♪♪
♪ Woh oh ♪
♪ Woh oh oh oh oh oh ♪
♪ Woh oh oh oh ♪
Busy parents Dorothy and John
are desperately seeking their first family home.
They're currently living with John's parents,
which has its perks, but I think it's safe to say,
in the nicest way possible, they need out.
I'm John. - And I'm Dorothy
and this is Stella
and we have another little one coming along.
So this is not just any restaurant and bar.
This bar is very special.
John and I met right here at the restaurant.
We were both students.
Now, Dorothy works at that same college
we both attended
and we own this bar and restaurant.
So it's kind of a crazy, full-circle thing.
Hey. We need a pulled- pork quesadilla.
I got two of those right here.
You know, Stella takes the place over
when she's here; ton of energy.
She runs up and down. We call it
her little dancefloor over there.
We are currently staying at my in-laws',
which is wonderful.
It's been so nice there, however, sometimes it's nice
just to have some time with just the three of us.
Yay! - So this is our sanctuary,
aka my parents' basement.
Although we're happy to have it,
it's time to make a move
'cause we're bustin' this place out at the seams.
So right now, this is where we keep
all of our clothes and our stuff
and it's really hard to find anything.
I think John's maybe -- Oh! You found your shirt.
We have our shoes stacked here.
We have a mix of Stella's toys down here
and there's just not enough space.
So this is a typical night at my parents' house.
Got my mother, Maureen; - Hi.
my father, Jack; my sister, Kaitlin;
my brother Karl; and my brother Kevin.
Right now, we're in one bedroom.
It's the three of us, soon to be four of us there.
We are so grateful to Jack and Maureen,
my in-laws, for having us here.
I don't know what we'd do without them, at this point.
But we're lookin' forward to moving on.
Dream home? Dead-end street,
big basement, big backyard for Stella,
3 bedrooms, 2-bath.
Dorothy, what else would you like in your dream home?
We need a laundry room. We need a garage.
We need lots of storage and organization, right? So.
And definitely a space for Stella with a big, open-concept.
I get really stressed out very quickly
and John handles stress in the exact opposite way,
so he is calm, cool, and collected all the time.
You're making me a nervous wreck with this thing, Stella.
Keep going, Stella. - Okay, Stella.
Daddy's got it. - Keep goin'.
Hey, Stella, are you excited to find a new house?
[gasp]
Do you want a big house and your own room?
Whee!
Our budget is $798,000. - I'm goin' down.
I feel like that's just a start.
Dorothy might have something different to say, though.
$798,000 is not the start.
That's really what it is. I want the best
for the family, you know? Listen, you know what?
Yeah, but the best for the family means
having money in your savings account.
So, whatever we have in our bank account,
I make sure that our bills are paid on time
and everything is okay,
so $798,000 is the final number, and that's it.
♪♪
[Drew] I'm guessing that 5,500 square feet
would be big enough for you.
[John] I think it's a big-enough home.
Wow!
This is really gorgeous.
Now, this is what a home feels like.
- Oh, my gosh. - It's nice.
I love the staircase as soon as you walk in.
It's awfully beautiful. - This house was built in 1998
and they haven't fully renovated the house,
but they've done a really good job
of spending the money where it counts.
I even love this, like the detail here.
It's awfully beautiful, the way they have it.
Gives it a nice touch without spending a ton of money.
Yeah. It's just a small detail
that makes it feel very homelike.
[Jonathan] And if you like this material,
that's something we can do to any house.
Now, what's your thought about the floors
'cause this is a little bit more of a traditional stain,
but the floors are beautiful, all finished in place.
I actually love this and I love the way
it's just a tad on the dark side.
You have this entertaining room over here.
This is your front room.
You have your dining space on that side.
Come on through here, this wide hallway.
This is your living room.
My gosh! This is a big room.
This is where the family's gonna sit down and relax.
This feels good, right? - Yeah.
I love this, here, where the TV is,
with the bookcases on either side.
You've always wanted something like that.
This is your kitchen, eat-in area.
In your perfect home, do you need to have
breakfast-bar seating,
kitchen eat-in area, and a dining room table?
Um, I think --
I think two out of three are okay for us.
Do you like a kitchen this size? Come on in.
This is a really nice-sized kitchen.
I love it.
This is gonna be great for the family.
Get together, hang out. We can see everybody
from the living room to the kitchen.
I also really love the big island in the center, right?
I'm looking at all the storage that this has over here.
Let's try something. You ready?
What would you like to drink?
What're you having? - Water.
- A water? - I'll have a beer.
Beer? What are you doing?
I'd like something that has maybe
a little spritz of lemon in it and --
I can find it. Hang on.
Here we go, look, there's so much room here.
I can hand it out; we could hang out.
This is a good flow.
What do you like for a color tone?
Like a really, really dark, rich brown.
Okay. And would you go for that?
I like a little more rustic, dark brown as well,
you know, so. But I think you're lookin'
for a little more glitz and glam.
I need to clarify something here.
So you're telling me you want a dark,
blingy, glam-y brown
and you want a medieval, dark, rustic brown?
What the heck is the difference?!
There's a difference.
Let's do a little test game here.
I want you to just thumbs up or thumbs down.
What do you think of the countertop?
Okay.
What do you think of stainless-steel appliances?
Okay. What do you think of that light fixture
over the dining room table? - Ew.
