Southport Magazine

Hard work pays off!
If you travel east on Nash street, just past the post office on the left you will see it!  The Candy Store House.  Its retro shape and soft pink hue draw you in, like a month to a flame.  It is one of those houses that make you wonder about its past and present.  Built in 1912, it was a general store that sold candy, which is where it got its name.  Through the years, different businesses have come and gone including: George Autry’s Shoe Repair, a watch repair shop and a laundromat.  It was a Shell Museum before current owners, Susan and John Lambeth purchased it in 2011.  John and Susan happened upon the house, while they were looking at the house across the street for sale.

John and Susan live full time in Raleigh, but have been vacationing for years on Oak Island, where they own a beach vacation rental property named, BeachyPeachyKeen.  Oak Island Accommodations has been managing that rental property for them, which you can view at www.rentalsatthebeach.com.

“We finally went to Southport to see what everyone was talking about. Since we lived 11 years in Raleigh’s Historic Oakwood we fell in love with the historic homes in Southport.” explains Susan.

When John and Susan purchased the Candy Store House in 2011, the insurance value of the property was $1!  “We bought it for $65,000 put about $60,000 plus our sweat equity of demo, painting inside and out and keen online shopping for a total of $125,000.”  says Susan.  Currently, Zillow estimates its worth at $282,000.  Talk about a great investment!

And since John and Susan already owned a rental property, creating another rental property was an obvious choice.  And with the help of Oak Island Accommodation managing the short term renters, living in Raleigh has not been an issue.

John works as a Photographer/Videographer for the NC Farm Bureau Federation and Susan is Marketing Director for Carolinas IT.  Combined their skills created a wonderful documentary of their journey from start to finish creating what is now the Candy Store Rental Home.

Here is the link to the other videos that show the restoration process: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdKsukO7Z8VILqbwFfYJBow. The one titled Pre Renovation Home Tour will give you the best idea of the state the property was in when the Lambeths started their remodel.

Here are the blog entries of the Candy Store House.  What an accomplishment!

Enjoy!

Brief Blogs

BLOG#1.
FROM THE BEGINNING – Ok, BlogReaders – thanks for reading! Today I begin this blogsite of “adventures in historic preservation!” As I build this site for a community of those who cherish historic properties I ask for your help. I need suggestions for topics, what you do and don’t want to see on this site, and even how you and others could contribute. Please send me your thoughts! susan@candystorehouse.com

BLOG #2.

Spring 2010 – “Omagosh this little town is SO cute! Look at those Victorian homes and shops. A downtown where old buildings now have restaurants and shops with unusual things for visitors to buy. A waterfront that looks out on the ocean, a lighthouse and an island with ritzy homes. And all these people sitting on the park benches at the waterfront. I really like this town!”

 Those were my thoughts when I discovered Southport, NC. I felt a pull to all things Southport so this became the first of many, many trips to stroll the streets of Southport. And that strolling eventually lead to finding a little hidden historic gem.

BLOG #3.
Summer 2010 – I’m interested in a little home for sale in a great location of Southport. It’s definitely old and somewhat updated with new windows and finished wood floors but a weird floor plan and to make it a nice place I’d be redoing what was redone. And that would be a waste of money. (This is a home across the street that we did not buy.)

BLOG #4.
Susan – Fall 2010 – Poor Little Property! Well the house I looked at – but didn’t love – was sold. Ok, not a problem. And in a way I’m relieved. But across the street I notice a weird little “structure.” Is this a house? Vacant and not impressive, grayish white, boarded up, a large sign across the top with hand painted “Shell Museum.” Chain link fence around it. Pale blue vinyl siding on three sides and pressed metal “brick patterned” metal sheets on the front. Definitely no charm. And what is this weirdly shaped thing anyway?

Back home in Raleigh I spend evenings “shopping” at realtor.com. Always thinking “someday we’ll retire in Southport in a little house that could be a combination shop to sell John’s photos and home for us.” I’ll just keep learning about Southport, the best locations, what lots cost and what houses – even the run down old ones – are going for.

