True Cost: Elissa’s DIY Farmhouse.
A fresh coat of paint can really change a home. I rest my case.
Elissa purchased her home back in 2020. She wanted something with charm, and wasn’t afraid of a project. She had some serious vision for homes we looked at in need of repair, and ultimately decided on an adorable 3 bed, 1 bath farmhouse in Ulster County in need of some cosmetic work.
Elissa’s most daunting projects were gutting the bathroom and taking down a load bearing wall between the kitchen and living room. Both projects ended up being a breeze, while her main renovation was paint color. She also did some essential work, like a new roof and backup head source (hello beautiful wood stove!) Costs from Elissa are shared below.
The true cost:
All in, about 33k.
Woodstove + install: $5,500
Initial demo of walls, added support beam, exposing floor and beams, rewiring lights, sanding, and refinishing floors, tiling back door area and building barn doors: $6,000
Bathroom gut reno, including moving around some plumbing: $6,900
Demo and tile of front room: $2,200
New roof: $10,565
New (stylish!) baseboard heaters: $1,000
Fully DIY projects: all paint $500, rented sander for floors $350.
Most furniture is from local, inexpensive antique shops and Facebook Marketplace.
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