- Really?! - Okay.
Now, what do you think about the Roman pillars?
I quit. - [laughter]
Oh, yeah. You guys are such a mix.
I can't figure out what you want.
As we spend a little more time together,
hopefully, I'm really gonna figure out what you like
'cause I wanna deliver something that you love, in the end.
Oh, wow. This is a beautiful space, isn't it?
[John] Oh, this is a family backyard, right here.
Ah, beautiful level.
- Yeah. - Right?
This is nice. Lots of space.
And it's so quiet. Listen to that.
[birds tweet softly]
- Beautiful. - Beautiful.
[Dorothy laughs] - Price point.
- Right. - Okay.
Obviously, this house is very expensive,
it's outside your budget. - Yeah.
Any ideas what you think it's listed for?
I know it's definitely a little more
than we're lookin' to spend, that's for sure.
- Yeah. - One what?
$1,595,000.
Phfff. Okay. - Wow.
It's high. Yeah. - It's high. It is high.
Higher than I thought it would be.
Your budget's $798,000.
So that's fine. No problem.
But I'm hoping you saw a few things
in this house that can inspire you
for what we could do in a renovation.
I think we definitely got
some great inspirations from this home.
I mean, it's a little depressing,
the fact that it's double our budget.
- Yeah. - But I think we can create
something from this.
For me, this has actually made my job more difficult
because, now, I really don't have any clue
what you're looking for.
I don't know. I'm feeling a bit more confident.
I feel like I exactly know what I want.
Obviously, Jonathan has not had a pregnant wife
because you do not argue with a pregnant lady.
Yes. That's true. That's true.
♪♪
[Drew] This house was built in 1957.
Oh. This is a cardio workout here.
No need for the gym.
- Here you go. - Thank you.
Wow, look at that fireplace.
I love this fireplace, with the stone.
Look at this.
I like this.
- You actually like that? - I love it.
Because it has that old-school feel, that's why you like it?
Yeah. I do.
[singsong] Somebody doesn't like it.
I wouldn't -- I wouldn't say I liked it, John.
You think you really like it? - Yeah. I like it.
I think it brings character,
you know, right?
I don't know. It just looks old.
There is an elephant in the room and, just as I expected,
Dorothy had something to say about it.
Yes, the stone has to go.
This is a detached side split with 1,800 square feet,
four bedrooms, three bathrooms.
Even though there have been some updates,
I know Jonathan can do much better.
I don't really have a problem with the stone, itself.
It could be cleaned up. It could look better.
I have a problem with the location.
The main floor's a lot bigger than you may think.
If the fireplace was relocated over there...
you would have so much more room for your living space.
I'd design a more compact fireplace
with some rustic flair, then combine a mix of contemporary
and classic furniture pieces to suit both your tastes.
And, I'd open the whole space right up
to let the natural light in.
Then, all of a sudden, you've got this massive open-concept.
Look around here. Look how much more space you have.
Oh. I see what you're talking about now.
Because your kitchen is right here, then.
Yeah. I see what you're saying.
Wouldn't it be nicer to have a big island right there,
instead of having a big eyesore?
I agree. - Come on in here.
Look at all this space.
Oh, wait, there is no space.
[chuckles with Jonathan] It's so tiny.
They ripped all the old out and they put in all new,
however, they didn't change the floor plans.
[Dorothy] Oh. - We don't need two doors
right next to each other.
Oh, yeah. That doesn't seem like
it makes so much sense, to have two doors, yeah.
Yeah. You're right. There's no flow.
There's no flow for when we have
our family and friends over.
Overall, I feel like it just feels
a little bit too modern for me.
a little bit on the sleek side.
I think it might be the color that's throwing me off in here,
like the white countertops and then the white cabinets.
Maybe we can kinda meet in the middle a little bit
and do like a stone backsplash.
[falsetto] "Sure, honey,
we'll think about it." - We'll see about that.
I've seen that look. I've seen that look before.
Yeah. - I've seen that look before.
You're not talking like stone like
the fireplace stone, as a backsplash, are you?
I kinda was.
No! No!
I know, but there's ways that you can do stone.
You can do something that's more of a honed finish.
It can look decent. I've even done brick backsplashes
that look really, really cool. - Right.
It's a matter of blending your two styles.
Trust me, this is a puzzle I can figure out.
This kitchen will be beautiful,
if we can steal a bit more space.
It feels closed off and it feels cramped.
That's an optical illusion.
Look at what's on the other side of this wall.
Oh! Some more cabinets, that's kinda nice.
There's a little more storage.
Yeah.
Hmm.
Oh, wow. This is an awkwardly small room.
This is the master bedroom. - [laughs]
No. Not really.
This is what they were using as an office,
but it's such a small, useless space.
I don't understand why they didn't just
include this space in the kitchen.
'Cause this is the kitchen right behind us here.
This is it right here. - Yeah.
I know you can't see it right now...
But with these walls down,
you would have an amazing open space.
I'd go with dark, hardwood floors
and traditional dining room furniture,
then really glam it up with a classic chandelier,
white cabinetry, and contrasting cream counter.
For you, John, I'd add a stone backsplash
and a big, dark-wood island where you can do
some serious bartending for your friends and family.
That sounds wonderful and that chandelier
in the dining room also sounds really good.
And a nice island in the middle
would be really nice, too, - Oh, yeah.
so people can come hang around it
and enjoy, eat, and drink.
