The Farmhouse Story

The Farmhouse was built around the time of the Civil War. It sits under the shade of a willow oak tree, equally historic. When we renovated the upstairs bedroom, we found an old piece of newspaper plastered to the wall. The date was 1863, and that was a part of the “new” addition to the house!

The Farmhouse had been abandoned for twenty or thirty years. In the meantime, a tree had fallen on it, a fire had damaged a part of the old kitchen, and poison ivy had grown in profusion over the whole heap. During the next few years, and with the help of many skilled hands, the Farm House reemerged as a living space.

The big question at the beginning of the renovation process was the foundation. The house was (and still is) sitting on stone piers. The floors had a gentle tilt to them, some places more than others. With great trepidation and creaking of beams, we jacked up the house, added new supports and bolstered the existing piers. We were happy to discover no sign of rot, termites or mold.

With the basic structure judged sound, we added insulation, cedar siding, windows and doors, new ceilings, heart pine floors, a screened side porch and a front porch. For extra support, we placed elegant hand-hewn beams and posts in the downstairs rooms.

The original house had no plumbing, electricity, bathroom or closets. We added a small bathroom downstairs, built a closet under the stairway, and designed the attic as a roomy storage space. Plumbing and electricity were easy to add on, with nothing old to replace or pull out.

It was time to move in, and the first residents prepared for winter with a wood stove in the living room-kitchen area and propane gas heaters in two of the three bedrooms. They discovered that the ventilation, which is a godsend in the summertime, makes for chilliness in the cold months. With the house completely insulated from top to bottom, the culprits are probably the double-pane windows and glass doors, which need insulating curtains. Another option is adding a heating unit for the whole house.

The poison ivy is history, as well as the invasive wisteria that snaked underground and popped up everywhere. In their place is a lovely garden of concentric circles off the side porch, and a clear grassy space in front.

The Farmhouse is now ready for its first resident owner. It has been cared for, renovated, and rented by Blue Heron community members for the past five years. The owner of the Farmhouse lives far away in the high desert of Oaxaca, Mexico, and is seeking to pass on the house to a new owner, an individual or family who wants to join the Blue Heron Farm community and add the next chapter to the story.

Farmhouse Statistics and Financial Information:

The Farmhouse is located at 7 Blue Heron Farm Road, Pittsboro, North Carolina, about 35 minutes from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Blue Heron Farm sits on 60 acres of land, with two ponds, organic garden, orchard, fields, forest and creek. The community has 12 households and 30 members.

The Farmhouse measures 1632 square feet. It is two stories with a living room/kitchen area, master bedroom, and bathroom downstairs, and two bedrooms and attic upstairs. There is a screened side porch, which wraps around to the front porch. The house is furnished and comes with kitchen appliances and washer machine.

The house has been appraised for $125,000, the asking price. There is an additional monthly community fee. The intention of Blue Heron Farm (BHF) is to provide affordable housing at replacement value, and not for whatever the market can bring. The asking price represents the replacement value of the house (minus depreciation) and has not been inflated to cover repairs, improvements, or to make room for negotiation of price. Hence the farmhouse will be sold “as is” and without price negotiation.

Joining the community is a co-requisite for buying the house. Joining the community is a process that begins with a potluck meal and goes from there. You can find more information about the process for becoming a member at Blue Heron Farm on this web site.

If this is a good fit for you, we hope to hear from you soon. You are welcome to visit Blue Heron Farm. Come to a potluck meal and meet everybody. Walk around and get a feel for what it would be like to live at the farm. This gives you the opportunity to check out the Farm House and talk with people about life at BHF. Then you are welcome to come back, attend a business meeting, and observe the group process of decision making by consensus. The community will be happy to answer all of your questions. This is more than an opportunity to buy a new home. It is an opportunity to participate with a unique group of people making thoughtful decisions about how to live together on this planet.



Call 919-542-2151 and ask for Barbara (Barbara@emji.net)