Hugh Siler and I met through Instagram. He is a developer with great respect for old homes, and we discussed what he did to get into the business of historic home restoration. Read our conversation here, or scroll on for some interesting facts about Hugh and photos of the properties he’s been involved with:
· Got into restoring homes 11 years ago. It began when his realtor said “There’s a property that’s been on the market for over a year because it’s in such sad shape and no one wants to touch it – but I think you could make it something pretty special.” This started Hugh’s love affair with old homes and historic home restoration projects.
· Hugh is old school – most of his team of talented craftsman have been with him for over 15 years.
· In 2016, Hugh bought a block of homes in Southern California – the listing said, “the homes are being sold AS-IS and for cash only.” Hugh had $3,200 in the bank, but he figured out a way to creatively outmaneuver 23 other bidders who actually did have the cash – and the deal closed in 30 days.
· His loyalty is huge – Hugh has worked with the same realtor for more than 25 years.
· Hugh became an owner builder out of necessity following a negative experience with a general contractor.
· His most recent project – taking a 16 X 16 garage that was literally falling down and converting it into a historic tiny cottage, complete with a hidden passageway, was featured in the “Hot Homes” section of one of Californian’s largest media outlets. This column typically features homes of the wealthy and famous with price tags starting at $10 million-plus – but Ted’s Garage was more than unique enough to make its way into the column.
