'I bought run down home for £68,000 - 20 years later people don't recognise it'

A mother of one has completely transformed the run-down house she purchased over 20 years ago in Manchester, underoging extensive home renovation and refurnishing.

Jade Doutch, now 42, lives in Anglesey and initially bought the 1920s three-bed semi-detached house when she was just 22 years old.

"I was looking for a house that needed a little bit of work. I viewed quite a few houses at the time, but this one was just a bargain really," Jade, now 43, told the Manchester Evening News.

"Funnily enough, I went to view the house next door but I didn’t like it. Then my friend who lived opposite at the time was like 'what about the one next to it'. It had been on the market for over a year and no one was interested in it, but it came with a plot of land that had planning permission on it which I didn't realise.

"So the next day I went to see it but even before viewing it, I just knew I was going to buy it. It was cheaper than the one next door - even with the huge plot of land that came with it."

Jade managed to buy the property for the low price of £68,000, although more money has since been funneled into renovations.

She said: "I bought it before house prices shot up in 2002. I didn’t realise it at the time, but I was super lucky. I lived in two council houses and this was the first house that I bought myself. I had £8,000 heritage after the death of my mum and at 20-odd years ago that was quite a lot of money, so I thought I’d use it as a five percent deposit as interest rates were low.

"I bought the house but I did not know what I was doing. I was only 22 at the time and I was totally naive to the work that needed to doing here."

Since buying the house, Jade has "absolutely gutted it out from top to bottom", knocking a wall through from the kitchen to the dining room, building an extension, and giving it a trendy black-cladded front, inspired by her trip to Iceland.

Jade explained: "It stands out on the street a lot as all the other homes are a lot more traditional. I just get such lovely comments about it, people stop me in the street to compliment it. I’ve broken the darkness up with wood cladding as well as some plants to soften it so it’s not too harsh."

Jade has been sharing her home renovation journey on her Instagram account, @jade.doutch, since 2018. Her follower count now boasts over 427,000 people, and she has quit her former job to pursue being a home and lifestyle content creator.

She explained: "The account has just grown gradually over time. I had no idea how to photograph although I had an estate agency background so I understood how to sell the house so I think that came into it.

"I was just playing the game really on Instagram using the right hashtags, entering competitions and things. I think in the first year I gained 100,000 followers, so then I started monetising on that.

"Then after lockdown, after I’d been furloughed for a little while for my job, I just didn’t want to go back. I love doing it because it’s my passion and it’s given me lots of flexibility. It’s amazing that my passion and career have collided."

Although Jade believes her home is now "complete", she is still open to adding more features.

She said: "The house is still evolving now so I feel like it'll never be finished because my house is my passion I love moving things forward with trends and fashion so it’s forever a work in progress."

Looking to the future, Jade is still unsure whether she will stay in the house she has spent so much time and effort on.

"I don't know if this is my forever home, I'd never say never, but this house would be hard to beat for me. I would also feel really difficult letting go of it because I put my heart and soul into it for so long, it would be heartbreaking to let go of it but you never know what’s around the corner.

“I’m currently adding a cabin at the bottom of my garden which is going to be a workshop and a little chill-out zone. What I love is planning a new project. That's when I feel the most alive."