This house has the three bedrooms that you would need.
On top of all the square footage up here,
you have the basement area.
That's a bonus area for you guys,
future playspace for the kids.
- That'd be wonderful, yeah. - Yeah. That would be great.
Watch your step.
Wow!
It's big. Big space.
Yeah. I mean, it's actually a decent-sized lot,
but as you can see, it's a slope.
[John] I don't know. I don't know.
That's what it was like for us, when we were kids.
We were backed onto the forestry.
We had a rock fort, we called it.
I think you very easily could get a nice, big,
flat space over here. It would take a little bit of landscaping
and a retaining wall. - Yeah.
And that sounds like yet another big project
for this house, right?
I mean, you guys have a healthy budget.
Your budget's $798,000.
This house is listed
at $649,000.
Oh, wow. - Yeah.
That's a little bit higher
than I thought it would be, actually.
Yeah. It is actually high, in my opinion.
They've done this quick-flip renovation of the house
and they're trying to ask top dollar.
They didn't do top-quality work, so I would say
that this house is not worth any more than $620,000.
But we need every penny in order to pull off that big,
open-concept and that beautiful new kitchen.
But I could get this place renovated for $175,000
and have it all done in 7 weeks.
7 weeks.
And it'd still be within our budget,
so that's doable. - Yeah.
I want to show you some more houses, though.
I've already lined up some more showings.
[both] Great.
- [Drew] Thanks, guys. - [Dorothy] Thank you.
There are a lot of great houses in this area.
We can change up a lot of stuff on the inside.
Yeah, but the lot is pretty small and shallow.
I like that some of the work
that has been done, we can save,
like in the bathrooms and some of the flooring.
We still don't have the playroom for the kids.
Right, okay.
♪♪
You guys obviously know this neighborhood.
This is just the shack on the cul-de-sac.
- Nice that it has a garage. - [John] Oh, look at that tree.
I'll have to look into that for you.
We actually were asked to enter through the garage.
Come on in. - [Dorothy] Oh, wow.
[John] All right.
There are some upgrades throughout.
This is great for additional storage and come on in here.
A little tight. - Oh, wow, that ceiling.
This is a rough laundry room. - What is that?!
Oh, don't touch it. I wouldn't touch it.
Do you mean the ceiling or the fluorescent light?
Because this is a terrible light fixture
and then the patch job here is awful.
It looks diseased. - Yeah.
Yeah, this is pretty bad. This is pret-ty bad.
I have a philosophy that your laundry machine
should not make your clothes dirtier than they currently are.
[Dorothy] Gross! - Well, clearly this wasn't
the best way to make the introduction
to Dorothy and John, but, this house will grow on them.
It's a detached side split with 1,900 square feet,
three bedrooms, two bathrooms,
and it has backyard space to spare.
This home has what they need.
I'm confident about that.
I mean, there's a lot that can transform down here,
but let's head upstairs.
Dorothy, you will hit your head; be careful.
Oh, wow. Oh, these stairs.
[suspenseful music plays] Stop being so nervous.
It's just a dirty house.
Oh.
Oh, the kitchen. Wow-ow.
Don't touch anything, John.
Movable island.
- Oh. Just what I always wanted. - How exciting is that?
People pay a lot of money for that, right?
This is a feature! - This is a feature, right here.
Nice. - Or a piece of.
- [laughs] - Or it's a massage table.
I have no idea. This is not a very functional kitchen.
I'm a little tight. I'm a little tight.
- You wanna try that out, there? - I'm a little tight.
- All right. - Thank you. Thank you.
Most families, especially with children,
like you guys, like to have more of an open flow.
Yeah. We have a really, really big family.
We would never be able to fit here.
[John] Grandparents are in and out, you know,
brothers, sisters, friends, who's grabbin',
cuttin' food, preppin' food,
grabbin' food. I mean, we definitely need
a better flow in here, without a doubt.
Sounds like everyone's involved in the kitchen.
[Dorothy] Yeah. Really like -- - Sorry. My bad.
[chuckle] My bad. - Are you breaking things?
Well, that's their solution, I guess, to cover up that.
They're hiding problems,
which concerns me a little bit.
It looks like something leaked over here.
Yeah. So they might be coverin' up problems.
You gotta keep in mind, this is an old house.
This place was built in 1950.
We'd rip all of this out and give you a brand-new kitchen.
You have to see how much space you have.
Go around this wall here, you'll see.
Going into the dining room, you could open this all up.
Oh, I see.
Everything I'm looking at would go.
These walls, especially, would go.
We'd strip the whole kitchen back to the studs
and start fresh with beautiful, full-height cabinetry.
We could even try a stone backsplash
and a contrasting dark-wood island for John;
the dining room could be more traditional,
with a little extra bling for you, Dorothy;
and the flow would be great for entertaining.
That would be pretty amazing.
It would be fantastic, especially with
all our families comin' in and out.
It'd be great. - Well, come on through here.
This is your main living space. - Oh, sure.
Wow, it's a pretty big space.
Yeah, it is, nice and open.
Yeah. You got a fireplace here.
Now, please tell me you don't like this mantle.
- [Dorothy] No. No. - [John] You got it.
I don't really like anything about this fireplace.
I like things a little bit on the fancier edge,
so this top doesn't really do it for me.
