Original subtitles

Jonathan: This is freida and eric's forever home.

Drew: They bought it six years ago

when they needed to make more room for grace,

and then, later, with baby harry.

Freida: The house resonated with us

as being a wonderful place to bring up our children.

They loved the idea that another family

had owned the house for 40 years,

and they hope to spend at least that long there themselves.

But first, they have to make it work for their family.

Oh, wait a second. -Yeah.

This is storage.

-Over here, too. -Yeah.

So, we're here to tear out the old...

We have open concept.

...And bring in the new...

Every now and then, you come up with a good idea.

...To help them stay in the home they love.

Oh, my gosh.

This is -- is this our house?

♪♪

jonathan: A house is four walls.

A home? That's where memories are made.

That's what I'm talking about.

This is "property brothers..."

"...Forever home."

♪♪

this is, like, two seconds

walking to restaurants, and to the shops.

Drew: And they don't even mind the busy street.

How you doing guys?

[ indistinct greeting ]

high five.

So, now, hold on a second, here.

Grace. And I know this is harry because he's got the hair,

just like dad.

So, what do you love about the house?

We love being close to the city,

but also having a little bit of space for ourselves.

And we love the neighbors and the schools around here.

Freida: The actual footprint of the house is wonderful.

It's big enough for our growing family.

The family that lived here prior was here for 40 years.

And when we moved here, it was our first house.

So, it was just one of those things

that really resonated with us

as being a wonderful place to bring up our children.

Freida: When we first moved into this house,

grace was 11 months old.

We just felt the love behind the family that lived here.

They raised their children here. It really speaks to our hearts

and it is something that we can foresee ourselves

doing with our children, as well.

Well, you know, when somebody's been here for 40 years

that it's a great forever home.

We just need to update things a little bit,

that way, you can stay here for 40 years.

Yeah. That's the plan.

And then, you can stay here for 40 more years.

What do you want to do to tour us through?

Do you want the kids to come with us? Or...

We're gonna hand them off to the grandparents,

and then, we're gonna head on in.

Alright. Let's do it.

♪♪

okay. This is typical.

-Yeah, a little tight. -Welcome to our house.

I see you already have two different types

of flooring right here.

Did you put in the tile?

Freida: Yeah, yeah. What do you think?

It was functional, and it looks nice.

What would you like to see?

-There's no closet above. -There's no closet.

Freida: So, it's just tricky, because we have two kids,

and things go all over the place.

Things get messy,

and realistically, we would love to

just open up this whole space.

Typically, when we are in this area, it is very narrow.

Yeah, I mean, it just doesn't feel functional for a family.

Well, come on in to the living space.

Imagine having that wall gone.

It would feel so much more spacious.

Even just for your sight line too.

These houses are designed more narrow, but then they're long.

So, you want to take advantage with your furniture placement,

and have things as open as possible.

So, what do you think of everything here?

We love the layout of things,

in terms of how there's a fireplace here.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work.

That would be a dream, to have a fireplace that worked.

We are here to give you everything that you guys

want to have in this house, whatever we can possibly do.

These floors, as much as I love original floors,

they are in rough shape.

They are in rough shape. So, when we actually moved in,

initially, there was carpet over them

and we thought "there's got to be nice wood underneath.

Let's pull it up."

so, we pulled it up,

and...

Unfortunately, it wasn't in great shape.

It is a 100-year-old home.

I know this place could be amazing.

It is going to be a tremendous amount of work,

but it's so worth it.

Especially over in the dining room, too.

Imagine how much more open this would feel

if that wall was gone.

Do you use this as a dining room,

or just for your abcs?

We spend a lot of time in here. This is the center of our house.

It's where we eat. It's where we do homework.

It's where we do artwork.

Drew: Spending a little extra money to take out that wall

will dramatically change the space.

The only thing I like about that wall

is the artwork that's on it.

This is something that eric made when we lived in our condo.

-Oh, nice. -It says, "in a dream,"

eric: And I thought it was really appropriate,

'cause you know, this is really our dream home.

That's amazing. I love that.

This window is actually very important to me,

because in the mornings when I go to work,

I'll goodbye to grace there, she'll give me a hug and kiss,

and she'll say, "see you at the window, daddy."

and she'll run over here, and I'll walk around over here,

and she'll come and wave bye to me over here.

It's one of my favorite parts of the day.

And you know what? That's amazing,

because those are the memories

that make a house your forever home.

Those are the things that people want to keep.

So, cherish all those memories.

And then, the things that don't work,

like that annoying wall, that we can get rid of.

We definitely want everything opened up,

and we need to rework this kitchen.

If you actually look at it,

it looks like you might have lots of storage and everything,

but in reality, it's awkward.

The sink being here in the corner.

This is actually modified, 'cause that's not real storage.

What we ended up doing

is putting our stuff in the dishwasher.

-Oh, you're joking. -Oh, wait a second.

Freida: Yeah. This is storage.

-Over here, too. -Yeah.

That's the challenge in here.

You guys have made do for a long time.

How about you don't have to make do?

How about you actually love spending time in the kitchen?

It'd be a dream.

Let's have a look around the back here.

Part of the reason this kitchen has such an awkward layout

is because they left those back windows to the new edition.

