@littlebug Zone 5 Missouri, I think these are the bits you are looking for:

Jen wants to "make it work for [her] and [her] family to enjoy and cherish for years to come..." so she is "looking for ideas on colors/other material options for the non brick. Advice on the ALL of the doors ... the house seems off completely, unfinished." "It's going to be a total inside and out project."

I'll suggest you work on a comprehensive plan with a budget, interior and exterior. Once done, take care of the important maintenance items first.

The goal is to keep from doing things twice, or to do things out of order.

If you need a new roof now, and also plan to repaint the outside in the future, pick all the colors together, as an example.

I think I would wait on the exterior until you get the interior that way you can live with it. Since interior renovations often have an effect on the exterior. I can certainly see why this would be something you would want to keep.I love old houses and keep promising my hubby we will not renovate next time but we are selling our home now and everytime I look for the new house it is one that needs some work. We are in our late 70's so I am trying to keep major work off the table. I would get a really good interior designer who has kitchen design in their work then start thinking about how you live in a space . The bones come first and yes if the roof needs to be done that will need to be at the top of the list. This will be a money pit for sure since it sounds like most was DIY and along time ago . Codes change and you wall be foreced to comply with some for sure.

@BlueberryBundtcake - 6a/5b MA thanks for the Cliff’s notes!

You don't mention budget. Do you have cash now to begin work? Would you consider renting out part of the property seasonally to generate cash for your project?

wow, I think it's gorgeous! It's absolutely one-of-a-kind and full of character and charm. I love the double front doors, patio area, and fireplace! I don't know if it's local to you, but if it were mine, I would get an assessment of what it needs done first... things like roof repairs, plumbing or electrical problems, etc., should be dealt with immediately. Otherwise, regarding the outside, I would have any necessary repairs done, clean it up, and repaint only what was already painted and in the same color scheme. I love it.

btw, one option for you to consider, if you need the money, is to rent it or part of it.

Wow is right. I am all on board for your giant project. We have a project like that in my family, and it is incredibly fulfilling to maintain a connection with your relatives and their vision. I am right there with you, and I think you can do this.

I agree with someone upthread that advises you to get some inspections done. But before you do that, make sure you have a nice working list of tradespeople that you either already have a good working relationship with, or who have tremendous recommendations on Nextdoor or similar social media accounts. For example, you are going to need a wonderful electrician, roofer, handy-person, plumber, etc. Line your people up. To me, that's the first step.

I believe that once you have these people make recommendations to you, that you may be looking at deferred maintenance issues, as someone upthread mentioned. That's where you start.

It is very helpful to live in the home, and I didn't catch whether you grew up there, or have lived there the whole time. Living there will help you see possibilities and issues that are feasibly do-able.

Then, start with Pinterest or the like, to KNOW what your vision is before you are tempted by fads , because I can hear that you want to do this special property justice. I can't wait to see what you do.

I'd start by completely cleaning up the outside to properly inspect the condition. Your first steps should be to preserve and protect the structure. Where any brick meets wood should be thoroughly examined for moisture or rot. Really examine the porch for structural issues. Personally, I'd remove the shutters. Check every window for condition and appropriateness to the climate. Make sure water drains away from the structures. Clean the brick and check all mortar, repair as needed. A trusted carpenter can help you assess any areas needing repair. Same with an electrician for safety and an HVAC pro for efficiency. Once you have a safe tight house, I think protecting the wood siding might be a good first project (stain, paint, whatever is best). Check with neighbors for good contractors. This is a great opportunity for you, so take your time and enjoy it!

Jen, can you please delete your duplicate post?

You need to figure out what the houses need the most, which I suspect is a paint job. I like the current colors. You could probably do with a landscaping improvement, but you'd need to figure out what you have a post pics in the spring.

However, you have a big, bare backyard. I'd think about 1) privacy from neighboring houses/beaches, 2) shade, beauty and protecting the water. Where I have a lakefront house, we're supposed to have a lot of trees to protect the watershed. So, I'd add a few trees and definitely some shrubs along your property lines. Figure out how high they'd need to be to give you a good view of the lake from the house, but not a good view of your beach from the neighbor's. You don't necessarily need a hedge. A well-placed bush or two can block views of your patio.

There are some lovely azaleas native to the Caroliinas, Buttonbush should do well near the water, as should Clethra.

Are you living there now? Wonderful place. Start with safety as @cat_ky recommended above. Remove slippery leaves and move the chairs and poles out of your way to clear the walkways. A couple free and quick things you can do: move the patio's silk flower urn arrangements to your front door, then prune the shrubs near the windows.

