First things first: I may work at an architecture firm, but I am not an architect. I am not an interior designer, I’m not a do-it-yourselfer, and I don’t even enjoy shopping for clothes, much less tile and doorknobs. So how did I end up embarking on an adventure that will use all of these skills in the next six or seven months? And WHY?
The answer is – I have no idea. It just kind of happened in a whirlwind after looking at a bunch of houses online that weren’t quite right for us. So often, Mike and I would say to each other “I wouldn’t use that tile” or “the layout is all wrong”. We’ve lived in rowhomes for more than 20 combined years, so we felt like we had a basically understanding of what we would want and not want in a rowhome.
I was walking to meet some friends for lunch and came across an open house. There I met Joe Schultz, who told me that he works with people who want to buy and rehab shells. The house that I looked at that he completed was beautiful! I got his card and told Mike about him later. We decided to just meet with him to find out more. Next thing we know, we are looking at shells with him!
I have lived all over in Canton – five different houses, all in the same neighborhood. I knew exactly what location and block that I want…or more importantly, what I didn’t want. I didn’t want to be too far east that we couldn’t walk to Fells Point. I didn’t want a narrow house, a busy street, or a tight one-way street. I didn’t want to be on a bus route, north of the park, or too close to loud bars. And amazingly – with all those requirements – we found the perfect house in the perfect location! And then we lost it, for reasons that aren’t worth going into. And I was sad and lamenting all that could have been. We looked at a couple of more houses, but I had kind of lost motivation. And then…I get a call from Joe. He managed to secure a house RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from the one we had lost!!! A wide house on a quiet street in the perfect location! And it of course fit our #1 criteria – a parking spot. Woo-hoo!!
So…now what? Mike and I have no experience renovating houses. Can we possible do this??
