Cheap Old Houses: House in IL's neighborhood maybe?

Have you guys seen Rehab Addict on HGTV? It's two guys--one is the builder/contractor, the other is the one with the creative vision and chops. They flip one house after another in Detroit. I don't mind flippers if they are sincerely trying to upgrade a neighborhood. It's an interesting premise. The houses are typically ridiculously cheap and they live in them while the flip is going on to save money.

However, if they got their hands on that Craftsman house in St. Louis, I'd be very afraid. I'm sure the HGTV producers would talk them into whitewashing the woodwork and tearing out the fireplace.

I though Rehab Addict was the one with the short cute blond gal?

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Originally Posted by ToomuchStuff

I though Rehab Addict was the one with the short cute blond gal?

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Oh, yeah, you're right. The show I'm thinking of is Bargain Block

Okay----I plugged in a low bid for some authentic lirrrarrarry light fixtures that are prolly close to 20 years old. So guess what? Turns out I was high bid. Just hope they've already removed them. Ha. But yeah---I've got two dozen of these to use for lighting. Maybe when I start rehabbing old abandoned Pizza huts, they will come in hhandy by adding elegance and class. Unless you kids wanna buy 'em. They won't be cheap, tho. I will issue a certificate of authenticity that they are indeed lirrrarrry lights. Yup.Attachment 4898

SO loves to watch Bargain Block. I’m not really a fan of their design choices and I worry that some of their fixes for structural damage seem too quick and cheap. But I do love that they seem to be taking dirt cheap disasters and turning them into slightly less cheap habitable homes for people.

An aside, they eventually bought, fixed, and stayed living in one of the houses. Apparently the whole ‘use a shopping cart to move to the next project’ shtick had worn itself out.

Here’s a not-so-cheap house in IL’s old neighborhood. I link to it because I think the coloration in certain areas is spectacular.

The owners, Chris and Lydia, are friends of mine who I look upon sorta like our kids’ generation (if we had kids.) They are about 15 years younger than us. They originally bought a small house a block away from us, worked on it for a few years, then bought this old house in the link. They worked on it for a dozen years. Chris does a fair amount of the work himself. Back in the days when we were attending a lot of parties, they held parties at their house and we were there often.

Now they are selling it, retiring early, moving to Spain. Very cool, I am excited for them.

as for the colors of this house: the exterior is fabulous. It’s a light gray with trim in dark gray and red.

The front hall is spectacular with its navy blue walls and crisp white trim.

A fun thing is the kitchen with its black ceiling medallions and black chandeliers. Very dramatic, and I love dramatic decor!

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...4_M85076-85574

OMG. That is a stunner. What a great job they did! Dramatic indeed, even though most of the colors are neutral/black/white/grey. While I sometimes think neutral schemes are boring, this is far from boring. And what about that library and wine cellar!!

That house is a steal in East Coast prices. If that were in the upper West Side in NYC or in Chelsea or the Village or even in the up-and-coming lower East Side, that thing would be a few million.

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Originally Posted by catherine

OMG. That is a stunner. What a great job they did! Dramatic indeed, even though most of the colors are neutral/black/white/grey. While I sometimes think neutral schemes are boring, this is far from boring. And what about that library and wine cellar!!

That house is a steal in East Coast prices. If that were in the upper West Side in NYC or in Chelsea or the Village or even in the up-and-coming lower East Side, that thing would be a few million.

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I know, it would easily be a few million on either coast. What is extra nice about this house is that it’s on a “private street “just off of our public park but is secluded. It was the first private street in St. Louis. Private Street means that the residents have an HOA type agreement to keep up the historic lighting on the street, the plantings in the cul-de-sac, etc. . I think that the city does keep it paved however. I’m not sure about sidewalks, who pays for that.

A tour de force, that one! I can't imagine the work that went into it. (And I love black as a unifying color.)

Relatives of a friend of mine--70-80ish--are moving to Scotland. I understand the impulse.

I couldn't imagine living in such a large place, but it's nice eye candy that sure harkens back to the days of large families and cold rooms. Curious that a person would put what looks like a labor of love into it's restoration only to up and leave when it's finished. Maybe to get back to less home maintenance.

Seems like it would cost half again the price to furnish properly, though it's hard to picture?