A Decatur MidCentury Ranch Transformation | By: Jonathan Rich

Early last summer I got the opportunity to walk our clients, DKE Custom Homes, through an incredibly unique property in one of Decatur’s most prestigious neighborhoods, Glenwood Estates.

165 Mt. Vernon - Exterior Before

165 Mt Vernon was an aging mid century ranch with fading curb appeal & little to no offering once inside. The compartmentalized galley kitchen, in the center of the house, had original pine stained cabinets & laminate counters. There were aging bathrooms with outdated finishes, a bonus room addition with vinyl flooring and paneling on the walls, and gold fixtures everywhere. The overgrown yard still boasted the residue of once being the talk of the neighborhood when it came to gardening with all of its native plantings, winding walkways, & mature hardwoods.

The price was incredibly steep for investors looking to renovate and possibly make a profit.  At $599,000 it seemed like the only buyer would have to be someone who would be willing to move into this tired & aging home as-is with the idea of tackling a laundry list of DIY projects in the future.  But the more we walked the lot, the more we investigated the floor plan, the more we fell in love with the possibility that there might just be a way to reinvent this sprawling one level (or split level depending on how you looked at it) home.

The wild card was the 1200 sq ft addition behind the garage that had been connected to the house sometime in the late 80’s or early 90’s.  It was built as an in-law suite (literally) and was incredibly well done.  With 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, a living room, & a kitchen, everything was there, including a porch out to the rear courtyard off the living room. 

The addition, that I am sure was the reason not to buy the home for most due to functional obsolescence, gave us the existing sq ft we needed to possibly pull the whole thing off.  Once you added in the original house & bonus room addition, the in-law suite brought the above ground sq ft to around 3,200. In addition, we were able to capture another 400 sq ft in the basement with an existing bonus and bedroom.

SO we went for it!  We got the price down to 550k and thought that with enough innovation, design, and good ol’ fashion elbow grease we could turn the non-functional & ailing 5 bedroom 3 bath ranch into a 6 bedroom 4 bath masterpiece craftsman cottage. This home would be turned into an open concept, with all new amenities and a new elevation that sharpened the roof pitch and added gables to define the home from the street. This home would be the pride of Mt Vernon Street boasting a brand new finished basement with a bath, a luxury filled master suite drenched in sunlight, a gourmet kitchen with every upgrade, & a reconfigured lot that was absolute magic!

Earlier this year we delivered that incredible home & within 3 days we had two offers!  Another amazing home to another incredible family we’re proud to call our neighbors! To see the story via images scroll through the before and after photos below.

Best!

Jonathan

Introducing... Dave Sanders!

Friends,

We are so excited to announce we have a brand new agent on our team : Dave Sanders! Dave will be the lead agent of Tucker, GA! Get to know Dave and his family a little better by reading his bio below! Welcome to the team, Dave!

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Dave Sanders, Lead Agent of Tucker, GA!

"  I am excited to join the J.Rich Atlanta Team and extremely proud to be given the role of lead agent in the Tucker area. Not only was I born and raised in Tucker, but I recently moved home with my wife, son (with another on the way!), and our dog to begin planting our own roots in the city I love the most. I’ve lived all over Atlanta, but home is where the heart is and my heart is in Tucker!

For the past 11+ years I've worked in the technological field, managing accounts with companies such as Motorola and most recently with Mophie. While I enjoyed those years, managing and working with some wonderful people, the time has come to follow a passion that I’ve had for some time.

J.Rich Atlanta is built on the idea that families and communities need Homes not Houses; Homes where you can create memories that will last a lifetime. Homes that give you rest and peace and a sense of place.  While this is a new and exciting venture, I feel confident that my passion and loyalty for wanting to help others plant their roots in Tucker and the surrounding areas will propel this amazing neighborhood into one that we can all be proud of! Thanks for thinking of me and the J.Rich Atlanta Team as you and your family search for a House that you can call Home. "

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Q&A with Dave

• What is your favorite restaurant in Atlanta? This is an impossible question. Feet to the flame I think I'm going to go with Kimball House in Decatur. My wife and I go every year for our anniversary, from the oysters, to the drinks to the Hawaiian Roll (it's a must!), it never disappoints.
• Favorite thing to do on a Saturday? At this stage in my life it's definitely spending time with my family at the lake. Hanging out with the little man and watching him splash around and jump to me from the dock is hard to beat. Plus, selfishly it's one of the few times I'm able to sneak away and play a little golf these days.
• What are you most excited about for the city of Atlanta? As a team we are actually currently reading "City on the Verge", a book about Atlanta by Mark Pendergrast. The book goes over the history of Atlanta and all of the things that happened to get this city to where it stands currently. All of that goes to say that I'm most excited about what our team is going to do to be a part of that narrative going forward.
• One thing most people might not know about you? Most people know this about me by now, but I have a HUGE shoe problem. I have lots of shoes. So much so that I walked down the isle in Jordan 11 Concords, which are my favorite pair. The one thing people might not know is that we were also able to sneak those into the wedding budget. Thanks, Gary!

