HGTV

On “Home Town,” Erin and Ben Napier have renovated some rough homes, but their latest fixer-upper could be the hardest one yet.

In the Season 7 episode “The Family Tree,” Erin and Ben team up with Brandon, a Laurel, MS, native who is returning home to put down roots. He wants a tidy, attractive house and is willing to spend up to $200,000 to get it.

However, the two-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom place he picks is in terrible shape. The 1940 build has been vacant for a long time, and Ben points out that they need to tidy up before they can even demolish the kitchen.

“Today is a first. We are vacuuming before demo,” Ben says as the team cleans animal droppings. But things get worse when the HGTV stars find termite damage and rotten floor joists. They tell Brandon that the repairs will be so pricey that they should consider tearing the whole place down and starting anew.

Nonetheless, Brandon decides against bulldozing the home. And despite these setbacks, Erin and Ben manage to turn this worn-out building into a dream home. Here’s how they pull it off, with plenty of lessons that might inspire you to tackle some renovations around your own abode, too.

Give a house a symmetrical look

Before: This house was tired and run-down.

HGTV

The first problem Erin and Ben encounter is on the exterior. Brandon wants his home to be symmetrical.

“I’m an engineer. I like things that look like it’s supposed to be like that,” Brandon says.

Erin agrees that the current setup, with the front door on the far left, is not ideal.

“It’s not its best self like this with the door slammed up against the wall,” she says.

After: Moving the door and adding windows improved the look of this home.

HGTV

The team ends up moving the door to the center and adding two windows on either side. They then finish the look by installing a portico over the entrance. The new setup looks not only symmetrical but also charming. While moving doors and windows might be a lot of work, it can make all the difference in creating a welcoming exterior.

Trees add major value to a house

Front yard swings can make a regular house feel like a fun place.

HGTV

While the exterior of this house needs some reorganizing, Erin and Ben point out that there’s one big bonus to the yard: a large tree. Odds are, this tree grew there of its own accord rather than being planted. Nonetheless, it adds major value to the house. So Ben wants to accentuate this feature with some swings.

“Imagine your nieces and nephews coming over, and there’s a nice swing hanging from there,” Ben says.

Ben later enlists Brandon’s grandfather Walter to help make the swings. Walter brings a chunk of wood from his farm, which Ben cuts in half and then shapes into seats. Ben asks Walter to sign the wood before he seals it with a marine varnish, perfectly preserving the signatures.

Once the swings are installed, it’s clear why Erin and Ben thought the tree was such an asset. It’s better than almost any upgrade money could buy!

Budget backsplashes can still look great

Before: The Napiers want to turn this room into a kitchen.

HGTV

Before renovations start, Erin plans to give the new kitchen a cozy brick backsplash. But when the renovation ends up costing a little more than expected, she changes her mind in favor of a cheaper material.

“My original plan was to have actual sliced Chicago brick,” Erin tells David, the tile and flooring installer. “Then after everything that’s happened with the foundation and basically having to rebuild this house from scratch, we need to save money everywhere we can. And I found this porcelain tile that looks like brick.”

After: The new kitchen looks warm and masculine.

HGTV

Sure enough, once the tile is installed, it looks just like brick and the kitchen looks just like Erin imagined. The tile is a smart choice that looks great at a fraction of the price. Plus, it proves that homeowners don’t need to invest in expensive materials to get the right look.

This backsplash looks just like brick.

HGTV

Crown molding won’t work with high windows

This window was too high to install crown molding.

HGTV

Erin would like to give this house crown molding to help it look classic and finished. However, she realizes that the two new front windows are unusually high, which would make installing molding difficult.

“The front windows are the only ones that are this high, but they had to be because we had to account for the sink going under the window, so we can’t do crown,” Erin says. “I don’t see any way it looks good.”

She asks the cabinet maker to inspect the space above the windows but he agrees that there’s not enough space. He points out that the molding would cover the top part of the window.

“It would be better to skip crown. It’ll look nice; it’ll be a cleaner look,” Erin decides.

In the end, the molding isn’t missed and it leaves a lot more space in the budget.

Make small spaces feel functional with the right furniture

Before: Erin Napier called this old kitchen “disgusting.”

HGTV

This home’s original kitchen was at the back of the house, and when Brandon first sees the property, the kitchen is in rough shape. In fact, when they tour the room, Erin says it’s “disgusting.” Harsh!

The Napiers want to gut the kitchen and turn the area into an office with a custom desk. Still, they’ll need to be smart when it comes to space.

“This room is really small. It’s the smallest room in the house, so the desk has to work with the room,” Ben says.

After: Ben Napier made the perfect office desk.

HGTV

He decides to give the L-shaped desk a simple, clean look by using American red oak and a frame made of steel square tubing.

“I don’t do a lot of modern industrial furniture, but this was my take on it,” Ben tells Brandon during the home reveal. “I wanted to give you a desk that fit nicely into the corner.”

It shows how something as simple as furniture can make even a small home extremely functional.

The post Erin and Ben Napier of ‘Home Town’ Reveal One Free Thing That Adds Major Value to a House appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.