A Renovation Story: Our Backyard Oasis

This renovation has quite a backstory. What was first intended to be a flip quickly became a question of this should be our own personal home. For those who don’t know us, Harmon Home Team is made up of a couple of realtors who also happen to be a real life couple. Throughout the different stages of renovation, we started playing the “what if” game with ourselves.

Keep in mind, when we purchased this home in January, quarantine wasn’t a part of any of our vocabularies. Fast forward just a few months ahead, and we’ve all been under “Stay at Home” orders for what feels like forever, with our homes being our only sources for entertainment. Have I mentioned the pool in the backyard?!!

As the renovation continued to unfold, the “what if’s” quickly turned into “why not?!”

But First…The Backyard

The pool, and what that meant for our blended family of five, was a major selling point. Once the decision took hold that this would be our future home, we decided to made a few additional upgrades.

We covered the existing back patio and added a three-car carport adjacent to the patio and pool area. The drab concrete breeze block got a modern upgrade by simply painting it white and adding the raw wood trim accents. We also framed in a changing area that’s perfect for when visitors arrive and need a quick place to throw on their suit.

Kitchen Overhaul

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The kitchen started as a closed off, separate room from the rest of the house. The previous homeowners attempted to open up the sight lines by creating a pass-through in the existing wall. We decided to take that to another level by completely removing the wall. This created much more opportunity for natural light to fill this, now open, space.

We kept much of the original layout of the “U” shaped kitchen and ultimately decided on a peninsula instead of an island based on the amount of available space. The end result has offered us plenty of room for all of us to be together in the kitchen and dining area. One of the features we love the most is the window overlooking the front of the house and the cul-de-sac where the kids can often be found riding their bikes and shooting basketball.

Open Concept –
Living + Dining Rooms

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The dining and living areas were also separated by a wall which eliminated any natural flow from one room to another. Now that we’ve opened all three spaces, our floor plan feels like it’s doubled in size. We now have views of the backyard and pool area from each room with an abundance of light. Other than removing walls and a lot of paint and new light fixtures, not much else had to be done to these two rooms to give them an updated feel. We added the built-in bookshelves to the living area, creating a ton of additional storage!

Garage Addition – Creating a True Master Suite

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We transformed the existing two car garage into our master suite, mudroom and laundry room. This allowed us ample space for each room as well as a spacious master bathroom with a soaker tub, large tile shower, separate double vanities and a water closet. The original floor plan had all the bedrooms grouped together on one side of the house. With the garage renovation, the master is now on the opposite side of the house, allowing some separation from the kids rooms, plus so much more closet space.

A mudroom is essential for any family and especially one with three kids! Note the utility sink at the far end by the door, just inside the back yard, pool area. This is the perfect spot so you don’t have kids cruising through the house dripping wet just to wash their hands.

Guest Baths

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Each bathroom got a complete facelift. We discovered the original master bath floor was rotting through the floor from a prior shower leak. Thankfully, this was discovered during the inspection phase. We initially intended to enhance this bathroom, without a complete overhaul. After the inspection, we quickly changed course to ensure we had a structurally safe bathroom.

Last, but Not Least – The Exterior Renovation

We added the faux dormer to the front of the house to create a more elevated look to the very shallow pitch of the original roofline. The dormer was a decision we made further into the process as a budget-conscious solution to give the house more prominence without a major expense to the budget. We painted the brick SW Snowbound and the dormer SW Repose Gray and opted for raw wood shutters for contrast.

Since we completed this renovation a lot has evolved in our lives. We are now engaged and have fully moved our blended family into this cozy ranch and are so glad we decided to make this our first home together.

The Renovation Process – A Guide

If you daydream about what your current home could become, take a look at our Building Guide, for our process. We’d love to talk through your ideas and determine what’s possible to transform your home into one that works (even better) for you!