BLOG #5:
Dec. 2010 – Revelation! It’s a store! So every Christmas we drive through Historic Oakwood in downtown Raleigh near the Governor’s Mansion. We lived for 11 years in Oakwood, doing our own “interpretive restoration” on a wonderful 1897 home. (More on that in a future blog.) So now, as I drive down the street and pass by a restored place that was once a grocery store I realize the “zig zag top” design is the same design as the little building in Southport! It’s a some kind of a store! Ok, I understand why this place looks different than most homes. I need to look at it again!

BLOG #6:
Jan 2011 – One of those occasional well-above-normal days in North Carolina. John and I drive around Southport, including a drive past what I now call “the grocery store house.” Doors and windows are boarded up or covered with plastic. “Let’s find out more from the realtor.”

A realtor from Southport Realty is happy to show it to us.

It was a little shocking. A dark interior with heavy blue drapes separating part of the large front room. A tiny tiny kitchen with antique sink, old electric stove and one counter and cabinet. A bathroom with toilet, tiny sink and nasty metal shower. The 30 gallon hot water heater is at least decent. Another large room and two small bedrooms. A window AC unit, sliding glass doors of 1970’s quality and a variety of floorings – carpet in different colors, brittle vinyl flooring and old linoleum tiles – but underneath wood turned dark with glue but we can see it’s in good shape. So what was good? Ten foot high ceilings, the wood floors, large grocery store windows, the 1880 six panel doors and hardware, the hot water heater and the unique exterior design. John wasn’t too impressed. But I was.

BLOG #7:
Feb. 2011 – So I’m drawn to this property. It’s an old building that shouldn’t be torn down. Is it protected from the wrecking ball? I started searching online for “Victorian grocery stores” and similar words. Not much online. But I end up at the website for the NC State Historic Preservation Office. I called, asking if the store’s on the historic properties list. After a bit of research they call me back. Yes! It’s listed of the National Register of Historic Properties and is a “certified historic structure!” What’s more, their website says if restored according to national guidelines and used as an income producing property we can get a 20% state tax credit and a 20% federal one. 40% credit of our restoration expenses! This certified historic structure could be pretty affordable!

BLOG #8: Research to Make an Offer on a Historic Property

March 2011 – Don’t we love google? With its help I’m able to research info on the property we’re interested in and neighbor’s properties. Lot sizes, tax appraisals, past “for sale” listings, past “sold” amounts, how much market values unfortunately seem to be dropping … and more. With this info I feel the listing price that was $150,000 a year ago and is now $125,000 is still too high. A spreadsheet, calculations, comparisons, etc – and we make an offer of $50,000. Pretty quickly we got a response that they would come to $85,000. So we know they’re willing to negotiate and play ball.

BLOG #9:

March 2011 – $85,000 was the counter offer from the heir of the estate. John and I were pleased that she would consider working with us. We countered at $60,000 which was what we had in mind and the amount we thought fair after doing our research. A few days went by and to prepare for the idea that we might not come to an agreement I kept my mind busy with work, redoing the bedroom, family birthdays, etc.. Then I got a call from our realtor who said “She accepted your offer!” I couldn’t believe it! No further negotiating and exactly the price we had in mind! “Oh happy day!” I’m going to have a ball saving this property! We reviewed and signed the paperwork and mailed the earnest money. Now we’re in our NC-required two weeks due diligence period and we have a closing scheduled shortly thereafter.

Then a few days later – our realtor called and told us we had a problem. The sister (heir to the estate) who signed the contract and is the executor of the estate has a sister who didn’t agree to the price and could stop the purchase by not signing the deed. Things were on hold while this sister’s attorney talked with the executor’s attorney. It might be a while for these ladies to come to an agreement. Needless to say we were disappointed.

BLOG #10: Our Offer is accepted … Again!

So I spent a few weeks thinking we’d never get the historic grocery store since the sisters couldn’t agree to sell and it had gone to their attorneys to settle. I put my mind on other things and tried to not be disappointed. John and I talked about it and made one final offer for $65,000. Amazingly enough the sisters must have come to an agreement because they took it! We were under contract for our little gem of a property to restore the exterior historic and renovate the interior “green.”

Under North Carolina law we had two weeks for due diligence to inspect, get finances together and back out for any reason. Let the work begin!

BLOG #11: Due diligence and decent reports
originally posted March 2011 –

NC law gives us two weeks to thoroughly check the property, get finances together … and have second thoughts! During that time we can walk away from purchasing the property.