I would love to see maybe some really,
really pretty stone to it or something.
Drew, go on that side. All right.
Without the marble, now do you like the brick?
- Oh, wow. No! - No.
I still don't like it. - [laughter]
All right. So this is my thought.
I don't think we have to tear out all the brick
because I do like some of the original elements.
And I know that John likes a big of rustic charm,
so I'd bring the fireplace down a bit,
top it with a chunky mantle, and surround it
with built-in bookcases to combine both your tastes.
It would provide a great focal point for the whole space.
And with the walls down,
you've got great sight lines for keeping an eye on Stella
while you're getting dinner ready.
Feel that open-concept, that would be really,
really nice for all of our family members
to come and enjoy.
Well, you know, the one way to find out
it's open-concept. Let me give you a spin.
I like to dance. - Yeah.
I like to dance with my wife in the living room.
Here, look. See? C'mere.
- Yay! - How's it work?
I think we got a little bit - Looks good.
bit of room, right? - Looks like there's some room.
No, I'm glad you guys can see that potential.
So you have 3 bedrooms.
You have 2.5 bathrooms.
There's a whole other space in the basement
that you could convert into a second living area
A playroom, whatever you want.
- That sounds really wonderful. - Yeah. That sounds great.
Wow!
Now, this is a yard.
[John] Now we're talkin'. - [Dorothy] Oh, wow!
This is really beautiful.
Come on down around here.
See, any kid, growin' up,
needs to have something like this; lots of room to roam.
It feels really private. - It's not on the market yet.
They wanted to list it next week.
and they were looking at pricing the place
at $650,000. It's not bad.
For this neighborhood, that's not a bad price,
however, I would prefer to see us get it
at a target price of $630,000. - Okay.
The nice thing is, it wouldn't take
a heck of a lot to transform this place.
It would take 7 weeks and $160,000.
Well, that would make it pretty much
within our budget, then. - Yeah.
That would be. That would bring you in
about 8 grand under your max budget of $798,000.
Well, you wanna go for it, if we can get it?
I just -- That kitchen just scares me a little bit.
Yeah, but he's gonna fix it.
It's gonna be nice. - Well, but renovations scare me.
They take a lot longer than, sometimes, people say they do.
- What doesn't scare you? - [laughs]
John doesn't scare me. - Okay. All right. John's
gonna be in there, helping me. - Yeah.
- That scares me. - [laughter]
Want more "Property Brothers"?
Check our online videos and see
the before-and-after photos of our favorite renovations.
Plus, access some great behind-the-scenes pictures
and videos, including outtakes and bloopers.
Hey, there, big brother.
You have to see it. Go to hgtv.com/propertybrothers.
♪♪
This is where I met the love of my life.
How are ya? - How are you?
- Good. - We were just reminiscing
about all your good old days here.
- Ohhh. - Nice.
Shall we get to business? - Sounds good.
So you've had some time to think.
Do you want to go with the cul-de-sac shack
or do you want to keep looking?
I guess it is the cul-de-sac shack.
- All right! - Cul-de-sac shack? All right.
- Let's do it. - Good.
- What about a high-five for me? - All right. C'mere. C'mere.
That's better than a high-five.
What about me? - Mwah!
This is good. I'm excited for you guys.
I'm really excited.
So, price point, seller said they wanted $650,000.
That's what they want it listed at,
but I talked to them a little bit.
I said, from looking at the comparable
sold properties in the neighborhood,
I feel $630,000 is a good value. - [Dorothy] Okay.
- I will lock this house down. - All right.
Avoiding the competition and getting an offer in
before the house hits the market, that's rare.
But I'm very comfortable
approaching this seller with this price.
Based on the comparables, this is a fair market value.
Okay. I have news back from the seller.
- [Dorothy] Okay. - I will tell you this much:
the seller was extremely excited to not have to list the house
and actually go through the whole process.
- Oh, good. - So they thanked you for that.
- All right. - And they thanked you
for the offer and said they accept.
- [gasp] Yeah-eah! - Yes!
Yes, yes, yes. Oh, come on.
Do I get in? - Get in here.
- Congratulations. - So exciting.
This house is perfect for Dorothy and John
and they couldn't be happier.
Submitting an offer on a house before it goes on the market
can be like the Wild, Wild West: there are no rules.
But, lucky for us, the seller was actually relieved
to make a deal. Now, Jonathan needs
to get this house move-in-ready before their baby arrives.
I hate to cut the celebration short,
but we have a lot of work to do.
We're gonna need to gut this place
to make it into the elegant, open-concept I have planned
and we're in a hurry. With a baby on the way,
this family needs to get out of the basement
and into their new home as soon as possible.
And, as she's 5 months pregnant,
Dorothy brought her sister along for a little extra muscle.
Amanda, you ready for this? - Totally ready.
See? Some siblings are willing to help. Come on, guys.
We're gonna jump in and we're gonna take a wall down.
[Amanda] Here we go. - 1, 2, 3.
♪♪
Yeah, John! - Oh, that felt good.
- [laughter] - That felt good!
That makes it all worthwhile. [laughter]
Ahh, so that's a pain. Oh, boy.
Bad news. - What is that?
These pipes go all the way across,
which means that we can't do tall cabinets
in any of the kitchen.
Oh. That's not good.
You know how, when we first toured this house,
we saw that there was a lot of water damage around here,
this bulkhead, - Yeah.
weren't sure what was causing it?
