Light & Shadyside
A Negley Avenue mansion gets modern flip and new life
Dourid Aboud, owner of Blue Stone Realty, and his wife, Nouha, a real estate agent, own rental properties and flip homes. Built in 1895, the now modern mansion at 822 S. Negley Ave. in Shadyside is their latest project. After a two-year renovation, they have listed the five-bedroom, 4½-bath house for $1.29 million (MLS No 1436926). Information: bluestonerealtyllcpgh.com or 412-414-9629.
Mr. Aboud, who lives with his family in Upper St. Clair, said this house was special, and not just because of its airy post-modern tower.
“I grew up in Oakland and love the city. If I didn’t have children or our children were older, I would live here,” he said. “I love this Shadyside neighborhood.”
The house’s location was a big attraction. It’s a unique house in a prestigious neighborhood on a large corner lot. And it’s less than two blocks from Walnut Street shops and restaurants.
“The bones of the house were great, but we completely redid the interior,” Mr. Aboud said.
They preserved the deep plaster molding and other architectural elements but gutted and renovated all of the bathrooms and the kitchen, which now features quartz counter tops and backsplash, a large center island and new cabinets and appliances. The bathrooms have porcelain tile that looks like marble but is much more durable. Porcelain is not porous and does not stain or etch like marble.
“The foundation was good, and a lot of the interior walls were in very good shape, but we put in all new doors,” he said.
Freshly painted wood paneling on the main staircase and all new hardwood floors help bring the home into the 21st century. “The paint colors are all updated, too,” Mr. Aboud
noted.
On the first floor, there are 10-foot ceilings and four fireplaces, all converted to natural gas and ventless. Mr. Aboud said they could be converted back to wood burners. Each mantel is unique with a porcelain surround.
“I tried to stay true to the home’s original architecture but created a contemporary living space,” he said,
There are two family rooms and a finished lowerlevel game room. “It’s really a mansion.”
The project began in 2018, when the Abouds were also working on three houses in Brooklyn, N.Y. In addition to new Andersen windows, they added a large carport to the back of the house. There is no garage. A new fence will make the large yard ideal for pets or children.
“We did a lot of work on the outside as well as a new roof, new siding, new concrete entrance walk and fresh landscaping,” he said. “Technically, it was like building from scratch.”
When he bought the house, the tower was being held up by two metal posts.
“I dressed up the posts on the outside, covering it in composite. It’s a unique look,” he said.
A second-floor deck offers a bird’s-eye view of the neighborhood.
The property’s assessment is $300,000. Over the past three years, two residential properties have sold in the 800 block of South Negley Avenue: a three-unit house for $450,000 in May 2017 and this house, for $378,000 in February 2018 (www2.alleghenycounty.us/ RealEstate/GeneralInfo.aspx?).
“I put a lot of money into this house,” Mr. Aboud said.
The attention to detail and the high-end finishes speak for themselves.