A couple have transformed a mansion that sat abandoned for 30 years into an incredible, modern home –adding $745,000 (£556,094) to the property value in the process.

Abby Brothers, 31, and husband Trey, 33, purchased the outdated and rundown property in June 2018 after spotting it online.

They snapped up the home, situated in Aberdeen, North Carolina, and built in 1913, for $155,000 (£85,840) – knowing they were taking on a full-scale renovation project.

"When we saw the home in person we knew it was our home, but it looked so sad and dilapidated,” Abby, who works as a registered nurse, told Jam Press.

“Many people told us we were crazy for buying a home of this size that needed that much work."

The home is a 6,000 sq ft colonial revival brick manor with six bedrooms, four bathrooms, a large foyer with a grand staircase, a kitchen which opens up to the dining room, a study, living room, a sleeping porch and a large attic.

Abby said: "We wanted to restore our home into just that – a home. it was originally built for a family and we wanted to keep her that way, it is our forever home.

"Everything needed to be updated, everything was original, the plumbing, electricity, windows, walls, were all from 1913.

"There was no central air conditioning, which is crucial for the hot North Carolina summers, there was radiator heat, but it was extremely difficult to heat the home, so this was also replaced and the radiators removed.

"Our home had sat abandoned for a long time, estimated over 30 years, and had many leaks in the roof which led to serious water damage, the worst being in the dining room.

"We couldn't walk into the dining room completely because the floor had given way and was in the basement, therefore this entire side of the home required new floor joist and flooring and the roof was repaired and replaced."

As well as this, the couple had to get all of the windows replaced and the brick exterior had to be repointed in multiple areas.

Abby said: "Needless to say, we took our home down to the studs and started fresh with everything.

"Anything that required permits, such as plumbing, electrical, structural repairs or changes, we left to professionals.

"We helped with the demo and we also had our hand in every project, in some form or fashion. Trey refinished the terrazzo floors in the bathrooms and made the concrete countertops in the kitchen/pantry.

"Trey, his mum and stepdad laid all of the tile in the kitchen and bathrooms, with the exception of one bathroom - my family and I laid the tile and that was enough tile laying for me, but we have done all of the interior painting ourselves!"

The renovations took the couple nine months in total and, having turned the dilapidated mansion into a family home, they welcomed son Wim in December 2020.

They had set themselves a budget of between $250,000-$275,000 – chipping away at costs by doing as much DIY as possible – and ended up spending a total of $268,494.

Abby said: "The biggest DIY project was making the concrete countertops in the kitchen!

"Trey attached concrete backer board to the cabinets, attached a Z form countertop mould and poured the concrete, adding chicken wire to strengthen it, using a 2x4 we smoothed the concrete and let it sit and dry."

The couple also decided to keep a lot of the original features of the house, changing the layout of only two areas.

She said: "For the most part, everything is original, the master bathroom was originally a sun porch, a wall was added to create a closet and room for the toilet and plumbing was added to accommodate a double sink, large shower, and clawfoot tub.

"And the kitchen was very small, so we removed walls to open the kitchen to the dining room, since we removed the wall the original kitchen cabinets were on, then we re-used the cabinet doors in the study.

"We also added a half bathroom under the staircase, which was once a 'phone closet'.

"The sinks and tubs in the upstairs bathroom are all original, the hardwood floors are original, all of the trim and doors are original, with updates to stain and paint.

“The front porch roof isn't original but was replaced in the same fashion – apparently a massive snow caved in the porch roof 10+ years prior, so we tried our hardest to keep the home original, but with modern amenities."

The couple have still got the attic left to floor, the basement to finish and some landscaping projects which are yet to be tackled, as well some of the cosmetic work, but are overall thrilled with how their mansion is shaping up.

They have also increased the property value massively thanks to their efforts, with it now worth an estimated $900,000 (£671,791).

Abby added: "Our home is priceless to us. We loved our home when it was falling apart, but that love has grown even more.

"Because we live here, we see all of the flaws, but to know how far our home has come, the flaws can be overlooked.

"Our home is unique and strong, but simple and cosy at the same time.

"We are just an ordinary couple that happened on an extraordinary home."

COST BREAKDOWN:
Masonry $5,000
Siding $3,600
Roof $27,900
Windows £18,000
Partition Wall $24,100
Plaster/drywall $32,000
Wood trim $2,500
Wood floors $28,200
Plumbing $26,675
Electrical $30,000
Heating $44,819
Insulation $13,000
Cleanup $10,700
Miscellaneous $2,000
Total: $268,494