Original subtitles

This is pathetic.

The kitchen is what I care about most in the house,

and this has nothing.

Narrator: Chicago couple bryan and jocelyn are fighting over new versus old

as they hunt for more space for their young family.

It's new construction, so there's no work that needs to be done to it.

I think the next house we pick should be vintage

with some projects that I can take on.

This is a huge undertaking.

We have a newborn and a 3-year-old.

What we need to do is just move into a house and call it a day.

I'm struck by the whiteness. But it's bright.

I want something that has character.

There's carved faces up there.

She doesn't quite understand the charm.

[ doorbell rings ]

♪♪

♪♪

jocelyn: We're gonna go meet up with stephanie tonight.

To the tiki bar? Yup.

I'm a clinic director and a physical therapist.

I am a tax and estate planning attorney.

My mom's gonna come over and watch the kids for us.

Melia, do you want to have nana watch you tonight?

We moved to logan square 15 years ago,

and 12 years ago, we bought this condo.

When we first moved in, two bedrooms was perfect.

Now, with two children, we need more space.

Toys have taken over the house.

Most people would probably agree

that jocelyn wears the pants in this house,

and she got her way with the first condo.

I'm hoping I get a little bit more of my say

in our next home.

Nanaaaaaaa!

Hi, sweetie!

How are you?

Are you ready to have a sleepover with nana tonight?

Yes!

This place has so many memories for us.

For a long time, I was not ready to part with this home.

However, I now recognize that it's time

to say goodbye to this house

and to move on to something

that will be bigger and better for us

in the future for our family.

See? Now I'll start to cry.

[ both laugh ]

we'll see everyone later.

Bye.

♪♪

so, tell me, why is it

that you're looking to make a move?

Bryan: We need more space.

I, myself, would like a more traditional home,

an older chicago greystone or bungalow,

whereas I know my wife loves new construction.

It's perfect for us.

Like, there's no maintenance for it.

You look at newer construction,

and you see the same thing --

the white trim, the white cabinetry.

It feels cold to me.

I want something with more of that vintage charm.

He describes it as cold. I describe it as calming.

This has been a problem so far in your search.

The houses you like, you don't like.

The houses you like, you don't like?

That's correct.

And you want a house that requires work,

or you're just more open to it?

I am open to it. Okay.

If anything, I like to have projects.

I grew up with a family of tradesmen.

Having two kids at home and working full-time,

projects just don't get done.

What's the budget that you guys

have been looking in?

I have put a price point of around $750,000.

I feel like I'm willing to go higher than that

as long as we have the right place.

I really love logan square.

We have a very easy commute.

Do you use the train? We do take the train.

So, you take the blue line everyday?

Yup. So that's something that's also really important.

What are you actually looking for the house to be like?

We'd like to see at least four bedrooms.

Three baths.

Whether it be a family room

that's dedicated for the kids

or a finished basement,

I think that's something

that we definitely need in the new place.

One of the things that I would like

would be to have a nice open kitchen,

one for entertaining, one that's also

where I could see the kids close by.

So, we both are looking at having a yard.

We differ on the size of the yard.

Having a place where we could potentially

put a swing set and a garden.

A swing set and garden. Okay.

But to me, if it compromises the size of the house,

then I'm not into that.

♪♪

is this for bryan? It is.

All right. Welcome aboard.

So, this house that we're gonna go look at is in avondale,

so it's only one neighborhood away from our home.

Okay. Just a little further north?

Yeah.

From the address, it looks like

it's not too far from the blue line,

which is really, really nice for us.

It'll make our commute to work a lot easier.

What's the price?

$764,900.

A little higher than what I'd like to spend.

That's okay, being that it's new construction,

it's gonna be move-in ready, and there's not gonna be

any work that we're gonna have to do,

which is gonna be great.

Driver: You folks are up here on the right.

Perfect.

♪♪

it's a new construction.

You can tell that. It's quite boxy.

Let's go meet up with stephanie because it's cold outside.

Come on in and get warmed up.

Good to see you.

Yeah. I'll take your coats,

and please take your shoes off.

They've asked us to do that here

'cause it's brand-new construction.

Okay, great.

This is definitely the open concept you were looking for.

It's a little weird that you can see the neighbors,

like, right there.