Yeah. It takes up a lot of cabinet space.

Eric: Harry loves to climb on the sofa and actually get across there,

but it's not a safe place.

Just get him to wash the dishes, 'cause the thing's right there.

But what a great opportunity

to improve the footprint of the home,

having the previous owner put this addition on.

Oh, absolutely.

Drew: It looks structurally sound.

I mean, obviously we'll check everything

before we get into working on the place.

What bugs you in this place?

It would be great if this door behind me

could actually lock properly.

So, that's the problem, it doesn't lock?

It doesn't lock from the outside.

Our garage is actually back here,

where we park our car.

And when we take the groceries and the kids out of the car,

we walk the full length of the house,

to the front door, and then into the house.

-That's a pain. -Yeah.

A bit of a pain. But if this was accessible,

we would use this more often.

We can take care of that. I see a lot of options here.

I think this would be much better purposed as a kitchen.

If we had the budget, we could take down the walls

of the addition, and extend your kitchen back here.

We could change out that sliding door for a real back door,

so you could easily come in and out with the kids and groceries.

Freida: Great idea.

That would change the way we use this house every single day.

Drew: That's amazing, well, that's what we want to do.

Unfortunately, it gets cold in the winter.

We have to use heaters in here.

Your hvac system is sized for the home that it's sized for.

What happens a lot of the time is,

they'll add a big space like this,

and then, they'll just tap off one hvac run.

And that's not sizing it properly.

So, if this wall's gone completely,

it'll be a lot easier to condition this space.

But we also want to make sure the insulation

in here's done right. That would be huge.

On top of that, anything else missing?

A powder room on the main floor.

With harry potty training,

and then, having our parents come over to help,

it would be really, really convenient for us

to be able to use a powder room on the main floor.

Yeah, it would be a little bit interesting

to figure out where that would go,

but I'm going to actually create a couple options for you.

We'll present those.

I need to know what your sense of style is.

I need to know some of the features that you like.

So, drew's going to show you a home as an inspiration,

and hopefully we get all kinds of data,

and we'll bring that back.

Now, before I take you to the house, though,

what can you tell us about your style?

Or lack thereof?

My style is clean and modern.

I like openness.

We also like vintage touches.

That sort of, give it a bit of a warmer look.

That would be great.

Cool. And lots of storage solutions.

Definitely. We need it.

Drew: This is a gorgeous century home.

Upstairs, it has a bathroom and three good sized bedrooms.

Oh, this is a massive room.

I think we can concentrate our efforts

on making a new plan for the main floor addition,

the kitchen, dining room, and living room.

And what's your renovation budget?

Our renovation budget is $150,000.

For $150,000, there is a ton that we can do

to open up the flow inside the house,

to have that forever home that you wanted.

Because we want to see grace grow up,

and harry grow up, in the home you've always dreamed of.

Thank you. That would be amazing.

We can't wait.

♪♪

it'll be great to get rid of some of these walls,

to give freida and eric a nice open space.

But first, they're getting some expert help to pack up

and get ready for the next 40 years.

Inside.

We bought this house six years ago,

and it's been a great house to us,

but we are so excited for the next stage of our house.

The main floor is the last piece of the puzzle

to really make this house perfect for us,

not just for now, but as harry and grace grow up.

When we're finished this house,

we're gonna have a huge party,

with all the family here.

♪♪

alright. Who's excited for a little bit of demolition?

-We are. -Yes.

Clearly, grace is, because she has the most important job.

We can't even take this wall down

until you and I take down all the numbers

and the letters, and pack them away in a box.

So, if you can help me with this,

mom and dad can tackle cabinets.

Ready? Alright. Let's go.

Everybody hands in.

One, two, three.

[ all cheer ]

alright. Get in here, grace.

Let's go through this. What are the letters?

Grace: A, b, c, d.

Jonathan: And what sound does an apple make?

[ imitates munching ]

mmm. It's a granny apple.

Oh, look, this one has drew on it.

Yeah, he looks good.

[ laughs ]

attention. Attention.

The main wall is ready for demolition.

Oh, boy. Good job, guys.

Good job, grace.

I also don't think grace should have homework

for at least a week,

because we learned all about our abcs

and 123s over here.

Why don't you take the box into the backyard,

and you can play out there?

And we shall continue.

-Okay. -Alright.

Good job. High five.

Jonathan: Now that grace is safely out of the way,

I'm ready to tear out this kitchen.

No matter what walls stay or come out in the end,

I know they need a kitchen with real storage

and a much more functional design.

Oh, my gosh. That's one way to do it.

Wow.

Come on, man. You got this.

You can do it, baby.

Or not.

Maybe these ones are on there better, or something.

Come on.

You loosened it, and then I did the...

This kitchen was quick to demo

because there was nothing we're saving.

The cabinets are shallow,

and the counter is an awkward shape.

My bigger concern is finding out

what we're dealing with for this dining room wall.

You never know what you're gonna find in a house this old.

Even more so, actually, than the back wall,

this will have an impact on how wide the space feels.

It is lath and plaster.

This is gonna be hard to get through,

and it is gonna be very dirty,

let's throw some masks on.

