House Hunters: Geneva

Every time we looked at houses, both Jason and I said we felt like we were on an episode of HGTV's House Hunters. Here is my interpretation of what it would have sounded like if we were:

[Suzanne Whang voice over]

"Jason & Johanna have loved living in the Lincoln Square neighborhood in the city of Chicago. But the birth of their daughter, Marin, has made them think it may be time for a move.

They're looking in the suburb of Geneva, known for its charming downtown shops, picturesque brick streets, and excellent restaurants. And, Geneva is Johanna's hometown. It's about 30 miles west of the city, but since the Metra train stops right downtown, it won't change their commute too drastically."

[Cut to Johanna & Jason]

" We love the proximity to shops and restaurants at our current place and we love that we have tons of closet space. But we'd like to have a yard for our daughter and our dog and we'd like a little more room to spread out. We also want to stay close to downtown and the train."

Suzanne Whang: "Jason and Johanna have listed the help of real estate agent Michelle to help them find something downtown in Geneva's Historic District. Having just had a contract fall through, they are ready to take a look again and hope they can find something they like as well."

[Cut to Michelle]

"Downtown Geneva is very quaint. The town's historic preservation committee keeps a good handle on any improvements made to the homes to be sure that they are true to the home's original character."

[Suzanne Whang voice over]

Today Michelle takes Johanna and Jason to see a 3 bedroom, 3 bath home right downtown.

[Johanna & Jason outside the home]

"This is cute. It needs new siding, but it is a great location, and it looks like it is in pretty good shape."

Michelle: "Yes, it is a very solid home. And there is a lot of work, but it is all cosmetic. The homeowners have updated the electrical, the piping and the furnace. And, it has a new roof. Let's go inside."

Johanna & Jason: "Oh yeah. Great character. But yes, oh my. It needs A LOT of updating. We'd have to put in a new kitchen & refinish all of the floors- this carpeting NEEDS to go. But we could do it. We love the space in here. We love the layout. We love the windows on either side of the fireplace and we could build built ins there. The fireplace is great, and I can really see us sitting out here on this front porch. The built in in the dining room is gorgeous. There are a lot of original details in this home that reflect the reasons why we love older homes. We could make the basement into a playroom. Let's look upstairs."

[upstairs]

Johanna & Jason: "Good room sizes. Small closets though. Do you think our furniture would fit? We could add an addition on the back here to have a master bedroom suite. That would be really nice."

Love the clawfoot tub in the bathroom upstairs though. That is a gorgeous original detail."

Michelle: "Well, what did you think?"

Johanna & Jason: "We like it a lot. It needs a lot of work, but we could do it in phases and make it our own. It is in a great location."

Michelle: "Okay, well I know you wanted to look at a few more, but we'll keep this one on our list."

Johanna & Jason: "Definitely!"

[Suzanne Whang voice over]

Next, Michelle takes Johanna & Jason to see a newer home. With 4 bedrooms and 2 1/2 baths, it's bigger than the first one and needs less updating, but it is further from downtown.

Johanna & Jason: "I like the brick. I'd paint the shutters and scale back the landscaping, but that is easy enough."

Michelle: "Let's take a look!"

Johanna & Jason: "Okay, yeah. Needs a few updates on the floors, but nothing dire. Oh wow! GREAT kitchen. Viking range. Amazing double Subzero fridge. Wow. That's really great.

What is that smell?"

Michelle: "The homeowners grow all of their own herbs and spices. They have made a lot of environmental considerations with the home, as well. That is also why they just spent $40,000.00 putting in the cork floors upstairs."

Johanna & Jason: "Yeah, it smells like a vegetable garden in here!

Nice sunroom in the back, but it doesn't look like a permanent addition to the house. It looks a little like it was just tacked on. It doesn't look very solid.

This bonus room above the garage is nice, but this spiral staircase, although cool, doesn't really seem practical, and the room is a little isolated otherwise. I don't even know how we would get furniture up here."

Michelle: "Let's look upstairs. I'll show you those cork floors."

Johanna & Jason: "Great space up here. Very spacious hallway area. I'm not sure I like the way that the cork floors look, but I like that it is eco friendly.

Nice bedroom sizes. Good closet space. The bathrooms need to be updated though. The master bedroom is a great size. Johanna really likes the whirlpool tub. She uses ours in our condo all the time. This is a great space."

