Ebonn Twilley inside the 85-year-old South Carolina cottage she spent two years renovating into an Airbnb.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Ebonn Twilley purchased an 85-year-old cottage in Columbia, South Carolina for $41,000.
Twilley got thrifty, finding used doors on Craigslist and turning a $75 dresser into kitchen cabinets.
It made $1,4000 in its first month on Airbnb, and Twilley is quitting her job to run it full-time.
The cottage before renovations.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Ebonn Twilley had helped her mom run an Airbnb, but wanted to set out on her own.
When her broker spotted a one-bedroom cottage being sold as part of an estate sale, Twilley thought it would be the perfect-sized project to begin with.
The cottage when it was purchased.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
She learned the 600-square-foot home was built in 1938 by a veteran of a military base near her home of Columbia, South Carolina. He never married and lived in the house until 1985.
The old bathroom.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley bought the cottage for $41,000 in July 2021. At the time, she said, it was infested with fleas and a family of raccoons was living in the crawl space.
The old kitchen.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Someone else had purchased the cottage from the original owner and used it as a rental. But it had been neglected over the years.
The house during the demolition phase.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley said she initially she liked the "instant gratification" of ripping off siding and screen doors by herself.
The cottage during renovations.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
The first contractor Twilley hired dropped out of the job. By April 2022, though, she found the right team.
The exterior of the house during the removal of the siding.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
First, Twilley wanted to remove two extra layers of siding. "I was familiar with the age of the home," she said, "I knew what would likely be underneath." Sure enough, she was able to restore the original German clapboard.
The floors during the renovation.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
The hardest job was fixing the floor. Some of the home had the original heart pine wood intact, while others did not. Twilley couldn't track down an exact match due to supply chain issues.
The floors gleam beneath a newly built archway in the cottage.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Instead, Twilley bought two-ply pine boards from Lowe's for $15 apiece. After a few sweaty attempts to install them herself, she hired a contractor. "You would never know it wasn't a perfect match," she said. All together, flooring cost her $2,000.
The finished cottage.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Construction cost $90,000 total. The house, dubbed the Soda City Shoebox, went live on Airbnb in April 2023 for about $140 a night.
The finished kitchen.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley quit her job in marketing in January to focus on the Airbnb projects full-time. She enjoys the flexibility to enjoy time with her 4-year-old when she's not running the rental. "Because I'm a mom," she added, "I'm able to do it on the side."
The cottage entrance and living room.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley, a self-described "thrifty" shopper, challenged herself to use as many vintage finds as possible. "I knew for a fact that I could build this house using majority secondhand finds," she said.
The finished kitchen.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
She found a $75 nightstand at a thrift store that she repurposed into cabinets.
The entrance to the bedroom.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
The two doors that open to the bedroom were just $90 on Craigslist. Stripped from an 1800s home, Twilley preserved the original hardware.
The refurbished bathroom door.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
She nabbed a $300 clawfoot tub off of Facebook Marketplace. Some of the house's doors were even salvaged from trash-pickup piles on the side of the road.
The renovated bathroom.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
The hunt for fixtures and furniture became a family affair. Twilley's mother found the concrete sink at a yard sale for $50.
A wallpapered accent wall in the kitchen.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley said her biggest tip is to comb thrift stores every day.
"It takes patience and consistency," she added. "It's not like I walked into a thrift store one day and found every single piece that I got."
The sitting room.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
In April, the first month the cottage was listed on Airbnb, she brought in a total of $1,400.
Another view of the kitchen from the living room.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley just won an award for her rehabilitation from Historic Charleston, a nonprofit dedicated to historical preservation. It has helped reaffirm her desire to focus on Airbnb projects full-time.
The cottage's backyard.
Courtesy of Ebonn Twilley
Twilley said looking at the renovated cottage today feels "surreal."
"Every day," she told Insider, "I have to pinch myself and say, 'This is real. Be proud, girl!'"
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