That is the toilet upstairs,
so that's toilet water that's been dripping down
into the kitchen for who knows how long.
[John] That's gross. - Oh.
[Jonathan] Yeah.
[suspenseful music plays]
Looks like I'm gonna have my work cut out for me.
Not only do we have hidden plumbing problems,
but there's no insulation.
The more my crew demos,
the more problems we're uncovering.
♪♪
Unfortunately, there's also an issue with the beam.
The gap between the stairs is too narrow for the beam
to fit through to reach from one wall
all the way to the other side, as planned.
So, my engineer recommends reinforcing it with steel
and installing a post
into the basement to carry the weight.
That way we can shorten it up
and it'll still bear all that load.
Ah! - Look at this.
- Oh, hey, guys. So. - Okay. What's happening?
My gosh. It's -- [whirring fades]
What a job.
So, obviously, it doesn't look as open as it's gonna look
because we've got the temporary wall supporting everything.
We've had quite a few issues here
and we're trying to work around those.
In order to strengthen it, we had to put steel,
a layer of steel inside it.
So it did cost us some more money for that,
but I think the final product
is gonna look this much better.
One advantage of shortening it and putting the steel in there:
the beam's actually higher than it was originally going to be.
So you got yourselves an extra 2.5 inches
of more open-concept. - Oh, that's awesome. Okay.
Okay.
In order to carry all of the weight,
it requires an additional post in the basement
and additional footing. - Okay.
So that's concrete work, post, structure,
steel, all of this stuff. - Yeah.
- $2,000 more. - Ooh.
But you don't have a choice.
It's not like "Let's not choose this right now."
It's the structure of the house.
That being said, moving into the kitchen.
We have a whole bunch of problems
that we're dealing with from that bathroom upstairs
and you'll notice, right here, they've notched your joists out
to only 3 inches. - [John] Mm-hmm.
So that means that this compromised joist right here
and these ones that are also narrow
are supporting all the weight of that bathroom upstairs.
That is very dangerous. I now have to have LVLs,
much like the beam we put in there,
LVLs run all the way across here on both sides
to sandwich all of these to strengthen that up.
So to have that go between the ones
that are already here. - Exactly.
Otherwise, it's gonna fall down.
We can't move the plumbing, but I can replace it to fix it.
I basically want to stud out an entire wall
around the kitchen so we can run our electrical,
so we can have the plumbing, so we can have
everything insulated, have it done properly.
But you're gonna lose about 4 inches of your kitchen.
I see. And, prior to that,
there was no insulation, nothing?
Nope. There's nothing in here.
In fact, the other thing, too, you'll notice, nothing is level.
So, if we reinsulate and do everything,
it's about 1,750 bucks. - I mean,
I just think that this is a non-negotiable again.
I feel like, you know,
it's the same thing with the beam.
Like imagine a wall that's not insulated.
You guys are the most laidback people,
for the fact that I just told you $2,000 for a beam,
$1,750 for furring out the kitchen,
$600 to fur down the ceiling.
I know it's a lot of info to take in
and especially a lotta money.
You know, listen. We do have a small,
little piggy bank on the side for stuff like this.
We didn't want to spend it.
We wanted to give the piggy bank
to our new addition to the family
that's due in a couple months, you know?
So, we're trying to limit
the additional spending as best as possible
because baby's gotta eat, you know?
So you're telling me that I'm taking away from baby?
You're taking food right out of the baby's mouth.
Oh, my gosh! Don't guilt me
- [Dorothy laughs] - with stuff like that.
You're taking food right out of the baby's mouth.
I'm trying to make sure
that baby's got a solid roof over its head.
And there's a lotta work to make sure that happens.
Next up, I need to deal with the tree
which is leaning dangerously over that roof.
When I first came to the property, I saw it.
Like there's a pretty unnatural bend
and it's right over top of the house,
so I figured it'd be safer to have you come
and take a look at it.
[thudding]
- You hear that echo? - Yeah. There's like a kno--
See how that sounds a little bit hollow,
compared to another tree that's right next to it.
You can see how
sounds pretty solid.
That tells me it's hollow.
That is not good.
We'll come in with a bucket truck
and we'll piece it out, piece by piece,
and send it right through the chipper.
All right. Well, I appreciate that.
Thank you. - Okay. Okay. Thanks.
As I suspected, now we need to add tree removal
to our growing list of issues to deal with.
Meanwhile, we're getting started on the patio area
and the entrance to the mudroom.
And I'm putting in the post for the point load in the basement
so that beam upstairs is structurally sound.
Also on the list: insulate the entire house.
Plus, we're moving on to deal with the laundry room
and we're uncovering more hidden problems.
The electrical is a mess.
[zap]
[whirring]
I'm taking out my frustrations
with some stress-relieving demolition.
[upbeat tune plays]
Oh, how I was hoping to at least have
some good news for Dorothy and John.
Whoa!
Oh. - Hey.
Hey. What do we got goin' on?
You guys wanted to take a couple swings?
Nah, you look like you got it, you know,
unless you need a break.
Well, you almost have a new door going outside.
[Dorothy] Wow. - This is your mudroom
right here. Lots of room over there. Tuck stuff away.
Oh, my gosh. That is so amazing.
This would be your laundry room.
It's way, way better this way.
But once we stripped everything back,
we found a lot more issues. - Ugh.
