We weren't in the house five minutes before tears started rolling down my mother's face, as she took in the kitschy stenciling on the walls and the orange-and-green shag carpets. I tried to comfort her, detailing all the potential the nearly 100-year-old bungalow had—original beadboard ceilings and horsehair plaster walls, for starters—but she wasn't having it. The second floor of the 2,200-square-foot home was unfinished, and the first was filled with shoddy, half-done remodeling projects and had a musty smell.
Shown: Homeowner Charles McAfee relaxes in the living room.
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