Homes steeped in history often come with hefty price tags. However, if you know where to look, there's more than a few bargains to be had. We’ve scoured the US to bring you the most promising heritage houses on the market, and while they might need a lick of paint, they'll be more than worth the elbow grease. The best bit? These properties with a past can be yours for less than $100,000 (£73k). Click or scroll to take a look...
With a spectacular gothic exterior, this semi-converted church dates to 1900, and boasts 2,919 square feet of space, including two dramatic turrets. While the former United Church is a Municipal Heritage Property, boasting a rich history from its days a community centre for the congregation of Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan, the building is currently zoned for residential living.
However, while some renovations have certainly begun on the single-storey property, it has yet to be fully converted into a liveable space, and at the moment does not have discernible bedrooms or bathrooms. A fixer-upper, to say the least!
Though the building still requires a lot of work, it does boast some beautiful original features, including hard wood flooring, double-height windows, and all the original pews. White vaulted ceilings make the space feel airy and bright and offer plenty of potential for an elegant transformation.
For a buyer on the lookout for a unique heritage property with excellent bones, this church could be a bargain, as it’s currently on the market for $35,860 (CAD49k / £29.9k). Plus, while a lot of TLC would be required to turn the building into a liveable family home, its stunning turreted façade and half an acre of land might just sweeten the deal.
Originally constructed in 1920 as a church, this historic single-family home in Saskatchewan, Canada offers plenty of quirky potential. The 1,500-square-foot property includes one bedroom, two bathrooms, and a unique open floor plan.
The floorplan of the home has not been altered significantly from its church days, with the living, dining, eating, and even sleeping areas all combined into one large room, with no partition between the spaces. However, the choir loft has been converted to serve as a secondary bedroom, which provides slightly more privacy.
The building was reconfigured by its previous owners to serve as a family home and boasts plenty of recent upgrades including custom made windows, new electrical service, new shingles, and a high efficiency furnace. With up-to-date infrastructure, the property offers plenty of potential to be further developed as a home, or transformed into an office, school, or function hall.
The only fully separate spaces are the two bathrooms, one on the main level, and the other in the basement, which also includes a drive-in entrance. While the home might not be conventional in its layout, it makes a unique blank slate for an ambitious DIY-er and is currently on the market for just $47,574 (CAD65k / £39.7k).
This stately colonial in Old Town, Maine, has seen it all. Originally constructed in 1903, the home has sustained substantial fire damage, and needs a good gut rehab. However, with four bedrooms, one-and-a-half bathrooms, and 2,300 square feet of living space, there is certainly plenty of potential to transform this property back into the elegant turn-of-the-century residence it once was.
The layout is very traditional, with a living room, dining room, kitchen, and half bath on the first floor, and the bedrooms housed on the second. Though stripped to the studs in the wake of the fire, the home still boasts several original features, including brick fireplaces, hardwood flooring, large windows, and some wood wainscotting.
With a traditional white clapboard exterior and the quintessentially ‘New England’ colonial-style pitched roof, the home offers plenty of curb appeal, in spite of its interior damage. The 0.2-acre lot is also ideally located, close to both the town centre and the University of Maine.
The home is currently on the market for $59,000 (£49.6k), leaving plenty of room in the budget for necessary renovations, and is just waiting for the right buyer to come along and transform it back into a fabulous family residence.
With just 700 square feet of space, this adorable cottage in Ahoskie, North Carolina is steeped in Southern charm. The two-bed, one-bath home dates to 1955, and boasts a classic covered front porch, white clapboard exterior, and a dramatically peeked roof. The quaint cottage is currently on the market for just $65,000 (£77.3k).
Unlike some of the other homes in this gallery, this property is in remarkably good condition for its age, with sleek shiplap walls, newly laminated floors in the living spaces, new carpeting in the bedrooms, and contemporary appliances throughout. No renovations required!
The tiny home includes all the necessities. A cosy living area opens into the snug dining room, which in turn connects to the kitchen. Despite the small square footage, every room in the house benefits from the large windows, which help make the spaces feel larger than they are.
In addition to the charming front porch, the home also boasts a back porch, offering ample opportunities to enjoy the mild North Carolina weather in either the sun or the shade. The porches have the added benefit of expanding the home’s square footage, providing the option for alfresco living and dining. With so much Southern charm, this little mid-century gem won’t last long on the market!
This stunning Greek Revival home in Rich Square, North Carolina, is full of Southern history. Its impressive exterior boasts full-length sidelights and transoms, fluted window surrounds, a wide bracketed cornice from the Greek Revival period, delicate sawn work on the second story porch, and a first-floor porch expanded into a wraparound during the Victorian era.
Originally built for the William S. Norwood, the first Mayor of Rich Square, in 1857, this unique home features three distinct architectural periods of construction: the original Greek Revival two-story centre-hall-and-parlour plan, a series of four Victorian-style rooms added in the late 19th century, and a two-room single-story kitchen added in the early 20th century.
The home’s interiors are equally well-equipped with original architectural details from both the Greek Revival and Victorian eras. These include heart pine floors, Greek Revival mantels, ornate fluted window and door surrounds, panelled wainscoting, elaborately carved newel posts and balustrades, a brick fireplace, 15-pane French doors leading into the dining room, and built-in butler’s cabinetry in the kitchen.
The property boasts 3,345 square feet of living space, and is set on nearly two acres of land, near to the rural town of Rich Square. Known as Parksdale, the heritage site is currently on the market for just $65,000 (£54.6k), and while its listing does indicate that some comprehensive rehabilitation is required in the kitchen and bathrooms, the property is nevertheless in stable condition, and ready for the next chapter in its illustrious history.
