House of the week: $1.8 million for historic Hogarth House

By Ashleigh Ryan | August 12, 2010 AT 8:11 am

By Ashleigh Ryan | 08/12/2010

ADDRESS: 58 Hogarth Avenue
NEIGHBOURHOOD: North Riverdale
AGENT: Maria Jenkins, Re/Max Hallmark Real Estate Services Ltd. Brokerage
PRICE: $1.8 million
THE PLACE: Built in 1875 for Thomas Hogarth, a school principal, this house stayed in his family for over 85 years until a developer bought it in the ’60s, with plans to demolish it. Locals rescued it, and it was acquired by its current owner in 1974. The front of the house looks straight out of 19th-century Sussex: old wooden fence, English perennial garden, 100-year-old catalpa tree and two large porches. The Victorian farmhouse vibe isn’t limited to the exterior. There are cathedral ceilings in the bedrooms and a claw-foot bathtub in the loo.
BRAGGING RIGHTS: The garden earned the Old Fashioned Perennial Garden Award, presented by former mayor Barbara Hall, who called the flower bed “one of the loveliest in the city.” This is also one of the oldest houses in Riverdale and one of only three in the city built in the authentic Victorian farmhouse style.
BIG SELLING POINT: Heritage Preservation Services will allow buyers to do pretty much anything they want to the house, so an expansion, upgraded fence or in-ground pool won’t be an issue.
POSSIBLE DEAL BREAKER: Though some work has been done to the place (one of the bedrooms has been converted into a walk-in closet and bathroom), the main floor, with its ’70s-style utilitarian kitchen, just screams “reno.”

BY THE NUMBERS:

• 8,270 square feet
• 135 years of history
• 100-year-old catalpa tree
• 4 bedrooms (or 3 bedrooms and 1 office)
• 3 bathrooms
• 2 storeys
• 2-car parking
• 2 fireplaces
• 2 porches
• 2 floor-to-ceiling windows
• 1 garden
• 1 historical plaque
• 1 drawing room