The owner’s tour | Memories to share in Outremont

Owners open the doors of their exceptional residence to us, offered on the resale market.

Emmanuelle Mozayan-Verschaeve
special cooperation

This beautiful Outremont home has seen the growth of Marc Lebel, its current owner, who is slowly preparing to retire. Built on a large intimate plot where the owner and his brother often played with their friends in the backyard, the warm house exudes joie de vivre.

It was in 1957 that the parents of Marc Lebel bought this property built at the beginning of the XX^and century. “I was born there, I stayed there for a long part of my life and I came back there after the death of my parents, recalls Mr. Lebel. I am very attached to it because I have beautiful memories there. I went to school around the corner and I could go home for dinner. It is an Outremont district where there are a multitude of good schools and the University of Montreal is nearby. From a family point of view, for my brother and me, it was extremely convenient because we could walk everywhere. »

Carefully maintained, the residence has been renovated by the family from one generation to another over the years, while respecting its ancestral character. Functional and bright, the ground floor includes an entrance hall equipped with a double closet, a charming living room thanks to a bay window, a kitchen adjoining a formal dining room, a powder room and a secondary vestibule on the side of the garage.

“When I got the house during the succession in 2000, everything was renovated, but my parents had already done a lot of work in the early 1960s,” emphasizes Marc Lebel. He brought the electricity and plumbing up to standard, changed the doors and windows and even had some walls opened to maximize comfort by integrating central air conditioning. The partitions and moldings were then rebuilt according to the rules of the art.

A serene atmosphere

Most of the floors have been redone in maple wood set with an elegant cherry wood border, including in the bedrooms located upstairs. One of them, where the owner spent long hours studying when he was young, has been converted into an office. The main one is adorned with refined pearl gray wallpaper and the third, intended for guests, overlooks a veranda. “It’s a very bright space where you like to read and which you can enjoy in all seasons,” says Marie-France Gagnon, spouse of Marc Lebel.

The bathrooms have recently been brought up to date and one of them has been enlarged to give a rejuvenating spa effect. In this room, the herringbone pattern of the ceramic floor heating brings a classic and majestic touch that fits well with the style of the house.

A completely redone staircase leads to the basement, which has also been completely renovated. The latter includes a family room, a bedroom, a bathroom and a laundry room with a double sink. “This quiet and independent space would probably be appreciated by a teenager,” believes Mr. Lebel.

A heartbreaking departure

It is with a little heavy heart that the master of the place decided to sell his childhood home, since he lived there a good part of his existence.

“I’m more towards the end of my career, so I’m reducing my activities and eventually we would like to get closer to both water and nature. It would somehow become our family resort where we would receive family, children, possibly grandchildren and friends. This house has seen a lot of happiness, my mother loved to receive, we celebrated warm Christmas Eve. Many young families are settling in the neighborhood and I think that my house could be very appealing to one of them,” says Marc Lebel.