This classic brick-front colonial home stepped straight out of 1830 and is about to go up for auction with bids starting at just $67,000 (£56.3k). With a traditional columned entrance, covered side porch, and peeked roof, this home exhibits all the characteristic charm of the architecture of the era, and its seller is keen to keep it that way, as the listing stipulates that all bids must include a one-page explanation of plans for restoration.
The 4,650-square-foot property sits nestled on a leafy street in Keeseville, New York, and with a total of seven bedrooms and three bathrooms, offers plenty of room to spread out. The home’s interiors are also full of period charm. Upon entering the home, you are immediately greeted by a traditional foyer, complete with a carved wood banister on the staircase leading up to the second storey.
The first floor of the home includes a living room, family room, dining room, study, eat-in kitchen, and an additional galley kitchen, which once served as a butler’s pantry. While the interiors certainly need some sprucing, the bones of the property are in excellent condition, and boast plenty of original features including hardwood flooring, carved wainscotting, and a total of nine fireplaces.
Upstairs, the seven bedrooms are all amply proportioned, with plenty of natural light admitted through large windows, which also boast beautiful mountain and river views. The surrounding scenery can also be enjoyed from the covered porch. The home sits on a 0.3 acre lot, conveniently located near to the town centre and excellent schools, the perfect home for a young family.
This stately home in Sunbury, Pennsylvania is another traditional front-entrance colonial, almost identical in its design to the one we saw in New York, with its columned entryway and covered side porch. However, this home adds a touch of elegance with a coat of white paint and an elaborate trellis system framing the front door.
Originally built in 1900, this gorgeous property is currently on the market for $89,500 (£75.2k). As the price tag indicates, the stately residence has certainly seen better days, and requires some substantial structural and aesthetic upgrades. The photos indicate some water damage throughout the property, which does not appear to have been occupied for several years.
However, the home is also full of original, timeless features, including parquet floors, a grand staircase with a carved wood banister, multiple fireplaces, and detailed woodwork throughout, according to the listing. The house includes five bedrooms and five bathrooms, with a total of 3,338 square feet of space, so there is certainly plenty of room to play with.
While this property will require an ambitious renovation to become a habitable home once more, the potential to transform this derelict danger zone back into a stately turn-of-the-century residence is enormous. Under the care of the right DIY couple, this property could be a truly spectacular historical showpiece.
Soon to be featured in the summer edition of This Old House magazine’s “Save This Old House”, this spectacular Victorian home in Battle Creek, Michigan is currently on the market for $95,000 (£79.8k). The home boasts an inordinate number of beautiful original details, including a large stained-glass window, ornate woodwork, bevelled glass accents, and two fireplaces with elaborate mantelpieces.
The home includes five bedrooms and four bathrooms across 3,536 square feet. The first storey offers a traditional layout, including a dramatic front foyer, multiple entertaining spaces, and a kitchen. There is also a second kitchen on the upper storey, though the listing suggests this could be converted into a sixth bedroom. The second storey also includes access to a walk-up attic.
While the home definitely needs some work to bring it up to contemporary codes and standards, it is nevertheless in remarkably good condition given its age. Some renovations were completed in 2018, including new shingles, gutters, and decking, and the rebuilding of the side porch. Each room in the home offers a depth of detail seldom seen in contemporary homes, and with some minor renovations, the home could easily be turned into a spectacular historical showpiece.
Currently on the market, this house is being offered specifically through the Calhoun County Land Bank's ‘Transform This Home Program’, through which buyers agree to rehab the home within a given time frame. We can easily imagine this renovation snagging its own spot on a DIYer’s YouTube channel or TV show, and we’d sure watch it!
If walls could talk! This stunning Victorian in the heart of Johnstown, New York is a true historical gem, rich in architectural detail from the inside out. Complete with the traditional turrets, wrap-around porch, and colourful, detailed exterior panelling, this 1890 home is a real bargain, with a list price of $99,900 (£83.9k).
Upon entering, guests are immediately greeted by a grand sweeping staircase with carved wooden banisters. More original woodwork can be found throughout the house in the form of panelling, wainscoting, mouldings, door and window frames, flooring, and an assortment of church pew-style built in benches.
Bosting six bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms, with a total of 3,060 square feet of living space, the property unquestionably needs some renovations. However, its host of original features, including multiple brick fireplaces and lead-pained, stained-glass windows should make the repairs well worth the effort.
Remarkably, the property does have a contemporary kitchen, as well as relatively recently remodelled bathrooms, so minimal renovations needed there. Indeed, while the listing does indicate some TLC is required, the necessary repairs appear minimal, and for a home of such lush architectural detail and history, it seems like a steal for the price!
Coming in at the top of the budget with an asking price of $100,000 (£84k), this historic home in Clarinda, Iowa, offers four bedrooms and one full and one-half bathroom, with a total of 2,776 square feet of living space. Described as a true ‘investment property’ in its listing, this house definitely needs some TLC, but also has the potential to transform into a fabulous family home.
It does feature new windows throughout, so that’s one thing to check off the lengthy list of renovations, which will still need to include some substantial repainting, remodelling, and the installation of all new appliances.
The home does offer beautiful original hardwood floors, mouldings, and even some panelling throughout, and with a bit of polishing, these details could easily become a highlight for this home. The layout if very traditional, with separate kitchen, living, and dining spaces on the first floor, and bedrooms housed upstairs.
The house sits on a spacious corner lot and boasts rolling lawns perfect for summertime. Another huge bonus is the covered wrap-around porch, on which its very easy to imagine Edwardian grandmothers contentedly rocking away at the turn of the last century, overlooking the 0.3 acres of lush lawns.
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