Man gives historic home away

JUNCTION CITY, Kan. -- Available: 239 W. Fourth St,, A 5,000-square foot fixer-upper. Five bedrooms, fireplace, stained glass windows, original woodworking, hardwood floors, large front porch. Price: Free.

Giving away a house isn't something Gery Schoenrock normally does. He's a broker at Coldwell Banker, and giving away a house isn't his traditional business practice.

But the 5,000-square-foot, yellow and brown painted home he and his wife have owned for about 20 years is an exception. Schoenrock is giving the historic house away in order to avoid destroying the structure. He wants the house to be moved, preferably out of the city limits, so it can be restored.

The home, built in the late 1800s, has been used as an apartment building for the past 20 years, Schoenrock said, and it's time to either destroy it or have it restored. Schoenrock would prefer the latter and hopes that by giving it away he will find a suitable owner.

"It has reached the end of its lifespan," he said. "Rather than demolish it, I want someone to resurrect it -- it would make a grand residence."

But it will take some work. Since the home was made into apartments, it will need to be remodeled to be used as a single-family home. Remodeling an old, large home could cost more than buying a new home, said Stan Hineline, a project manager at Custom Care Builders of Kansas.

"A house that old may require more than what someone would pay for a new house," he said.

Hineline said improving the aesthetics of the home may not be the only challenge. Installing new wiring and updating the old features of the home may also be needed. Hineline said giving away a house isn't really all that uncommon.

"I've seen people do it before -- give away a house, especially a historical house. People want to move and keep those old houses."

Moving the house may also be pricey. Dwayne Mastre, a partner at Unruh House Moving in Moundridge, said moving a two-story house could cost up to $20,000. He said moving the telephone and power lines, which must be moved out of the way in order for the home to travel on city roads, also will cost the homeowner.