The Dayton House - Circa 1860

I'd say this article on short-term rentals is very timely. By the time we're all finished with the Dayton House we're hoping to have three units and a common area for our guests.

If you've been following us, then you know that our original plan was to just put the house back together after the disaster we had in January of 2020. This renovation project wasn't planned and it wasn't our doing. Our plan was to renovation one room at a time. Just before the disaster, we had had a new roof put on, the chimney pointed, and new walls in the mudroom. We were deciding what our next step would be and then that dreaded text came from Tammy with pictures of a large tree branch on top of our porch roof. It's all in God's timing, right?

Shortly after that, as you know, COVID hit and we were not only under lock-down but COVID caused building material prices and everything else to skyrocket, doubling and tripling in price. As a result, our insurance money didn't go nearly as far as we thought it would.

Then, as we moved forward with the rehab, we, and others had ideas, bigger ideas...bigger than we had ever imagined. There were times where we thought they were crazy ideas but knowing this would be the perfect to do them, we took the plunge. That's why we say this project took on a life of its own. Not only that but choosing the right building materials became more important due to the fact that we didn't want to have to do any more renovations to this house during our lifetime! Higher quality and maintenance-free became the goal.

Being five hours away having only so much time to go back and forth, this project hasn't been easy. At times, it's been exhausting. The Amish don't have phones so writing letters, stopping by when we're in town hoping they're there and leaving notes for them when they're not has proved to be less than ideal. I wouldn't recommend doing a full-scale renovation project like this one from a distance.

We also had to find financing from time to time and trying to find a lender that would lend on a property that was in the middle of renovations was difficult, to say the least but our friend and business associate, Steve from Philadelphia Mortgage came through for us (yes, this is a plug for Steve so call him if you need financing). We've been pushing to get the Great Room and the rest of the house done just enough so that we can finally get the rest of the draw. That hasn't been an easy task and not being there more has caused delays for various reasons.
We know that when this all finished and all is said and done, we'll look back and be glad that we did what we did. But right now, I have to say, we're a bit weary and tired. We still a ways to go and can't see the light at the end of the tunnel just yet but we'll get there, and 2024 is our target year.

We hope The Dayton House will be a treasured retreat full of Farmhouse Elegance and Charm and comforting amenities and that our guests will feel pampered and at home. We also hope that The Dayton House will benefit not just us, but also our neighbors and the community. There is no doubt that this was a community project for sure. We couldn't have done it without all those who helped in big and small ways. Once it's complete, we hope that The Dayton House will provide more than just a place to stay. We hope it will be a place where guests will feel the love, be comfortable, not want to leave, AND can't wait to come back!