We recently read a story about a son moving back into his family home in South Philadelphia after his parents had passed away. He hadn't lived there in nearly 15 years and was planning on occupying the space while he and his brothers worked on getting it sold. That's not necessarily how things played out.
Peter Kourahanis still lives in his family home in South Philadelphia. Even though it certainly wasn't his plan, he made the best of it and transformed the outdated home into his dream home.
When he returned to the neighborhood it wasn't the same place he grew up in. The neighborhood wasn't the upscale Rittenhouse he had grown accustomed to and that took some getting used to. Eventually he decided to buy his brothers out and call the home his own.
Over a 10 year period, Peter renovated the home &mdash without the help of financing. He exercised a staggering amount of patience, so much that he was able to renovate a home strictly from out of his own pocket (a total of $50,000). He was able to do so by working from top to bottom and transforming a traditional home into an "East Village loft in South Philly."
We found his story interesting and it made us think of the large number of people in his same situation—inheriting a house that you're not quite sure what to do with. There are so many things that factor into deciding whether or not to keep your family home.
Check out the complete article: The Philadelphia Inquirer | One Man's Renovation Odyssey
If you've fixed up your family home, what was your experience?
(Image: Kristen Lubbe from Tim & Sara's South Philly Setup)
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In 1999-2000 I renovated the home my husband's parents bought new around 1960. It had been sadly neglected, and both parents were heavy smokers. I re-did the kitchen, replaced the disgusting carpet with bamboo floors, built in bookcases, painted throughout, scraped the ceilings of the "popcorn" coatings, had the ducts cleaned, put in a new heater and had the roof replaced. I ended up leaving the bathrooms as-is excepting for new ceramic tile floors. They were dated but in good shape, and I felt they matched the early 60s style of the house.
About the time we were ready to move in my husband died, unexpectedly, at age 52. So I lived there on my own and, subsequently with my second husband, until 2007 when we relocated to Houston for a work assignment.
I had the work done -- I had neither the time, inclination, nor skill to do the work myself -- but it was worth it. I later wished I'd had the windows replaced and put in AC. But the work I did later proved worthwhile when I sold the house.
I spent about $80k on the work. One thing that surprised me was that having the kitchen cabinets, bookcases and dining room cabinetry custom built from cherry was less expensive than buying stock cabinets. I had a great contractor I found on-line. He was a real can-do guy, with good subs, and he kept the project pretty well on-track.
I learned a lot from that project. I've recently moved into a home in rural South Carolina my second husband and I built. That's my last building project. Sadly, I lost my second husband just as we were finishing this project so I'm settling in alone into our "forever" home.
Interesting article, but there's a lot that doesn't make sense, first he says he was "reluctant to return" to the house, then it states he had to buy his brothers out. Why didn't they just sell it if he really didn't want to move in/do the renovating/have the cash to upgrade?
My parents have lived in their house since 1961. I moved out when I was 29, very good memories and I would move back in- ranch bungalow with a great backyard, but as the years go on, I see more and more projects piling up. The house was always clean and very well looked after - it still is, but all the rooms are at a point where they need painting and the kitchen/baths need major work.
mdorothy: your story was very interesting, albeit quite sad. I wish you all the best in your new home.
what paint did you use for that lovely cabinets?
That vintage stove looks so great. How I want one.
I live in fear that my elderly father will die and leave his house in Michigan to my brother and me. I'd be willing to sign my share over to my brother just to avoid dealing with the orange and gold shag carpeting on one floor and the maroon and grey Berber on another. It would cost a fortune to make the place worth buying, and in Michigan, the price we'd get probably wouldn't warrant the investment. Hang in there, Dad! Live forever!
My Grandmother actually did this when here parents died not so long ago. She hadn't planned on it, but she moved into their oppressive, closed-up house. Windows were stuck closed, the wallpaper was hideous brown paisley, the place was packed with funiture and her parents always kept the heavy drapes closed.
She did three things (besides decluttering) - painted the whole place a nice buttery yellow, got the windows fixed and put in roman blinds. Turns out the house overlooks a rainforest - the living room is now a wall of light. You'd never know it's the same place.
mdorothy, i was very moved by your story. thanks so much for sharing it with us. i, too, wish you the very best in your new home.
mdorothy--
I am sorry for your double losses. I wish you peace and comfort in your forever home.
Mdorothy, what an adventure your life has been. Thanks for telling your story!
We really wanted my husband's parents' house (it was in really bad condition, but in a great San Francisco neighborhood), but in the end, we couldn't move there because of jobs and so it was sold. But I think there's a lot of fun in gutting a childhood home and making it your own. Kudos to Peter for taking his time and not going into debt! The place looks great.
You don't *have* to fix up the family home, or whatever retro home your parent(s) lived in before death.
My house was a massive project that the children of the previous owner didn't have the time or inclination to fix up. While I wish they hadn't covered over some of the problems in the home, I'm grateful that I was able to buy such an inexpensive home in a great neighborhood as my starter home/fixer upper. It helps keep the area interesting - not all families with children.
It might've had something to do with the fact that their mother was feuiding with most of the neighbors...
We just moved all my widowed mother's possessions out of our family home a year ago. She is still living, but could no longer live on her own in a big house so all five grown kids emptied the house that had been bought 45 years earlier and the only one we grew up in. Luckily she wasn't hugely attached to things, so we cleaned the house out in a week and we moved photos & memorabilia to her vacation home and shared the rest of the furniture, silver, china, artwork, mementos, photos, etc. among the kids (with only one minor dispute over some chairs!).
Because the economy was so bad in June 2008, my brother lined up contractors during that week to refinish floors, paint the entire interior, install granite countertops in the kitchen, install a new sink & vanity in the bathroom. All the work took less than a month and we rented out a beautiful 1920s colonial for a 2 year lease without any trouble.
Mom had taken relatively good care of the house until her health failed a year or two earlier. The empty house was gorgeous and well built, I think it was easier on all of us rent it in the interim rather than sell. The option for one of us to move into it if we wanted to still exists. I haven't seen the photos of the redone kitchen and repainted rooms, but it looked so good before that stuff was even done, I can only imagine it looked great afterwards. We should have fixed it up so Mom could enjoy it.