One owner for sixty years, a fallen tree, and a house worth every hour it took.

White 1935 ranch bungalow with a deep covered porch and new fencing in a historic Jacksonville FL neighborhood

Front elevation of a restored 1935 bungalow showing its full width porch columns and wood front door

Eat in kitchen with white cabinetry patterned tile backsplash and an arched opening to the living room

View through the arched doorway into the kitchen with open wood shelves and rich hardwood flooring

Kitchen and dining area with a vent hood open shelving and a round table beneath a black chandelier

Sunlit living room with tall windows white walls and honey toned wood floors staged with striped armchairs

Airy bedroom with a made bed hardwood floors and glass doors opening onto the rear deck

Primary bedroom with a paneled wood door on a sliding track opening to the private ensuite bathroom

Double vanity with two round mirrors black sconces and patterned floor tile in the ensuite bathroom

Glass enclosed shower and soaking tub finished in white subway tile above patterned floor tile

Walk in shower beside a corner tub with daylight from a skylight overhead and hardwood beyond the door

Guest bedroom with three tall windows crisp white trim and warm hardwood flooring underfoot

Bedroom corner showing paneled double closet doors with dark hinges and vintage style glass knobs

Compact hall bathroom finished with white subway tile a gray vanity and wood look herringbone floor

Light filled room lined with windows and beadboard wainscot above a herringbone tile floor

Rebuilt rear deck and detached outbuilding at the back of the restored 1935 bungalow under blue sky

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Structural and exterior restoration: Repaired storm and water damage, replaced the roof, remediated wood rot, and reconstructed the rear deck and detached garage.
Floor plan reconfiguration: Converted the formal dining room into an eat-in kitchen, repurposed the sunroom as formal dining, and reworked the old galley kitchen into a hall bathroom and laundry room.
Primary suite expansion: Added a private ensuite bathroom, a walk-in closet and a skylight to bring natural light deep into the room.
Historic preservation: Restored the original hardwood flooring, refinished and relocated every original interior door, and cleaned, lubricated and reinstalled the historic hinges, locksets and hardware.
Legacy landscaping: Preserved the mature fruit trees planted decades earlier, so the next family inherits the harvest along with the house.

One owner lived in this 1935 ranch-style bungalow for decades, independently, well into her nineties. After she passed, the house sat vacant through probate. A tree came down on the roof, and water and wildlife finished what neglect had started. Underneath the damage was a house built the way houses were built in 1935, and worth keeping.

M&M Homes led the structural repairs, roof replacement and wood rot remediation, then reworked a compartmentalized 1930s plan for the way a family lives now. The formal dining room became an eat-in kitchen. The sunroom became the formal dining room. The old galley kitchen became a hall bathroom and laundry room. The primary bedroom gained a private ensuite, a walk-in closet and a skylight.

This renovation kept what was worth keeping. The original hardwood floors were restored. Every original interior door was refinished and rehung, and the historic hinges, locksets and hardware were cleaned, lubricated and put back into service, including the ninety-year-old front door lock, which still works. A young family lives here now in Historic Springfield, and the fruit trees planted decades ago still produce a full harvest every year.

Specifications

Location: Historic Springfield, Jacksonville, FL

Neighborhood: Historic Springfield

Service: Renovation

Type of Project: Total interior and exterior renovation

Architectural Style: Ranch-style bungalow

FAQS

Is it worth renovating a home that has been sitting vacant for years?

It depends on what is underneath, not on how bad it looks. This 1935 Springfield bungalow had storm damage, water intrusion and wood rot, and still had hardwood floors, solid doors and hardware worth saving. The assessment that matters is structure and original material rather than the state of the finishes.

Can original doors and hardware be kept in a full renovation?

Yes, and it is usually cheaper than replacing them with anything comparable. Here every original interior door was refinished and rehung, and the hinges, locksets and hardware were cleaned, lubricated and reinstalled, including the home’s ninety-year-old front door lock.

How do you modernize a 1930s floor plan without losing its character?

By changing what rooms do rather than where walls go, wherever that is possible. On this house the dining room became the eat-in kitchen, the sunroom became the dining room, and the galley kitchen became a bathroom and laundry. That is a modern plan achieved largely by reassignment.