And then, we'll just start beating up the wall.

-Okay. -Let's do it.

[ groans ]

two hits in, and we have asbestos.

That is a duct that's wrapped in asbestos.

-Really? -How much is that gonna cost?

Depends how many duct runs we have

that are covered in asbestos.

So, that is a duct that's wrapped in asbestos.

-Really? -How much is that gonna cost?

Depends how many duct runs we have

that are covered in asbestos.

It's usually about $500 to a $1,000 per duct.

Eric: Okay.

So, we'll have to have a company come in,

and professionally abate that.

The more asbestos ducts we have to remove,

the more expensive it gets.

Right off the bat, this is bad news,

and off the budget for this asbestos removal in my design.

But as long as we don't go near the ducts,

we can keep going,

and hopefully we won't find any more expensive surprises.

Alright. Wow.

Oh, my god. This is the first time

we've seen this staircase from this angle.

What I think will be even cooler --

step around.

What used to be super dark.

Is now light.

Eric: Wow. You can already feel how much space is along here.

How exciting does it feel to see all of this opened up?

Right now, I'm actually quite emotional.

I just feel like...

Is it hard to see us destroy it?

It is. We've lived in here for six years,

and we've been here every day, opening the cupboards,

passing down the halls.

And to demo it this way, it is a bit...

It's hard to see, but it's part of the process.

Well, I can guarantee you, you bought a great home.

It is very well-built.

A lot of memories, a lot more memories to come.

You'll be able to stand in your kitchen.

You'll be able to see living room, front door.

I know. You can keep an eye on harry,

and whatever trouble he's getting up to.

Why don't you guys head outside, grab grace,

you can call it a day.

I'll finish clearing all of this out.

And when I get you back here,

you'll really be able to see what the bones look like.

-Great. -Okay.

-Good job, guys. -Thank you.

Freida: It's a little bit bittersweet.

I mean, we've been here for the last six years.

We've had both our children grow up in this home.

We're sad to see things change, but obviously, more than that,

we're so excited to create this new space for the family.

♪♪

jonathan: Adam, from my construction team, and I

have a lot of demo to do.

The engineer confirmed this dining room wall

is not load-bearing,

so if we didn't have to wait for the asbestos remediation,

we could take the whole thing out.

We have open concept.

It's great that the dining room wall can come down,

but we're not done exploring yet.

We don't want to leave freida, eric, and the kids

with any asbestos-wrapped ducts.

Adam: Duh duh duh.

[ groans ]

okay, so, we've got another asbestos duct.

Looks like it.

So, that's one there, the original one we found.

This is actually not asbestos-wrapped,

so we're good,

which means the only other possible wall is this one.

Nope. We're clear.

So, let's price for the remediation on these two,

'cause we want all of these walls in the middle gone.

Okay. But I love that this

is not a load,

so we're kind of laughing with that.

♪♪

-well? -Wow. This house is beautiful.

Freida: I love that this garage is attached to the house.

Drew: Imagine that, having quick access to a garage.

I know this house is much bigger than freida and eric's semi,

but the decor is an interesting mix,

and the ground floor has the sort of function

they really need in their forever home.

Wow. Look at this house.

Wow.

-Oh, my goodness. -Big.

It feels really, really welcoming.

This flooring is just beautiful.

Drew: Do you like the oversized tile look?

I think our preference is a bit more

of a smaller, repetitive design.

I like that idea, too -- something that's a pattern

instead of too dark a color, like this.

I know freida's always talked about having a fireplace,

and this is an amazing-looking fireplace right here.

Yeah, a little bit of character.

For the fireplace, maybe a little less ornate.

Yes. Yeah.

It'd be nice to have a working fireplace.

I would love a working fireplace.

Like, a wood burning fireplace, where he can be working?

Probably a gas fireplace, so the kids don't hurt themselves.

I also don't want to hurt myself chopping wood.

Yeah, yeah. I'm with you.

I chopped wood my whole young life

because we lived on a ranch.

Yeah. Done with that.

Yeah. You guys also need something

a little bit nicer for your floors.

I actually really like the color of this floor. Very warm.

I might prefer something slightly warmer.

Warmer? Okay. But not, like, red tones or anything like that?

No, not red tones, just a little bit darker.

And for you guys, imagine having a nice,

big dining space with lots of room.

The wood and the mid-century chairs, here, this is...

This is our style. Yeah. This is perfect.

Why don't we head down the hall?

You'll see they just have a wider board over here.

Oh, right. They don't have the herringbone.

I like this. Closets, lots of storage.

Helpful.

There's a powder room right over here, as well.

Imagine a powder room on your main floor.

This alone makes everything worthwhile.

A huge difference, yeah. And having a closet nearby

to conceal all the mess would be wonderful.

So, the big thing you're noticing right off the top,

here, is this house is way more functional than yours.

Yes. Absolutely.

Come on in here, guys. Look at this kitchen.

Oh, my goodness.

Look at this island.

This is my favorite part of the house, so far.

I love this.

The kids, when we're cooking or preparing food

that they can sit here, do their drawings.

Or when we are hosting,

that we can just gather around the island.

What material is this?

So, this is actually a quartz,

but they have a honed finish on it.