- Okay. - There were hidden
junction boxes and hidden electrical.
Everything was no good. They had plumbing here,
hidden inside of the wall that was just shut off.
You can't have plumbing
and electrical in the same wall cavity.
- That makes sense. Yeah. - That's totally illegal.
It makes sense, right.
To pull all of this out and redo all of this,
it's gonna be about 2 grand. - All this money, it's not even
for something that we're necessarily enjoying.
I know it's a necessity, but it's frustrating.
And, please, do not kill me
because I'm just trying to give you all the information
so you guys can make the decision.
Okay.
Remember when we first toured this place?
It looked like one of the trees was leaning pretty bad.
- Mm-hmm. - Okay.
- We had an arborist come out. - Okay.
He took a look at it and he said that it is rotten,
so he said that that is a tree that they would take down
immediately. - Okay.
1,400 bucks. - Ooh.
They have to bring in
a whole boom and a lift
and everything to get to the top 'cause it's such a big tree.
Okay.
One, I don't wanna damage the house, if it does go.
And...
two, if we get rid of the tree, it'll give us
a little more space in front of the house, anyway,
a little more green right there.
You're still the most optimistic people I've ever met.
Yeah. Look. We don't like to spend, waste money,
but these are things that have to be done
and, listen,
I know there's a positive. Listen.
There's gonna be a light at the end of the tunnel
and I know it's not gonna be a train.
♪♪
It's actually kinda fun.
Scary, but fun.
That is how you make a tree disappear.
That's pretty impressive.
Not having it hanging over your roof
has gotta be a bit of peace of mind.
Oh, absolutely, you know.
What about the stump, though?
Will that go away or...?
- Yeah. That's what this guy is. - Oh.
So this will just chew the stump right out.
So it'll take it right down below the ground,
then, you can patch it, put new grass there,
and you'll never even know there was a tree there.
Oh, that's awesome. - Yeah.
Wanna take a peek inside? - Yeah.
- Let's do it. - Do it.
- Oh, my gosh! - Wow.
Wide open, huh?
[tearfully] Yeah!
This is amazing!
This is gonna be a great spot to entertain, huh?
Yeah. Yeah. - Walls have been furred out.
New electrical's all run.
Insulation, all your spray-foam insulation.
- Okay. - It's gonna be very comfortable in here.
Because we are custom-designing your very own kitchen,
- Oo-ooh, fancy! - we can let you pick
every single finish and color and material
that your little hearts desire. - Oh, gosh. Sounds overwhelming.
You're gonna give us all those options?
Well, I narrowed it down to good options,
but I know you'd said before that you love
the look of stained wood - Yes.
and, of course, as per usual...
I swing the opposite way, right?
I really like a little bit of a lighter tone.
You're glitz and glam. - Yeah.
So I'm thinkin' maybe we just marry the two.
- Okay. - So I have samples for you.
What do you think of that color?
So that would just be the island, though.
I'm asking him, first.
Do I like this color? Yes, I love this color.
Okay. - This is me right here.
- And...? - I like that for a small part.
- The island. - Okay.
Then, for the rest of the kitchen,
we could do white cabinets
and we can still have a little detail in --
What's that? - I'm not a huge --
I don't really love white.
I thought you said you do like white.
I don't like stark, stark white, though.
Well, my pants are cream. Come on.
It would look nice, as well, if you wanna go cream.
It will just make it a little bit more traditional,
but still very contemporary.
While we're picking finishes, do you wanna pick some more?
- Let's do it. Let's do it. - Sounds good, yeah.
Here's your laundry room.
- Oh, wow! - Wow. This looks great.
And I love this door, by the way.
I love it, absolutely love it.
I feel like it's really,
really welcoming, like to come in and out
and you can peek your head out if you're doing laundry
and Stella's outside or something.
Now, I'll show you what I picked for the cabinets.
I wanted to still have wood grain
'cause I know you love seeing the wood grain.
So what do you think, kind of a gray stain?
I actually really like it.
I feel like it's light enough for me,
but has a little bit of a wood.
So I think it'll be perfect, you know?
It's actually a really pretty color, too.
What's interesting is the fact that you love this
and this is a pretty modern laundry room.
- Really? Okay. - So.
So maybe I am a little bit more modern
than I thought I was.
Traditional modern girl.
She's a traditional modern girl, right?
I think we've just created a whole new category
of design aesthetic: classic traditional modern.
I'm actually kind of enjoying trying to solve the conundrum
of John and [chuckle] Dorothy's conflicting tastes.
♪♪
Hey, there. - Hello!
Hi! How are ya?
I'm well. I'm getting -- - Whatcha doin'?
Getting rid of the hearth that you hate so much.
Oh, that sounds good.
Yes. It's gonna look good.
What are you doing? - I just wanted
to grab your ear for a moment.
And, let me explain. I went to the doctor
and the doctor did a sonogram of the baby
and the doctor was able to tell if the baby
was a boy or a girl, - What is this?
- but I don't know. - Oh.
But you can know.
You want me to tell you what it is?
- Not right now. - Okay.
So I was thinking, you know, it would be really,
really special for us to celebrate the moment
with you and Drew, I don't know,
when the house is all complete.
Oh, my gosh!
I -- that is the sweetest idea in the world.
I am honored that you would ask me to tell you.
I will -- I'm not opening the envelope
because I will accidentally tell you.
