‘Cheap Old Houses’ to feature Monessen

By KRISTIE LINDEN

klinden@yourmvi.com

Many people around the Mon Valley know there are a lot of “Cheap Old Houses” in Monessen but now, when the HGTV show bearing that name airs Monday night, an international audience will get a peek at what the city has to offer.

“Cheap Old Houses” is the name of an Instagram feed, website, Facebook page and now an HGTV show that also premieres its episodes a week on the discovery+ streaming service, which visited Monessen in March. The episode will air at 9 p.m. Monday on HGTV.

The couple that runs the “Cheap Old Houses” enterprise and stars in the show, Elizabeth and Ethan Finkelstein, featured a home at 725 Second St. on Instagram after Mayor Matt Shorraw invited them to the city to see the various cheap old homes with interesting architecture that are available.

Homes featured on the “Cheap Old Houses” Instagram page are on sale for $150,000 or less — most seem to be less than $100,000. 

The Monessen house was listed for $50,000 at the time and dropped to about $45,000 shortly afterward.

The home that made the cut was built by Ernest Clark, who designed many churches in the city and elsewhere in the Mon Valley. Clark also built several other buildings, including schools in Monessen, during his career.

The home was created in the 1920s arts and crafts style, featuring unique use of tiles and woodwork — including a rather small breakfast nook that is entirely tiled.   

The house, which sold not long after the television show finished filming, also includes built-in cabinets, woodwork throughout and a bar in the basement.

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