How this Hornell home on Preston Ave. landed in the HGTV 'Cheap Old Houses' spotlight

A Hornell home that hasn’t been on the market since 1969 caught the eye of Cheap Old Houses, an HGTV television series and popular Instagram account with over 2.4 million followers.

The three-story brick home at 33 Preston Ave. hit the page Friday after Cheap Old Houses reached out to Regi Gambino of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services.

The property has been in the Babcock family since the days of the Apollo moon landing. Jeff Babcock said the house was a central part of his childhood when it was owned by his grandparents.

"I spent many a time there. We’d go there after school waiting for our parents to get out of work," recalled Babcock, who now resides outside Pittsburgh. "Sometimes we’d cheat on track practice and hide there to avoid some distance runs."

The Preston Avenue property is currently listed at $89,000.

“It’s a gem. You don’t see these type of houses in this price range,” said Gambino. “The outside certainly needs some tender loving care, but it’s completely move-in ready.”

Here’s what drew Cheap Old Houses to the Hornell home.

Preston Avenue home features ‘historical charm’ and ‘wonderful architectural detail’

The Cheap Old Houses Instagram account was started by Elizabeth and Ethan Finkelstein in 2016. The couple developed a passion for highlighting historic homes in need of some TLC to restore them to glory. The homes featured on the page range from city dwellings to rural farmhouses, with most listed for under $100,000.

The Babcock home checked both boxes with its relatively low price point and some unique architectural flourishes. The house is in better shape than most featured by Cheap Old Houses, which often spotlights grand old homes that require major renovations.

Gambino said the Preston Avenue house has been well-maintained and may just need some exterior work and interior updates to modernize a few of the rooms.

“It’s not a fixer upper at all, but the two back porches probably need to come off,” said Gambino. “The quality of the home is really quite beautiful. I think that’s part of the charm.”

Cheap Old Houses said it was drawn to the home’s “historical charm and wonderful architectural detail.”

Gambino said the interior features hardwood floors arranged in a unique pattern, French doors, pocket doors, interesting woodwork, high ceilings and a fireplace. The home includes three bedrooms, two full bathrooms and a large attic. An enclosed deck on the front of the house adds to over 1,700 square feet of living area.

“The hardwood flooring is unbelievable. It’s gorgeous,” said Gambino. “The flooring is just not your basic hardwood floor. It’s patterned. Someone took a long time to put that together. It has a lot of character.”

The house was built in 1910, according to Steuben County records. It went untouched in the massive fire that engulfed much of Preston Avenue more than a century later in 2019, though it did experience a house fire before 2000 that damaged a set of pocket doors.

"Everything else is original," said Babcock. "It was built the right way. Nothing in there is cheap, it’s all solid wood. The most beautiful part of the house is all the original woodwork."

More: This Hornell home was featured by HGTV's Cheap Old Houses: What it sold for

Hornell, Southern Tier homes in the spotlight

The Preston Avenue home isn’t the first Hornell residence to go viral with an assist from Cheap Old Houses. Early this year, the account featured a home at 85 Hill St. that eventually sold for $25,000 in March. It was purchased by buyers from outside New York who discovered the property via the Instagram post.

Another Cheap Old Houses hot spot in the Southern Tier is the City of Elmira, with its abundance of Victorian style homes in need of repair. Several Elmira homes have been in the spotlight, including a downtown castle, a “Strawberry Mansion,” and a historic home being renovated by a mother and daughter.

The Instagram account grew to the point that the Finkelsteins launched a television series of the same name in 2021, available on HGTV. In May, HGTV announced the Finkelsteins are returning to the airwaves in a new series scheduled to premiere in spring 2024.

"The eight-episode season will follow Ethan and Elizabeth as they guide hopeful homebuyers in New England through the emotional journey of purchasing, preserving and restoring their own property bargains," reads the show description.

Babcock said 33 Preston Ave. has been vacant since around 2001. He's hopeful the next occupants will "preserve its beauty."

"It would thrill my grandmother if she were alive to have somebody raise their family and enjoy Hornell there," he said. "It was a very pleasant, quiet street to live on with great neighbors. It would be nice to have it go to a family that can experience that same sort of lifestyle."

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: What landed this Hornell home in the HGTV 'Cheap Old Houses' spotlight