I recently had the pleasure of showing an older home (1961) in one of Arvada's charming neighborhoods. The seller was the original owner.
Consequently, there were a lot of original features. The oven, for one. This oven was so cool - pretty good sized, and the oven door swung up instead of out. That's because the burners were in a drawer that pulled out from under the oven.
Crazy cool!
But is that oven a keeper? It was super clean, and it worked. But it probably used a lot more energy than a newer model. I don't know if anything like it can be found, so it may get replaced. I think it would depend on how much cooking people do. Me? I'd keep it!
The kitchen counters had the 'boomerang' style decoration. Unfortunately, they were pretty banged up, and there was room for more cupboards and counters, so they'll almost certainly get replaced.
But I do know you can get vintage-style countertop laminates. It would be great if the kitchen were remodeled to style.
The house also had some original light fixtures, wood floors, kitchen cabinets, and slant-front metal bathroom vanity.
The thing is, the owner had put in new electrical, roof, furnace, hot water heater, insulation, and some plumbing. So the expensive, 'boring' stuff was nearly done.
I had a good time enjoying the feel of this house, obviously loved for a long time.
Then today, I received the August/September 2010 issue of The Arvada Report, which is mailed to all Arvada residents and businesses bi-monthly. The first article was, "Preservation for Living Project Kicks Off in Four Arvada Neighborhoods".
It said the project, "includes a series of free informational workshops on topics such as historic tax credits, window and masonry repairs, and energy efficiency measures in older homes. A "pattern book" of suggestions on how to sensitively remodel or make additions to older pre-war homes ...and for early post-war ... will also be developed... to educate homeowners about character defining features ... while helping them visualize designs to enhance livability and modern lifestyles."
And then, I saw a comment on a real estate website called Trulia, complaining about fix and flippers who remove all the vintage style. (Here's my post about his comment and the responses Remodeling a Vintage Home? Leave it Alone!
Do we have a trend in the making?
Has anyone listed, sold or bought a 'Retro Cool Mad Men' style home? How did that go?
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Read more about life in Arvada, Colorado.
And here’s a little intro to Olde Town Arvada.
Gardeners might enjoy my posts about gardening in Denver to Boulder’s front range.
I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the ‘flavor’ of our community, in case they’re new or moving to the Denver area.
I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.
Copyright © 2011 Joetta Fort, The DiGiorgio Group
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