When Siler bought the South Shaffer Cottages in 2011 for $585,000 they were in sad shape—a rotting bathroom floor, no heat in one unit, and another had not hot water.. He has since spent $175,000 and 4,000 hours renovating the units with furnishings and replicas of the era, including 1920s apartment-styled stoves, counter stools from an old Woolworth’s, restored 1940s refrigerators with tiny iceboxes. He even installed pull-chain toilets with the tanks high above the commodes, and apartment-sized claw-foot tubs.
He found authentic or replica light fixtures, switches and doors, according to ocregister, and while he replaced the termite-infested window frames, he re-used the original ripply glass windows, as MHPronews has learned. He also added heating and air conditioning units, and now rents each apartment for $1,500 a month, which is comparable to rents in Old Towne Orange.
Siler says he has a waiting list of prospective tenants. With original hardwood floors that have been refinished, if a unit becomes vacant, Siler says, “I can quickly get the unit repainted, cleaned and ready for the next tenant within two days – or less.”
Newlyweds Cayla and Rob Alexander have lived in one of the units since December. For cooking they have a skillet, a casserole dish and one large pot. Cayla says, “We have three bowls and five plates. But when you really come down to it, do you need anything else?” ##
(Photo credit: ocregister/Leonard Ortiz–South Shaffer Cottages)
