'Tyler Gave Him a Smile. The Auctioneer Took That as a Bid' Before Couple Won 1830s House for $460K

Tyler and Lauren Bouldin bought an abandoned 1830s stone house in Pennsylvania for $460,000 (£348,207.86) after an auction moment they said they never expected. Tyler attended the auction alone while Lauren was out of town, carrying a firm spending limit of $440,000 (£333,068.56).

For context, the couple had been searching in 2020 for a more rural home with additional land as their family grew. After losing out on several properties, they began considering less conventional options and realised they would need to approach the search differently.

At the time, they were living in the first home they had bought, in a suburban neighbourhood. They wanted more space and land but said the housing market made it difficult for them to compete.

Tyler found the five-acre property while scrolling Zillow that autumn, according to the couple's account to PEOPLE. Lauren said the setting, surrounded by large trees and autumn colours at the base of a mountain, immediately stood out.

They toured the property twice before the auction and knew it needed extensive work. Even so, the couple said they had 'no intention of buying a complete remodel' and did not yet understand how demanding the project would become.

1830s House Auction Ends With a $460,000 Purchase

On auction day, bidding climbed beyond the couple's planned limit. As Lauren later described the moment to PEOPLE, 'Tyler gave him a smile. The auctioneer took that as a bid.'

The couple ultimately bought the property for $460,000, $20,000 (£15,139.48) above their stated budget. Tyler told PEOPLE the result brought confusion, excitement and panic in quick succession. He said that when he called Lauren with the news, the pair eventually cried with happiness as the purchase sank in.

Once the excitement subsided, however, the scale of the work they had taken on became harder to ignore.

The neglected house had missing floors, a collapsing staircase and no kitchen, while overgrowth covered parts of the grounds. An uncovered and unfenced swimming pool contained dark water and snakes, creating another major renovation problem.

'I think we should have been more worried than we actually were,' the couple told PEOPLE. They said some of their confidence came from not yet understanding how difficult the work would be.

Their original plan was to complete most of the renovation within about a year by working nights and weekends. Instead, they said their assumptions about the budget, schedule and overall plan 'turned out to be totally incorrect.'

1830s House Renovation Becomes a Long-Term Family Project

The years that followed brought structural problems, specialised repairs and rising costs amid pandemic-related disruption to materials and contractor availability. Those pressures, the couple said, 'blew the budget' and forced them to rethink how quickly the renovation could proceed.

They began reusing materials, looking for deals and doing more of the work themselves. Friends, relatives and people they connected with through social media also helped as the project stretched far beyond its original timetable.

The Bouldins said they lived with both sets of parents at different stages to keep the renovation financially manageable. They also gave up holidays, meals out and other comforts while putting money towards flooring, drywall and continuing work on the property.

The couple eventually demolished the snake-filled pool and turned the space into a garden. They also cleared overgrowth, removed debris and addressed rodent habitat around the property as part of efforts to make the grounds less attractive to snakes.

Their approach gradually became less focused on speed and more centred on balancing quality with cost. 'Most of the time, we decided to pick good and cheap if we could,' they told PEOPLE.

By the time of PEOPLE's October 2026 report, the couple said they had spent more than $300,000 (£227,092.20) on renovations and estimated the property was about 85% complete. Further work involving the roof, windows, barn, chapel and gardens remained among the projects still ahead.

Lauren described the unexpected auction result as foreshadowing for the renovation challenges that followed. The couple said they now focus less on reaching a finish line and more on making progress without losing time with the family and home they have built together.