In August 2019, I purchased a small ranch house in the quaint Nashville suburb of Donelson. In addition to the location, there were many things I loved about the house, including the natural light, original hardwood floors, and large yard. I spent the next few years doing DIY projects almost every weekend, working with my dad—a retired professional engineer-–to transform the quaint, cozy space.
Three years and a global pandemic later, I not only found myself working from home part time, but I also had two new housemates—my husband, Daniel, and our tuxedo cat, Atticus Finch. Over time, our sweet, 1,300-square-foot ranch began to feel small.
Small Space, Big Plans
While it wasn’t ideal, our small space wasn’t a deal breaker. After talking it through, we decided to pursue an addition to continue building equity where we were. We brainstormed layouts to include all the things we wanted and needed to make the house function for us: an office for me and a music studio for Dan; a closet and bathroom to create a true primary suite; a two-car garage; and a larger kitchen and living space.
The significantly sloped yard wasn’t a deal breaker either; we found a way to work with the grade and finally settled on a plan that would add approximately 1,000 square feet onto our home. We hired surveyors and had plans in hand. And then we decided to recalculate the cost of the addition—just to be sure.
After crunching the numbers again, our addition was going to be significantly more expensive than initially anticipated. Yes, adding on would mean continuing to build equity in our home, but thanks to rising interest rates, our monthly payment would be the same as if we moved to a place that met our needs from the get-go.
That’s when we asked ourselves, What if we move?
Exploring the Options
Were we really talking about moving after spending the better part of a year planning a way to make our current home work? After visiting a few houses with more than double our square footage, we began to see the advantages of pivoting our plan.
In late December, a new house popped up on Zillow. It was a large colonial located on an acre in a nice neighborhood approximately 10 minutes away. The listing said “coming soon” and had one photo of the exterior. I tapped save, but forgot about the house until I received a notification a month later that it was officially on the market.
Excitedly, I tapped to see the photos. As I scrolled from photo to photo, my heart sank—the entire house was a time capsule. From the popcorn ceilings, wallpaper and paneling to the brightly colored shag carpet, nothing had been updated since the home was built in 1973. It needed a total gut.
I showed the house to Dan, of course, and he had a similar reaction. We put it on the back burner again for a few days, until one of us asked, What if we look at it?
On Monday evening, just twenty-four hours later, we were touring That 70s House, as we not-so-affectionately nicknamed it. It had a home office for me and space for a music studio for Dan; it had a true primary suite with plenty of storage; it had a large, two-car garage; it had a large kitchen and living area for entertaining. It even had a fireplace and a large yard with big trees.
The bones were good. The location was good. But could we tackle such a massive project? And even if we were confident enough to take on a full renovation, could we get the house for the right price?
After a few more days, one of us asked, What if we made an offer? Our rationale was that the worst they could say was no. Our house wasn’t even on the market, so they might not even entertain a contingent offer!
Making Moves
On Thursday, we submitted our offer. After 48 long hours, we had an answer: seller accepts offer, contingent upon buyer having current home under contract within 14 days. Big gulp. If we wanted the house without any costly bridge financing, we had to sell our home in two weeks.
We hurriedly listed our home and, luckily, we found a buyer quickly. We made it through the inspection process mostly unscathed, and by the end of February we were the proud new owners of 3,000 square feet of 1970s glory.
If you follow Dan or me on Instagram, then you know we’ve already started the renovation. We’re doing as much of the project ourselves as possible—with my dad’s help, of course—to save money, and we’re living elsewhere for a few months while we tackle the first floor. Our goal is to have the ceilings refinished, the floors replaced, and the new primary suite complete before we move in.
It’s going to be a long road, but we’re both excited about the potential of our new house—The Sauls 70s House, as I’m now affectionately calling it. We can’t wait to create a space where our friends and family can come as they are and feel seen, known and loved.
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