Just Listed: Designer Rebuild in Point Breeze
There's actually an old house under that brand-spanking-new shell. Except for the occasional clue the developers left here and there, you'd never know.
Here’s a spectacular yet reasonably priced loaded new house — or is it? Take a look around 1330 S. Cleveland St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19146 | Photos: Joe Alfano via Akal Investments
When is a new construction house not a new construction house?
When the new construction incorporates the foundation and much of the frame of the house it replaced, that’s when.
And that’s what developer Akal Investments did with this rebuilt Point Breeze rowhouse for sale.
Akal is a mom-and-pop shop — literally, almost: partners Justin and Simi Chhabra are also husband and wife, but they have no children yet.
Unless you count their projects, and the two are definitely proud parents of this one.
Main floor
With more than a little justification, as the photos should make clear.
“This was a two-story single-family home,” says Justin. “We added a third story, added an extension at the back, moved the main entrance from the front to the side, added four bump-outs for extra space and gave it a whole new facade. It ended up new construction basically, but we kept the foundation.”
They also kept pieces of the old house. Simi, who Justin says is the design half of the partnership, used them to make this modern house look more rustic on the inside.
Much of the wood you see on the walls has been recycled from the original house.
Kitchen and dining nook
So is the beam from which the pendant lights in the kitchen hang.
Powder room; foyer at left
The barn door over the main-floor powder room ditto.
Living room, overhead view
Living room
And the whitewashed red bricks that frame the electric fireplace? Yup, those too.
Staircase
“We try to reuse materials wherever possible,” says Justin. And where they couldn’t recycle the house, they turned to other sources for recycled material like the wood planks that turn the open staircase in the center of the house into a real showstopper.
Master bedroom
Master bathroom
The Chhabras also added all sorts of little touches of luxury to this house. For instance, not only the master bathroom but also the second-floor hall bathroom have multifunction shower heads with handheld heads and body sprays.
Second-floor bathroom
And the second-floor bathroom has a Jacuzzi tub to boot.
Master suite foyer
Roof deck
And they designed it thoughtfully. You can use the roof deck without having to pass through the master suite, for instance — just close the French doors leading from the suite to the staircase.
With this house, everything’s brand new, yet old at the same time. If you like your modernism with a softer edge, you should find this rebuilt Point Breeze rowhouse for sale just your cup of tea.
THE FINE PRINT
BEDS: 4
BATHS: 3 full, 1 half
SQUARE FEET: 2,400
SALE PRICE: $529,000
Basement media room (bedroom)
OTHER STUFF: This house’s fourth bedroom is its finished basement, which meets the code requirements for adequate egress and has a full bathroom. You may prefer to use it as a media room. Joseph Jacquinto, the agent marketing this house, is also a partner in Akal’s projects; Jacquinto Properties serves as general contractor and provides design services to Akal.
1330 S. Cleveland St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19146 [Joseph Jacquinto | Keller Williams Philly]
Updated April 7th, 11:36 p.m., to correct the spelling of Akal Investments’ name (it had previously been identified in error as Akai) and explain Joseph Jacquinto’s partnership with the company.
