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Home Town: First Time's the Charm

December 26, 2021

Ben and Erin Napier help out Laurel native and friend Jemarcus Ross with the purchase and renovation of his first house — fashioning a custom starter home with charm and midcentury elements that reflect Jemarcus's taste for modern and industrial styles.

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Photo: Laura Armour Good

A Little Bit Classic, A Little Bit Modern

Ben and Erin pose for a pic outside new-homeowner Jemarcus Ross's freshly renovated home. The homeowner's aesthetic preference for this project was a comfortable starter home with hints of modern and industrial influence. "The challenge for me," says Erin, "was to take what is a pretty cozy cottage, and to make it feel more like Jemarcus and his style."

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Photo: Laura Armour Good

Sleek and Stylized

Erin shows off the newly redesigned Ross kitchen. "I feel like we did a good job of honoring what the house is," says Erin, "but also, making it feel really cool and slightly modern and industrial in ways that [Jemarcus] will really love."

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Photo: Laura Armour Good

Statement Feature

One of Ben's most distinctive enhancements for this renovation is a new custom-crafted garage door with barn-door style mounting and reclaimed wood in natural finish.

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Before

The Berry House is located in a historic Laurel neighborhood with brick-paved streets. It was built in 1920 and, in the 1950s and '60s, was owned by former Laurel mayor Gordon Berry and his wife Helen. The house has classic lines and does come with a front porch — one of the key features that Jemarcus is looking for. The 1500-square-foot house comes with two bedrooms and one bath. Asking price is $42,000. In its current state, however, the exterior is visually bland — and the roof, fascia, siding, front stairs and some of the exterior brick are in rough shape. Ben estimated the exterior repair costs at around $50,000.

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