I playfully hit his arm several times in a row, squealing with excitement. “That cape cod without a front porch is FUNKY, but the acre is breathtaking!” My husband smiled and agreed.
This Is The Official Before Home Tour Of The Northridge Project; A Quirky Cape Cod.
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The Front Exterior
The tree lined driveway for a cape cod without a front porch, located on a dead end street, located in a small, older community. Perfection.
A Quirky Cape Cod Without A Front Porch Exterior Close-Up
The nickname fits. It’s the weirdest house, turned just slightly sideways. I just have SO many questions for the builder. I wish I could reach out to them.
Front Exterior Side View
The steel pipe you see on the roof is a supposed wood burning stove addition in 2018, however, it’s in poor condition with one of the legs almost completely rusted through. The ceiling on the inside may have possible leakage and water damage.
Exterior Side View + Stats
Built in 1978, this cape cod without a front porch is 3 bedrooms, 1 full bath, 1 half bath / laundry room combo with an attached 2 car garage. The total square footage is 1,736 sqft. The property is .99 acreage and utilizes propane gas heating, central air and has a septic tank / well water.
Back Exterior And Attached Deck
The back little bump out appears to be an addition, unsure of when it was added to the main house. And the deck was newly constructed in 2020. The only problem is, the deck wasn’t sealed properly and it’s not in good shape, 3 years after we purchased it.
We never even use it (mainly because the neighbor and their dogs are constantly barking at us which gets incredibly frustrating).
I’m quite excited to remove it altogether and take it to ground level for a new covered outdoor living space.
Front Room Entrance
I’m not quite sure what the original design of this space was, but we were told the seller had “opened the living room up” in 2018. The tile flooring surround on the wood burning stove fireplace is not up to code. This will be removed during the full renovation, but I’m hopeful to repurpose the stove elsewhere.
After some super sleuthing, we discovered steel beams installed in the ceiling as well as a low cross beam. I am not a fan of this “update” by the way. I am very curious to see exactly what work was completed and what the ceiling looks like.
Combination Half Bath Laundry Room
This incredibly small, lacking in function combo half bath laundry room is my least favorite room in the house. Especially the way the seller had set up their washer and dryer. Yikes.
A Kitchen In The Middle Of The House Without Windows
I lied, this kitchen is my least favorite room in the house. Almost 3 years of living here and I absolutely loathe the kitchen. Its dark, even with all the lights on. The finishes the seller used are super nice and top quality, but they designed around such a dark color palette that it just feels like a deep dark hole.
No windows in a kitchen should be outlawed worldwide. A bit dramatic? Maybe, but I mean it. Ha!
The Dining Room?
I believe this was an addition someone added to the original main box of this quirky cape cod without a front porch. It’s a really big room – too big – for the current blueprint of the home. In the 3 years we have been here, we have used it as a dining room, family room, gym and even a bedroom.
We are a family of 6 in a 3 bedroom, with kiddos ranging in age and gender and a lack of ability for anyone to share. Yes…we bought this house for the property and investment potential, for sure!
Bedroom One - The Stinky Room
This room is located off the kitchen. It also smelled SO bad that I’m one hundred percent convinced the seller allowed whatever animal companion they had sleep in this room and use it as a bathroom. Barf.
It was beyond disgusting. It’s a nice sized bedroom though and I’m really diggin’ that original ceiling fan. No one else in the house likes it, but I love it.
Bedroom Two - The Nursery
This room is fine, honestly. It had newer carpet and felt like it was the only room in the house that the seller genuinely loved and put some effort into designing. It is a huge L shaped room and would be perfect for little ones who can share a space.
Bedroom Three - The Primary
The room is a great size. The window light is amazing. It’s just so damn brown. The entire house is BROWN. I like brown okay, but not like this.
It honestly wasn’t until I took out the smaller of the two closets, scraped the sloped ceilings, removed the carpet (only to find a TON of mold!) and paint the entire room WHITE, that I started to really love this space and see the potential for the final room design.
Want to know something about my design process that might make zero sense to someone else, but makes perfect sense to me?
I love taking a room down to it’s bare bones and creating a fresh, white box. I call it my blank canvas, which allows my creative brain to come up with SO many final different design possibilities.
The Only Full Bathroom
This room is SO small. There isn’t a window, so it’s very dark. It just feels really crowded, especially with it being the ONLY full bathroom in the cape cod. I don’t NEED a large bathroom, per se, but this space definitely needs a facelift and upgrade.
Ya know what I’m sayin’?
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You May Also Like: Inexpensive Corner Wood Burning Stove Makeover Idea: Fireplace DIY
Living in a house with children, knowing that it is one big renovation project, is tough. My solution? Find inexpensive ways to LIVE in the house until we are able to turn it into a home.
Final Thoughts
Our neighbor is a bit of a nightmare. The house is weird and lacks functionality in pretty much EVERY room. There is a lot of damage and repairs needed.
The .99 acre however, is just perfection. Take away the negative stuff and I'll be able to create a beautiful home.
This is tecnhically the second investment property my husband and I have purchased, but is the first for GP Homes, my real estate investment business. Hooray for dreams coming true!
P.S. All images used in the body of this before home tour article are complimentary of the listing agent.
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