Home Town: First Time's the Charm

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."

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."

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.

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.

Exterior updates include new paint, porch railing and fresh landscaping. "I just wanted to find ways to take what was good about the house already and keep that, restore that," Erin told Jemarcus, "but then find ways to apply the things that make it you."

When Ben worked formerly as a youth minister, he knew and worked with Laurel native Jemarcus Ross (left), who was then just a high-school student.

Now 25 years old, Jemarcus is well-known in Laurel where he works as a coach and mentor — coaching gymnastics, cheerleading and basketball. He's ready to purchase his first home and his all-in budget is $150,000. Ben and Erin are especially excited when young clients seek to purchase a home and remain in their hometown of Laurel. "He's going to inspire the younger people that he teaches," says Erin, "and by buying a house and being so young and doing so much with his talent here — that has a big ripple effect in the community."

Erin shows Jemarcus her house portrait for the proposed redesign of the Berry House. "I could make it look more like you," she says. "More your style, a little more masculine. Getting to know you and the colors that you love, you've mentioned a lot of charcoal, olive and mustard and deep earthy tones. We're adding a (porch) railing, new roof and a whole lot of rot repair."

The renovation included a stylish upgrade to the porch and front entry, including new porch railing, classic ceiling fan and new paint for the original front door, now in muted mustard-yellow.

Removal of old, worn carpeting reveals original hardwood floors in remarkably good shape for their age.

The spacious living room comes with a fireplace and French doors and, with the exception of the worn and dirty wall-to-wall carpet, is in fairly good shape.

The fundamental changes in the living room are minor and mainly cosmetic, with new paint and lighting. New furnishings, window treatments and a fresh color palette serve to create the room's visual transformation.

The living and dining room renovations needed are modest, with just a basic freshen-up being sufficient. Ben estimated the reno costs for the upgrades to those two rooms at around $10,000.

The fireplace has been upgraded with a custom smear finish to the original brick and mortar, painted in charcoal gray.

The original hardwood flooring, which had been covered by carpeting, was in such good shape that refinishing was not required — just a good cleaning.

Ben and Randy crafted a coffee table for the living room using rare purple-heart lumber, dovetail joinery and a custom-poured concrete top. The purple-heart wood is dense and solid, so the joinery will be extraordinarily sturdy and strong.

The deep purple shade of the wood used for the coffee table is entirely natural, not the result of a wood stain. With the natural construction with concrete surface, this table reflects Ben's take on modern industrial design.

Ben found an old weight-lifting bench in the garage, which Erin and Mallory recovered and repurposed as a hallway bench, ideal for changing shoes, storing accessories, etc.

Like the living room, the dining room prior to the renovation was structurally in good shape but could do with a few simple upgrades to enhance the appearance and create something that's in keeping with Jemarcus's style choices.

The dining room carries through with colors from Jemarcus's preferred palette, including mustard yellow, neutrals and natural wood tones.

A new light fixture with rectangular drum shade adds an additional modern touch to the dining space.

The kitchen is fairly spacious for a house this size, but is seriously dated and in need of an update. Prior to the renovation it came with beadboard paneling and ceiling, with the walls painted a vivid brick red. Beadboard, once a popular and inexpensive wall covering, is actually a well-made and durable material, and, if in good condition, can be a sought-after feature, especially for a vintage space.

As seen in this computer rendering for the redesign, Erin recommended retaining the original beadboard, but altering the color scheme and layout of the room fairly significantly.

"If we change the colors, we can make it better, for sure," said Erin. "New lighting, pull up the linoleum, and update the floors and keep all the beadboard. ... Then we use the existing closet to build a refrigerator [enclosure] so you have even more room."

A more subtle palette, updated lighting and modern appliances will help create the more contemporary vibe that Jemarcus is looking for. With new cabinetry, countertops and a reconfigured layout, Ben estimates the cost of the kitchen upgrade at $425,000.

Highlights in the newly renovated kitchen include industrial-style open shelving and new countertops in gray marble — a luxury choice that still emulates the concrete and industrial look that Jemarcus desires.

Re-locating the refrigerator into a new enclosure makes room for lots of new counter space and cabinet storage.

The other space prime for a serious upgrade is the bathroom, with dated '80s-era lighting, outdated fixtures and stained wallpaper.

The shower could use a makeover, though Erin recommends keeping the original tub since it's a vintage cast-iron piece.

The elaborately patterned wallpaper finish is now replaced with sheetrock, painted in pale gray. The original cast-iron tub has been re-porcelained and is now fitted with a custom wood front panel in dark-stained Spanish cedar, adding a warm, luxury touch.

The bathroom upgrade, though functionally simple and demo-free, completely changes the look and feel of the space, creating a much more clean and modern feel. The new flooring is sheet-vinyl in a black-and-white pattern that emulates period tile.

The garage door was completely rotted at the base, overgrown with vines and essentially beyond repair.

Ben designed new garage door made from reclaimed cedar, cherry and walnut in natural finishes — creating a multi-hued palette in rich, varied wood tones.

The new custom garage door retains the barn-door suspension of the original, but provides a bold new visual accent.

The home's curb appeal has been boosted with a newly restored front porch and front entry, one of the homeowner's top priorities.

The 1920s-era Berry House was in a desirable location but the bland exterior house lacked the curb appeal and the industrial styling that new homeowner Jemarcus was searching for in his first home.

The home exterior is substantially transformed with a porch upgrade, new railing, fresh landscaping and an all-new color palette. Other major upgrades include repair of a drainage issue that was contributing to the deteriorated brick and repairs to the concrete front walkway.

New homeowner Jemarcus Ross gets a first look at his newly renovated home.

Jemarcus is practically overwhelmed with excitement at the transformation of the living and dining rooms.

Dining room

Kitchen