Renovation Diary: Restoring a Virginia Park Home, Part One

In our ongoing Renovation Diary series, we'd like to introduce you to a house on Virginia Park. This two-unit home with attic space and basement, built in 1914, will be restored to its original beauty and we'll follow the progress along the way.

The work is being done by John Weted of W Home Renovations Inc. Weted says that he's not sure how long the house was unoccupied, but DTE hadn't seen a bill in 10 years. It had quite a bit of water damage on the second floor, but remarkably, the first floor was in pretty good shape.

Michelle & Chris Gerard

The owner purchased the house through the Detroit Land Bank for $13,700. The owner says the process with the Land Bank, acquiring insurance, and working with NACA, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, took about five months.

Each floor has approximately 1,500 square feet. The second floor will be finished first and when completed, will be occupied by the owner. The first floor will house a tenant when finished. The house also has an attic that they could turn into an office or loft space. The basement will have laundry, the heaters, and an extra bathroom.

Since these pictures were taken, the roof has been replaced and the siding has been started. Next will be the plumbing, electrical, and windows. The whole restoration process is expected to finish in June. Here's a glimpse at the before on Virginia Park, starting with the second floor unit.

Grid View