In my area, home inspections and termite inspections are done separately. Once you have the inspection reports in hand, you can decide on priorities.

Is the main living space where those big windows are (upstairs)?

If it is, then adding an almost wrap around porch, with similar features as the one on the bathhouse will give you indoor/outdoor living and make the houses look more cohesive. You can switch the windows to doors, and have it easily connect to area with the brick oven between the two houses. So imagine parties flowing from the indoor living space, to the outdoor entertaining space, down to the lake....

If the double doors are a main entrance I would add an entranceway roof to make it more defined and balanced with the small house.

in response to your question, I would 1) kiss the ground in gratitude for being given a property. 2) I don't know where the photos are so I can't comment on what else I'd do w/the place.

It appears that the exterior wood badly needs repainting. After making sure that the roof/gutters are not leaking or need repair, and the electric and plumbing are good, the repainting should be next IMO.

If it is cedar as someone thought, there might be a better course of action than painting - I don't know about that myself, but I am sure that there are resources that you can google up.

First get someone in to evaluate all the wood components for rot and stability. Check closely around the windows for missing or gaps in the caulk, and again, for rot if they are wood frames.

Find a very good painting contractor, and get recommendations for exterior paint (or stain, whatever is best for the siding) to use.

Several have said that they like the current color, but I think it is kind of blah. I do like what seems to be a gray-blue on the shutters - might look good on the upper level siding.

Is the blackish discoloration on the exterior chimney soot or mildew? IIt needs to be cleaned off and, if mildew, treated with a mildewcide for brick.

That is a great property, congratulations and good luck as you proceed!

I actually think the existing paint color is a good match for the brick. It just needs a good dose of scraping and repainting.

I love how you plan to honor your beloved Grandmother. Lots of good tips here. If the property is paid for (no existing mortgage?) and you don’t have cash for repairs you need to check out mortgage or loan possibilities to fund repairs. There will be a lot of basic behind the walls work needed most likely. TIPS: get any assessments in writing because as you move forward and find out where the issues are, you will need documentation to show how issues were fixed. Most people don’t do this and later regret it. So develop system to track each major project. Save photos from Houzz and put in your Ideabooks you have started. Big cost items will be roofing, HVAC, upgrading electrical and plumbing to current codes, and labor for work. This is a huge undertaking. Don’t underestimate what this will take to renew. The location is gorgeous. So well worth your time and investment. I would look for a good designer with construction experience to help you develop a plan and start making decisions on “sequencing” and how to develop a cohesive end point. Best of luck. It will be amazing but almost tougher than building from scratch! You can put your own touches on it too so best of luck.

Your grandparents left you a great property, knowing that you would love it as they did.

We have the Nextdoor.com site locally and over the past year or two I have been keeping a growing list of home renovation and repair folks that have been recommended by other local homeowners for a variety of home improvements. Earlier, Mrs. S suggested that you look into your local Nextdoor or other social media groups to find well-regarded businesses. What I like about these sites is that folks are generally very open with their opinions, BOTH pro and con, re: the quality of work they have experienced during their home improvement projects. This is a good way for you to find qualified people who can give you a reliable evaluation of the property as is which will help you figure out where to start first.

If you (or your grandparents) attend a local church that can also be a good place to get recommendations especially if the pastor or congregants knew your grandparents and are aware that you want to keep and fix up the house that meant so much to them.

Your location is beautiful, the house has a lot of potential, and you are to be commended for your desire to keep such a great legacy in your life.

P.S. Flo Mangan is a generous professional who shares from her vast experience. You will be blessed if she helps you throughout the days ahead. Best wishes for a productive New Year!

It sounds like you have the cash for remodeling right now. From someone that gutted their house and re-did everything over the course of 13 months, I can tell you we were SO OVER IT. If you can swing it, get a really good contractor and fix everything now before you move in. At first we were not going to redo the kids’ bathroom or powder room, but I am SO glad we did because I never want to deal with another remodel ever again! Or you can fix the little house first if you want to live on site. If you do the roof now, the painting this spring, then pick and choose when to tackle bathrooms kitchen etc it will drag on. Plus in the long run it will be less expensive and it’s way more efficient to demo everything at once, have the tiling all done at once, the flooring, painting all done at once, etc.

Get pinterest boards going for all areas of the house and start looking at tile, floors, appliances etc very early on so everything arrives on time.

