A visit to Georgia's Golden Isles as a teenager led Vickie Henderson to the place she now calls home.

An affiliate broker with Prudential RCR & Associates, Vickie Henderson enjoys older style-homes in established communities.  "I love a beautiful, well-landscaped yard, and I love older neighborhoods where you can look out your front door and see trees that have been there for 100 years or more and just feel the history surrounding the place."

"I love older houses in established neighborhoods," the local real estate broker said.  "One of my first encounters with older restored homes was on Jekyll Island.  I loved the look and style of those old homes and all their little details:  the trim, the rocking chairs on the front porch, the ornate railings.  They fascinated me, and I wanted to live in a house like that."

Now she does, a two-story yellow Victorian-style house in the Belvoir area of Brainerd that she bought as soon as it came on the market.  "It was my style, my taste, exactly what I wanted:  a fixer-upper in a wonderful old neighborhood.  My house was built in 1993, but it fits in with the other homes in the neighborhood."

Location, Ms. Henderson said, was as much a selling point as style.

"(Living in Belvoir) is like stepping back into time, like things were in the 40s and 50s.  You can sit on your front porch and see your neighbors, joggers, people walking their pets, mothers with baby strollers.  It's just a few minutes to the interstate, downtown, and Hamilton Place, but it's a different, incredible, safe atmosphere, a nice one to come home to before going back out to the hustle and bustle of the real world.   Not many homes stay on the market long in this neighborhood.  If they do, it's because they're overpriced."      

Older properties are growing in popularity with younger home buyers, according to Ms. Henderson.   "The market is becoming one in which we're seeing the younger generation appreciating homes in older neighborhoods.  A lot of people are going into older subdivisions, taking these grand old homes, and giving them the TLC they need to regain their former glory:  pulling up carpet to expose beautiful old hardwood floors, uncovering fireplaces that had been boarded up, discovering old bookcases and claw foot bathtubs in the basement"

Quality of construction is a major reason for the interest in older homes.   "Many of them are very well-built.  The quality was really there, and then there's the enchantment of being in an older home and becoming a part of its history.  Older houses have their own character, designs, and distinguishing factors.  In my subdivision, for example, there are no two houses exactly alike.  Older homes didn't come out of a cookie cutter."

Vickie Henderson in the renovated foyer of her Belvoir home.  "I love coming in the front door and seeing that gorgeous chandelier," she says.

Ms. Henderson began what she referred to as an extreme makeover shortly after moving into her house a year ago.  "I saw its potential, that it could be a very beautiful house.  It just needed a facelift."  The master bedroom was her first project, which, with the help of friends, was completed within two weeks after closing.  The living room and foyer were next, and work is underway on the kitchen and dining room.  Landscaping and exterior painting projects are planned for the spring. 

"Little by little, one room at a time, it's getting done.  I could hire the work out, but making the house my home is the thrill and excitement of it.  Putting your own effort into the house makes you appreciate it more.  I know what I want, but it's hard to find the time to do it.  Working in real estate, you're always on call, so when duty calls, I'll jump into my professional clothes and head out the door in a second, even if I'm in the middle of painting."

For those interested in restoring a vintage house, Ms. Henderson recommends having the home inspected.  "The thing you need to determine is, is it worth it?  If the repairs are minimal and the price is right, it's likely worthwhile to go ahead with it.  But some homes have been so neglected and may have problems with mold, termite damage, and rotten wood, that it might be worth tearing it down and rebuilding from the foundation up.  That's what a home inspection is for, so you can find out if there are problems like that before you buy.  I always recommend a home inspection.  That's only using wisdom."