The House that Needs You: Adapting Historic Homes for Modern Life

You bought an old house because something about it spoke to you. But loving an old house and knowing how to care for it are two different things.
Join historic rehabilitation strategist Kate Wood of Worth Preserving for an engaging, practical, and occasionally provocative conversation about how to make historic homes work for 21st-century life without erasing what makes them special. Kate will explore how to recognize the character-defining features that give an old house meaning, determine what needs to change and what deserves to stay, and develop a thoughtful strategy for repairs, improvements, additions, energy efficiency, maintenance, and more. You'll learn tools and resources that can help homeowners make confident decisions and avoid costly mistakes. Along the way, she’ll challenge some common assumptions about old houses, from the supposed necessity of replacing historic windows to the idea that preservation means living like it’s 1890.

If you’ve ever heard that little voice say, “This house needs me,” this talk is for you.