Fact Brief: Is the Bank of Italy building being turned into apartments?

San Jose’s Bank of Italy building at 12 S. First St. is undergoing a remodel and renovation that will turn it into an apartment building.  As of May 2026, a $74.1M project is underway to convert the building to residential and mixed-used retail space. 

When completed, the building will offer studios and one – and two-bedroom apartments across 109 units. It will encompass approximately 126,000 square feet of living and retail space, while also preserving the look and detail of the century-old building. 

Originally built in 1926, the 13-story high rise is San Jose’s first skyscraper and was most recently used as office space, but has sat vacant since 2017. 

Bank of Italy was founded in 1904 by San Jose native Amadeo Peter Giannini. He opened his bank in San Francisco and its first branch in his hometown of San Jose. The company was later renamed to Bank of America in 1930.