So, it gives you a little bit more of a textured feel.

I really like sort of the light color of the island.

It looks super, super modern, but not too cold.

Okay. Sounds good.

I see here that there's some wood on the lower parts here.

I really like that.

I mean, it'd be a nice contrast, and really nice and fresh

to have white cabinets,

maybe some wood detail in the kitchen, white countertops.

Yeah.

Backsplash will get a little personality.

So, are you guys flexible,

whether it's a slab style like this,

or whether it's a tile with a pattern or color?

I'd be happy with the tile with the pattern,

just for some interest and fun.

And I love that you guys are looking for

a little bit of warmth.

It makes me feel more like a home,

'cause it's not all white on white on white.

Yeah.

I think the best part of this kitchen is being able

to see into the rest of the house.

-Yeah. -Yeah. -It's just great.

Is that another fireplace?

Yeah. Oh, my goodness.

I would love to have built-ins like this in our place,

so we can hide the stuff that we don't want to see

and showcase some of the things that we love.

That's what I do. I'll travel,

and then I'll get pieces

that I put on the shelf because it's a conversation piece.

Yeah, we travel and then we just put them in storage.

Yeah.

I mean this overall look is what I think we're looking for.

The main thing for you guys, it's --

obviously, your house is a different shape than this house,

but I think what we can get from here

are the materials, the flow, the function.

That's all stuff we can add to your place.

Yeah. I can't wait.

I love it. Alright.

Let's get out of here.

Freida and eric certainly know what they want --

lots of wood tones, a light, fresh feel,

something that really says "mid-century modern."

above all, they're looking for an open plan

with great sight lines.

They want a modern kitchen with good function

spiced up with a fun back splash,

plus a working back door and a powder room would make life

so much easier with small children.

-Hey. -Yo.

Jonathan: Ooh, sample time.

Drew: Yes. I've probably spent way too much time

setting this up to look pretty for you.

You could actually just send me a text

with some of the thoughts that you have.

No. If I'm in person, you can touch it.

You can see it. Bro bonding time.

I get to paint the picture.

Then, paint your beautiful story.

Their main thing is they want that fresh feel.

They like a little bit of mid-century, but not too much.

And so, I think this is a good array of stuff

that could work for the space here.

Let's talk floors. Okay.

Old floors, terrible, gone.

They like a nice wide hardboard,

but they don't want anything too dark.

I guess it depends on how bold you go

with some the other furniture pieces,

and the wall color, and the stone.

I think that's pretty. It's nice.

Yeah?

They were really gravitating towards light

with the countertops, but I actually think

a pure white is what they would want.

Okay, but still quartz, so that they don't have to reseal it?

Yeah, exactly. Okay.

Low maintenance, especially, you've got grace and harry.

They're gonna spend a lot of time in the kitchen,

and they're probably gonna be messy.

So, warm mid-tone, light for the countertops.

So, then, for the actual cabinets,

how dark do they want to go?

That's totally up to you.

They actually just like the idea of something fresh,

something new. You can do what you want.

We've got this area I left over here

because I think, regardless of what we do

in the living room, they're probably gonna want

to have better furniture placement.

So, we'll wrap around maybe some furniture there.

That gives us the ability to do tile at the front.

Yeah. This would be front tile options.

If we want to do something that's maybe a little more bold,

I actually like both of these guys.

Yeah. I mean, they said they're game for patterns.

If you want to clean this all up, I can keep going.

Jonathan: When freida and eric walk back in,

they're in for a big surprise.

Oh, hey. Oh, you scared the heck out of me.

-Oh, my god. -Oh, my goodness.

Freida: So crazy.

♪♪

oh, hey. Oh, you scared the heck out of me.

-Oh, my god. -Oh, my goodness.

Wow. This is so crazy.

Oh, my goodness.

Does it feel like home?

It really does not feel like our house.

You guys have been busy here.

If you guys left right now, and we've stopped here,

I wouldn't be mad at you guys.

Drew: Yeah, I mean this is not fully open,

but still, a lot has changed.

Why don't we jump into the options, and I can tell you

what the two options are, because option number one

involves us getting rid of that brick wall.

Once that wall's gone,

we would move your kitchen to the back of the house.

There will be plenty of modern cabinets

for loads of storage, easy-clean quartz countertops,

and a brand-new locking door for access to your garage.

Near the back door, there'll be a coat closet

and a small desk area for future homework.

In the center of it all, there will be room

for a big prep island with seating for the kids.

Without that hallway wall, there would be space

by the stairs for that compact powder room

you so desperately need on the main floor.

Now, we could fit that large dining table and chairs

in this big open plan,

so you'd have plenty of room for family and friends.

In the living room, there could be a comfy sectional

for cuddling up with the kids, and an updated gas fireplace

with custom built-ins for those cozy evenings at home.

The idea of a powder room in these types of houses

is just so rare.

So, that is really something that I'm excited about.

No more, "oh, harry. Harry, harry, harry.

No, we've got to go."

[ indistinct talking ]

yeah. Literally, that's that.

Poor guy. Yeah.

So, option one comes in at 7 1/2 weeks,

and it would be $150,000.

$150,000 is basically the top that we can afford.

