The greatest old house love story ever told?! Quite possibly, YES!
“It kind of feels crazy as it’s something we’ve been working towards for so many years.” – Mike
The greatest old house love story ever told?! Quite possibly, YES!
Although I love hearing about all the old houses that have been saved, this one makes my heart flutter!
After UK residents Bea and Michael Francis-MacRae spotted the property listing on @cheapoldhouses for an incredible, and cheap, c. 1860 Italianate in Momence, IL, it didn’t leave their minds. Bea remembers it vividly. “I said to Mike for two weeks afterwards, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. We both kept saying—we’d be cooking dinner and sort of saying—I’m still thinking about that house. Can you imagine?”
It was the American house they wanted in the state they wanted that was conveniently located in the area they wanted. And the price range was pretty sweet, too.
Given Bea’s birthday was coming up, Mike kicked off a superb and covert operation to try and pull off the ultimate gift. In mid-June of 2020, after many phone calls and piles of paperwork, Mike gave Bea an envelope of house photos with lyrics from a favorite country song, “I’ll Name The Dogs,” by Blake Shelton. The house surrounded by cornfields was theirs. The final cost? $74,000.
Yes, the home needed work. A lot. Its age was definitely showing, and making this their new-old home is an exciting, daunting and rewarding challenge to tackle as a couple. Given they still live about 3,000 miles away in England, it’s a labor of love they have to mostly manage from afar.
The roof has been completely done, and during visits to Momence, they’ve started on the restoration of the incredible antique doors and windows, which they’re chronicling on their Instagram at @making_momence.
Bea and Mike told me that what’s helped them immensely is having the support of the neighbors and friends they’ve already made in and around Momence. These locals lend gardening and power tools, but they also lend their time to help, and to keep an eye on the place. And when Bea and Mike visit, they all share meals and stories about the incredible old house that’s been saved.
The story of how they found the house, to how the house awaits them now is like a Hollywood movie script! They told me they’re hoping to jump this way across the pond and start calling it home very soon. “It kind of feels crazy as it’s something we’ve been working towards for so many years,” said Mike.
I wrote the Cheap Old Houses book because I know how an old home, no matter what state it might be in, can stay in your head and heart. And these stories are the reason Cheap Old Houses was launched in the first place—old homes are a wonderful way to enter into the American Dream while saving a piece of history at the same time.
Now send a listing to someone you love and would leap over ponds for!
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