Michelle: "Okay, well, what did you think about this one?"

Johanna & Jason: "It had a lot of good space. A lot of storage. Nice bonus room, although the stairs to get there aren't good for the baby if we were to use that room as a playroom. It is big though. There would be a lot of space to spread out.

It is farther from downtown. We wouldn't be able to walk to the train, really. And, it doesn't have that old character that we like. And, it still needs some updating.

It is a good price though for as big as it is. We'll think about it."

[Suzanne Whang voice over]

Today Michelle is showing Johanna and Jason a 4 bedroom, 1 1/2 bathroom home back downtown in the historic district. It also needs to be updated, and although its further from the train than the first home, they'd still be able to walk.

Johanna & Jason: "This is nice. Nice big yard. Our dog would love that. It looks like the garage is nice and big."

Michelle: "Yes, that is a 4 car garage, actually."

Johanna & Jason: "Oh! Room for a boat." :)

Michelle: "Let me show you around inside the home."

Johanna & Jason: "Nice slate floor in the entry. Great staircase with a window. Nice entrance. Is this the living room over here?"

Michelle: "Yes, in to your left."

Johanna & Jason: "Oh okay. No fireplace. We really like a fireplace, so that is a bummer."

Michelle: "You could always add one."

Johanna & Jason: "Yes, that is true. It seems like the layout here is a little strange. The kitchen is back here? Yes, okay... it needs to be totally redone too. And this basement is so small I don't even think I can fit down the stairs."

Michelle: "I think you guys are going to really love the upstairs. Let's head up."

Johanna & Jason: "Oh yes. Wow. This is a huge upstairs for the age of the home. The rooms are really nice sizes and the closets are decent as well. This bathroom is a little strange though. Is there a shower anywhere?"

Michelle: "There is a shower downstairs in the back of the house. It is small though."

Johanna & Jason: "Okay, yeah, the bathrooms are in very strange spots here."

Michelle: "Well, what do you think overall?"

Johanna & Jason: "Well, it has a great backyard, and a great garage. Jason could have a workshop out there. The bedrooms and the upstairs are big, and the front entryway is nice. But I don't like that there isn't a fireplace and the layout is strange. And, it needs a lot of work. But it is downtown, which we like."

[Suzanne Whang voice over]

Johanna and Jason have looked at three homes in historic Geneva.

The first is right downtown by the shops and the restaurants and also near the train. It has a lot of the charm that Johanna & Jason were looking for, but it needs a lot of updating.

Johanna & Jason: We love the location of the first house. And it had a lot of great character. But it needs a lot of updating and would be a huge project. It had great potential, and the best bones of any of the homes. It is nice that it has air conditioning and a new roof and the updated electrical is a bonus. We could do some of those updates right away, but we would have to wait and do a lot of them down the road, as well. We love the fireplace and the potential playroom space for Marin. But it would be a lot of work."

[Suzanne Whang]

The next house is the largest house. It has a spacious layout and would have plenty of room for storage. But, it still needs to be updated, and it's the farthest from downtown.

Johanna & Jason: "We liked the Ashbury house because it had a lot of space and storage. And it had a great master bedroom and a fabulous kitchen! But it still needed some updating and wasn't right downtown."

[Suzanne Whang]

The last home was back downtown but it needed more work and was still a little farther from the train that Johanna and Jason take to work each day. Plus, it had a strange layout. But it had a large garage for a workshop for Jason and a nice big yard.

Johanna & Jason: "We like the blue house. It had a good upstairs, a good yard and a huge garage. But it didn't have a fireplace and the basement is essentially unusable. It was a good location, but still a little far from the train.

[Suzanne Whang]

SO... which one did they choose?............

Johanna & Jason: "We chose.......

The first house! In the end we just couldn't beat the location and we loved all of the features and the potential it had."

[Suzanne Whang]

It is now four months later, and Johanna and Jason have been hard at work.

Johanna & Jason: "Well, we did a lot of work. We ripped up all of the flooring, we totally gutted the kitchen, we replaced and added most of the lighting fixtures, and we moved a few walls. We still have a lot more work to do, a lot of decorating to do, and a lot of other projects planned for the future, including the addition of a master bedroom suite, but for now, we love our house and we know that we made the right choice. And we're never going to move again!" :)

Before:

During:

After: