Photos by AP Imagery
Jason and Jesse Newton purchased their home at 1302 Locust Street five years ago with the intention of renovating it. Jason, a pharmacist, and Jesse, a nurse, have three kids and relocated to Owensboro from Louisville for Jason’s work.
“We had purchased a nice new ‘cookie cutter’ house when we moved to Owensboro, but quickly realized that it didn’t fit either of our personalities,” Jason said. “Jesse definitely has an eye for design and my strength is in figuring out the technicalities. The house definitely had good bones but was in definite need of some updating. We knew immediately that it was going to be a lot of work, but it was going to be our next challenge.”
Despite only taking on smaller aesthetic projects in previous homes, the Newtons were ready to tackle the large projects this home would require. Jason said that when moving into the home, the owner of the moving company jokingly asked if they had seen the home, built in 1915, before they purchased it.
Over the next several months, the Newtons got to work.
“Nearly every part of the house was remodeled in some aspect,” Jason said. “Our goal was to add as many modern amenities as we could while maintaining the charm and beauty of a house.”
In the living room, the Newtons converted two bookshelves into floor to ceiling custom built-ins, refinished the fireplace and ceiling and converted the original pocket doors to barn style doors. They updated the kitchen with modern appliances and updated the cabinets and countertops with modern materials. They also converted an office space and part of the hallway upstairs into a modern master bedroom suite.
“We were living in the house and on a budget, but we weren’t always the best with sticking to one project at a time,” Jason said. “There was a lot of time where we had multiple projects going at one time and we learned that this was not good for us. It definitely increased our stress.”
Although the Newtons truly made their home on Locust their own, transforming every square inch into exactly what they wanted, they ultimately decided it was time for a change and put the house on the market earlier this year. The house sold in record time and the Newtons are excited to take on their next project.
“During the renovation we had decided that the next house we purchased wouldn’t be as old but still need renovating,” Jason said. “Our ‘new’ house was built in the ‘50s and we’re looking to modernizing it but keeping a mid-century modern style.”
As far as lessons learned from their time on Locust Street, Jason says there are many. First, they will not take on as many projects at once.
“We also learned that with old houses few things go exactly to plan,” Jason said. “A lot of the completed projects were not plan B’s, but sometimes plan C’s or D’s.”
About the Realtor
Ryan Rutman has been selling homes in Owensboro for over 13 years. He was honored to help the Clemens through the process of selling their family home.
“Ryan made it happen,” said Randy Clemens. “He was very professional and listened to our concerns. This was an emotional process for all of us.”
In less than three days, Ryan helped the Clemens navigate multiple offers and eventually accept an offer for over asking price.
Ryan has grown his real estate team to include his wife, business partner, and fellow Realtor, Chivonne, as well as Realtors Stephanie Hardesty and Katie Drab. The Ryan Rutman Real Estate Group is available to help both buyers and sellers navigate the current real estate market. For them, it’s not about the houses, but about the relationships formed along the way.
***Are you looking to buy or sell a home? Contact the Ryan Rutman Real Estate Group today!
