Renovation # 17 - 1166 Thomas Ave, St Paul

Renovation # 16 - 220 Winifred St W, St Paul

This was the first house where we were committed to hiring a professional photographer. We established what was to be a long-term partnership with Tim and Madie Photography. As you can see, he draws you in with the perspective of the camera and showcases beautifully the architectural features of a home and its spaces.

The cool thing about selling this home was that the neighbor, who we became friends with, also happened to be selling. We found TWO families for the two homes. The new buyer friends were excited about the shared driveway! David Louiselle, with Bridge Realty, brought both the buyers.

Renovation # 15 - 1347 Blair, St Paul

Renovation # 14 - 936 Dodd Rd, West St Paul

Renovation # 13 - 919 Dodd Road, West St Paul

Renovation # 12 - 1612 Race St, St Paul

Renovation # 11 - 1030 Englewood Ave, St Paul

2012 - Dilbert leaves his cube! The jump into full time self employment

This is the year, 2012, that Andy went full time as a home renovator leaving his corporate licensed stock-broker job in downtown Minneapolis. After many years of biking to work in the IDS center, he was happy to work with his hands every day and be his own boss. He obtained his general contractor's license while keeping his real estate broker license. Restoration Construction LLC continued full time. His real estate brokerage was renamed River Source Realty (formerly Restoration Realty). To keep up with the demand, Andrea transitioned into working full time in home sales with traditional buyers and sellers as the market was dictating a strong post-crash recovery.

Renovation # 10 - 542 12th Ave N, So St Paul

 Andy found this bank foreclosure on the multiple listing service (MLS). The floors needed to be leveled with Gypcrete. It had good old bones and a solid foundation. He updated everything from floors to ceilings, walls, roof and garage. He hired all new electrical, plumbing and hvac (heating, ventilation and air conditioning). He put in a new furnace, roof, hardwood floors, garage doors, stainless steel appliances, washer and dryer. 

# 9 of 26 as of 2018 - 1050 Overlook Road

1050 Overlook Road, Mendota Heights, was the mother ship we were waiting for after our move from St Paul. The 5 month delay in finding our new home was the unique search criteria for 4 bedrooms on one level. We ended up with four bedrooms near each other, while pretty much the other criteria was met: flat driveway, private backyard, not on a busy street, etc. This is how our boys ended up playing hockey. We were living in my parents basement during the home search, purchase and renovation. It was 9 months, during the school year. I needed them out of the house (said parents basement) on the weekends to burn energy that long winter. True story. They still love and play hockey today. Anyways, this home was in a nice neighborhood near a park with a hockey rink. It had a great layout and several living spaces for entertaining.

We purchased this home in February of 2012, at the bottom of the market. We moved our family in after 4 months of gutting and updating the entire home. We love and enjoy our ugly 1970's house for the trifecta: mansard roof, cedar shakes and lava rock exterior. Yep. Great rock climbing for the kids. And, out of appreciation for quality antique fixtures, we preserved the original stainless steel birdcage with disco-ball light in the kitchen. It creates that disco feel (see image below) and shows how much we have embraced this home built in 1972, my birth year. We couldn't be more thrilled with the final product to call home. We continue to have home projects every year just like any home, but that comes with home ownership. Don't be afraid to make smart improvements to your home. This way you can enjoy your upgrades as well as bring value when it comes time to sell. We are still not sure what we can do to improve our exterior curb appeal other than keep it original, true to original architecture and construction in the neighborhood. For now, it's unique and fun. Thanks for reading.  ~ published in 2018