Get Your “Ranch Burger” Made to Order

  |  November 11, 2014
10 trow blvd red hook ny

10 Trow Blvd, Red Hook: Could this be your “ranch burger”?

One-level ranch homes are fairly ubiquitous around these parts, and no matter how pragmatic we can get when it comes to house hunting, there’s nothing terribly glamorous about them. That doesn’t mean that a savvy designer couldn’t use a simple ranch house as a canvas upon which to create something truly unique. Take, for example, Sloane Klevin’s mid-mod bungalow-turned-contemporary/country chic abode in Gallatin, Columbia County, which was recently profiled in the New York Times. Klevin, a CA native, purchased her ranch after renting part of a farm and attempting to buy the 18th century farm house from owner Doug Larson. Larson, an architect, wouldn’t sell, but he did give Klevin a valuable suggestion: “Buy a ranch burger,” he told her, “and I’ll fix it up.” And indeed he did. Klevin bought her mid-mod for $260,000 and spent $70,000 in renovations to turn it from a 1400 square foot one-story with small windows to 2100 square foot country escape with an enclosed porch and lots of windows for her to look out onto her 4 acre property. Make sure you click on the slide show so you can see how it turned it (spoiler alert: We love it).

So, of course, that got us thinking, why not a ranch burger? It’s the ultimate in upcycling, taking an affordable but decidedly vanilla ranch and turning it into something the NYT would feature in their Great Homes and Destinations section. But does it remind of us a fast food burger? Not really, unless you like yours with Kobe beef and truffle aioli. By the way, if you’re interested in the ranch depicted above, it’s listed for $185,000 here.

Read On, Reader...