We had a pest inspection, a home inspection, talked with a builder and reviewed our budget.

The pest inspection showed no evidence of active infestation but a little damage in the past and no treatment having been done recently. That was a decent report.

Our realtor referred a builder to us who met us at the house. We were impressed with this very nice man and hoped to talk further. I asked him for an estimate on gutting and redoing the interior. He said “Depending on your plans and finishes I’d say thirty to forty thousand. Another decent report.

As for the home inspection – it turned out pretty well. A support beam needs to be reinforced and a pyling needs work. Windows need a good bit of patching up, evidence of a squirrel chewing wood in the back roof and a few other minor notes. What has to be redone or installed for the first time however will be electric, plumbing, HVAC, an entire new kitchen and 1 1/2 bathrooms. Essentially we’ll have a clean slate in which to craft our vacation rental home.

The inspector also called a neighbor, Jim Russ, who knew this property and came to see it! When Jim attended Southport High School in the 40’s the high school is where the post office is now. Beside it was our little store before it was moved to its present location. He said he remembered going in after school and buying candy from the big wood and glass cabinets in the center of the store. So instead of the GroceryStoreHouse it’s now the CandyStoreHouse!

BLOG #12: Tax Credits on Historic Home Renovations!

I contacted the NC Historic Preservation Office in Raleigh that manages the program for receiving tax credits for a property on the National Register of Historic Properties. The process is three steps: 1. “evaluation of significance” thereby placing the property on the Register of Historic Properties, 2. approval of our very detailed applications by federal and state on how we will restore the property and 3. receiving the certification of completed work, allowing us to claim tax credits. And celebrate!

I requested emailed info from the NC Historic Preservation Office and boy did I receive it! Actually it’s what everyone receives – 18 detailed documents covering the NC process and the US Dept. of the Interior (National Park Service) process. Printed out the papers were about an inch thick!

A week later, after many nights of reading, I set up an appointment with the NCHPO in downtown Raleigh with pictures of this place we want to buy, drawings of the existing structure and drawings of what we might do. The two men I met with – Jeff and Tim – were so nice and, although they do this all the time, they seemed to share in my excitement. Jeff jumped right in looking closely at my pictures and using words I’ve not used before – clerestory windows, parapet, and some building terms. He was excited that underneath the vinyl siding we have vertically corrugated tin, thinking it would look great to expose that – even though my husband thinks it will look like a tool shed. Jeff gave me guidance on which walls and fixtures can most likely be removed, how to treat windows and doors, and how we might be able to add a skylight and covered porch. Tim, who’s the tax expert, explained that since we’ve decided to use it as a short-term vacation rental property, it would be a NC income-producing property and we can get back tax credits of 40% of our improvement costs. That includes expenses like materials, tradespeople, contractor, drawings and fees but not furnishings, appliances, landscaping and additions.

Time to jump in on the application.
BLOG #13: Closing Day!

April 22, 2011 – Our daughter, Kelsey’s birthday – that must be a lucky thing! A bonus was that our son, Kyler, and girlfriend, Stephanie, came up from Myrtle Beach, to our Oak Island house and could attend the closing with us. Since this was a cash deal there was very little paperwork compared to buying a property with a traditional mortgage. A few signatures, chit chat about our plans for the property and we were handed the (one and only) padlock key!

The four of us went to the house to “feel the ownership!” Since it was about 90 degrees I had bought flavored water and we “raised a paper cup glass” to the new place! We went inside and did a little demolition to see what we had. Pulled back some carpet to see the hardwood floors, took down plastic covering windows and Kyler pushed over some room partition/walls – nothing historic!

We pulled off some 1950′s sheetrock to see what was underneath. Surprise! Wood! Not just framing as I thought but horizontal 3″ or so boards. Probably pine but I’m not sure. I was so excited that I think the rest of the family was a little taken aback! Then as we removed more and more sheetrock we found what I later found out are called “ghost markings!” You see at some point a merchant repainted the walls but only painted around the tables and counters against the wall, leaving the green ”ghost markings” of the previous paint job. How cool is that? A picture from the past!

How to use the property we just purchased!

