Real stories of real people who have upended their lives to restore homes featured on @cheapoldhouses
As we work on compiling these stories, have fun browsing the brief write-ups below!
What happens when a cheap old house lives rent-free in your mind? For Monica and Leisah, it led to a $150K Catskills playhouse restoration—and a revival of its storied past.
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What started as an April Fool’s joke turned into Abby and Trey’s forever home. When they first toured the dilapidated Page Mansion—a 1913 Colonial Revival with 6,000 square feet of fixer-upper glory—Abby immediately saw their future there. With determination and a complete overhaul, they’ve transformed it into a family home filled with new life.
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For Haley Gori and her husband Ethan, a 1920s bungalow popped up in their dream area of upstate New York for just $60,000. The price was right. The location was perfect. The three-bedroom home was begging for new life. But there was a catch.
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Sometimes the dream of home comes with stained glass windows and a bell tower. For Lauren Gunderman, that dream took the shape of a 153-year-old church in Waterville, NY—complete with one steeple, a massive pipe organ, and the kind of history you can feel in your bones.
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They were losing hope of finding an Adirondack cabin that hadn’t been stripped of its charm—until a 1930s gem popped up on @cheapoldhouses. What happened next? A $123K dream come true, complete with clawfoot tubs, pine path strolls, and one very happy toddler.
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Lovingly designed in the 1950s by architect Bob Batt and his wife Maryellen, this mid-century modern home found new life with owners who cherish its spirit and honor its past with every thoughtful detail.
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She told her husband the Cheap Old Houses listings were dangerous… and days later, they bought a $90K stone house in Greece—sight unseen. Now it’s their dream escape. See how one Cheap Old House Abroad listing changed everything.
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A UK couple falls for a $74K Italianate in Illinois—and buys it as a birthday surprise. Now they’re restoring it from across the pond, one dreamy detail at a time.
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For 20 years, Lana Justice circled the crumbling 1850 Colonial Revival on the hill, dreaming of stepping inside and saving it from collapse. When the chance finally came, she and her husband Bruce took on the challenge—proving that forgotten old houses aren’t just relics of the past, but opportunities to build something real, with history and heart.
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A single text message changed everything for Samantha and Elliot Brazil. After years of searching, a friend sent them a Cheap Old Houses post that led them to their dream home—a c. 1890 Queen Anne Victorian in Olney, IL.
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For Melissa Falconett, it definitely was. More specifically, a house inside the historic district of Evansville, Indiana, where she grew up. Stars definitely aligned in 2020 when Melissa caught sight of our listing on Cheap Old Houses for the Eugene Brady House.
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When Paige & Tripp toured a Queen Anne Victorian in Waynesville, NC, they never expected to fall in love—but now they're restoring it room by room. Their journey proves that old houses can change lives.
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When April and Katie Grossman bought a long-abandoned Queen Anne Victorian mansion in Elmira, New York, for just $88,000, they weren’t just restoring a house. They were creating a shared dream—one built with patience, love, and a whole lot of heart.
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