I know. It's a lot of money.

What's option number two? I'm curious.

Well, that's very different, actually.

Option two would still give you the same amazing living space,

great flow, great hardwood,

lots of light, with the recessed lights coming through here.

The big change is that we would rebuild the kitchen

in the same footprint of where it currently is.

But we would make it 100 times better.

We'd close up harry's crawl-through window

to give you loads more room for cabinets,

which would have a lot more storage than you have now.

You'd have the same gorgeous, easy-clean quartz counters

and a compact island where the kids could snack

or do their homework.

We'd make a huge mudroom for your new rear entry door.

It'll have tons of storage for coats and shoes,

and even a place to tuck a few toys out of sight.

There would also be room for a much bigger main floor

powder room in a perfect spot for quick access

when the kids are playing in the backyard.

So, option two actually comes in cheaper, at $140,000

and it only takes 6 1/2 weeks.

And instead, it gives you this big, beautiful mudroom.

I could really see how the mudroom

would be really functional.

And we would still have the powder room at the back.

It's a shorter timeframe.

$10,000 is...

It's nothing to sneeze at.

Yeah, it's nothing to sneeze at.

You know, both of the options have pros and cons,

but if I'm being honest,

I think I might prefer the openness.

The idea of having bigger spaces for

our friends and our family, to host everybody --

it just sounds wonderful.

Because it was so cramped up before, because of the walls.

And then, we can just purge their toys.

Hey, that's one option. Purging toys is a good thing.

I like the idea of having a really beautiful kitchen.

I think that could also really, really work.

So...

It sounds, to me, like you're leaning one way.

I think we are. I think we're going with option one.

Option one? Yeah.

Blow those walls, baby.

This style of home, fully open,

with a powder room -- it's amazing.

You guys are gonna love it when it's done.

I think they made the right decision for their family.

Yeah. 100%. Yeah.

They'll have lots of open space, with loads of natural light.

Lots of room for grace and harry to run around,

and cozy up with them in front of the fireplace.

Yeah, but it would be nice to do something just for them, though.

Are you thinking of the master bedroom?

Like, you want to surprise them, or will there even be time?

Oh, we'll make time.

♪♪

jonathan: When your renovation includes an addition,

you have to check, and make sure it's been done right.

We want to see what's under the floors.

Is it properly insulated?

Can we run plumbing and electrical to the new island

we want to put back here?

You never know what you're gonna find.

At least they insulated.

They doubled it up.

Make sure that they didn't have any issues.

They did build it really well.

They've got preserved wood on the actual structure,

and it is in great shape.

They put a ledger across the wall

of the structure of the home, built that up.

But we should be able to do everything

we need to on the island, and that shouldn't be a problem.

Drew: I just hope this brick wall is not as structurally sound

as the floor down here, because I want this to come down easy.

Well, it is a brick wall.

This brick wall was once the back of the house.

Now, it's just a wall separating

the old kitchen from the addition.

The original wall that was here...

Now, you said that that wall doesn't exist anymore, right?

Adam: Correct.

And so everything is being carried on the new joist,

there, and I guess this joist over here.

As long as their subfloor above goes all the way across,

with no load above it,

then we're good to take the brick out.

Yeah, yeah. I went upstairs. I checked.

The wall's gone. The bedroom's completely open.

So, we're good to go.

Okay. Cool.

-Let's grab masks. -Yeah.

Whoever built this addition did a great job.

I cannot tell you how happy I am that it's properly supported,

and that this brick can come down today.

No steel beams needed,

so this is gonna be great for our budget.

And it's savings that we can put toward other important things,

or other issues we might find.

Drew: I think we've gone far enough, eh? Should we push?

One, two, three.

-Yes. -Yes!

I feel strong.

What a difference. Now, they'll be able to see

all the way through, which will be great.

It was the smarter decision to move the kitchen all the way

to the back, and then to have this open flow,

especially for how they like to entertain.

♪♪

this is a 100-year-old house,

and it's seen quite a few changes over time.

The staircase has been opened up, at some point,

and I'm not sure it's structurally sound.

I need to see if there's a point load hidden under the plaster.

Okay. So, there.

You can see that's the bottom of the post, going up.

There should be something carrying the load right here,

and there's not.

That is not safe.

Jonathan: Okay. So, there.

You can see that's the bottom of the post, going up.

There should be something carrying the load

right here, and there's not.

Drew: If it was the design where you didn't need that post,

then they should've been properly connected

to the double joist, right?

Yeah. So, at some point, someone started cutting things away,

running fake headers, things like that.

They made a bit of a mess. But I just want it to be safe.

The only thing we could do is either rebuild the stairs

or put a post here,

wall up, access to the downstairs this way.

I think that's a good solution.

Having this wall run flush all the way over --

it's gonna be nice.

I think that's the only way to do it.

Alright. I'm going to clean up my mess, like mom taught me.

Here's something for you.

Thanks a lot.

♪♪

jonathan: We have a lot going on today.

Drywall is going in, subfloors are being installed,

and we're one step closer to making the open plan

that freida and eric want in their forever home.

Oh. Look at that.

"I love you mommy and daddy." that is so cute.