That's a little close for me.

That's normal unless we get something on an extra-wide lot.

Oh, it's a nice fireplace.

I don't know if I'm keen on the white everywhere,

especially the white trim, especially in new construction.

It's a little too clean.

I like white. It's a beautiful room, for sure.

Here's where you get to see a new kitchen.

What do you think?

I definitely like how it's more of a modern kitchen.

I kind of feel like it's the size that we have right now.

I do like the island.

Bryan: I like that it's a different color,

not the white that you see all the time.

I'm definitely concerned about the space in this kitchen

because the kitchen is obviously very important to me.

I do like to have a lot of friends over,

and I just feel like this is very narrow, too.

There's not a lot of space to move.

She wants the kitchen to be the main focal point.

That's where she entertains.

To me, when we're gonna be purchasing a home

that's worth this much money, we definitely need something

that's an upgrade from what we currently have.

We really need something that's more grand

than what this kitchen can provide.

Stephanie: You've got a nice family room space back here.

This is where I'd definitely have some of the kids' toys.

They could be playing back here while we're making dinner.

And you can see here, it goes right out

to a nice deck and your yard.

If you can call that a yard.

Well, it is a yard in chicago.

I don't think you have room for a swing set for the kids

or, you know, much play space.

I've seen sometimes when people

incorporate the swing set to the deck,

like a slide coming down from the deck.

It's kind of cool.

Bryan: The backyard's something that's very important to me.

In the house, you can have projects,

but lot size is something that you're not able to change.

So, up here, you guys, there's three bedrooms total.

The fourth bedroom's in the basement.

Down this way, we've got two of the kids bedrooms,

and then this would be the kids' bathroom.

Jocelyn: Good size bathroom for kids.

Bryan: Nice finishes, tub.

I'd like to see a little bit more storage in here.

And the master suite is this way.

Oh, I love this.

This is a great size shower.

Uh, wheres the tub?

There's not a tub in this one.

Jocelyn: You're not gonna get everything that you wanted.

Yeah.

Oh, bryan, here's the closet.

Is this the only closet space in the master?

This is the only master closet. It is.

Okay. So, you've got space, and I don't know where --

this looks like it's my closet.

[ both laugh ]

take a look at the bedroom.

This is huge compared to what we have.

I don't usually see a sitting area

with a couch in the bedroom.

How do you guys think you would use that space?

I think kids will take over it.

It's a nice master.

I do feel like there's some wasted space

that I wish they would've made the use

to add a tub or extra closets.

If you feel like you need more closet space,

you could use part of that side of the master

to build out a closet.

It could be a project for me.

♪♪

stephanie: They did a really great job with the basement, you guys.

You'll see nice, tall ceilings.

And back here this way, we've got the fourth bedroom.

And there's also a full bathroom,

so it's perfect for guests.

This is a great space down here.

Bryan: Almost feels like you're on the first floor.

This would be a great space for the kids

to have a lot of their toys.

It will allow you to keep that second floor really clean.

And look, we've got a wet bar, too.

Yeah. And it's something other than white cabinets.

This is great for entertaining.

Oh, yeah.

It's nice that it's new construction.

It's move-in ready. We don't have to do anything.

The location is fantastic.

I feel everything is kind of that white trim and just blah.

You could do things to fix that, though.

The open floor plan, though, that's wonderful.

I mean, you can see what's going on

from one part of the house to the other

and know exactly what the kids are doing.

With the amount of money that they're asking for in this home,

I think there's definitely features

we'd like to see in the house,

and I'd really like a tub in the master bathroom.

Bryan: For the next home,

maybe you can find something that's been lived in

or has a little bit more character.

Stephanie: Yeah. We can look at something

that's a little bit more vintage.

Bryan has high aspirations of having a home

that's gonna be a fixer-upper.

For me, I think that that is an absolute nightmare.

We have two children under the age of 3 1/2.

What we need to do is just move into a house and call it a day.

♪♪

old irving park -- I don't know why you want us

to live up this far.

It's only about 10 minutes further.

Too far.

♪♪

I feel like we're moving to the suburbs.

This is so much further away

from where we currently live and where we work.

It's just a few extra stops on the blue line.

Beautiful victorian -- and on a corner lot.