So before I could begin planning the interior I had to work backwards from the end goal on how this little 920 square foot property will be used. Is this a vacation home that we’ll go to every few weekends or for a week here and there? Is it a small home we want to rent out on an annual basis? Is it, like our Oak Island beach house, available for week long rentals in the summer and we use it the rest of the year? Would there be an advantage to being wheelchair accessible? How about pet-friendly? Or would it be a seasonal rental for “snowbirds” who go south in the winter for a mild climate?

I asked realtors and vacation rental companies what the rental market is like in Southport. I thought about how to manage rentals, living 2 1/2 hours away. I thought about how long we’ll keep this property. I estimated the minimum to bring in each year to cover expenses and the goal of what we’d like to make in rentals. And also a big guess on what might happen in home values. Who knows?!

Whatever “rental type” was selected, meant different plans, building costs, marketing and risks. Once selected we should actually write down (like a business plan) a description of the type of person(s) who will rent, the rental calendar, the furnishings (or lack of), the decor, the quality/price of interior finishes and how to attract the renter(s).

BLOG #14: the fun of designing!
Originally posted SEPTEMBER, 2011 –

Ok so I have to admit I spent hours upon hours designing the interior. And it was/is SO much fun. If I can’t fall asleep I lay there and plan in my head! Using a home version of Visio makes it very easy too. As does googling things like “recommended distance sofa to 42 inch tv”. And sharing the plans with friend like Lynda C. and Maria B. gave me some good feedback.

And naturally these plans get improved and improved and therefore changed, updated and reprinted. But it’s fun!

BLOG #15: CHRISTMAS DAY!
Dec. 25, 2011 –  A great Christmas here in Raleigh. Time to think about things other than a renovation. And the mental break was nice!

I’m still catching up this blog to current happenings so I’ll address happenings more quickly. First topic: side doors.

Early October – our application submitted to NC State Historic Preservation and to US Dept of Parks and Recreation (who supervises historic preservation) was … approved with very few changes. Fantastic!

Big item was approval on side doors where a 70’s style sliding glass door needs to be replaced. Their recommendation was hard-to-understand one stating to replace it with “a half glass door with window beside it.” Hmmm. Don’t think I can live with that! Let’s ask again.
(And remember I’m doing this to get a total of 40% of my costs credit on taxes from Fed and NC!)

I searched online for images of old store doors and talked with several door manufacturers about custom doors. When I sent in the image of what I would have created they thought I was going to buy the old door. They said not to add an old door. Hmm – misunderstood. So then I realized they might accept new doors that have a historic style. Wonderful! I found at Lowe’s online some great patio doors which you can see at the url below. My Christmas present from “the approvers” is that NC folks have approved and they have recommended to the Federal folks that they approve. Fingers crossed! Happy holidays, readers!

BLOG #16: Demolition
Dec. 29, 2011 – In October we began demolition. I went down for a weekend by myself armed with protective gear of gloves, mask and goggles and demo gear of hammers, screw drivers and crowbars. With no one to show me what to do I just jumped in and tried a variety of ways to get the sheetrock off the walls. There were different thicknesses and materials making up sheetrock in the different rooms. Some easy to get off, some made me feel like a sculptor. The ten foot ceiling was a bear to work on – up and down and move the ladder, up and down….you get the picture!
But with the help of gravity some huge hunks fell with a thud!

By the second day I could only work a few hours until my sore right arm just couldn’t do any more.

The next trip down my friend Lynda helped out and on a few future trip hubby John and I completed the job. Our work also included removing old appliances, a metal shower stall, a toilet and more.

Looking online at the typical cost of demolition I think we saved about $5000. Worth the sore arms and dust all over us!

BLOG #17: Enter Brad the Master Carpenter!

In mid-October the demolition was done and we’d had enough of sheetrock! Figuring we’d saved about 5K with the DIY demo we were happy to let someone else do the cleanup and put it into a dumpster. But who would do that?

From across the street, a neighbor came over to introduce himself. He’s a carpenter – or Master Carpenter I should say. Brad is his name. He told us he does all kinds of construction work on Bald Head Island and, if we would hire him for various projects, he’d give us the “family, friends and neighbors” discount. And he told us how he could advise us if we chose to be the general contractor on the project. Most interesting he thinks we’d save about 40%. Hmmmm. I love savings and don’t want to overextend on the project.

