WILMINGTON—Tucked away in a quiet neighborhood off of Oleander Drive, near Bradley Creek, you’ll find 1901 Wrightsville Green Avenue. In spite of its smaller footprint, the house has not one but two fully functional residences wrapped into one property.
Carol Rum, the owner and agent representing the home, describes the property as a “generous proportioned two master suite home with en-suites.”
While only 1400 square feet, the home features a completely separate lower-level living space that could function as a mother-in-law suite or an income property, as it has its own kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, utility room, and heating/cooling system.
In 2014 the kitchen was given a complete update overseen by Alice Evans, owner of Dynamic Kitchens. Evans featured the kitchen on Houzz — an online community for architecture, design, and home renovation — as “The New York Kitchen.”
“I’m a cook and we love to entertain our friends and our children’s friends with great meals so I will have to say the wonderful new marble kitchen, love it,” homeowner Carol Rum said.
Outside, the home has a two-tier deck that opens up to both upstairs bedrooms and the living area. The lower level has two decks and a small green space.
According to Rum, “The yard is the perfect sized space; large enough to have room outside or to grow flowers or veggies, but not so large that you spend all Saturday cutting it.”
While the kitchen is Rum’s favorite feature in the home, the neighborhood in her opinion is the real star.
“Our home is hands down one of the best community-minded and common spirited neighborhoods of all of Wilmington, lots of cookouts and pool parties and neighborhood dinners. We now have 38 children in the neighborhood, did I mention that when we first bought there were no children in the neighborhood?”
Rum went on to say, “We’ve loved watching all this come about! The other part that you cannot take for granted, location. It is so easy to get out to downtown or to Mayfaire, or to the airport, so such a great spot. The community open space provides easy access for putting in your kayak or your SUP (stand up paddleboard) in the tidal waters of the marsh and take them out to the larger waters… Honey, I’ll meet you at Dockside!”
Rum offered some advice to anyone looking to purchase their own second home.
“I preach being smart with your money to keep it affordable so you can do the other fun stuff that comes with being at the beach. My second suggestion is to look for a central location,” Rum said.
“Our house is centrally located to all things Wilmington, making it very easy to bike to the beach or take the car to Mayfaire or out to Oleander to head downtown or to Whole foods or Trader Joes. Lastly, find a house that you don’t need to spend lots of time remodeling or landscaping on so you can go enjoy the beach and all that your town has to offer.”
Now that Carol’s three children are grown and the family is expanding, it is time for them to let go of this home. “Our children are now having children and three bedrooms are no longer enough to give little ones their quiet areas for naps, etc so we sadly say goodbye to a place that we will continue to visit and love.”
