Dumping the Drop Ceiling

As much as I love my house, there is one major feature that I don't love- the drop ceiling! 

Unfortunately it's a prominent feature that's difficult to ignore throughout the house- every single room throughout the house has dropped ceilings, except for my dining room and breezeway, which have paneled wood ceilings. 

Whenever I sit down to make a list of all the things I want to do to my house- i of course want to start with the easy stuff, right? Paint, new floors, maybe switch out some stuff in the kitchen...it all comes back to those ceilings and an order of operations. At this point the elephant in the room is the ceiling. It's now or never if it's going to come down, because it's going to be a messy ordeal when it does!

Demolition Weekend | The Mystery of the Dining Room Hump

When I toured my house we wondered....what is this massive bump in the middle of the house? After closing we were practically racing to get over to the house and start tearing away at the wall to figure out what was back there. What is behind the dining room hump? Is it a weird waste of space? Why would anyone put this here?

What's that smell? | Tackling my Basement

Here's a peek at another room in my house that is in need of intervention- my basement! 

This photo makes it clear my house is still in a 1970s time warp! The red burgundy carpet is throughout the back half of the house. The wood paneling is on the walls throughout the back half of my house. It was popular in the 1970s because it was cheap and easy to install- it goes up in one big sheet!

Demo in the Pine Palace | Dining Room

After closing, I couldn't wait to get in and solve some of the mysteries that have plagued me during the inspection and buying process. 

Homebuying | What to do After you Submit Your Offer

Since buying my house the housing market has gone absolutely haywire because of the pandemic! (I already thought it was crazy when I bought mine!) I've had a few friends reach out to me and ask about buying my house, so I typed up some of the highlights for a post...here they are:

Reading is Fundamental.

Read everything! This is the largest, most important purchase you will make in your lifetime. (Besides your education, and you probably read the promissory note if you took out student loans, too.) I read all 50 pages on my mortgage application, jotted down a list of questions, and called the mortgage broker before I signed the mortgage application and sent it back. If the bank isn't willing to take your call and answer your questions, they don’t deserve your business.

Jumping In | Rehabbing my Retro Lakehouse

Walking into my house was like stepping back in time- I'm sure at one time, it was a groovy, woody, 70s dream home....but now it's reminiscent of visiting my grandma. The entire front section of the house is paneled in real wood, a tongue and groove knotty pine paneling and carpeted throughout in VERY THICK fluffy green shag carpet. 

It's so big because it's full of secrets...and stink.

The carpet is actually so thick it feels like you're walking on grass! The house also smelled really musty and dusty, like it had been closed up for a long time. (I'm actually being really polite about the smell, it was more like a mixture of stale old house or dead fart...it really needed addressing ASAP.)

Retro 70s Living Room, Before

BUT! Have you ever watched one of those home buying shows on TV and been mad at those couples on TV who refuse to see past an ugly paint color? This was like that, except I had to put on some thicker rose colored glasses. 

Homebuying | Dumps I Loved & Lost

Sadly, I didn't buy this view

I had to kiss a lot of frogs before I found my prince...or castle? (Not sure which is most appropriate here???) Either way, it was a huge learning process. (Above is a house I didn't buy. I fell in love with the view but I had to walk away from the wreck of a house)

I learned that buying a house is a massive undertaking from a financial and legal aspect. I saved for a long time to reach this milestone and it still felt like I was reaching financially and personally. Buying an old house on top of that adds even more complicated legwork to the process- then buying one on waterfront adds an even deeper layer of complexity (not to mention, expense!) to the process. The house hunting process turned into a maze of looking up septic permits, HOA fees, deed restrictions, and tours of places that probably should have been condemned long ago. 

It's easy to miss the forest for the trees when you are spending a lot of money, but after while, I realized I needed to start focusing more on potential, and not the houses (and the current state of them).