This can be spectacular! I bet your grandparents are so happy that you want to make it your family forever home :)

Thank you for ALL FOR your condolences, advice, opinions, and knowledge!!!

As far as I know the non-brick is most likely just some type of regular wood that wasn't too expensive back in 1976, when they built the house .... It's had some replacement pieces here and there, but as you can see it may All have to be replaced, or whatever else I can do instead.... 

I don't care for the color much, and indecisive about the shutters, which will have to be replaced anyway.. All of the brick is going to have to be washed/cleaned.... Whatever it is you do.

That's why we I'm reaching out on here, because I have no idea what to do, and in what sequence.

I do know that the most important part is the structure, and the plumbing (BTW it's on well water) which I would like to change to city now that it's an option... ANY OPINIONS ON THAT would be great. All the electric needs to be checked and up to code, as well as the HVAC..

IT did get a new roof about 7 years ago, still will have it looked over as well. I keep seeing THAT comment come up, and hopefully that will be one thing that is OK.

I can live there while work is done, or I can be close enough. I did live there growing up through out my childhood into my teens. My grandmother got to live her last days of her 93 years in the apartment, Where I stayed with her three-four days a week in the past three years as her dementia got worse, and the days I couldn't be there she had a few nurses to "take my place"...

It is still extremely emotional on me to be there, but I know that will change hopefully for the better as I see the home progress, and feel that I am making them proud.

I'm aware it's going to take time, and I'm not in any rush. I'm not wanting to go all out Extravagant with it, that's not my style..I want to have good quality work done to fix the main issues, Update the home to this modern day, with still trying to keep it's classic unique look, and Upgrade certain things within reason to bring more appeal and IF my son decides to sell it one day, he won't have to much to do..

Those windows on top level was intended to be a porch/sitting area, they have a crank opening and also have screens that some how you can also remove the entire glass pane for more of a screened in porch area. I agree they're overwhelming, and I really liked the idea of extending a porch out from there, and cover the front door area... That sounds like a wonderful idea (probably an expensive one) but like I said, some Upgrades are worth it, especially when it makes more sense out of the house.

I feel like I'm almost building from scratch, or it would be easier. Could I tear down everything but the brick and start over?? HaHaHa!! 

INTERESTING FACT-ALL of the brick on the home is from the original CSX RAILROAD HANGERS from when it was torn down in 1976. My G'Mah worked for the railroad and she asked what they were going to do with all that brick they had torn down, they said that someone would come throw it out. She asked if she could get it, they told her she could HAVE WHATEVER she could get, but it had to be gone in the next week... 4 pick up trucks and I don't remember how many trips, but evidently they got what they needed! There's still a good stack still left..

I apologize for sharing to y'all "my life story/house story".. Im the only one, besides my son, who is having to make these decisions, there is no family to put their two sense in, maybe I'm lucky in that way, but it's also extremely hard.. So thank you AGAIN for jumping in and giving me all of your time, and knowledge!! Also, forgive me for any mistakes I make on this app. I'm new to this and just figuring it out as I navigate through.

🌟🎉HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE 🎉🌟

BLESS YOU ALL IN 2023, I HOPE THAT ANY OFO YOUR TROUBLES ARE LEFT BEHIND IN 2022!!

😇-jenlynn

If you can afford it I really thing a great gc and a designer can be really helpful in this situation, because it is a big project.

Getting the structural issues dealt with (water, electric, hvac, plumbing...) are the first priority, but having plans when you do that will save you money.

Lets look at electric - if you need to redo some of it because of safety concerns, having a final plan will make sure that if you are making floorplan changes the electric works with the new plan. You may need to replace doors and windows - but doing so before you have an interior plan isn't viable.

I don't know what your financial situation is, but of you are short on funds, you can redo the small house first and rent it as an airbnb, and use that to help pay off a mortgage for the reno, that location has got to be a dream vacation spot.

I think as far as siding goes, I would want a darker color that goes with the brick so that you can paint all the beautiful classic accents and the trim white - that will make them "pop" against the brick. I'm including some photos of homes that are very different then yours but have similar brick, siding, and white trim for inspiration.

Walnut in Cypress Creek · More Info

Ridgeriver · More Info

Rejuvenated Cape Cod in McLean · More Info

You’ve gotten great help here, some overwhelming in its detail. But the important part is to get the house inspected for safety reasons - electric, plumbing, HVAC - so you can sleep at night. I have lived with city water and well water and I’d stick to well water if I were you. City water is an expense that is out of your control. The final decision is up to you, of course.

