DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HomeVestors® has announced The Ugliest House Of The Year® 2020, a 2,146 square-foot Knoxville home built in 1945 that was purchased and made over by Gururas “Jean” Khalsa and her husband, Siri, who independently own and operate a franchise of the original “We Buy Ugly Houses®” company. One of nearly 10,000 houses purchased in 2020 by HomeVestors, America’s Number One Home Buyer, Khalsa’s impressive redo was voted The Ugliest House Of The Year from among several nationwide, and celebrated before its renovation with “An Ugly House Dance Party”.
When Khalsa purchased the 3-bedroom, 2.5-bath home, it had a condemnation order against it and was scheduled to be demolished. Crammed full of junk with piles as tall as an adult, the house had been vacant for years. The entire roof over the den had collapsed, resulting in the floor being badly damaged by rain and the elements. It was home to wildlife, had been vandalized numerous times, and was so overgrown it could barely be seen from the road.
Khalsa’s team replaced all plumbing, HVAC, and ductwork, and rewired the entire house. In addition to restoring and replacing walls, ceilings, and doors, they refinished the existing hardwood floors, and laid new ceramic tile, while also restoring some of the existing floors. In the kitchen, Khalsa replaced cabinets, countertops, and appliances. The bathrooms were updated with new vanities, toilets, a bathtub in one and a restored bathtub in the master. Outside, the overgrown brush and a dilapidated side deck were removed, and a new concrete driveway and steps were installed. With new siding, windows, and landscaping, among several other improvements, the house is now unrecognizable.
“I love taking the homes we buy and bringing them new life, and this is one of the best examples of that labor of love,” said Khalsa. “Before joining HomeVestors, I was an architect, and I pride myself on good design. It’s so rewarding to see what I imagine in my mind's eye be actualized, and to then see the new owners or tenants have pride in having a beautiful home.”
Khalsa, a lifelong dancer, is a core member and choreographer with Momentum Dance Lab, a Knoxville modern dance company. To celebrate the beginning of the house’s next chapter, members of her company joined her for “An Ugly House Party” shortly after she started demolition. Together, they took an evening to jointly improvise movement through the house resulting in graceful expression coupled with the removing of blinds, drapes, and other elements of the “old” house. They danced through the night, incorporating glow sticks come nightfall, resulting in an arresting two-minute production set to music and viewable on YouTube. It’s almost prescient of the property’s destiny to become The Ugliest House Of The Year 2020.
“Celebrating our scariest ‘befores’ and ‘afters’ for The Ugliest House Of The Year lets our franchises like Jean and her ingenuity shine,” said David Hicks, CEO of HomeVestors. “Taking something of value that other buyers might not consider and reintroducing it as a desirable and beautiful property is what we do, and this house is the paragon of that.”
More than 80 percent of houses HomeVestors purchases are less than 1,400-square feet and were built before 1980. Franchises then generally rehab and sell the homes or hold them as investment properties. In creating a valuable supply of housing for first-time buyers from existing community assets, We Buy Ugly Houses® local small independent business owners also help raise real estate values and drive community revitalization.
Editor’s Note: A complete library of “before” and “after” photos is available here.
About HomeVestors of America, Inc.
Dallas-based HomeVestors of America, Inc. is the largest professional house buying franchise in the U.S. with more than 105,000 houses bought since 1996. HomeVestors recruits, trains and supports its more than 1,150 independently owned and operated HomeVestors® franchisees that specialize in building businesses based on buying, rehabbing, selling, and holding residential properties. Most commonly known as the "We Buy Ugly Houses®" company, HomeVestors strives to make a positive impact in each of its 176 markets. The company ranked on the 2020 Inc. 5000, has appeared for 12 consecutive years on the prestigious Franchise Business Review's "Top Franchises”, for nine years on the annual Dallas 100, and ranked 94th on the 2020 Franchise Times Top 200 Franchise Chains by Worldwide Sales. HomeVestors has also been regularly recognized by Entrepreneur Magazine, which most recently ranked it 16th “Top Growth Franchise”, named it as one of the top 200 franchises of 2020, and placed it at number 36 on its annual Franchise 500. For more information, visit www.HomeVestors.com.
