Ante Up for This
Antebellum Estate

What: Three bedrooms, 2½ baths in 3,600 square feet on 12 acres

Where: La Grange, Ga., 70 miles southwest of Atlanta

Amenities: Original layout preserved, restored to pre-Civil War condition. Pine floors, six fireplaces, 11-foot ceilings. All new systems, new kitchen, new baths. Long, boxwood-lined driveway, old-growth pecan trees, restored original smokehouse and separate kitchen building.

Asking Price: $1.495 million.

Opening Bid*: $1.3 million.

Agent: Laura Blalock, Harry Norman Realtors 404-495-8362

Due Diligence: Charles and Mary Ellen Hanavich, who are selling this 1830s Antebellum Revival estate, are just the third family to own the home. Called Nutwood Plantation after the pecan trees on the property, the house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designed by architect and builder Cullen Rogers for the Newsome family and sold in the early 20th century to another prominent La Grange family, the Mallorys. Mr. Hanavich, a commercial real-estate executive, bought the home in 1997 for about $335,000. The couple began a total restoration, from the cedar-shake roof (it's new) down to the windows, which they replaced with antique glass from Germany. They also redid the landscaping, put in a new kitchen and bath, and restored the smokehouse and original separate kitchen building. Their total investment: about $700,000, Mr. Hanavich says. They are planning to buy and restore another old plantation on the coast of South Carolina.

Additional Photos

*The opening bid is Weekend Journal's estimate of a reasonable starting point for negotiations to buy the property, based on past sales, prevailing market conditions and interviews with local real-estate experts.

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