Bringing Our 1900's Home into the 21st Century: A Renovation Journey

We're excited to share our journey with you as we renovate our home from top to bottom. With the help of our family members, it's a true DIY project that we're tackling week by week, year by year. Stay tuned for updates on our progress and behind the scenes fun!

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Where It All Began: Looking Back on Our Starting Point

Before we dive into the details, let's take a moment to reflect on where we started. Back in November 2020, we were not looking for a house at all. Funny enough, we had just renewed our lease on our apartment and did not think we were going to go anywhere. The world was slowly opening back up from the pandemic craziness that shut everything down in March. So we thought it was best to just sit still and see where life takes us. We wanted to eventually find a house to put down some roots and build up some equity just not yet but God had other plans for us...

Almost Love at First Sight: Our Home Buying Journey - November 2020

As soon as the house appeared on the market, we wasted no time and jumped at the opportunity to see it. It only took us less than 24 hours to view it, and we knew right away that it was the one. I could already picture our future family growing up in that space, and I was thrilled at the idea of transforming it into a beautiful home.

The keys were finally in our hands exactly 30 days later, and the journey was about to begin - full of both excitement and challenges. Our vision wasn't always clear, and not many people believed in it at first. But we did, and that was all that mattered in the end.

Getting to Know Our Home: Features and History

Let me tell you a little more about our house as it is right now. It's a single-story home with three bedrooms and one bathroom, along with a small basement located under the main bedroom addition. The living room and the third bedroom boast 10' ceilings and exquisite moldings that add to the house's overall charm. However, since the house was built in 1900, many other areas lack character and appeal, as they were added on at a later time. The main bedroom addition and basement were added later on, and two old porches off the back of the house were converted into the main bathroom and laundry room.

Upon initial inspection, it was clear that the house required significant repairs. However, upon receiving our detailed inspection report, we realized there were additional expenses to consider. Moreover, having a house that was over 100 years old, there was no telling what other issues lay hidden behind the walls.

Inspection Report Results:

The inspection report revealed several items that require immediate attention, and an extensive amount of cash, including:

• Installation of new windows throughout the entire home $

• The roof is almost reaching its age limit and may need to be replaced within the next 5 years. The bathroom roof section is currently leaking and requires immediate replacement. $$$

• The furnace requires intense repairs due to neglect and no maintenance care and may need to be replaced soon. $$

• The water heater is on the verge of breaking down $

Despite the visible issues, we were drawn to this property and saw potential in making it our own. Additionally, the findings we uncovered during our assessment further piqued our interest and solidified our decision to invest in the house.

Before we share our plan/design for each room...Check out these "before" snapshots!

You can see the potential too right?! It's okay if you can't! Now for the fun part...at least to me...design and floor planning... IN THE NEXT BLOG POST!

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Sorry to have to leave you hanging like this but I promise I'll share more soon :) - Aly