Getting a designer and GC is a terrific idea. They will guide you both in real time and in person. Should you wash the roof? Who can tell but an on-site roofer. ? Should the electric panel be upgraded? Do the floors look safe? All of this requires smart people looking at the house with you.

You can get phenomenal help on structure and design here, so keeping this group informed will also help your designer and GC. More heads = more ideas.

It’s wonderful to see you honoring the grandparent you loved so much. And the property will be a knockout as you make it your own. Thanks for sharing your story.

Have it inspected, just as you would had you purchased it. Fix all areas identified before you start on cosmetics. Some items will be interior, but some will be exterior as well. Don't do any design until the big tickets are addressed.

If you find that the exterior siding needs to be replaced, I suggest taking a look at Hardie board or similar.

I am probably the odd man out here, but I rather like the row of upper windows on the main house. Probably because I grew up in a 1914 farmhouse that had a similar room over the carport that was our playroom. However, they likely aren't terribly energy efficient - if that is a big consideration wherever this property is located.

There are online building cost calculators that can give you an idea of what kind of costs to expect when you get estimates. That will help you get an idea of low-mid-high end remodeling choices and if the contractors’ estimates are in line with the averages. (I think you can gear the calculator for your area.)

I found this one, for example: https://homeguide.com/costs/house-remodeling-cost

Remember that building materials costs have gone up significantly in the last two years.

If you can get one general contractor, you might pay a little more, but you’ll only have to deal with one person to handle the details, get the contractors, arrange for building materials, etc.

As for a portfolio or web link to their past remodeling jobs.

Be sure that any contractors you hire provide an up to date “insurance certificate” and are licensed.

Ask contractors for a fully itemized contract in writing. And any warranty policy.

Don’t pay upfront for anything. You can negotiate a payment schedule for work completed.

Good luck with your renovation.

I recommend you take photos regularly. Your first set should have at least a hundred pictures documenting the current state of the property. If there is any question later about areas which don't meet current codes or community standards,  you need to be able to prove those items existed prior to your renovations. That might include the existence of the second living unit,  any storage sheds,, all bathrooms, as well as outlines of porches, driveways, docks and walkways. 

In every space, take a series of overlapping photos which will show all electric, windows, hvac locations as well as condition of ceilings, walls, and floors. Every time you have a wall open, snap more pictures than you would ever need. Years later, I have referred to pictures more than once to try to figure out where studs are or which direction pipes run. Whatever the project, I always think I took way too many pictures until I try to figure out the details of exactly which order or location a little piece fits in. Also, look through the pictures occasionally to remind yourself of how much progress you have already made when you start feeling discouraged and overwhelmed by all the decisions to be made and dollars to spend

I recommend you take photos regularly. Your first set should have at least a hundred pictures documenting the current state of the property. If there is any question later about areas which don't meet current codes or community standards,  you need to be able to prove those items existed prior to your renovations. That might include the existence of the second living unit,  any storage sheds,, all bathrooms, as well as outlines of porches, driveways, docks and walkways. 

In every space, take a series of overlapping photos which will show all electric, windows, hvac locations as well as condition of ceilings, walls, and floors. Every time you have a wall open, snap more pictures than you would ever need. Years later, I have referred to pictures more than once to try to figure out where studs are or which direction pipes run. Whatever the project, I always think I took way too many pictures until I try to figure out the details of exactly which order or location a little piece fits in. Also, look through the pictures occasionally to remind yourself of how much progress you have already made when you start feeling discouraged and overwhelmed by all the decisions to be made and dollars to spend

Great suggestion from @Lyndee Lee regarding photos.

Pictures vital. Start on left and move to right. If you keep that orientation going figuring out pictures later becomes much easier. Nice to have close ups but make sure to take ones from as far back as possible for perspective and relationships to each other. Print them out and put in 3” binders. Much easier to flip thru pages. Takes time and printer ink but well worth it.

Jen-I have a document I would be happy to share with you. I call it “New House Checklist” but it is loaded with great info for any project like yours. If you would like a copy just email me at manganflo@gmail.com
I can email it to you. 😊

Following…

No I after .com

I think I said that above, but worth repeating. You probably need an "advisor" to help you through this even now. Someone you can sit down with or discuss virtually, to help you navigate this whole process. Very important. Remember, you "don't know what you don't know"!

I just saw this before & after - very inspiring!

I understand your emotional commitment to the house, but I caution you to understand the full financial commitment as well before you start putting money into this property. The money required might be much more than you now realize. And if you are working on it over a number of years, the future cost may be much more than today's estimate.

