On The Market: 'Neglected charm' leads to total rehab in Passyunk Square
The current owner pulled up carpeting and painted on her own, being careful to preserve as much of the original woodwork as possible. By 2012, she hired professionals to do some major work, on the kitchen, a new bathroom and a roof deck.
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When Anne Tirabassi bought her three-bedroom home on Ellsworth Street in 2003, people couldn't believe it.
"People asked, 'Why would you move south of Washington,'" she said.
The home had been occupied by its original owners and had been relatively untouched. Tirabassi was attracted to what she called its "neglected charm."
"It kind of sat un-spruced up for 10 years," she said. "It was to my benefit, because it had all the original woodwork, all the original doors."
She knew she was in for major renovations.
"It had great bones, it was in great condition, but it had wall-to-wall pink carpeting," she said. "I had turned 29, I was single, and I had this house that was just a project."
She pulled up carpeting and painted on her own, being careful to preserve as much of the original woodwork as possible, and eventually had the kitchen redone. By 2012, she was sharing the home with her husband and they decided to engage professionals to do some major work, including a new bathroom and a roof deck.
"We realized, we're all grown up and we can hire somebody now," Tirabassi said.
It was important to the couple that they find an architect and contractor from the neighborhood to do the work.
"How do you live in a row home, how do you make most of the space," she said. "Those two got it because they lived in houses like ours."
Tirabassi said she was drawn to row house life in South Philadelphia because of where she grew up.
"I grew up in a row home in Northeast Philadelphia and I was just so used to living in a space where people had neighbors and spoke to each other and sat on their front steps," she said.
Today the Passyunk Square neighborhood where the home is located is among the most burgeoning in the city. Tirabassi said her family will miss the community they found on the small Ellsworth Street.
"Our little pocket is still this great blend of original homeowners, first-generation immigrants and a flux of young people moving in," she said.
Tirabassi said the family is ready to move on to a new renovation project in Northwest Philadelphia, in East Falls.
"Some people play softball or play darts, and we renovate houses, apparently," she said.
The property is listed by Tim Owen at Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach for $424,900.