, this stately brick church built in Racine, Wisconsin, served its flock. Eventually, the house of worship was converted into a seven-bedroom home with 5,300 square feet. Elements of the church were retained during the conversion process, including the stained glass windows. A vaulted ceiling occupies the main living room while other historical elements throughout paid homage to the building’s past.

Brazilian interior designer Gianna Camilotti purchased a late 19th-century church, gutted it and completely renovated the property into a luxurious space, a process that has even won three prominent international interior design awards. The 2,550-square-foot home still retains the building’s historic charms like the vaulted doors and windows, curved oak beams and spacious rooms. The home also has under-the-floor heating, a self-playing piano and modernized kitchen.

St. James in the Netherlands underwent a conversion process to become a home in 2009 and the designers made sure to keep the open feeling of the church along with the breathtaking stained glass windows. Not much of the physical structure was modified. Before it becomes a home, the church was used as a showroom for antiques and rented out as a venue for events like concerts and meetings.

Fondly called Chapel Home, this former church in Wimberley, Texas, was highlighted on HGTV’s Great American Country Network Series “You Live in What?” With three bedrooms and two bathrooms, the home currently is being rented out on Air BNB. It’s also available for special events and retreats. The restored church sits on two acres near a creek and waterfall.

The exterior of the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church clearly illustrates its purpose. But once you walk inside, it’s easy to see the complete conversion done in 1973. While the original hardwood floors, wood beam ceilings, windows and light fixtures are in the home, it truly looks like a regular family home.

It took three years, but the owner of this 2,100-square-foot church couldn’t wait to convert it into a home. She took a minimalist approach, preserving all of the original features as much as possible, including the stained glass windows, light fixtures and doors. While removing the pressed-tin ceiling, they discovered the ceiling had been painted with murals.

A former Methodist church in Australia boasts a history dating back to 1888 but today serves as a four-bedroom home. Thanks to an impressive conversion process, the church has all of its original architecture in place but with modern feastures such as stone walls and pine floors. The home had been rented out for a period of time before it was permanently sold for $1.4 million

Melbourne’s Moonee Park Church was converted by a pair of architects into luxury living accommodations, providing for up to five bedrooms and open spaces. The conversion process incorporated limestone, marble and granite, but retained many of the church’s original features. It has breathtaking city views from a newly created mezzanine lounge. It first sold in 2013 for $3.2 million.

This award-winning church conversion resulted in apartment units with one entrance and a private courtyard outdoors. The three-bedroom apartments retain many of the original church features. It combines history and modernism with highly functional, beautiful results.

Contemporary architectural influences abound in this home that used to be a church dating back to 1913. The three-bedroom house retains some of the church’s original features, including stained glass windows, cathedral ceilings, facade, timber floors and the front door. It went on the market with an asking price of $1.2 million.

This former Methodist church located in rural Middleton-in-Teesdale, England, now exists as an AirBnB rental. Chapel on the Hill features four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Many people escape on holiday to this cozy home surrounded by nature.

A couple from Ontario, Canada, struggled to find the perfect home. So when they were told about an 1869 Gothic Revival church that had been stunningly converted into a family home in 1999. With seven bedrooms, the ivy-covered brick church home helps them fulfill their dream of owning and operating a bed and breakfast. The bell tower was left intact as were many other historical elements, but fun perks were put in place, including a swing by the window.

Spire Lofts, a collection of apartments converted from New York City’s Saint Vincent De Paul Church, retain much of the original architecture with a modern feel including glass walls. Cast iron catwalks help apartment dwellers cross the upstairs spaces of the 19th-century church that was converted into a 5-story rental building.

The history behind this former Uniting Church has been well preserved with vaulted timber ceilings, arched windows and even the dais grace left intact. The home now boasts an open floor plan and wood paneling from floor to ceiling in several rooms.

The Little Stone Church in Maine was built in 1906, but when the congregation dwindled, it was converted into a home. The original windows and doors are still standing and the spacious great room serves as the dining room and family room. The tower was converted into a small bedroom for a total of three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The exterior beautifully boasts the original stone.

Nestled in Chicago’s Ukrainian Village neighborhood is a church-turned-home that surprisingly resembles its original structure. The home has soaring 39-foot-high ceilings and the altar was converted into a dining nook. The one bathroom and lofted bedroom leaves ample room perfect for an artist.

In 1927, a tiny church was built in Louviers, Colorado, big enough to hold 200 congregants. But when the house of worship was converted into a home, the interior underwent a major overhaul. The exterior was left untouched, but the choir loft was repurposed into the main suite and the original foyer doors opened up to reveal a dining room and kitchen. There are an additional four bedrooms and a total of three bathrooms inside this small but mighty church.