Woodward Whole-House Remodel

A new life for a modest, midcentury gem.

We served as general contractor and designer for a this whole-house remodel of a modest, midcentury house in SE Portland, originally built in 1942. The bones of this little house were great but it hadn’t been updated in over 40 years and needed some serious love. Let’s just say that wallpaper was the primary theme of the house. (Photos above are from the real estate listing, courtesy of Living Room Realty).

We first opened up the tiny kitchen to the dining room and living room, creating an airy and open layout that combines the kitchen with the dining room. Next, we gutted and modernized the only bathroom on the main floor, but refinished the cool original cast iron tub.

With just over 1,000 s.f. on the main level, we recognized the potential to double the size of this house by using the full-height basement. This is where most of the magic happened. Not only did we add two bedrooms with egress windows, a full bath with shower, laundry room and a huge family room with fireplace, we also completely updated every system in the house (electrical, mechanical, plumbing). We’re proud to say that in the process we doubled the Home Energy Score from 5 to 10.

Exterior improvements were extensive (and much needed). We first removed all bars on the windows and did a much-needed paint job. We also completely rebuilt the brick facade, fixed the aging chimney, and replaced all gutters. Finally, we built a new deck off of the living room and built a new fence to provide privacy on the back patio.

A big shout out to Karim Alaeddine and his team at Living Room Realty who helped us every step of the way through the project, including talking us off the cliff several times. The house sold in less than a week and we received multiple offers, all over asking.

Check out some of the before/after pics below: