Infatuated with a 1890 Victorian

I tend to go head over heels madly in love for a house every once a year. Last year, it was a Roger Lee mid-century two bedroom in the Berkeley Hills home with expansive San Francisco views, original wood paneling, and a sunken in living room. These moments can strike so suddenly.

This past April, I happened across a home in my neighborhood while walking home from lunch with my brother. I decided to take a detour on my favorite quiet street - Pacific Avenue. We happened to have come  across an open house sign on the corner. The open house sign pointed to a 1890 Victorian duplex at 1612 Chapin.

The home's 17 foot high ceilings on the top level captivated me. There was good amount of space between this home and the next door homes and each room had tall windows -- lending to glorious light. There was great indoor/outdoor flow as there was a deck off the enclosed back porch leading to a deep backyard. The large tandem driveway allowed for 6 parking spots -- perfect for Phil’s vintage BMWs and 1969 VW Beetle. The space felt very nice. Downstairs there was a 3 bedroom and 2 bath unit done in a 1960s fashion.

The house certainly needed a fair amount of updates. The facade of the home was covered in roof shingles meant to look like brick. There was only 1 wall heater in the entire top floor. The kitchen and bathrooms were reminiscent of a dark cabin lodge. There may have been mold in the one of the bottom unit's bathroom. 

I ended up visiting the property three times. I dreamed about the home twice. It’s funny how thinking about a house helps to help you understand who you are and where you are in your life. This home brought about two intense conversations with Phil (the husband). Our first discussion entailed the idea of could we swing living with a tenant in the downstairs unit. The second discussion led to new ideas about changing the duplex to a single family home whereby the downstairs could have a 3rd bedroom, a gym, and a family room. The expansion of the bottom level could be deferred to a later point in time. 

I began to mentally map out different phases that needed to occur. Phase 1 would be paint and floors, as well as making sure that the shower in the 2nd bathroom was sealed property. Phase 2 would be how would we create a better heating situation, and address all the wood rot issues. Phase 3 would have been how do we improve the connection to the downstairs and improve on the fit and finish of the downstairs.

Beyond the point of testing out how it fit our lifestyle - it would have been important to dive into the disclosures and consult with contractors for any questions regarding current condition and costs related to these fixes and aspirational updates. I do think is important to be captivated first and depending on how serious you are as a Buyer - and absolutely pour in time thinking about these other critical areas. 

Alas, as I was able to get Phil to see my vision - 3 offers had been received and the Seller accepted an offer. It was a good exercise in taking a look at our current and projected lifestyle and seeing what was doable financially. These moments are important because I can understand fully what a Buyer is going through especially when they are trying to figure out whether a home is suitable to their way of living. Homes are extremely exciting! For the time being, I am looking at my current home and renewing my love for it. The light and ceiling height are just perfect!