DIYer Transforms An Abandoned Church Into Her Dream Home

We've all dreamed of renovating a derelict building and transforming it onto our dream property. At least, maybe we all have since Joanna Gaines burst into the scene with tips and tricks that make redecorating any home a breeze. Still, a full-blown renovation is a massive undertaking physically, emotionally, and financially. And if you want an idea of what that journey looks like, examine the quest of Whitney Anderson who is in the process of transforming an abandoned church into her dream home.

In a video interview with "CNBC Make It," Anderson explained that the reason she looked for a chouse (her phrase for church-house) to renovate was because she had fallen in love with stained glass as a child. Originally from New York City, Anderson discovered a parsonage house for sale in Michigan that came with a free church. She was able to negotiate the price down to $45,000 from the original $125,000 listing price, and began showing her renovation journey on her Instagram account @houseofvitrail.

The church, complete with altar, pews, and bell tower, was built as a Methodist house of worship in 1898, which places it near the end of the Victorian era of architecture style. As such, there was a lot of history for Anderson to preserve, and a seemingly endless slew of structural issues to repair. As she says in the video: "It's still 50/50 if this is going to be a sustainable chouse ... or if it's going to be what bankrupts me."

There were several different factors that led to Anderson's success with her chouse. The first was that she created a budget-savvy plan for her renovation. According to the CNBC article, Anderson spent years meticulously and aggressively saving $250,000 before she even began looking for property. Once she found the church and paid cash for the negotiated $45,000 purchase price, Anderson set to work. She was able to save a decent chunk of change without having a mortgage payment, but also by doing the demolition and a majority of the flooring work herself. There were some jobs she couldn't do herself, though, that required her to hire out — like repairing water damage.

Anderson's journey was also bolstered by income generated by her viral Instagram account, which led to an appearance on the Magnolia Network show "Home Reimagined." Through both, she was able to attain sponsorships, as well as free materials and labor. In total, her cash flow landed at close to $200,000 in renovations. 

While Anderson's journey is inspirational, the fact remains that the vast majority of us are not going to be undertaking a renovation like this. As of this writing, mortgage interest rates hover between 6.6% and 7.3%, which could be a crippling cost on top of everything else that would need to go into a renovation. So, unless you've got or are willing to save cash reserves like Anderson, you might be better off being inspired by her journey than undertaking one yourself.