My guess is that your loving grandparents would want you to do what is best for yourself, rather than hang on to their dream, which after all is not your own dream. You can still hold their memories very dear without putting yourself in a difficult financial situation.

Partim said very diplomatically what I have been thinking: Be sure your eyes are very open for signs of Money Pit.

Following

To answer your title question WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WERE GIVEN THIS HOUSE??

I would sell it and purchase one with a much smaller structure, just the right size for my own use. One that didn't require any time commitment and that I could immediately use to make my own memories with my family and friends. Because the "free time" that you spend fixing up this property is time that you won't get back on what you describe as a long term project.

I say this based on the experience of my mother-in-law, who sold their lakefront property as soon as her husband passed away. It was his dream, not hers, and she was self-aware enough to know that she wanted to spend her time in other ways with her family and friends, rather than the stress of managing the upkeep and improvement of what was, essentially, his dream property. The people matter, the place doesn't.

Have you moved forward with this project?

I'd love to hear updates as you go along

I would figure out if I could afford to own it. As in, what is the annual property tax bill? What would the utilities cost per month? All of that before even considering how much it will cost to restore, what the tax bill would be after restoration and the time commitment it will require. How much will the inheritance tax be?

IOW's I would get with a good tax accountant and figure out a strategy to sell it.

It has been A little over 6 months since I was here asking about what you guys would do if you were given this property. I wanted to come back to update on what all has happened in the past 6 months!! A lot of information has been revealed / found out, when I first posted this on this site it was just a I didn't know what to do moment, and I have to thank every single person I'm here for all of their advice and opinions because I heard them all in my voices over the past 6 months as I have been spending cleaning out the home. I don't think I mentioned in my original post that my grandmother is home was also completely full of items from over 100 years of time if not more than that. Anyhow, so in order to get to see where the issues lie, I have had to clean the house out so I could have people come in! It has been fun, but hard, awarding but exhausting extremely emotional with a lot of anger and  tears... But I am very proud of how much has been accomplished in this time. I think I mentioned before that I don't have much family, so I didn't have a whole lot of help but grateful for the hands of the few that I had. Basically, it has become my full-time job to be at this lake house cleaning it out having things checked out making a budget and figuring out what to do and how I'm going to do it. Good news, the foundation is great, the plumbing had some very small minor things that I was able to fix on my own, that there was no issues, the well has been serviced, septic was inspected, electrical is good, some things don't make a sense with the electrical but it's up to code which is unbelievable considering how old the house is but evidently my grandmother kept up with these things that I just didn't know. But it's nothing that can't be easily fixed. The unit for the AC was made in 87, it cut on without any problems, I had thought that it was going to have to be replaced, and up until this week I've been working in this southern 90° hot weather with no AC for a good bit of time now coming to find out that there was one switch that I did not see that needed a flip, and Poof, I have air!! They service the unit, and said that everything looks great. I can't believe how often I have heard this phrase, and I'm asking myself can this be true? LoL, 

There's no way everything is great!! Now they did have a oil burning furnace that they used for heat that she had cut off shut down drained out filled up whatever it is that you do to those things when you don't use them any longer. So there isn't any heat in the home as of now, but if that's an issue to deal with later on down the road. Honestly I don't feel that I need it especially with it being just myself, It doesn't get very cold here and a space heater usually will do just fine. The downstairs of this home is double layered brick so it stays cool in the summer and it stays warm in the winter, not to mention that there is a fireplace. Now if I was to sell the home I would definitely need to do something in the future. But I'm still not quite sure that's what I want to do. Because this timing that I've taken to just clean it out and have the basic things looked at and checked out it's not looking as if it's going to be a money pit after all it's going to be more of a what to do with it type of situation because the floor plan doesn't make a lot of sense. Yes, the outside of the home needs to be updated, painted / Hardie board plank whatever something of that nature but it's 3/4 of it is brick. The main issue here is what to do with the space and how to make it function for me. I don't see myself needing more than what I have available to me, and the fact that this property/land has such great value, it's never going to depreciate... it's an acre and a half of Lakefront property on Lake you can barely buy land on anymore much less find a house on for under a million dollars. I've had real estate agents coming out of the woodwork wanting me to sell as is sell for 500k buy something else, which would be easy to do am I crazy for not doing that should I take the money and run? Or should I hang on to this and make it work for me to live in the rest of my life, and have something to leave to my son to what he can do with whatever he wants to do with it. It took a lot of energy and balls, lol, for me to come here and start the process when I made this post I've only had been up here two times since she passed away because it was so hard on me. I still have bad days but I am enjoying being here, and when the work is over and calm down, it's nice to just float around on the water or fish My son comes here and helps every weekend does things to help me and enjoys being here as well. Anyhow I guess I'm kind of blabbing now I have the tendency to do that. I'm trying to get to figure it out what to do with the upstairs and how to make it functionable.

