$21,000 for 10 Acres and an Old Trailer: Would You Have Bought It?
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| Front of the home before and after |
$21,000 for 10 acres and a trailer home that had definitely seen better days. Would you have bought it and fixed it up—or passed it by?
I know what you're probably thinking when you see the before pictures.
She's ugly.
And honestly? We knew she was ugly when we bought her.
But we also saw something else.
Potential.
Back in 2016, we bought this property in northern Michigan for $21,000. It came with 10 acres and a small trailer home that needed a whole lot of love.
Ten years later, we've put a whole lot of time, sweat, money, and probably a few too many dumpsters into bringing this old girl back to life.
And today, it's one of our favorite places to spend the summer.
From an Old Trailer to Our Summer Getaway
This property has become a place where we can slow down and enjoy ourselves.
We have campfires, go ATVing, walk around the property, and spend time together as a family.
But it didn't look like this when we bought it.
The previous owners had added onto the trailer, but the exterior was unfinished. The siding wasn't completed, and many of the windows needed to be replaced.
So we got to work.
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| Siding and Roof Before & After |
We reshingled the roof because there were leaks, finished the siding, and replaced almost all of the windows.
The front deck was basically falling apart, so we rebuilt that too.
Just finishing the siding and replacing the windows made a huge difference.
It finally started looking like a place we actually wanted to spend time in.
Goodbye, Old Shed
There was also an old shed sitting behind the trailer that had seen better days.
So it had to go.
We tore it down and rented a dumpster.
Actually, I think we've had three or four dumpsters over the years.
When you're renovating a place that has been neglected for a long time, the debris adds up quickly.
Old construction materials, trash, pieces of the old interior—it all had to go somewhere.
And eventually, that old shed disappeared too.
The Inside Was Completely Gutted
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| Before All the Renovations Began |
The inside was another story altogether.
Much of the trailer was gutted down to the studs.
At one point, you could stand in what would eventually become the kitchen and look straight into the living room while staring at exposed walls and unfinished construction.
And it stayed that way for quite a while.
Remember, we don't live here full-time.
We're seasonal.
That meant my husband had to do much of the work when we were actually able to be at the property.
So this renovation wasn't something we could knock out in a few weekends.
It became a slow, ongoing project.
The Kitchen Had to Go
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| Kitchen Makeover Before & After |
The original kitchen was…well, let's just say it wasn't staying.
It was old, worn out, and honestly pretty gross.
So we completely gutted it.
For a while, we had a kitchen that looked more like a construction zone than a kitchen.
Eventually, my husband got the drywall up, and we were finally able to start putting the room back together.
We bought new cabinets and countertops, a new sink, and eventually got the kitchen looking like a real kitchen again.
I believe we got the cabinets from Menards.
And if you've ever been to a property where the nearest store is about 40 minutes away, you know the problem.
Forget something?
That's an hour and 20 minutes round trip just to go get it.
We eventually stained the cabinets, and we decided not to install a traditional stove.
Instead, we use a cooktop and an air fryer.
And honestly?
It works perfectly for us.
It was such a relief to have our kitchen back because, for a while, we were cooking on grills.
Then Came the Bathroom
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| Bathroom Before & After |
Once the kitchen was moving along, it was time to tackle the bathroom.
This room needed a complete overhaul too.
The layout wasn't working, and pretty much everything needed updating.
We installed a new water heater, new flooring, a new window, a new vanity, and a new toilet.
And let's just say…
You don't even want to know what was in the old toilet.
Whatever it was, it went into the dumpster.
And I'm perfectly happy leaving that memory in the past.
Running Water Is a Blessing
One of the biggest challenges during the renovation was that we didn't have a finished bathroom.
Before it was completed, we had a little porta potty set up in a breezeway area.
We also brought water bottles with us so we could wash up and wash our hair.
It was cold.
Very cold.
So when the bathroom was finally finished, I was incredibly happy.
No more porta potty.
No more bottle baths.
No more trying to figure out how to wash your hair with a few bottles of water.
Running water is a blessing.
And there was another major project we had to tackle: the well.
We had to have a new well drilled, which added another expense to the growing renovation bill.
Honestly, I couldn't even tell you exactly how much we've spent renovating this place over the years.
And maybe it's better that I don't know.
Another Shed Had to Go
There was another shed outside that we used to hold construction debris.
Eventually, that one had to go too.
So we tore it down, rented another dumpster, and cleaned everything up.
Now it's gone.
The property is cleaner, more functional, and starting to look like the place we envisioned when we first bought it.
And Then We Built a Garage
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| Garage Being Built |
The renovation didn't stop with the trailer.
We also built a garage.
And yes, there's still more work to do.
There are still projects waiting for us.
But after all these years, we're finally getting close.
Ten Years Later…
We've been working on this place since 2016.
That's a long time.
There have been plenty of weekends and summer days spent working instead of relaxing.
There have been trips to the hardware store.
There have been dumpsters.
There have been surprises.
There have been projects that took longer than expected.
And there has definitely been money spent that we didn't originally plan on spending.
But slowly, this old girl has come back to life.
Today, this property is one of our favorite summer hangouts.
It's where we have campfires.
It's where we ride ATVs.
It's where we walk the property.
It's where we spend time together.
And even though she's still not completely finished, we're getting close.
We have two rooms left to complete.
After that, hopefully, we can finally say the renovation is done.
Well…
Maybe.
Because if you've ever owned a house, you know that "done" doesn't always mean done.
So, Would You Have Bought It?
That's the question I want to leave you with.
Knowing what you know now…
Knowing that we paid $21,000 for 10 acres and an old trailer.
Knowing that the roof needed work.
The siding needed to be finished.
The windows needed replacing.
The deck needed rebuilding.
The inside had to be gutted.
The kitchen had to be completely redone.
The bathroom had to be rebuilt.
We needed a new well.
We tore down multiple sheds.
We rented several dumpsters.
And we eventually built a garage.
Would you have pulled the trigger and bought her?
Or would you have driven right past and said, "No way"?
For us, we saw the potential.
And after all these years, I'm glad we did.
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