John and I decided to give him a try with an urgent project – replacing the broken and missing clerestory windows, currently covered by a “Shell Museum” sign. We’ll see how he does.

BLOG #18: Great Clerestory! Window!

What a difference some new windows can make!

John and I arrived on a Saturday to see our beautifully restored clerestory windows. Brad did a great job! Now with no Shell Museum sign covering them up, with repaired wood trim and broken windows replaced we have more light entering the front great room. Wonderful!

Since the weather was warmer than usual we took advantage of it and painted the front and most obvious left side of the house a pale, muted pink. Naturally I took the pink that I thought was right and, since it wasn’t, kept adding and adding brown paint. Finally I got the pale muted pink I wanted. And since we didn’t have water to wash the green mildew off the sides, we used containers of cleaner wipes which Brad kept referring to as Baby Wipes! And we went through hundreds of them!

BLOG #19: Dinner and Decisions
So master carpenter Brad, John and I went to a nearby restaurant, the Boathouse, for dinner and to talk renovation. I had my plans I had done with Microsoft Visio to review. Each area brought up questions and we were impressed that Brad can handle so much. The old kitchen sink? He can refinish. Install new six foot wide doors? He can install. Foundation repair? He did a lot of this over the years. Take down the chimney? Install a window where there is none? Tile? Blown in insulation? Yep, he can handle! And as a bonus Brad insists we can be our own general contractor and save about 40% on the total cost! So with his local project management, resources and skills I strongly considered finding out more about being the general contractor.

BLOG #20: Being a Contractor in NC
I thought back about an adult ed class i took ages ago. It was on being a residential contractor. Only female in the class. I bought the engineer’s or architect’s three-sided ruler for reading plans. But when it came to doing things like determining how much concrete is needed for the rebar in the footings, I dropped out.

So now I’m ready to look at this again. I googled for info on being a contractor in NC but only found manuals to purchase. Best thing is to go to the decision maker or the building inspections department for Southport. Phone number and some info is online. I called and Wayne, the inspector, was very helpful. Since I work with computer network engineers I know to keep conversations brief and to-the-point and I think he appreciated that. Wayne sent me a few documents and the website had some. I reviewed, realized because we own the house I could do this. No insurance or expense at this point. I faxed it in and about a week later got a call that my Building Permit was ready to pick up. How cool!

AND A GREAT FIND! When we were on site, one of Brad’s helpers who had just come up from under the house called to me “Miss Susan – did you know you have a bath tub under the house?” “No, I said. Bring it up!” Well it took four strong men to pull it up and it WAS a claw foot tub. We decided when years ago it fell thru the rotten wood floor it was just easier to refloor and add a new one! ($625 to refinish and a new claw foot cradle was purchase online since the feet were missing. A year later when digging to plant a hydrangea we discover one of the original feet!)

BLOG #21: DIY Canvas
One statement piece I wanted was a striped awning to be mounted above the store windows. So “vintage store!” I shopped online and visited a local awning manufacturer. Cost at a minimum would be $1200 for this 16′ – 17′ wide awning. So, as a card carrying DIYer I googled for directions on how to make one and customized plans. John built four mounts from pressure treated wood and I found the right material at Joanne’s Fabrics. The material had to be outdoor canvas, wide stripes and I wanted chocolate brown and white or tan. Believe it or not the remnant section had just enough brown and tan wide-striped material, remnant cost and on sale 40% off that! I think it was $4 a yard! Total cost for my DIY awning – about $50!

The tricky parts were sewing together the sections so the stripes lined up as they should. Also challenging was making a cardboard template of just the right scallops for the edge. But now, how do I keep it from raveling? Well while waiting for some trim to “go on sale” (that’s me!) I thought the trim would be hard to bend to the curves of the scallops. There’s got to be a Plan B. After thinking, I decided on acrylic green paint, similar to the door color, mixed with fabric paint additive. So I sketched on a 1″ border and John and I painted two coats of the paint.

After the three gooseneck lights are placed in the top part of the storefront (parapet) we’ll be able to mount the awning. Watch for the pics! (Due to hurricanes I decided to use the material in the front windows, still a salute to the “old store awnings.”

