So a few weeks ago, we bought a house. Our very own house y’all. Problem is, it’s needs a lot of work. That’s the price you pay for paying such a low price, right? It clearly needs a ton of home renovations and we aren’t even sure where to begin.
Needless to say, my TV has stayed on the DIY channel 24/7. You know, because I can totally do that after watching a few shows. Right? Better yet, can I be on one of those shows?
First, we don’t even have the budget to start any home renovations so we are just getting estimates and making plans. The pictures I took are quite deceiving, for reals. From afar, the house doesn’t look too bad but if you saw the windows and doors up close, it would take you less than 2 seconds to see that they need to be gutted and new ones put in. That is one of our first priorities. When you walk in, you walk into this large, umm, dining room? I believe it was once the living room. It has a huge open crack in the ceiling.
In this same room, there is one propane heater that heats the whole house. It does work, but I forgot just how much I dislike propane heaters and not knowing how safe it is, is a big concern. This room leads into what is the living room. It was a garage, closed in, and never finished. You can’t see the whole room but next to the window is a door that’s closed up. The floor VERY uneven all throughout the house but worse in this room and the dining room.
From the dining room and this room, you can walk straight to kitchen, which is not much. You’ll see very few cabinets, a couple without doors, some with but don’t close, and an awful kitchen sink. The counters are, well, ‘woodsy’. Why on earth the water heater is in the kitchen, I’ll never know.
Off the kitchen is a utility room. It’s actually very large. 
Down the hall are bedrooms and one small bathroom. The bathroom is by far the worse room EVER. OMYCOW! This will need to be redone completely, top to bottom.
The bedrooms aren’t that bad. They need paint and baseboards. I think carpet throughout the bedrooms and home will make it not sound so loud and hollow too. The back of the house has potential. With the recent cold rains, we noticed how much water sits on the back porch, against the house. That needs fixin’. And the propane tank is a little too close to the house for my taste. The ground is very soft and unlevel but with some TLC, has potential to be beautiful.
It’s clearly gonna take us a while to get it all fixed up but I think if we just do a few things at a time, we’ll git-r-done. And best of all, it’s ours so we don’t mind putting in money to fix it up. I’ll work twice as hard just to pay for the home renovations and make it a home we are proud to own and live in!
If you have any tips, money savings ideas, anything that might help us along the way, please, please share!!! And wish us luck!
Congratulations on your new home! DIYing is so much fun and it’s lovely that you get to make your home exactly what you want. I would recommend taking a look at this blog (http://www.younghouselove.com/). They have remodeled two houses on a strict budget and they have great ideas for making things livable before doing a major remodel. Have fun!
CONGRATULATIONS! I don’t know if they have them in your neck of the woods… but we have a restore that is connected with Habitat. GREAT stuff for DIY. Kitchen cabinets from Lowe’s display are donated and all kinds of stuff from doors to lights, we saved tons of money. It’s worth looking for stores like that near you if you can find them.
Good luck and you will learn so much!
Ava
Let me tell you I have a ceiling that looks just like that!!!! I could not believe my eyes. Please keep me updated. It is tough when you are on a fixed income and your ex walked out after 25 years of marriage and left it for you to deal with so I can empathize with you. We had a bad snow and ice storm and it cracked the ceilings and the insurance refused to help pay for it so I am stuck with it until I can afford to deal with it. Right now I try not to look up. That $500.00 giveaway I could surely use. I will keep my fingers crossed. DIY could sure come to my house and have a field day. Thanks for sharing and congrats on your new home! I hope that you can get it fixed up how you want it. Merry Christmas! I wish I could be on one of those shows but I live in the south and in the middle of nowhere so it is probably out of the question.
Your house has loads of potential..just take your time and tackle one project at a time. I’m sure it will turn out beautifully..
Wanted to add..you might give some thought to either Beadboard wallpaper or even the Beadboard panels..both products are sturdy and will hide wall imperfections…can also be painted…I would tear out most of the bathroom…use salvage materials to refurbish..and read lots of books and magazines on design and DIY…take classes at Home Depot too..for various skills..