In August, we purchased a home for the last year we are in Vegas. It wasn't something we were expecting to do, but sometimes God has different plans for you.
We had pulled our money out of the Vegas Market in 2018 so we could buy in Chicago. After months of looking, though, we weren't finding the right fit for our family. We had been in a rental in Vegas, and were content with staying there for the last year. At the beginning of March, we found out some friends of ours were heading up a new location for our old church. We had planned to wish them well and pray for them often. 2019 was the year that we would be splitting our time between Vegas and Chicago, the last thing we needed to do was buy or renovate or move more than we had to. So we were quite stunned when we felt called to go with our friends to this new church and new neighborhood. Soon, we found ourselves looking for homes in an area in Vegas called McNeal Estates-AKA vintage Vegas. It's a neighborhood close to the Stratosphere on the north end of the strip. It's a tricky area that some would consider it to be in the "not so great" part of town. And it took us about 30 min west of the only part of town we have ever lived in. I would be staying in Vegas with our middle, Rachel, for that last year, and this neighborhood was 30 minutes from her school. She wasn't really down for it, but eventually really liked the church we helped to open. So we began our journey for the house on Strong Dr.
We had a pretty hard stop for how long we could look for homes. We had to be in my the time the church opened in September. A home that was "finished" was going to be out of our price range, so we looked for one that could be rehabbed. With Trey already in Chicago, we knew I would be heading this one up on my own with a contractor. To keep our costs down, I rolled up my sleeves and got to work.
Here are the before pictures.
Classic 1963 Ranch. As you look inside, you will find almost all of the original finishes, furniture, and cabinets. It very much felt like they moved in and let 57 years of life pass without changing a thing.
Carpet throughout, popcorn ceilings, and a sunken living room! This is a real vintage Vegas home.
Built in bookcases are the best! The counter stools are also vintage, and the BEST! We tried to buy them, but no luck. The layout they used for this space was super awkward. I think the stools and the small table were the only vintage pieces in this room.
All of the furniture looked to be vintage and absolutely awesome. But, again, the layout was just too awkward. At some point, they took this brick fireplace all the way up the wall and expanded it closer to the sliding door. We thought about taking it down or painting it, but I really do love an authentic brick fireplace. We quickly found out that the brick was not secured properly to the wall and was starting to sag off of it. Unfortunately, It would have to come down.
The sink, counters, curtains, cabinets, hood and wall oven were all original. The fridge, stove top and dishwasher were replaced, most likely, in the 80's. The cabinets were WELL worn. This kitchen was so loved and used often. Unfortunately, I knew we were going to have to replace most of what was here. Fortunately, it allowed for a better layout and flow.
The formal dinning room was separated by a door to the kitchen, and a rail from the sunken living room. We were interested in a lot of the furniture, but they had already hired a company to hold an estate sale and couldn't let go of anything before it started. Unfortunately, we were out of town the weekend they had the sale. All we were able to get was the china that had been used in this house over the years. If I could have, I would have purchased more than half of what was in this house.
We also tried to save this wallpaper. Because, well, look at it!! We did get to keep the chandelier.
The hallway has incredible storage on the right and a small closet on the left. The doors you see here are for the guest bath, and the first of three bedrooms.
At some point, the cabinets in here were painted white. But the tub and toilet were still the original yellow.
This bedroom was just laid out badly. It is a good size room.
This is a much clearer view of the carpet and the ceilings. This will be our daughter's room.
The Primary bedroom has a small bath. This room took a bit more work than we expected. Once we scrapped the ceiling, it was obvious that it was sagging from the weight of the material all those years. We had to take all the drywall out and replace it.
That is a blue toilet, blue tile, and the smallest shower you ever stood in. At 5'4" I couldn't actually fit sideways. So we opened this up.
The backyard. It is big enough for a pool, but we wouldn't be here long enough to enjoy it.
Here it is, our big unexpected project that goes on the market this month!