Narrator: Bryan and jocelyn are on the hunt in chicago

but can't agree on anything.

Our first home was the condo, which is new construction.

She got everything she wanted from picking out every detail.

I think the next house we pick should be vintage

with some projects that I can take on.

Bryan: The home is gorgeous. Look at the character.

I mean, it's nice that it's a corner lot,

but outside of that, the style of the home

really is not in my taste.

Stephanie just sent a text. She's inside.

♪♪

hey! How you guys doing?

Hi. Good. Hey. Good.

This door is amazing.

Isn't that awesome?

It's original to the house.

How old is this home? It was built in 1893.

It's beautiful. You ready?

I love the staircase right in the entryway.

Bryan really appreciates a lot of character

and charm in these old homes,

and to find a queen anne victorian

is pretty rare in chicago,

especially in this good of condition.

Stephanie: So, you guys can see in here,

they have a lot of the original woodwork.

That's beautiful. The stained glass just pops.

Jocelyn: I'm assuming the stained glass windows

are original to the home?

They're actually not original.

These owners had the stained glass

specifically made to go into the home

because it didn't have any stained glass when they bought it.

And then, hardwood floors, are they --

do you know if they're throughout?

Hardwood floors throughout on this floor.

They look like they're in good shape.

They're a little loud, though.

Reminds me of an older home.

This is the formal dining room.

Bryan: Fireplace. Is this --

do you know if this is actually working?

Stephanie: It's not operational.

It's just the original mantel

and another vintage feature of the home.

I think it's ugly. [ laughs ]

I think it has some very interesting detail.

We call it charming.

Charming. There you go.

Stephanie: And so then this is the family room.

This looks like they are pocket doors.

-Yeah. -I love this.

These are operational pocket doors.

Those are so cool. Solid hardwood.

So if you wanted to close off the rooms more, you could.

Put the kids in here and...

[ laughs ] exactly.

This is just not my taste.

I don't like how there's a division point

between each of the rooms.

I think for an older home, though,

I think they're pretty sizable rooms.

Bryan doesn't mind the defined rooms that this house has.

However, for me and my needs for entertaining

and for having young children,

I definitely need a more open floor plan.

This is an interesting closet here.

Stephanie: It's just a corner cabinet that was built in to the home.

I think it's original, as well.

Even look at the top.

There's carved faces up there.

That's pretty interesting.

[ laughs ]

she doesn't quite understand the charm.

Kitchen's right over here.

All right, so, I know this isn't your dream kitchen,

but I think there's a lot of potential here.

This is pathetic.

The kitchen is what I care about most in the house,

and this has nothing.

It definitely needs to be a lot larger than this.

I need a space for entertaining.

I need to be able to have an open concept

so that I can see my kids.

If we're buying this house, this kitchen's got to go. No.

That would be an additional expense,

but it's definitely a project

that, you know, we could get my family down into.

We have a newborn and a 3-year-old.

There's no time available to do something like that.

This is a huge undertaking.

I think there's redeeming characteristics here, you know?

I think you just have to have a little imagination.

No. No. This kitchen's got to go.

Stephanie: You can also see the size of the yard from here.

Look at how huge it is.

Bryan: It's a beautiful, big yard,

but I don't see a garage.

There's not a garage on this one.

We need a garage.

What would you expect for a garage?

I would tell you to budget $20,000 to $25,000.

There's actually five bedrooms on the second floor.

This would be the master bedroom.

You said five bedrooms up here?

Five bedrooms. Yep.

There were two bathrooms in the listing,

so is there only one bathroom on this floor?

Yeah, there's only one bathroom up here.

Jocelyn: We definitely need an extra bathroom up here.

This is the fifth bedroom,

and it's already connected to the master bedroom,

so you could look into making that a master bathroom.

I don't know if we could do a shower and a tub.

I would like a tub.

You might have to not get your tub.

Guessing $25,000 just in a bathroom?

I think you would need to budget for that,

for a full new bathroom.

All right. [ sighs ] it just keeps adding up.

Stephanie: I knew that not having a master bathroom

was gonna be a problem.

Because of the price point of this home,

at $599,000, they'll get every penny back

if they make the investment of putting in a master bathroom.

The rest of the bedrooms are down this way.

We've got one, two, three extra bedrooms here,

making five total.