**So first off I have realized that their original plan was to have a kitchen upstairs as well as downstairs, I'm assuming they wanted to have some kind of entertainment area or whatnot there is all brand new cabinets in boxes for kitchen the upstairs the floor is still all subfloor but I have found 1200 ft² of the original hardwood plank board with the hardware still in the boxes they just never got to putting it down...

I have a lot of the bases covered and I have a lot of the materials to finish what they were going to do. I just have more questions and need more advice and opinions, and honestly coming on here for the first time with this first post got me as far as I am right now. I'm not sure if this is where I am supposed to respond or update what is going on so please it forgive me if I'm commenting in the wrong spot and send me to the right place to post on a new thread or whatever it is however it works please help me understand So I can put up some pictures of the inside and outside get some ideas and get some help, or drop a line on here and tell me I'm making a huge mistake It doesn't matter either way because I like to know the good and the bad. Oh and for everybody that had mentioned something about the tax inheritance laws and things in South Carolina they're very forgiving on that don't even have it... And we're not in that bracket of worrying about federal estate tax, sorry, not that rich!! But for the ones that were worried about the tax issues/finances, I have hired a financial planner that also comes with a text advisor/CPA.

Once again thank you all who commented on this original post, I heard everybody's voices even though I don't know what you sound like but you all have a different voice in my head but I heard it in these past months and I just want you to know how much I appreciate every single person that commented because it helped me so much and y'all don't even realize it. This is amazing group to be a part of!! Let me know if you want to see any pictures and where I should post them...

@flomangan.... I listened to your advice and I have taken so many pictures, I had to get another camera involved because it was killing my phone's storage, and transfer real quick enough, hahaha!!

Jen Lynn- so great to read your update and get an impression of all you have been doing! Quite an accomplishment! Creating great memories with your son is precious! Just post some photos right on this site and thread. Love to help as you go along. Great to resist the quick money and truly create a legacy. As long as you are safe, that’s the main thing. TIP; get safety aluminum ladders that hang from windows for second floor. Always smart. Amazing thing that there is wood flooring ready to be installed! Unreal really! I think you have a “Guardian Angel” watching down on you. Looking forward to some photos!

I have read this from the beginning, and thought about you one day a month or so ago. Its nice to see you update, and that everything is going well for you.

So good to hear from you! Everything you’ve discovered sounds like there is a Guardian Angel watching over you and this lake house.

The money pit problems some of us feared have not materialized and that is such great news. I’m sure it would be hard - and heartbreaking - to sell your grandmother’s house, so if you decide to stay, you’ve got a huge fan club here to help with the layout-furnishing-flooring-kitchen issues. I’m sure there are several but there are a lot of really smart people here who can give you ideas.

Good that you have gotten yourself a financial advisor, account-tax advisor as well. Smart move.

You definitely came back to the right spot to post your update, and I am very glad that you did!

I agree that holding on to the property is a smart move.

Hey, this sounds like a lot of great news!! I just love real estate, owning it, dreaming about it, wanting to create a real estate "estate" for my kids. I know this is going to sound very random, but this is how my mind works: my thought is that with sooo much uncertainty around AI, what careers/professions/income streams/sources of assets, are relatively safer for my teen/young adults? Well, the things that have to do with housing and caring for humans certainly seems pretty safe, to my mind. AI can't house people! So I think good real estate investing can always provide value in the future. So if you have it, then my thought is to hang on, unless you have a good reason to sell.

Please stick with this thread! You're doing great and have a bunch of pros and really smart "regulars" on here who will help you make some decisions, or provide input. Your thread is so fascinating!!

Great news!

Please post as many pictures and if you can dig up a floorplan - would love to help you come up with ideas....

Something to think about:

You can start by renovating the smaller unit and then turn it into an airbnb - a lakefront vacation is always popular and that can bring in income that will help cover the big renovation....

I am so excited to see where you are going with your “Gigi” gift! What’s your next step! Yes, you are fine just adding to this thread. We are hear for you. Try to ask before you make final decisions and we can guide you well. Now you can start having sone fun as you deserve!!

Sorry for the typos. Autocorrect.

Any new photos?