Newton house of the week

by | Mar 4, 2017 | Newton | 9 comments

| Newton MA News and Politics BlogThis undoubtedly raises some larger point about land costs, affordable housing, density … but this just tickled my inner 10-year-old boy.

Just off Centre Street, near the Pike.

Click to see a larger version.

9 Comments

  1. Bugek
    Bugek on March 4, 2017 at 12:05 pm

    What are we supposed to be looking at? I see a house on stilts. I’m not quite sure why

  2. TheWholeTruth
    TheWholeTruth on March 4, 2017 at 1:20 pm

    You will find two more in similar state of stilts on Walnut Park by the old Aquinas…

  3. Alicia Bowman
    Alicia Bowman on March 4, 2017 at 1:39 pm

    Raised to create new foundation? Maybe basement or garage?

  4. Bugek
    Bugek on March 4, 2017 at 1:56 pm

    Are we looking at a brand new house on stilts because the land grade is so bad it cannot be built in?

    Or are we looking at an old house which is being raised to create a 3rd level? The costs would be insane!

  5. fignewtonville
    fignewtonville on March 4, 2017 at 2:46 pm

    Bugek:

    Old house. This is a strategy for preservation older homes that need a lot of repair. New basement, original house (and ideally original finishes) preservered, new walk out basement for more space, new windows, new insulation, etc. I’m not sure if it is a complete gut rehab, if so then some charm may be lost. But better than the alternative teardown.

    What is great is that the house next to it suffered a huge fire a few years ago, and the new owners restored it to its full glory. I wanted to knock on their door and give them a hug. I thought they did a tremendous job.

  6. David Mackintosh
    David Mackintosh on March 4, 2017 at 3:12 pm

    I like to tell people that someone stole the foundation and left the house on blocks.

  7. Sean
    Sean on March 4, 2017 at 4:00 pm

    There have been a bunch of these over the years. They lift them up and put in new foundations, sometimes moving the house on the lot, sometimes building a bigger foundation and expanding the house.

    I posted this just because I think the mechanics of this are awesome. My kids and I always get a kick out of seeing what my then three-year-old son named a lifty-up-house.

    I mean, seriously, how cool is this?

  8. Marti Bowen
    Marti Bowen on March 4, 2017 at 5:36 pm

    Pretty cool, Sean. I love these and watching the houses that get moved to another location completely. Now I know they’re called “lifty-up-houses.” Thanks.

  9. isabelle
    isabelle on March 5, 2017 at 3:31 pm

    There is another one at 115 Manchester Rd, in NH; corner of Duncklee and Manchester, off Walnut St. The developer is now bumping out walls everywhere but did a great job keeping one traditional part of the roof that is curved and graceful.