Almost three years ago, I bought this set of eight abandoned apartments in Minden, Louisiana. They were built in 1931, and we have newspaper articles that say at the time, they were the most state of the art apartments in the state of Louisiana. And through some pretty extensive research, we have come to determine that they have been vacant since the 1980s. Fortunately, we never knew why the last person stepped foot off this property, never to return. Maybe it’s because they were covered in asbestos and lead paint. Maybe the owner went into foreclosure. We honestly don’t know. But what I do know is that these apartments are in terrible, inhabitable condition. It even looks like some people just walked away and left all their belongings. This building here once comprised three apartments, but all of the walls have since been and torn down. But interestingly enough, a lot of the original architectural features remain. I assembled an amazing crew that ended up being over 100 people strong to help me with this renovation project. I also begin to have crippling panic attacks, wondering what in the world I had done. Would I go bankrupt trying to revive these old apartments? It took about 18 months to come complete this renovation project. We basically had to take everything down to the studs and remove all the environmental hazards. But I was able to save all of this original tile. I don’t know how in the world I survived. This renovation. But I’m so proud to say that now this little property is a boutique short term stay in Minden, Louisiana. I honestly could not be more pleased with how it turned out. The three buildings all got new roofs, new stucco, new windows, new shutters, and I got to live out my little girl playhouse dreams. By designing each of the eight Villas differently, I couldn’t save the original doors, but we went back with replicas, and we were able to restuck all the fireplaces and bring them back to the original glory. All of the buildings got new sheetrock, new insulation, new mini splits, new flooring, trim. Every single thing is new. And the honest to goodness truth is, I don’t know if I’ll ever see a return on this investment. But what I do know is this is legacy leaving work. I was able to save this historically significant structure. I am able to employ four amazing women, numerous subcontractors, and were able to contribute to our local economy through sales and occupancy taxes. I would be honored to earn a follow from you simply Southern Cottage, and then come see us in Minden, Louisiana.