And then this is the bathroom.

So, once you have a master bath,

this would be the hall bath for the kids.

Well, here's another project

for you and your family to work on.

This is way too much of an undertaking.

Does this place have a finished basement?

No. It's neat and clean, but it's unfinished space.

Well, we definitely could use that extra space

for the kids to be able to play.

Bryan: I guess maybe that could be another phase of the project.

You keep talking about all these projects.

There's so many things that we need to do to fix this house

to have it be what we want it to be.

I could definitely see the potential in this property.

The problem I have is,

I just don't know what that cost might be.

It could add up pretty quickly.

Well, one thing to remember, too, though,

this house is priced at $599,000,

so it's quite a bit cheaper

than anything else we're seeing.

Narrator: But project-weary jocelyn still wants to find a place

in her ideal location of logan square.

Jocelyn: Here's one that's right here in logan square.

So, it's an early 1900s home,

which was recently renovated.

I like the style.

It's $799,000.

That's more than we want to spend right now.

[ doorbell rings ]

♪♪

here's one that's right here in logan square.

So, it's an early 1900s home, which was recently renovated.

Bryan: I like the style.

Narrator: Jocelyn and bryan are looking for a home

for their growing family.

The problem is he wants a vintage fixer

while she wants move-in ready.

Thank you.

Bryan: Thanks.

This is a nice house.

Yeah, that looks really nice.

It's a nice combination of the siding and the brick.

Yeah, you can see where they added the second floor

on top of the first floor.

But I don't see a front door.

Looks like it might be over there.

That's a little weird.

Let's go find stephanie inside.

Hey, guys. Hi.

Come out of the cold.

Bryan: I like the shiplap. That's unique.

I'm excited to show them this home today,

even though it's way over what they want to spend

'cause I think it could be a perfect compromise.

Bryan's gonna get to have something

with some charm and some character

and a lot of really great attention

to detail in the renovation.

And jocelyn's gonna get to see something

in her target neighborhood that doesn't need any work.

So, come on in.

I'm struck by the whiteness --

white trim, the white walls, the white cabinets.

They took the shiplap and just kept going with it.

But it's bright, like, with the windows

and the taller ceilings.

Something that breaks up the white

is they did the darker doorknobs and hardware,

and then they did the darker countertop here.

It makes it more of a style versus a blank palate.

So, this would have been a transition

where you'd have a support beam.

Instead of just having the beam, they had the stained glass,

the beveled glass, custom made to fit that space.

So it's really more of a feature.

They did another one behind you here,

going into the dining area.

Jocelyn: I love that transition into this room

with the darker trim.

Now, what do you think about this kitchen?

I like this kitchen.

It gives you a nice, open feeling.

Gives you more room, right?

We could still have friends that could kind of

come in here and move around -- or the kids.

And I like that the cabinets

go all the way up to the ceiling, as well,

so you're not missing out on any space.

Stephanie: Now let's see what you guys think about the room in here.

I like the accent chandelier. Oh, wow.

It's a fancy one, right? Yup.

So, in this room, they committed with black trim,

so it kind of gets away from all white.

They set it up as having a dining area

but also a family room space.

You could have kids toys over here,

which makes it kind of tucked away

from the rest of the space.

Or just toys in every room,

like we normally would have.

[ chuckling ] or toys in every room.

And then this window is a window that's original to the home,

so they kept it and built it in with all new woodwork around it.

Really transitions well

from the age of the older bungalow

into the newer home.

Because this home is a little shorter -- it's not as big --

you actually get more yard space.

Oh, this is a nice-sized backyard.

I think there's definitely enough space out there

for a swing set and maybe a little bit of a garden.

I just don't know if we have enough space in here

for all of our needs.

Stephanie: Let's take a look upstairs.

There is a finished basement,

but we'll look at the bedrooms first.

Both kids' rooms here.

And check out this bathroom, you guys.

Tons of design in there.

Wow! I love this. This is beautiful.

I like the floor. Bryan: Definitely pops.

This way is the master.

Oh, this is a nice size.

And we've got a barn door

separating the bathroom from the master.

I love the barn door.

Now, check out the master bath.

Wow! Look at the size of the shower!