- Okay. - I'm the worst at it.
So I will keep it sealed as well
and, when I reveal all of this to you,
I will reveal all of this to you.
- Sounds exciting. - That is a great idea.
Thank you for being part of our special moment.
That is exc-- That is --
Ooh! I'm getting goosebumps already.
Nobody is getting this info from me.
Thank you. - Thank you.
Dorothy has been so great to work with.
Even though I know she's worried about
all the details and balancing the budget for her family,
especially with the new baby coming.
So I wanna make sure this whole process
goes as smoothly as possible.
At least I'm confident I'm delivering on the design.
I think I'm finally nailing it.
Careful. Careful, Stel.
Whoa-oa!
Hi!
How are you?! - Where are we?! [laughs]
- This is your house. - Oh, wow.
Whaddya think?
Wow-ow!
I love how big the bookshelves are.
Oh, yeah. You've got lots of space and, you know,
it looks like one giant unit, all finished.
Oh!
What do we think about those bricks Jonathan?
What do we think about the bricks?
- Yeah. - They're bricky?
Yeah.
You're not in love with it, huh?
No. - What?!
You wanted that little rustic flair.
Okay. But I'm a pregnant woman.
I can change my mind. Come on. - [laughter]
Is it the red? You don't like the red in the brick?
I think it looks dirty to me.
It is dirty right now. I haven't cleaned it up.
But if you don't like that rustic look,
we can paint it out.
We could do a wash on it so you see
a little bit of the texture of the brick, still,
or we could do a full paint-out on it
and then have it match up better with the shelves.
We could tile it.
There will be an expense to do that.
Do you think tiling is too modern
of a look, maybe, for it?
Well, I didn't think this was too rustic
and, apparently, I'm way out to lunch.
I think that we need to come back.
So if you don't like it that much
and that's such a contrast from what we talked about
the very first time we were here,
I'm guessing there have been more
of those late-night sleepless nights.
A little bit. You know, it's stressful.
This whole process has been a lot of stress,
you know, with a lot of talking,
a lot of figuring out money
and making sure things make sense.
And I'm trying to take some of these, you know,
stressful decisions off your plate.
If it will make your life happier to see the brick gone,
then we will get rid of the brick
and we'll figure something out.
That sounds good. - Yeah. I like that.
So you want something new, like a new tile,
Yeah. - but not very modern.
Not supermodern. Yeah. Yeah. 'Cause I think in my head --
So it's a fresh look, so a fresh look,
but not supermodern tile.
Thanks for being very clear.
See, does that help you at all? - It's so helpful.
And I'm kickin' you guys out now.
Oh, no! - All right. Let's let them
get to work. Let's get outta here.
Stella, take your mom.
Oh, no! - Bye.
- Say, "Bye, Jonathan!" - Mnh.
"Bye!"
♪♪
Dorothy and John have been so sweet
and so calm about all of the issues
we've encountered with this renovation
and I feel badly, having to get them
to dig into their baby fund to cover overages,
so, instead of just opening the envelope on move-in day,
I'm gonna surprise them with a themed nursery design.
♪♪
[smooch]
Have a good one.
Now, I just have to keep it a secret for a few days.
Well, it's time for the magic color.
♪♪
Boy or girl? - Whoa!
"Keep out". You gotta read. - No. That's for them.
I have to see this before they get here.
You are so gonna ruin the surprise.
You always ruin the surprise. - No, I'm not.
Take your sign and let me look.
Oh, they're gonna love it. - Yeah.
As long as you don't blow the surprise.
Zip, lock, [muffled] key gone.
- My gosh. This is so exciting. - Gosh, this is gonna be great.
- I can't wait. Ah! - Walk into our new house.
I know. Look at that red door!
I can't see if we're having a baby boy or baby girl.
Yes!
Welcome. - Welcome to your home.
Ohhh!
Aah! [chuckle]
Wow, this is home, huh?
♪♪
Aah! [claps, laughs]
Oh, my Lord!
Look, this is -- this is absolutely amazing.
Absolutely. - This is not the same place.
Between the bookshelves, everything, the fireplace.
Ohh. Oh, yeah, the fireplace! Look at that.
Oh, the brick is gone! - The brick is gone.
Oh, I am relieved that that brick is not there.
I mean, that brick,
the last time we were here, I thought, "Oh, no."
I love these bookshelves, the cases that you built.
[Jonathan] Yeah. Storage. - They are -- Oh, my gosh.
They make the whole room look really just welcoming.
I love 'em. This is beautiful!
Look at the window! - [Jonathan] And look at the light
comin' through, now that that tree's gone.
[gasp] Wow! - When we wanted a home,
you want it to feel like you're on vacation
and it feels like we got that spot now.
You can enjoy it. It's that much easier to enjoy.
And look at how many spaces there are to sit in here.
I love the big furniture: deep, comfortable,
perfect for entertaining.
Amazing! - That's John's chair down there.
- This is mine. - Oh. Oh, my gosh!
Stella's gonna love this!
[laughter]
No, you nailed it. - Score!
Really gorgeous.
[Jonathan] It took me a while to understand
what you each wanted in the design
and actually even longer to bring your styles together,
but I'm glad you're happy with the final outcome.
I think it suits you both. - It really is perfect.
It is perfect.
And why would you want a wall up
when you have such a gorgeous kitchen
over here. - Right. You're right.
