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Old houses with charm that are original have more value than those that have been "modernized" inside. You'd be creating a Frankenstein house that no one will want. And once a house has been ruined in this way, you can't go back.
If you really want a new house inside, then either buy a new house, or buy an older house that won't be harmed by the modernization.
If you were buying an old house for the charm would you prefer it to be modernized HGTV style?
If you mean should you take on that major remodeling (and engineering) expense to accomplish something like that on a house you intend to sell anytime soon... then NO.
If that sort of styling is YOUR taste and you intend to stay put for a Loooooong time... then make yourself happy.
If by modernized you mean updated kitchens and baths, then I say do it. The other thing people want is AC and efficient windows as well as modern heating and water heaters, etc. Keep the old house charm in the rooms with hardwoods, moldings, and any other original detail.
Authentic charm is also good to keep on the exterior, but especially if you can do it in a low maintenance way. Not a lot of people will take on a Victorian painted lady with nine paint colors and endlessly detailed clapboards that require repainting every 5 years.
We previously bought an 1832 Colonial that we updated such as windows, roof, etc., but we tried very hard to keep the older charm about it. It was such a lovely home. Fireplaces in every room including the bathroom.
...modern heating and water heaters, etc. Keep the old house charm in the rooms with hardwoods, moldings, and any other original detail.
Authentic charm is also good to keep on the exterior, but especially if you can do it in a low maintenance way...
This is what we did, and it wasn't because we loved old houses but because our house was in a location we liked and was in pretty good shape and we could afford it. We've improved it over several years.
Though potential resale may be a motivator, ours was energy efficiency and ease in maintenance.
What we did not do was force our (very modern) taste on the house proper. That would be (will be?) for another time and place.
Not a lot of people will take on a Victorian painted lady with nine paint colors and endlessly detailed clapboards that require repainting every 5 years.
You're right, not every one wants that - and that's fine! There are plenty of people who do want a house exactly like that, and will lovingly take care of it.
If you want a new house, buy a new house. Ruining an old house ruins it forever. You can't go back...
Here are the improvements we've made to this old house:
We modernized the ancient but not charming kitchen.. It had worn (down to the underlain wood) linoleum flooring ON THE COUNTERTOPS.
It had the original kitchen sink that was so scrubbed that the entire surface was ORANGE because the rusty iron seeped through all of the porcelain that no longer had any finish on the surface.
The floor was made of an early asbestos tile, glued to the wood with tar!!
Windows were old, old, chippety, and there was 6 doors in the kitchen leaving little room for appliances. Basement door, water closet door, back door, porch door, dining room door, and hallway to staircase door.
and you can just imagine the horrific tube of "fluorescent gray electric shock" lights over the sink and its scalloped cornice (which was painted, chipped and nailed 150 times over). Appliances older than Methuselah.., handles hanging, knobs lost.. It was like a haunted house even though well to do people owned the house..(very odd to me still).
There was a teeny water closet off the kitchen that had the original sink, 1929, also ORANGE accompanied by an oversized AVACADO toilet. This tiny space had two doors, one next to the toilet, and the other next to the sink.. the room was so small that a 5' tall person could stretch arms to touch each door. It was probably the closet, at first and the bathroom an afterthought (minus the insight).
Here's what we did.. Gutted the kitchen right down to the echooo.. Put in new pipes and electricity, some new walls, one wall was fine so we let it be. Added a porcelain tile floor, new cabinets and are just finishing the backsplash tile after having a solid surface counter top professionally installed with an oversize stainless steel sink and a Delta "touch" faucet.
Paid extra for high quality windows craftsman style, tilt out.
The fridge is not stainless, but the dishwasher and the stove is. Oh yes, also put in a style appropriate overhead fan which has three spotlights for a little bit of an artsy feel while chopping those veggies.
So, the kitchen is updated and does not look like 1929, but really, who can afford reproduction appliances to recreate a museum-model kitchen fit for the Smithsonian.. (Maybe Rachael Ray or Paula Deen can). I do think anyone who loves old homes is also a Renaissance person who loves a brand new kitchen brought up to our current era.. like clean crisp new sheets on a freshly made bed (ahhh).
We love the Virginia pine floors and the huge built in dining room hutch with mirrored backplsh and slider pass-through door which gives a character to the house that surpasses the definition of quality even in today's standards. All doors with their beveled inset, and every room is lined with tall baseboard which really stands proud.
We also gutted that water closet, restored it and bought 1929 reproduction sink cabinet and a polite size toilet that fits into the small space without being obtrusive. One door only, on the bedroom side, which makes it convenient for overnight guests. Oh, the back porch was restructured into a full size bathroom, and its roomy with a tall closet, and heat pad put under the floor tile..a lush feel!
Did the same to the upstairs bathroom, heat pad under granite tile floor, with an elegant gray porcelain tiled shower stall with clear glass door.. Looks like a boutique hotel up there.
3 bedrooms up there, and a laundry closet w/ washer dryer. One bedroom still needs its floor sanded and a fresh coat of paint, but all the floors are bubba-thick wood which can be safely sanded numerous times in the future..oh, and all of the windows in the house are brand spankin' new..not to mention a new efficient oil burner.. we put a new storm door on the drive-through carport. The inner door is a single french door entrance into the dining room which has a double French door with a floor lock and glass knob handle that opens to the living room.
...oh, had the metal roof scraped down to the metal, primed, and oil painted properly, and had all new gutters and leaders installed)/. House sits in the middle of 4 private acres adjacent to a main road, (not out in the boonies).
We are restoring this house knowing to honor its beauty while bringing it up to a savvy 21st century
speed. This house, starving for love and attention got eight years of vacations we never took
nursing it back to life.. I will hope when we are finished (very soon) we turn the keys over to someone who appreciated this old gem as much as those of you on this thread do! Thanks everybody for having a heart for this style of nurturing.. I'll make you proud!
If you buy a lovely old house, please, please, PLEASE don't turn it into a bland modern house inside just because you can.
It's possible to update while still maintaining the charm of the original. It takes some research to find what will replicate the period the house was born in and to use it while still having some modern conveniences. But if what you want is a brand! new! house! inside, please buy a brand! new! house! and leave the rare, lovely older homes for those who can and will care for them properly.
As said above, once it's ruined, there's no going back.
I don't even care for the newer houses with exteriors meant to mimic the lovely homes of yesteryear, but once you walk through the door, you might as well be in Any Subdivision, USA. What's the point?
I agree with all of that ^ . But it's important to make the distinction between old homes with old-home charm and homes that are just plain old. I'm about to finish a total renovation of a small 1936 home which will leave little more than the roof intact. Were there anything substantial worth saving, I would have. Tiny cramped rooms and layer upon layer of linoleum could not be brought up to date. (I did, however, save what I could of the linoleum as the patterns are very nice. I'm thinking of framing it or something.)
What becomes difficult, I'm guessing, is when a homeowner is faced with a home that needs major updating, but has little, though some, worth saving. Depending on the house and the owner's tastes, that could become a tricky equation for which there is no clear answer.
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