The Battle Of Being A Buyer - Jonathan Rich

Tips for finding your dream house without losing your mind

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In case you haven’t heard, back in 2008 America fell prey to a huge housing crisis.  Some smart people labeled it “the great recession.”  The entire country’s real estate market vanished into the dark and basically no one bought house for a span of 2-3 years.  Unemployment rose, stocks plummeted, & even rich people got scared about where their money was or wasn’t coming from. 

It was a strange time of uncertainty & fear, but there was also a subtle whisper of hope & opportunity for the future weaving it’s way through the American economy.  Fast forward to 2017:  hope has come. The housing industry has not only recovered…. we have catapulted into a new way of living.  Urban revival is curating new cultural norms across the country, jobs are on the rise, & in ATLANTA we’re rising like a rocket ship in population, opportunity, culture, and innovation.  It is a fun time to be alive & Atlanta has front row seat to watch the future unfold.

 But with all that progress comes new complex challenges.  One of the big ones is home ownership.  As our cities grow there just isn’t enough housing inventory for all the buyers that want to become homeowners & grab their little slice of heaven! The age old battle of supply & demand has come back to our cities.  Buyers from every angle are creating tremendous demand & are quickly realizing that supply is like a friendly shadow they just can’t quite catch up to. 

Being a buyer is hard….so here are some thoughts we have on figuring it out:

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1. Hire a Realtor IMMEDIATELY, but be selective!

The most important part of your journey as a home-buyer is finding the right Real Estate Agent. When the market is moving fast it is EXTREMELY important to find an agent that is not only trustworthy and hardworking, but is credible & will bring a high level of expertise in the local market you want to live in.  Often times they will have a pulse on listings that are not yet active in MLS. They can set better expectations about how the market is changing week by week & they will have a higher level of relational equity with other top agents in that area, which goes a LONG way to getting a deal done when things get competitive.

DO NOT hire your agent because it is who your co-worker used or because the agent also happens to be your Grandmom.  If possible, try to make sure the Agent you use lives in the neighborhood you want to end up in.  Or at least close by.  If you get this right…all the other pieces will fall into place…I promise!

2. Set realistic expectations on price & location:

There are some amazing tools at the fingertips of anyone who knows what the world wide web is.  Sites like Redfin, Trulia, Zillow, & others give you direct access to unbelievable amounts of data on neighborhoods, schools, tax records, active listings, and home pricing.  Do some critical thinking about where you want to live and cross reference that with what you can afford.  See if there are any houses that match up to both categories.  Drive that neighborhood and see how it feels before you decide it is the place for you.

Also recognize that there is no such thing as a “killer deal” in a rising market.  While you might come across something that is overpriced and get a contract under the list price…a unicorn foreclosure that is completely renovated with a huge yard 2 blocks from the park for 30% less than everything else in the neighborhood just doesn’t exist. There is no silver bullet…but there is a house that can become your home if you’re willing to work for it!

3. Be prepared for multiple offer situations:

It is very common for a great house in a great location to receive multiple offers and enter into a bidding situation.  Often times this means the winner will actually end up offering a number ABOVE the list price. Don’t freak out….when this happens try to FORGET the list price.  Trash it as reference point and approach the home with a different perspective.  Figure out what the price is that if your agent calls you and says “we didn’t win” you won’t have a single second thought about wishing you had offered just a little more.  If you approach it with that confidence and don’t win there is usually a better home waiting around the corner for you!

4. Consider a fixer-upper:

This does not mean you’re going to go buy a house that is falling over and spend 2 years in a renovation that steals your soul.  But consider the possibility of sacrificing a bit on kitchens, bathrooms, and open floor-plans to get into the neighborhood you want to be in. You can almost ALWAYS change floor plans & finishes.  You can’t change location especially a rising market where the affordability becomes less and less attainable year over year.

5. Pay attention to the majors not the minors:

As I said…the small stuff can all be changed. Odd paint colors, a ugly kitchen sink faucet, & that 90’s fake gold hardware can all be switched out with ease.  But things like 25 pine trees in the back yard that drop pine straw, pine cones,and random tree trash year round can’t be changed.

Make sure that 200 year old oak tree that will only live a few more years & have branches larger than your car are not right off the corner of the house. 

Stay away from busier streets that become MUCH harder to sell in buyers markets. Ask your agent about local zoning laws to make sure the lot your buying has room to expand should you end up staying there long term and need more space.  

Make sure your agent can give you as much information as possible on the investment potential of your home should you need to resell in the next 3-5 years. 

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So there you go!  Being a buyer is hard, but you can do it.  We believe in you!  And if you need a good agent….we might know a few people.

best,

Jonathan