The story of this house began in November 2009 when Gray purchased it from his cousin for a mere $1,500.
Before buying the house, Gray was living in his cousin's basement.
As reported: Popularni.live
He didn't have a place of his own. Despite having a college education, he struggled to find work in Detroit.
In 2008, he was hit by a car. The court ordered compensation, and Gray decided to use the money to buy his own home.
On the day of the purchase, he moved into the new house with only an air mattress.
The house was in a terrible state. He had to share the roof with bugs, spiders, and mice. The plumbing didn't work.
Ten years later, the house is unrecognizable. Gray documented the entire process with photographs that fill two albums.
Take a look at this amazing transformation:
Michael Gray's house is located in Detroit, one of the most depressed cities in the USA.
Gray documented the entire renovation. It takes two albums to hold all the photos.
In 2009, he bought the house from his cousin Silvester for just $1,500.
This is what the kitchen looked like before the renovation.
The paint was peeling off the walls, and there were cables hanging from them. The shower stall was covered in rust.
Despite the dreadful conditions, Gray immediately moved into the house.
Bugs, spiders, and mice were running around the house.
The plumbing didn't work.
Gray slept on an air mattress on the second floor while he reconstructed room by room.
Before the purchase, Gray was essentially homeless, with no place to call his own.
He moved the bathroom wall 30 centimeters to create more space.
Gray has a background in linguistics and psychology, but he couldn't find work in his field.
Working on the ceiling in the living room.
Gray removed everything and rebuilt it.
His wife Cynthia (at the time, his fiancée) supported him from the beginning. "I told her that I would get her a house where she wouldn't be ashamed to live or invite someone over."
Around 80% of the work, including flooring and painting, was done by Gray himself.
He learned the skills while working in an administrative role at a construction company in Michigan, observing the workers.
Where he didn't know how to proceed, friends came to help.
They assisted with drywall, wiring, furnace, water heater, and air conditioning.
Gray says the most challenging task was replacing the swollen ceiling frames.
The easiest part was laying tiles: "It was hard work, but I enjoyed it because when you lay tiles with love, it shows."
In the end, Gray painted all the rooms. Cynthia chose the colors.
He completed the basic work in 2012.
Now the house has three renovated bedrooms...
...and one bathroom.
The couple decided to use one of the bedrooms as a walk-in closet.
Gray continues to work on improving the house.
He has already spent $70,000 on the renovation.
He now works as a mechanic in Ohio and returns to Cynthia in Detroit on weekends.
On November 2, 2019, the couple celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary.
Could you handle something like that too?
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