Obviously, we're raising the floor another 3/4 of an inch,

so that it lines up better with the higher subfloor

at the back of the house. -Right.

But 3/4 of an inch is gonna make this place rock-solid.

When they built the addition at the back of the house,

it looks like they built it higher than the subfloor

in the rest of the house, which is strange,

because you can build it at whatever height you want.

So, now, we're going to put in a new layer of 3/4-inch plywood

on top of our already new subfloor

to level everything out.

Adam: So, here, we have about...

Basically perfect.

But then, as you get over here more,

it's a little bit... We're too high.

A little bit high, yeah. There's a lip.

So, if we throw a large level across it, if that is level,

then, yeah, I think we just shave this down.

As long as it's gradual, no one will ever notice.

Right.

Jonathan: Okay. Cool. Well, let's keep going.

Alright. Grab that side.

♪♪

I'm glad we're gonna be changing this door

'cause when you try and open it, it's like ugh.

Yeah. Exactly. And the same thing with the windows, too,

because we're replacing all the older windows

and the front door. So, why don't we pop it out.

Do you want to do the outside? Sure. Sure.

Alright.

Freida and eric found their addition at the back

too cold in the winter.

But when we looked a little further,

we found it's actually well-insulated.

It's the windows and doors that are the problem.

So, to make it comfortable, we're gonna install

energy-efficient windows and doors

wherever we need them on the main floor.

We're bringing it to me, then?

Yep. There you go.

You good?

I'm good. Alright.

While the crew finishes taking out the rest

of the old windows and doors,

adam and I will be dealing with the new powder room

that we're adding on the main floor.

I've had an idea that will make it compact

and way safer for the kids.

I love this door.

So, I don't think I've ever put in a pocket door

that has a soft-close option.

Adam: Yeah, watch. Check this out. Ready?

Slam.

This is the number-one thing they said they wanted,

'cause they didn't want to have to go

all the way upstairs with harry,

and have to use the bathroom. And sometimes, little kids,

they can't wait to go all the way upstairs.

So, this is really gonna be a game-changer.

I'm happy to fit in this extra powder room

on the main floor for freida and eric

not just for these kid-raising years,

but hey, with visiting grandparents getting older,

it's nice to keep them feeling welcome, too.

Woo. Hold on. Hold on.

Oh, yeah.

♪♪

we're making good progress on freida and eric's forever home.

The floors are level, so we can install our new hardwood

to unify the whole main floor.

The gas insert is here for the fireplace,

which makes freida happy,

and the new windows and doors are going in.

That should be the end of their heat-loss problems.

Drew: It's mantel mania. No?

Sounds like a wrestling match.

Alright. Looks good.

I like it.

Oh.

Why is that sticking out so --

so, that trim piece,

was that meant to make it stick out?

Well, originally, I wanted the mantel

to wrap all the way around,

but then, the mantel would conflict with the tv.

So, this is the transition

between the original plaster and the brick below.

There has to be something to clean it up.

Look underneath, here. It's a big lip.

Can we just make a little mark on either side of the mantel,

and then just recess the mantel in?

Well, I did like the fact that we would then

have this right against the plaster.

Let's just make a mark on either side, once we measure it.

It should be right there.

So, that there is....

Hold on a sec.

Okay, I'm inch and a quarter.

Okay. So, boo boo.

More?

Then, I guess, I'm gonna work on the pocket door.

Okey doke.

No worries.

I'll fix your issue.

Need some hardware?

Adam: Oh, perfect timing.

-Hey, guys? -Yo.

Drew: Do you need any help over there?

No. Why?

You need me to fix anything? 'cause I'm the fixer.

He's smart, eh?

He gets one thing right, and then it's like

he never lets you forget it.

Come on, I often get stuff right that you've screwed up.

Oh, name one time.

Okay, good point. Yeah, exactly.

Oh, snap.

Alright. Is it in there?

Moment of truth.

Yeah, it should be good. Nice.

So...

Look at that.

Right up against the brick.

We'll clean up that edge of plaster.

I think I might shim underneath, as well, just to keep it up...

Yeah, keep it straight. ...Like that.

And then, we can caulk underneath

but this looks a lot better.

Okay, every now and then, you come up with a good idea.

♪♪

the kitchen cabinets are here,

and it's all hands on deck to get them installed.

♪♪

I think it's so funny to think --

remember the brick wall that was dividing off

this whole back space? Yeah.

It just closed it off. It made it feel dark and heavy.

Harry doesn't need a crawl tunnel over here.

It's better to have the open flow.

All of a sudden, it feels super, super bright.

And of course, the aesthetic is exactly what they want.

Alright. You want me to start over here?

I love this tile.

'cause I was originally worried about

where we were transitioning from the tile to the hardwood,

but this actually turned out really, really well.

Lines up with the bench.

I think that everything about this space

is 10 times better than what they had before.

With the cabinets in, we can install the quartz

counters freida and eric wanted, and add a back-splash tile

that's gonna bring the home a fresh, new look.

Freida and eric are busy parents

who need a house that functions better

but we want to do a little something extra for them,

so we've taken on a small project

up in the master bedroom.

This is a great room.

We don't really have to do anything, other than --

I'm thinking some bold, beautiful color in the niche,

over here, some new lighting,

and then, just spruce it up with furniture.

