the house with the ugly wood siding

we bought a house 3 blocks over from our last house. we loved our "little yellow house". it was more than perfect for us. it had beautiful moldings, perfect trimwork, new windows, brand new kitchen, new tile floors, brand new bathroom, fantastic paint colors - it fit us perfectly... we were spoiled with the "newness" of that home. and, it was exceptionally clean. unlike our first home - this one has been deemed by the entire 700 block of locust as "the house with the ugly wood siding".

when we were looking for another house in the Tree Streets, (by this time reality had just set in and we really HAD to move), i remember driving through this block of the neighborhood saying out loud, "that house must be abandoned - why can't we get this ugly house on this block!" and coincidentally, 2 weeks later, scott went to a yard sale with all intentions of seeing if the owners were selling the home (he pretended to be interested in a dining table and at this point, we were desperate to find a new home). he spoke with the owner and wasn't really sure what she meant when she said, "i rented this house". so i rode back up there with him later in the day and we saw her standing outside the house. we drove up to her, and he asked her to clarify if she meant "she" rented the house from the owners. she stated that she was the owner, and rented the home to someone who was doing a lease to purchase. so as we were saddened for a brief moment, her neighbor asked us if we were interested in buying or renting and we quickly said "either or!". he said he had a property on the 700 block of locust, and thoughtfully described the home as "the house with the ugly wood siding" and immediately, i knew which one he was talking about.

to our surprise, the ugliness of the home mostly stayed outside. the interiors were well maintained. there were updates in the early 90's to the kitchen (surprisingly, it was a "fancier" kitchen back in the day, with all of the appliances under the sun including a trash compactor, cooktop, built in oven, and countertop grill. needless to say, the kitchen isn't large enough for all of those appliances.) also the bathroom was updated, along with the laundry room. it has a full unfinished basement. about 1500sqft, with a fenced in backyard and beautiful, large front porch. AND it was the bungalow style that we both really wanted.

following the next 12 months, we hope to fully renovate the home. our renovations include: brand new kitchen, brand new bathroom and half bath. new paint, refinished hardwoods, and a brand new front facade.

here are some photos of our lovely, fixer upper.