GO WITH YOUR GUT
Four expert rehabbers turn homes from wrecking ball–worthy to the pride of the neighborhood
Imagine buying a distressed property at bottom dollar, giving it a little elbow grease and then flipping it — or, better yet, living in it and relishing those low mortgage payments. Sound like a dream? For many people, it’s just that. But for four boot-strapping, design-savvy, real estate-smart Chicagoans, rehabbing is a way of life. Think you have what it takes? Here, those expert rehabbers dole out advice — plus, we pick some rock-bottom priced properties in need of a little love. Alyson and Matthew Beaton wanted to upsize from a condo to a single-family home — and, as trained architects, they could handle a gut rehab. They noticed the price slowly dropping on a Logan Square workman’s bungalow until a bank acquired the property. Among the roach carcasses, rotting floorboards, gang graffiti and garish paint colors, the Beatons saw potential: no foundation problems, a basement studio for Alyson (who runs dollhouse company Lille Huset) and room for their two kids to grow.
The project
After fixing light structural damage, the Beatons mulled over a floor plan. The goal: Meet a modern family’s needs while restoring the home’s warm character. The duo says they “obsessively” researched their habits — homework time with the kids, Costco runs, hasty bill paying — and designed accordingly: a back entryway lined with backpack hooks, a nearby family room with a bill-paying nook and an oversized kitchen pantry. They ditched unnecessary dream features such as a guest bedroom, and embraced the building’s charming idiosyncrasies, like an arch separating the living room from the dining room.
Advice
When faced with a long rehab, make some quick, inexpensive changes to keep the home livable in the short term. The Beatons painted, nailed in new flooring and tossed up an Ikea kitchen (eventually reinstalling the Ikea cabinets with new appliances, stone countertops and shelving made of oak lumber reclaimed from a nearby church).