Serving Grapevine and Nearby DFW

Contents follow the people who lived in a house, not its architecture. An old house is no proof the furniture is old, and a new one is no proof nothing inside matters. We walk every room and find out.

We sort attached fixtures from movable belongings early. Built-in shelving, mantels and attached light fixtures are a question for the property sale, so we leave them unless the family and its attorney tell us otherwise. The rest, a Federal-style highboy, a cut-glass punch bowl, a sapphire brooch, gets priced for purchase or private auction.

Clear the contents before contractors arrive

Review and mark the contents first, so any work scope states what must stay. Agree on what leaves and by which route, then let the builders into rooms that are already settled. Nothing worth money should be sitting under a drop cloth.

Who answers which question

Designation and permissions belong with the city's preservation resources. Who may sell what, and when, belongs with the attorney administering the estate. We answer the contents questions: what the pieces are, what they bring and how they leave.

Keep those three conversations separate and the estate moves faster.

The walkthrough itself

We go room by room with the family, or for the family if you live away. Keepsakes and papers come out first. Then we read the pieces: the maker's stamp in a drawer, the hallmark on a tray, the signature on a canvas. You get a written plan before anything moves.

Last step: historic status

Grapevine adopted a historic preservation ordinance and runs a designation process through its historic preservation commission. The city identifies a historic township area, several local historic districts and individually designated landmarks, and publishes which they are. For a designated property, ask preservation staff whether planned exterior work or signs need review before you commit to anything visible from the street.