This is an amazing shower. [ chuckles ]

but again, no tub. [ chuckles ]

stephanie: You don't want to just use the kids' tub?

Not really. [ laughter ]

I still see a lot of white throughout here.

Um, I do like the pop of that other bathroom.

We can add colors to the walls.

And it's nice having the his-and-her sinks.

His-and-her sinks,

and there's his-and-her closets, too.

Come and check these out.

Two closets, walk-in closets,

one for each of you.

Oh, my goodness, this is huge!

Oh, this would all be mine?

Stephanie: Yeah. Well...

You'd have to talk to jocelyn about that.

I'm not in charge.

I'm sure I'll take over some of yours again.

♪♪

they did finish the basement, you guys,

so we'll get to see a nice family room space here.

Oh. This is a little small.

I was hoping for a little bit more

open space in the basement.

Stephanie: I mean, there is a guest room down this way

with also a guest bathroom.

Remember, too, you guys, if you end up using

the front room as full dining,

then this is the only living space you'll have

aside from the basement.

Yeah, that's true.

I still feel it's a little too small.

Jocelyn: I think it's a wonderful space for adults.

However, when you look at the space,

it's not practical with children.

But I love the character of the home --

you know, a hundred-year-old home,

it's not cookie-cutter.

And it's logan square, bryan.

It's the neighborhood that I really would love to stay in.

But this price is way over what we want to spend,

and I just don't know

if it gives us everything that we want.

I don't want you guys to have to make any decisions

before you're ready, but this house is really unique,

so if you don't decide to buy it, somebody else might.

♪♪

there's one home that fits your style perfectly,

one along mine,

and one that blends both of our interests together.

Narrator: Chicago couple jocelyn and bryan are looking for more space

for their growing family.

Now they just have to decide between old and new.

The new construction,

which is a little bit more your style,

was above what we really want to spend.

Yeah, but it's not that outside of our price range,

and it's new construction, so it's move-in ready.

It's in a great neighborhood.

That whole basement area was spectacular.

That home has a great open floor plan.

That bathroom was nice, but it didn't have a tub,

and I did like that the kitchen wasn't white.

I'm not crazy about that kitchen.

It was pretty small.

That backyard is way too small,

and I just don't see any character in it.

Now, what about the queen anne victorian?

It had the vintage look I love.

That backyard is unbelievable.

But it's that much further of a commute

for us to get to and from work.

It's not an open floor plan, and there's so much work.

I know you're looking for projects,

but that house needs a lot of work

to make it be what we want it to be.

It has a quite a bit of possibility there.

Then there was the vintage home

that has been recently renovated in logan square.

It is way above what we want to spend.

The backyard was actually quite nice for a city.

I thought we could've had a little bit more

family space in the home.

And having the entrance be on the side of the house,

that would bother me with time.

That bathroom, while stunning, does not have a tub.

It's move-in ready.

We don't have any work that needs to be done with it,

and that kitchen was beautiful.

Didn't really need to see another white kitchen.

♪♪

[ doorbell rings ]

jocelyn: Oh!

Spice rack -- almost off.

It's gonna be salvaged. [ laughs ]

in the end, we got the victorian.

I got my vintage.

But I got my move-in ready home

because I'm not moving in until this house is ready.

So, we closed about a month ago,

and we were able to schedule time for my family

to come down for a long weekend

and start with the demolition of the kitchen and upstairs.

This is definitely more than the small projects

you wanted to take on in a house.

The house was originally listed at $599,000.

We were able to negotiate it down to $575,000.

That allowed us to gain a little bit to our renovation budget.

As the projects have kind of expanded,

I think we're gonna probably spend

about $150,000 on renovation.

So, with everything open,

you can really envision your ideal kitchen here.

Just please don't make an all-white kitchen.

I would have loved to have stayed in logan square,

but in the end, this neighborhood and this house

have everything that we could ever ask for.

I think the biggest thing we've learned

through the house-hunting process

is our needs and wants have changed dramatically

since we first bought our condo.

Finding a home for our growing family,

we needed to do something that's right for our family

rather than what maybe we want personally.

We've been told it could take up to six months

before we can move into our home,

and then we'll be able to move into the home

that we've always dreamed of.

It took a lot of imagination, but at the end of the day,

I really do think it's the best of both worlds.