Leah Haslage

Part 2 of 2

Dave and I started house hunting after over a year of dating. From the Fall of 2024 through the end of 2025, we looked at a lot of homes.

Finding a place that could comfortably accommodate five people, two dogs, and a cat is no small feat. The kids are older, but not quite out of the nest yet, so space was crucial. Also, we’ve been sharing one bathroom. And Dave and I primarily work from home. Then there was the location dilemma. I’m a city girl. You can only pull me so far away from the skyline before I start twitching. That was one of my absolute non-negotiables. Plus, we both love living in Old Brooklyn, and leaving the neighborhood felt wrong. Add in a brutal real estate market with soaring home prices and terrible interest rates, and the search was getting exhausting.

Then, a lightbulb went off: What if we just remodeled our current home to actually fit us?

It made perfect sense. We wouldn’t have to pack up and fully move, and we got to stay in the neighborhood (and with the neighbors!) we love. We met with Forest City Builders, the team behind the gorgeous remodel on my best friend’s home. After sitting down with them and getting the ball rolling, we realized the price was right, and it would give us exactly what we wanted and needed.

If only it were that simple.

The Waiting Game and The Big Move-In

The initial process was a massive lesson in patience, marked by week after week of delays and stress over when things would actually kick off.

Because we decided to add a whole second story to our cape cod, the prep work was intense. We had to completely clear out his daughter’s room and the attic space, transition his two daughters into a shared room, and prep my own place to hit the market. On top of that, we were traveling for work throughout April and the beginning of May.

In a stroke of chaotic good luck, the universe timed the chaos perfectly. Construction finally began the Monday after all our travel wrapped up, right as I transitioned to working for myself, and just two days before my house officially hit the market.

Demo Day: Farewell, Roof

On that Monday, I had just walked into the kitchen to start coffee bright and early when it arrived: the dumpster. Right behind it was a crew piling out of their trucks, ready to tear our roof off.

Within two hours, the top half of our house was completely gone.

The crew moved fast. After a few days, the new structure was framed out and weatherproofed.

And then… total silence.

The Zoning Plot Twist

Apparently, while we had all our proper permits pulled and thought we were entirely in the clear, a city variance issue popped up. We lacked a specific approval and had to go before the Zoning Committee to get it.

The catch? The meeting date wasn’t until June 15th, a full month after construction had already ground to a halt.

For the last four weeks, we’ve been living in limbo in an unfinished house. We gathered letters of support from our amazing neighbors, and we finally had our day in front of the committee. Dave did an incredible job with his opening statement, two members of our build team spoke beautifully on our behalf, and the board overwhelmingly approved our project. I’ll admit, I had tears of pure relief streaming down my face.

Looking Ahead

Now, we have to wait about another week for the crew to officially get back on-site and start construction up again.

While living in a construction standstill has been a mess, it has given us a silver lining. We’ve had extra time to make really thoughtful, unhurried decisions about flooring, tile, and finishes, which has been great for keeping our budget in check.

The journey continues. Stay tuned to see the finished home in a couple of weeks, or at this rate, months!

If you want the deeper dive, the unfiltered behind-the-scenes chaos, and all the design details, I will be launching my Substack very soon. Keep an eye out for the link so you can subscribe and catch the very first update!

Cheers,
Leah