A COUPLE who bought their “dream home” made a shocking discovery during remodeling.
Kylie and Jay McCoy bought their family farm, a property that had been in their family for many years, with the goal of turning it into a suitable home for themselves and their seven children.
But when their excavator started work outside along the south side of the home, he found something amiss – there was no foundation underneath.
The home, built in 1895, was instead sitting on clay and a “few carefully placed rocks.”
In order to maintain the integrity of their land, they made the bold choice to raise the house by 18 inches to remove all the clay and rocks beneath it and construct a basement – a project that cost them over $50,000.
“We were devastated,” Kylie, a stay-at-home mom based in Minnesota, told What’s The Jam of the moment they discovered the problem.
“We had to take a really good look at many of the things we had planned for our house.
“Realizing the need to stay within our budget – even though it required some adjustments – we decided to forego some of our planned luxuries like a wood-burning fireplace, a sauna for my husband’s health (as a first responder), and leaving the basement unfinished, among other things,” Kylie explained.
To preserve the house, it first had to be lifted 18 inches so the clay and rock could be dug out from the old basement before a new basement was fitted.
During this time, the family had to climb a ladder to access their raised home – though they moved out for six months to live with Jay’s parents for ease.
The family also found hidden “treasures” when clearing it out in an old cistern that they hadn’t realized was there – including hundreds of bottles and even a pair of old dentures.
Kylie and Jay, both in their late 30s, had no idea of the issue until their excavator started work on the property – with the first step being digging on the south side of the house to create a walk-out basement and waterproofing the foundation.
She explained: “We began digging in April of last year – however that did not last long.
“Only a couple of weeks into the project, as our excavator was beginning to dig along the south side, he never hit the foundation.
“The dirt was beginning to become too concave and he stopped for fear of our dining room collapsing.
“As we began exploring underneath the house in the cellar-like basement, we discovered that the house was being held up by carefully placed fieldstones and in places was sitting on dirt and clay.
“The entire project was halted for over a month as we assessed and came up with a second plan that would not only continue to preserve the history of the family farmstead but also allow us to have space for our large family.”
The couple had originally moved into the house back in 2010 with the dream of one day buying it – which they did, 14 years later.
But things took a turn when they discovered the issue underneath.
We were devastated. We had to take a really good look at many of the things we had planned for our house.”
Kylie McCoy
Kylie said of the extra $50,000 cost: “The number felt daunting yet we believed that this was the best option for not only our family as housing in the area is expensive but also to continue to preserve the house.
“The remodeling process has been an adventure.
“We have absolutely loved designing our home and finding ways to not just preserve the history of the original family farmstead but also utilize our space as best we can.
“We dreamed for years of the things we would like to change or add to our house as we continued to add children throughout the years.
“Things are currently beginning to wind down as far as interior house projects go with minor things still to be completed such as trim and final painting.
“As spring begins to warm up outside, we will transition to continuing exterior work with final grade and beginning to put up fences for animals.
“Our dream is to expand our chicken coop and add some livestock to continue to bring back the farm to life.
“Once a bustling farm with everything from dairy cows to all kinds of grain – we hope to restore it to a place where past generations would be proud.”
