Tasteful friends: a tiny Tudor Revival of 1935 in leafy Philadelphia, $498,000

That basement is horrible.

I love it. And I agree the kitchen only needs a little work to bring it up to today’s standards. I think the rooms are appropriately sized. I just hope somebody doesn’t buy it and paint all the woodwork white.

Looks haunted.

Half a mil for a semi-detached?

I'd almost take the whole thing just for the original tile in the bathrooms.

Ugh. All that ugly old woodwork and hardwood floors simply must go.

This home just needs our magic touch: lots of shiplap and cheap looking gray vinyl plank flooring, white Shaker cabinets, white subway tile in kitchen and bathrooms, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, and a soaking tub. Voila!!! A palace fit for a king (or queen).

It has no yard—just an alley with a garage.

Rear yards cost more

Detached houses cost more

It's in Philly, R7 -- you're lucky it has that.

Philly is a 💩hole

In San Diego, where I'm currently looking for housing, $500,000 buys you a tiny and usually ugly condo and that's it. This is a mansion by comparison.

I wouldn't buy it because as R2 mentions, I would paint the dark wood white and feel guilty. Otherwise I like it.

I really like it. It feels warm and stately without being overwhelmingly big. With a little updating it could be a real showplace. Very nice, just picture that huge Christmas tree in front of that big box window. 🙂

I understand the impulse and the anticipated reaction, R12. The thing I like least about the house is the flat brownies if that woodwork in the inglenook. That half-assed zig-zaggy shelf is a later addition and pretty terrible; I'd get rid of it straight away. The rest...it would look better painted (not white) but I would try living with it. In the photo where the lights are on in the inglenook, the wood has a much nicer, nuttier brown color with some depth - if that's true in real life, the wood could be brightened up a bit which would be ideal for me.

In the other photos, though, it looks like a shadowy cavern.

Weird area. Interesting tidbit - Princess Grace grew up around the corner. Despite the myth of the Main Line princess, she was a city girl from a “nice enough” (but far from elite) area of Philly.

These row houses have some great detail. One of the architectural gems of the Philly area that make the rude, boorish, provincial attitudes bearable. If these were in a more central Philly location or a nicer suburb, they would be perfect. But East Falls is a weird and not ideal setting. But the houses are great and can grab a train to Center City. One of the reasons Philly is great - amazing architecture, affordable prices.

You tacky queens wanting to paint it white should have your eyes ripped out Luke Black Mamba’s character in Kill Bill 2

Sad, old interior. Tina, bring me the axe.

I don't know, there's something plasticky about the brown woodwork, the shiny laminate floor ( it may be solid wood, it looks like laminate) I like the kitchen sink.

For $50,000 less, a 1943 house just a block away. Smaller looking but about the same square footage (higher by 150sf because I think they are counting the semi-finished basement room.) Very different with its cottage facade and without the double-height living room, yet with the same feel to it.

The double height ceiling and leaded glass windows make for a unique space. I like it. Especially in an age of white, bland, McMansion design. Fortunately some good architecture left.