Exactly. Their glowing personalities

is enough for this room. We're just doing a little extra.

I like it. All right.

We're about to add the glam to the niche.

It's always fun to surprise the homeowners

when we bring them back, and do a space

that they weren't expecting.

Definitely gonna be a surprise,

'cause I think everything they think about is for the kids,

so they would never think

to just do something for themselves.

No. Hey, that's bold.

Is the master bed sliding right up in here?

Yeah. That was the plan. Headboard, bed in here.

It pushes your side tables forward a little bit,

which I don't love,

but otherwise, we put the bed over here,

but then, you have this weird...

Yeah.

It's just not big enough for a sitting area.

It gives more space to the room,

especially with all the closet space on that wall.

Or we could bump the bed forward,

and have it as a secret space for harry and grace.

No, this is the adults' bedroom.

That's true. No kids allowed.

♪♪

freida and eric bought this century home

because they could picture raising their kids here,

just like the homeowners did before them.

Yeah, it just needs a few updates

to make it fully functional.

Yeah. We opened up the space to give them better sight lines

and more room to entertain.

So, let's hope that we've given them the comfortable family home

that's gonna last them for the next 40 years.

I love how they wanted something that was warm and inviting,

and this is, like, the coziest family nook of all time.

Katie: It's looking great. And the white oak

really brings them that modern look that they were going for,

but keeps it warm, all at the same time.

You know what else keeps it warm?

That fireplace is kicking off a lot of heat.

It is, right? It certainly is.

It's setting that ambience

that they want to have for the living room.

Yes. Absolutely.

This is the spot.

Drew: We had a budget of $150,000

to open up the whole main floor

of freida and eric's forever home.

We actually saved $9,000

because we didn't need a steel support beam

to replace one of the walls we opened.

So, we came in under budget, at $141,000.

That's the kind of news that makes everyone happy.

I think it's wild that eric is such a talented artist,

because not often do we get homeowners

who do stuff this nice.

Drew: No, it isn't. It looks great.

Perfect. That's totally crooked.

No, it isn't. Yeah, there you go.

You just made it crooked.

No, I think that looks perfect.

Are you just messing with me?

That's definitely not straight.

It is straight. That's straight.

Alright.

Don't.

That is crooked now. I can see that it's crooked.

No, it's not. Stand back. It's straight.

Alright.

Freida: I had a nightmare the other day

that the place was covered in orange marble from the '80s.

-Wow! -Oh, my gosh.

This is -- is this our house?

-Feeling good? -How do you feel?

-I am very nervous. -I feel super excited.

I had a nightmare the other day

that the place was covered in orange marble

from the '80's. And then, I woke up,

and I realized it was a nightmare.

Jonathan: Hopefully, only good tears.

Eric: Here we go.

Freida: That's a new door, and it's beautiful.

Eric: Yeah.

Wow. -Oh, my gosh.

This is -- is this our house?

Eric: Goodness.

Freida: I love how open and bright this is.

This is amazing.

I feel like this house is glowing right now.

It's beaming.

Drew: I think it's you guys that are glowing.

This century home has never been brighter.

This is unbelievable.

The space looks so much bigger than...

Completely transformed.

I'm speechless.

I got the fire place!

I know you really wanted this fireplace.

Eric and I kind of fought about this fireplace for a long time.

But the previous one, it never worked,

so it just had candles kind of laid out dorm-room style.

And having a fireplace meant a lot to me.

So, the fact that there's one here working

is just unbelievable.

Look at all of these built-in shelves in this covert.

Jonathan: Kids just accumulate more and more,

so you'll have lots of stuff to tuck away.

Previously, we just kind of dumped stuff

into, like, these little organizers.

So, the fact that we have this space is amazing.

And now, it looks like something that we're really

proud to show to people.

Drew: In this space, you have pops of color,

you have warm tones, you have the wood tones.

Eric: This table is from freida's parents,

and so it's really special to us.

And they look great in here.

We wanted to make sure this house was perfect

for you and the kids.

We wanted to give you a better flow,

'cause I know you like to entertain,

and have family and friends over, too.

So, how about this for your new, wider dining space?

Eric: This looks like the best version of us

living in this house right now.

And I can see my painting, here.

We could not take that out of here.

It is such a beautiful piece.

And the fact that it speaks to your heritage,

and it's something that you physically created yourself.

I think it's amazing.

-It says "in a dream." -I think it's absolutely --

freida: Poignant for this moment. Yeah.

We couldn't have done it without you.

So, it's amazing.

This is a dream that I hope we don't wake up from.

I wish it said "in a reality," because in reality

you're moving in. This is your place.

I mean, picture this -- your wall was right here.

So, imagine trying to fit this table, like you did

for so many years, into that small space.

And we couldn't. So, to have everything open like this,

I can see us hosting, and just all the gatherings

we're gonna have with family and the friends.

That's really what we want in a house.

It's gonna just change the way we live.

Drew: I feel like we're getting a passing grade, here.

I feel like this is good.

I think it's way beyond passing grade.

Now, you have this beautiful spacious dining room,

and we needed to accompany that

with a beautiful, spacious kitchen.

