My dear friends and readers…
The Captain and I flip houses….yes, we are house flipping and have been for several years now.
Many of our friends and family have been asking to see pictures and even though it takes editing and such….I finally said I will take the time to get ‘er done.
I promised you pictures of the houses the Captain and I have been working on….and promises made, promises kept.
Believe me when I tell you that it is a LOT of work, time and energy.
I say that not to complain, but to tell you that it is not as easy as those on HGTV like to portray.
It never happens overnight.
The Captain and I have flipped quite a few houses here in the Cape and then we ventured south to Naples where we have been working on two houses at the same time. We also have a house in Pompano Beach.
What a lot of people don’t realize is many existing houses have “add ons”…such as making a garage into a family room or adding a bathroom in a large closet…. BUT…what one finds out later is the original owners never permitted their projects, most likely thinking they would live in the house forever and no one would really care.
But when the owner sells their house with their “additions” and there are no permits, the new owners have got to restore the house back to the original plans, and that means tearing out that beautiful new bathroom or garage family room. Many lenders won’t finance a property where un-permitted work has been done unless it is brought back to it’s original state.
Each city is different, but some cities require very strict building, electrical and plumbing codes that have got to be brought up to date and this can take time.
And money…
And patience.
I am going to focus on one house today.
We had friends from Nebraska visit us as we were starting work on this house and they were very guarded in what they said, because quite frankly it looked like a total disaster.
When the Captain first showed me the house as a prospect to buy, I wanted to turn around and walk out the door.
But there are a lot of areas one has to assess.
Location Location and Location are the first on the list and this property was perfectly located in an area of Naples that was very desirable.
And the bones of the house were great.
So we charged ahead and following the hot Contemporary trend ….here we go.
I do confess that I am not particularly fond of contemporary, but this house seemed to warrant that look by it’s design and our banker thought it would be the way to go and there is a lot of interest in contemporary houses in SW Florida.
The house I am going to show you looked a lot worse than this picture shows…and this picture is not pretty. LOL
This pic was after demolition started.
When entering the home…the first thing you almost fell into…. was the sunken living room.
A narrow living room with a large mirror on one wall and stairs that jutted behind the garage (with a landing) before turning sharply up to the upper level.
The kitchen had a small footprint, but luckily there was a bedroom to the left that we opened up by removing that wall, which made the kitchen a nice size.
I love french doors and this house had plenty of them as you will see in the following pics.
Of course they ALL had to be replaced.
The crew literally gutted this house, removing flooring, sheet rock, 2 X 4s, windows…you name it.
And now as you walk into the front doors of this home, you are greeted with contemporary design.
This is the living room now,…. all the walls in this house are painted with Sherwin Williams Agreeable gray, which is what is on the walls of our personal home.
It is just so clean and fresh and with staged furniture, is very welcoming.
We opened up the living room ceiling to allow more light, which meant removing a small portion of the upper family room flooring.
Note, you can see the walk around decking through the windows.
This family room is huge and because of that we added cabinetry, a sink, a fridge and wine cabinet as you can see below. The upper level is not staged as you an see.
This room is so large, one could easily hold a barn dance. 🙂
Another nice feature of the family room is the access to the large deck that literally surrounds the top floor of the home.
There are those lovely french doors.
We removed the wood spindles on the deck as they were beginning to rot away and replaced them with contemporary railing.
The area in the pic above used to house the weird stairs and now it is an office with plenty of light.
We also added the imported tiling to the flooring….and added ceiling fans.
Originally, the upper decking went the full length of the back of the house with more sets of french doors.
Freeing up that space, allowed for more Sunning and outdoor living around the pool without a deck over hang.
We added a pool and spa as we do to all of our flips. We have found it best to buy a house without a pool and by adding it, can add to the value.
Most existing pools are in need of repair or are very outdated (think costly) and this way, we know what is there by having it designed and installed ourselves.
Back inside the upper floor, are two baths, an office and two bedrooms.
One being another master bedroom with wonderfully high ceilings.
We carried the same flooring throughout the house and of course replaced all doors.
I like the 5 paneled doors.
One of four bathrooms.
Another bathroom.
And another bathroom.
I know you are wanting to see the kitchen and I will show you that after the master bedroom.
This is on the lower level…
along with the master bath.
You can see the two walk in closets through the doorway to the master bath from the master bedroom.
One on each side of the hallway.
Ok…and now the dining room and kitchen.
As you can see there is a wall beside the dining room which houses the washer and dryer.
On this side of the house are two more bedrooms and another Jack and Jill Bath.
And now the kitchen.
You can see the “waterfall” counter top. I love that effect as the quartz edges down the side of the eating area to the floor.
And I also love the pot filler above the stove top on the far wall.
I would love to have one in my kitchen, but my stove top is on the island which make it a bit difficult to have a pot filler.
Lots and Lots of cabinets, both glass fronts and closed fronts.
Double ovens and microwave on the far wall….dishwasher in the island.
So there you have it my dear readers….Just one of the two Naples houses.
More pics to come soon on the other “flip” which actually has an elevator.
Yup!
Do you flip houses? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Until then…
Have a Great and Blessed Day.