- So we gotta go look at that. - Let's go look.
- Let's go look at it. - Aah! [laughs]
[gasp] Look at this island!
You wanted glitz and glam - I love it!
and then, John, you wanted some traditional.
- That is right up my alley. - [John] Yeah. No, this is it.
It's just like look at this storage in here.
I mean, this is crazy!
Yeah.
I really can't even.
The backsplash, the countertops;
you got the farm sink you wanted.
Oh, yeah!
Oh, my gosh!
Oh, and this window
is so beautiful to see outside!
Just to have new appliances, you know.
I mean, compared to, you know, what was here, you know?
Oh, look, I see a little sparkle here.
This is very beautiful. I love that.
[Jonathan] You said. - That was a good choice.
I'm loving it.
I really wanted that glitz and glam
and I definitely see it. I see it in those
gorgeous light fixtures in the kitchen,
that rose gold that's just so beautiful.
And I love that backsplash.
It's just perfect.
Really, and the cabinets are beautiful.
They are such a great color.
Thank you for your help with that.
I know that that was problematic.
Even just the way it's finished,
going all the way along and, you know,
of course there [chuckle] were
a few complications - [John] Yeah. Right, right.
when we were trying to figure it out,
but we solved all the problems
and, I mean, aesthetically, you would never even know
we had any problems. - [Dorothy] It's perfect.
[Jonathan] Okay. The kitchen was tricky.
We had a few conversations about shades of white
and going with cream cabinets is a bit more traditional,
but it looks great with the dark island.
It feels really inviting.
Before, it was a roof over your head.
Yeah. - Now, it's a home.
It's all about enjoying it, relaxing, and using it
and having it functional and looking beautiful.
And that's what this kitchen is.
It's given us that. - Yeah.
And then, look at this! Look at the chandelier!
Oh, my gosh! This is gorgeous!
Oh!
So here's the oldschool mixed with a little
new school, right? I mean, I like it.
I like it, man. - Oh, my gosh. It's perfect.
And you guys are just such wonderful parents
and such a wonderful couple
that I think it's nice that you have a space
where you can kinda pamper yourself a little bit.
- [John] Yeah. You gotta, right? - This is beautiful.
And what a great table this is.
This is really, really nice.
I love these chairs. - These chairs are really nice.
They look very, very - Let's sit in one.
They're dark and they're Stella-proof, I feel like,
- Yeah. - so that is a good feature.
- Yeah, this is great. - It is really beautiful.
I love seeing you smile this much. - Aah!
I think it is just fantastic. It makes me really happy.
I wanted to create a welcoming space
where you could serve great dinners.
Whether it's just you and your children
or your whole extended family,
I'm just glad you're making yourself comfortable.
I don't wanna leave here. I just wanna stay here.
Aah! - You don't wanna see
your laundry room? - No. I'm ready to see.
I'm ready to go. - Let's go. Let's go.
My, this is gorgeous!
[gasp] - This is amazing.
Now, this is a laundry room.
It's another living space, almost, like.
And look at the cabinets!
Wow! - You got all the storage
you wanted. - Yeah.
And just having access through the backyard, to come in.
You talk about flow and how important that is.
The whole house is developing
that flow, which is really, really nice.
Yeah. Let's look at these appliances.
They're really high-end.
I mean, just like upstairs was.
They're gorgeous.
This was a lot more modern
than you were comfortable going with upstairs,
but I wanted it to feel fresh and clean.
This, as perfect as it is, does not hold a candle
to the next surprise that we have for you.
I just started sweating.
You're shaking a little bit.
I can see the shaking.
We're doin' this for our family.
Listen. Boy, girl,
they're gonna have a great place to live
and a great place, you know, to be raised.
♪♪
Oh! - [John laughs]
It's a boy.
[laughter]
Stella's gonna have a little baby brother.
You got me tearin' up over here.
Ohh!
Oh, my gosh. - Let me kiss the baby.
This is such a beautiful nursery.
Oh, it's gorgeous. - Oh, man.
[gasp] Oh, I love the nautical theme.
It's so beautiful.
Oh, my gosh!
You excited? - Yeah. [laughs]
I'm so happy for you guys.
Oh!
Thank you, guys. This is a great surprise.
You guys have just been an absolute pleasure
to work with. - Thank you.
Thank you so, so much. Oh!
You're very welcome.
- Thank you. - Oh!
- I'm comin'. - I'll take a hug.
Thank you. Ohhh!
Dorothy and John are ready to move into their new house
and have some personal space back in their lives.
Location and, ultimately,
quality of life were the reasons
Dorothy and John selected this house.
They wanted to be closer to their families,
Dorothy's work, and the bar that they own.
When they started this journey,
these two definitely didn't share the same aesthetic,
but, with Jonathan's keen eye, he unified their taste
rather successfully
and just in time to welcome baby number 2.
That was so cute. Get all the warm
and tingly feelings goin'. - You know what?
I bet I'm gonna be a dad before you.
That means I get to be the cool uncle first.
Pbbt! Define cool.
Magician, hello.
Magic is cool? - Yeah.
Wow. News to me.
Congratulations!
Aaaaah!
[laughter]
Check us out on Twitter @MrDrewScott, @MrSilverScott,
and #PropertyBrothers.
- Hey. - Ohhh!
- Yay-ay! - Yay-ay!