Jonathan: What do you think?

Oh, freida.

Freida: Oh, my gosh.

Oh, my goodness.

Look at this space, honey. I love this island.

I can go all the way down this island,

and it doesn't stop till there.

Our island, previously, was maybe to here.

I love just the clean white countertop.

And there's a sink in the middle that we can bathe the baby in.

You could bathe eric in that sink.

-Look at this range. -Look at these appliances.

We've always wanted a gas stove here.

This looks like it's top-end.

-It is. -Oh yeah.

Is this the microwave?

Oh, this is incredible.

Looks, like, futuristic, doesn't it?

Yeah. It's like a drawer.

Oh, my gosh. I've never seen a microwave like this.

And this is great because grace can help us

reheat stuff, now, for dinner.

Yeah. Yeah. We'll just put her right to work.

Jonathan: That's her job now.

I just love this backsplash, honey.

Look at this. It's incredible.

It has the same sort of look and feel as the front, as well.

It ties everything together.

It's nice to have a little bit of pattern

to your tile, and a bit of color,

because it adds some pizzazz.

Jonathan: This house has no short of personality.

I love all the touches, here --

even the open shelving, and these lights.

It's just incredible.

This used the family room.

You guys took down the brick wall.

Did you want to leave the brick wall?

No, I'm glad it's gone. I can't believe you did it.

I was a bit worried that things might feel

a little bit narrow between having storage, and a door,

and then the whole counter space.

But it doesn't feel narrow at all.

It just feels exactly how it should be.

I can imagine we're preparing dinner,

and grace will sit here, and do her work, and do her crafts.

-Yeah. -She'll be close to us.

-Yeah. -Freida, look at this door.

Look at this door.

We could actually use this door now.

Jonathan: Best part, it has --

it opens and closes? And a lock.

A keyhole.

What do you know? So you can use it.

Yes.

Having this mud room area is just so important for us,

because we have young kids, and their stuff goes everywhere.

So, the fact that we can kind of, like, put it behind

these closed doors is huge.

And on top of that, you guys got the powder room that you wanted.

-Oh my gosh, drew. -I forgot we had that, actually.

Oh, my goodness. Can I open this?

Yeah. Go for it.

Oh, my gosh.

Proper toilet, working sink.

Oh, my gosh.

You said that you did not want to have to run upstairs

every time harry needs to change.

They need access right away.

And so, for them not to have to go up or down

the flight of stairs,

just pop them in here, and do their thing --

it's a huge thing.

Should we tell them?

I think we should tell them.

We felt that it wasn't enough just to do a great family space.

We wanted to do something that was just for you.

Follow us.

-What? -Wow.

Oh, my gosh.

Oh, my goodness.

Oh, my goodness.

Guys. When did you have time to do this?

We didn't. But we did it anyway.

Thank you so much. This was so unexpected.

We would never have done this ourselves.

The depth, with the painted inlet, there,

and you know, this bench, it's so luxurious.

It looks like a grown-up, proper room, you know?

It's good. I mean, I think it just feels so cozy,

so comfortable, and stylish.

You've got the chair on the side, there,

if you want to read a book in the morning.

It feels like a successful person lives here.

[ laughter ]

jonathan: Two successful people live here.

Two successful people live here. Yeah.

Do you want to give it a little test?

-Should we test it out? -Yeah, let's do it.

-There he goes. -He takes the whole bed.

We'll give you guys a couple of minutes, and why don't we go

get the kids, and bring them in.

See you downstairs.

Eric: I thought you were gonna join me?

Freida: Yeah. That was a solo jump.

Freida: It truly feels like ours now.

This is just more than

we ever could have imagined for this house.

You know, what it means for our family,

it's just incredible.

-Hello. -Welcome home.

-What do you think? -What do you think?

-Good. -Good.

It looks so good, right?

There's our new sidekick. Come right in.

This is basically your area.

Yay!

Drew: Do you remember harry's hole here?

Well, you don't have to crawl through the hole anymore.

It's gone. -You can walk through.

Can I get a high five? High five?

High five? Yeah.

The reason why we bought the house

is because of the memories and the feeling

that we got from the previous homeowners.

And now, we'll have a chance to do that with...

Freida: Our family.

...With our own family in this beautiful house.

We're ready for us to start making new memories here.

Jonathan: And I think that harry really likes the decor.

Yeah.

The last family was here for 40 years,

and we really feel that we can stay here

for another 40 for ourselves.

Well, why don't we get some family and friends over here,

and you can enjoy it with them, too?

Should we do that? -Yeah.

Hey. Come on in, guys.

Wow! This is awesome!

[ indistinct talking ]

drew: Remember, there's a wall right here?

All gone.

Drew: Freida and eric really loved the family history of this home,

but this space was too broken up

to fit all their friends and family.

Well, now, there's lots of room

to celebrate everything from the first day at school

to graduations, prom -- you name it.

Grace said she wanted to have a dance party in the house.

I did not.

I remember you saying this. I remember you...

And all the birthdays, starting with a super important one.

♪ happy birthday, dear grace ♪

♪ happy birthday to you ♪

7 years old today.

[ cheering ]

-good job. -Happy birthday.