This may not be for everyone, but I have seen several wonderful examples out there that create the greatest homes.

Adaptive reuse means taking a space that was designed and built for another function is redesigned and adapted to fit a new function. In this case, I am talking about taking old facilities, weather they be firehouses, warehouses, retail establishments or service stations or old urban buildings.

This saves on resources and in some cases money, as you do not have to build new, some of the main structural elements. Many people use the money they save to upgrade materials and amenities.

Adaptive reuse sounds great. I wish it was easier to find applicable sites that don't require rezoning.

Historic buildings that are protected are great opportunities for adaptive reuse. Often the buildings are one or two ownership cycles removed from their original function and can make beautiful homes.

Sites that are still fairly young can be tougher to get into and more expensive as they may site on valuable land or still be feasible sites for something other than residential applications.

I've done several of these types of projects over my career and they are well worth the effort, even if rezoning is necessary. The living units in these projects typically have much more character than anything built new. With the added benefit of saving a great older building.

I agree, with history often comes character and depth that you just can't find in quickly built tract homes or high rise condo living.

Adaptive reuse is very under utilized by much of the home buying/building community. I think people are scared to take a risk, thinking it safer just to build new from the ground up.

There are instances though when adaptive reuse is not the ideal. Reuse of materials maybe, but once structural integrity or health hazards are present, adaptive reuse could just be a money pit for a home builder.