Portland, Oregon is known for our historic Arts and Crafts and Victorian homes, along with the homes created by famous architects who mixed various styles. But where do you even start when a home is in need of historical 
restoration?
Take a look at your home’s past.
You can check the Auditor’s office, the Library, the Oregon Historical Society, and the Architectural Heritage Center for ideas on how your home originally looked. Even if you cannot find pictures of your home, you may glean details from past written works, or you can compare your home style with other historical homes with a similar style.
Once you have the best idea you can form about what your home used to look like:
Set a budget.
While you may want your home to look exactly as it did when it was originally built, this can be a costly activity. It’s a good idea to get an idea of the money you can spend on restoration. This way, once bids come in, you can decide what will have the most impact on your homes’ look. It may be that redoing the roof and siding, along with replacing modern hardware with vintage-style hardware and then adding in some period pieces will give your home the look you are going for on the budget you have, or it could be that what really needs work is the interior. Either way, it’s smart to have an idea of what you can spend on this project.
Share your vision.
Tell your contractors exactly what you are going for. If you have drawings or pictures of your home in original condition, share these with your contractors. It’s important that they understand where you are coming from and the look you are going for.
These are some basic points to consider. We at www.tomleachroofing.net can help with the roofing aspect of historical restoration, and may be able to point you in the right direction when it comes to restoring your historic Portland home.