BLOG #22: ReStore – A Great Cause and Great Finds!
I’ve always been one to take something and make it better or use it in a different way. Plus I’m cheap! So I discovered the Habitat for Humanity stores called ReStore. Great name for “restoring!” People and companies donate old furniture, tile, lights, and cabinets galore – all kinds of stuff! And stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot take their displayed items there. Great prices and the profits go to help the Habitat for Humanity cause, providing housing for those who can’t afford it.

Anyway, over the last few months I’ve visited the stores in Cary, NC and Raleigh, NC many times. I’ve found industrial lights that were brand new (but just didn’t sell) for $20 each. Bought all 7 that they had and they’re now in the parapet (top outside), on both sides of the fireplace/TV and will be in the bathroom as sconces. The ones outside I left as natural silver metal but inside have painted the sconces beside the fireplace/TV with Martha Stewart textured black metallic paint. They look like wrought iron! The sconces in the master bath are painted with metallic teal that I mixed up. I also bought a brand new contemporary light fixture ($85 at Lowe’s) for $20. Bought a medallion and painted to match giving the old and new look.

I’ve also gotten doors, a coffee table I’ll paint, door knobs, etc… So check out the ReStore. Such fun!

BLOG #23: Three Weeks to Go!
We’re in the home stretch! Sheetrock was done this past week and only needs a final, very light sanding. Kitchen granite will be installed in a few days, as will the outdoor 120 gallon gas tank. HVAC and electric should finish this week and plumbing too. I’ve got to order one final sink faucet – for the big kitchen sink turned master bath sink – and a few other items. Then the wood floors, finish painting and bring in the furniture.

John and I have saved about $12,000 by doing the interior and exterior painting ourselves. Exterior colors – very pale pink, olive green doors, brown shutters and off-white trim. Inside basic colors are steel gray, muted green, very pale yellow and touches of black and white. Oh and one pop of color that reminds guests of the outside will be the round oak table with claw feet painted glossy, pale pink. Hope it doesn’t sound – or will be – too wild!

BLOG #24: Almost Finished!
HVAC is almost done, allowing us to acclimate the wood flooring pieces for a day or two so it can be laid down – hopefully this Memorial Day weekend. (That reminds me I’ve got to get an American flag and holder!) Brad, the Master Carpenter is laying tile bathroom floors so we can purchase toilets and plumbing can be completed. Window framing, tile backsplash, some painting and many odds and ends yet to go. Last weekend John helped build the new deck which will add another sitting area – and in the future – a nice hot tub!

BLOG #25: Finally – A Focus on Furnishings!
Our target date to be finished is this coming Saturday, June 23rd! Toilets were purchased from Lowes.com so the plumber, Don, can finish up and I think the electric and HVAC is finished. We haven’t been down in two weeks so I haven’t seen the shower and bathroom floors tile work so fingers crossed it looks great. Brad, our carpenter, is finishing hanging doors and trim work. Can’t wait to get in there and finish painting, hanging window treatments, moving in furniture and buying furniture locally! And as a bonus they’re filming Safe Haven with Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel in Southport! I understand July 4 they’ll film the parade. Will be fun to see what’s going on.

And did I write that we’ve been asked to be on the Southport Christmas Tour? What a compliment and naturally we said yes! (Dec. 8th.) If you have suggestions for candy ornaments for the tree, please put on the Guestbook! (I’ll approve and it will be posted in 24 hours.)

BLOG #26: July 4^th, 2012 – a great day to move in the final furnishings and stay at our wonderful, comfortable little place! It’s so much fun to sit on the front steps and hear compliments from people passing by or hearing it mentioned by the tour guides. We have lots of bridal party members, parents, grandparents and honeymooners renting our place through Oak Island Accommodations. We’ve had people get engaged there, honeymoon there and spend anniversaries there. And we have snowbirds from Vermont who travel south to spend the winter in our sweet CandyStoreHouse! It’s been fun and maybe we’ll do it again … in a few years!

If you are interested in renting the Candy Store House visit www.rentalsatthebeach.com and search:  Candy Store House or contact Oak Island Accommodations at 8901 E. Oak Island Dr, Oak Island, NC 28465.  (800) 243-8132. (Southport Accommodations is a division of Oak Island Accommodations.)

Photos by:  John Lambeth and Kristin Goode