Casa de Távora

Images are arranged chronologically with oldest at top.

Link to Vendor List

December 2023

When we first found the house from a listing on Idealista.PT it consisted of only a shell with concrete floors, cynder block walls, and no roof. It was incredibly difficult to visualize what a finished house might look like from this empty shell!

June 2024

We closed on purchase of the existing structure (now with a finished roof) and signed a contract with the same builder to complete construction of the house. Importantly, this included removal of the incredibly ugly concrete barrier on the second floor balcony.

July 2024

The building contract for the house did not include anything in the kitchen, so we hired Kitchens in Portugal to design and build a kitchen for us. We also went to the granite vendor to select the material for our kitchen counters. Here is a computer rendering of how our kitchen will look.

December 2024

After a long, but expected, delay over the summer, real construction began, starting with the water supply and drain lines.

January 2025

Next they added floor insulation, exterior insulation, and the concrete-like level floor surface. They also added a wall around the perimeter of the property.

March 2025

Next comes a concrete finish on the exterior of the house, framing the interior walls, and installation of our septic tank.

May/June 2025

After the walls were framed, they started on all of the electrical wiring and installed all of our doors and windows. All of the interior stairs and exterior porches and balconies also got covered with fancy granite tile.

July 2025

Around July they started installing floor and bathroom tile throughout the house. They also installed the glass railing we selected on the balconies.

August 2025

Next came the addition of a sidewalk from the gate to our front porch and cobblestone paving of our driveway. Also, the cabinet contractor came to install all of our interior cabinets and doors (EXCEPT for the kitchen!).

September 2025

We've got some real momentum going now! They are installing all of the interior lighting, the interior walls got painted, the bathroom fixtures are nearly done, the water heater is installed, and iron railing for the stairs got installed.

November 2025

In November they painted the exterior of the house and we started taking delivery of our new furniture. The furniture was all custom made by Dekora Mobiliário and Decor Design.

December 2025

There wasn't a lot of progress during December, but we did get our kitchen doors and mirrors in the bathrooms. While the rest of the house is substantially finished, the kitchen remains a blank slate!!

January 2026

The new year brought solar panels to the yard and a finished shower enclosure in the guest bath.

February 2026

Still no progress on our kitchen, but we did get all of the bathrooms finished, the outside HVAC units installed, and the yard is now planted with trees, shrubs, and grass.

April - May - June 2026

We finally had enough with the delays and blatant lies from our kitchen contractor and fired them. As a consequence, not much happened during spring. We did get some of the last lighting fixtures installed and the yard is looking fabulous. We can also now charge our electric cars from the solar panels!

July 2026

The big news in July is the kitchen! We've been to the factory twice to see the cabinets being fabricated. Installation next!

24 July 2026

The kitchen is amlost complete now. All we need is the faucets on both sinks, lights above the island, and the electrical outlets under the cabinets.

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