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Oh.my.goodness!! Jaw-droppingly beautiful transformation, Kari! Just incredible, what you guys did to this place. I remember vividly when working with a realtor in Naples about the permitting issue. Our guy was very good and attentive to checking out the permitting with each condo unit we viewed. We never did purchase (ghastly expensive area, but I still love it nonetheless), but you sure make it attractive for any potential buyer. Great job!
thanks Rita…it is certainly a lot of work for sure. We have not ventured into condos…yet. The Captain is always looking for deals, I call him the dreamer to my romantic. LOL
Yees, Naples is very expensive, which is why we live in the Cape. We call it the poor man’s Naples. LOL Permits are the bane of our existence. Ugh! Thanks for stopping by.
I found you featured at Celebrate Your Story with Chloe Crabtree. This remodel is outstanding. I hope you make a big profit. We live in FL too on the east coast near Stuart. We recently moved to Sewall’s Point from Pompano Beach where you mention you are doing a flip house. My husband is an electrical contractor and we have done many houses together over 40+ years. We always lived in them while remodeling and then sold for profit and bought a more expensive home each time. So I know how much work is involved in planning and executing plus my decorator side has completed many rooms, homes and commercial properties for others. Our lovely new home is not in need of any major remodeling, thank the good Lord! just a swimming pool for the grandchildren. I agree it is easier and more cost effective to install rather than redo one and would love to follow your progress with Floridian exteriors. I think we will stay put for a while. I have subscribed to your blog.
Thank you Pamela, you know all the pitfalls when flipping. As I said previously, it is easier to make decisions when I know it is not for my own personal home and that I won’t have to “live” with it, but that does not necessarily make it a snap either. The decision must be cost effective too. I always try to design a kitchen that I would work in…after all, if the cook isn’t happy…ain’t nobody happy! 🙂
Thank you for subscribing to my blog, I hope you enjoy it.
Wowza Kari!!! Great job! I have done my share of remodeling, I have a degree in architectural drafting and have worked for several contractors including my now contractor son. We have remodeled several of our own homes and we considered doing house flipping when my husband retired. He ultimately decided he was too tired after 40+ years of practicing dentistry so he is just relaxing now. I do envy you, I love a remodel, but I also know it’s never easy and it ain’t for sissies! I look forward to the Romantic table hop with you next week!
Jenna
Thanks Jenna….I too, am looking forward to the table hop next week! It will be fun.
You are so right about flipping, and believe it or not, these days, reliable and trusted contractors and sub contractors are hard to find. Luckily, I know a bit about construction as I have two sons “in the business” and they have been for years, along with other family members, and I have been requested to assist with mundane chores right up to hanging sheetrock. So, we are not passive, and we may have to “call out” what is not working or correct, which can delay a project or deadline. Definitely not for sissies, as you said. Thanks for stopping by.
Dear Kari, This house is fabulous to say the lest. I love the openest and the floor, the french door and that kitchen!!! Was so good to talk to you and am so happy about your life.
Thanks Alma…so good to talk to you too…I know you are chasing after your little ones and that keeps us young. Thank you for commenting…I hope you enjoy the Blog.
Hugs!
Kari, That house is fabulous. You are talented in many ways and I am so glad that you are using this talent.
Thanks Annie…this flip was certainly a challenge….but it is so easy making choices when I don’t have to live with it day after day. Example: when it is my house, I think on a decision for a paint color for quite a while…On the flip houses, I make almost instantaneous decisions on paint, knowing it is not mine, and I won’t have to see it over a period of time and say…I don’t think that paint looks good with my sofa, etc. Of course the paint on this house is exactly the same as in my own personal house so maybe it doesn’t take much thought anyway. LOL
This is amazing!
Thanks Sandra, it is a lot of work, but when we are finished it is so rewarding to see where we started and where we ended up. Thank you for stopping by.
WOW, Kari!! I know you told me you did this, but you REALLY do!! I had no idea of the scope of the projects you take on! This is so very impressive, I am glad you shared it over on Celebrate & Decorate!!
Thanks Chloe…it is a lot of work but the satisfaction of making a home for someone is rewarding for me.
Plus, I get to play at remodeling without really taking any chances (that I may not like it in the long run) because it is for someone else. LOL
Thanks for stopping by.
UNBELIEVABLE! It’s gorgeous, Kari. I think Ray was in shock when I showed him the pictures. He said he would have probably bulldozed it down, didn’t give it much hope!! I said, “You don’t know Kari and Tom!” You certainly made it a beautiful home for someone to enjoy!
Thanks my sweet friend…I have to agree with Ray…it was not in the best of shape was it? and of all the homes we have flipped, it was the most challenging. LOL
As I said contemporary is not my preference but this house had so many angles and just weird shapes, etc! I will be posting pics of the other one you guys saw very soon. 🙂
Hugs and thanks for your comments.:)
XXX
Omg beautiful 💙💙
Thanks. Sweetie…Quite a difference from beginning to end, now all we need is someone to buy it. LOL
WOW!!! that’s all I can say. I don’t really like contemporary homes, BUT YOU’VE DONE A WONDERFUL JOB. This’ll sell. Love how you really opened it up. What a big job you did, but it’ll pay off – Hopefully soon.
Thanks Sandy…I am not in favor of contemporary either, but the house seemed to call for contemporary, I am more traditional and much simpler tastes. Thanks for stopping by.