Just Listed: Hacienda in Elkins Park
This 1920s Spanish Colonial gets lots of light from its side yard's southern exposure. And it has lots of style on the inside too.
618 Elkins Ave., Elkins Park, Pa. 19027 | Bright MLS images via BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors
The Mission, or Spanish Colonial, house style is something of a rarity up this way.
That shouldn’t come as any big surprise. After all, the Spaniards colonized the Southwest and Florida, not the Northeast.
But every so often, an adventurous developer or owner gets the fever and builds, or commissions someone to build, a Spanish-style house in this region.
Such was the case on this quiet street in Elkins Park in the 1920s. The developer who built the houses that line it had eclectic tastes. He mixed things up in a way most local builders didn’t then and still don’t now: you’ll find Dutch Colonials, Tudor Revivals and Spanish Colonial houses like this house for sale, all on this one block.
The owner of this hacienda has made several improvements that nonetheless respect the spirit of the original house.
Family room
The most notable one is the two-story-high family room in the rear. It has the newer of this house’s two working fireplaces and a loft overlook that currently serves as home office space.
Kitchen
The family room is attached to the kitchen and breakfast nook, both of which got an upgrade in 2015. With two sinks, a breakfast bar that seats three, and plenty of counter space, it’s equipped for you to entertain a crowd.
Dining room
Assisting you in this task is the coffee/wet bar in the passageway that leads from the dining room to the basement stairs. The dining room has had elegant crown molding added to it.
Living room
The two rooms in the front of the main floor retain all their original character. The living-room fireplace has an attractive brick hearth and arched firebox, and custom built-in bookshelves bracket the doorway leading from the living room to the sunroom in front.
Sunroom
That room not only gets light from the south-facing side, but it also gets plenty of morning sun through its east-facing front windows.
Front patio
Next to it on the outside is an unusual front patio. It functions as a welcoming gateway to this house and has a fire pit.
Master bedroom
The master bedroom upstairs spans the front of the house. It has an en-suite bathroom and French doors that open onto a roof deck atop the sunroom below. A hall bath services the other three equally attractive bedrooms on this floor.
Basement
The partially finished basement includes another wet bar; it can function as a media room, rec room or playroom as you see fit. (And as you can see from the photo, the current owner has this space doing double duty.)
You’ll also find a laundry room and powder room on the main floor, storage space in the basement, and a two-car detached garage in the back. You’ll also find that this house is convenient to both Old York Road and the Elkins Park business district clustered around the neighborhood’s Regional Rail station.
THE FINE PRINT
BEDS: 4
BATHS: 2 full, 1 half
SQUARE FEET: 3,507
SALE PRICE: $449,900
OTHER STUFF: Another recent addition to this house for sale is an air conditioning system that cools all the rooms on the second floor; it’s powerful enough that it also cools the family room via the loft overlook and the living room via the stairs from the living room.
618 Elkins Ave., Elkins Park, Pa. 19027 [Scott Laughlin | BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors]
