Connecticut’s Fairy-Tale ‘Recycle House’ Overlooking a Waterfall Is Listed for $790,000

An artist’s dream home filled with repurposed, upcycled materials has just hit the market for $790,000 in Chester, CT.

Known as “The Recycle House,” the 1,598-square-foot residence built in 1845 was purchased for $65,000 in 2006 by Dr. Kim Senay, who was looking to transform the dilapidated structure’s interior into a beautiful residence using salvaged materials. When he bought the property, it was originally designed as a two-family residence, so Senay decided to keep the footprint intact, but gutted the interior and opened up the floor plan.

“The homeowner has been a dentist in town for more than 50 years, and he’s a community staple who lives across the street,” says listing agent Amy Graham, of William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty.

“When he bought it, he wanted to turn it into something unique. His mission is repurposing and upcycling things that would have otherwise been in a landfill. So everything in the home is recycled, from the light fixtures to a beautiful piano that he made furniture out of.”

When a local schoolhouse was being demolished, Senay transported some of its walls to the home.

“Some of them still have initials carved in it from the students,” Graham notes. “He has had writers and artists coming here looking to rent it for an entire week. It’s a real retreat. When you walk in, it’s just incredible. Every inch has a story to tell, and it’s all local. The house is really phenomenal.”

The whimsical residence located near Chester’s village center is now being used as an investment property. In its current configuration with one bedroom and two bathrooms found upstairs and one bedroom and another full bathroom downstairs, it can be offered as two separate rentals or available to rent as a whole.

“It’s such a staple here in town,” says Graham. “The owner looked at it as trying to repurpose materials and not being wasteful, but we all look at it as art, and it fits perfectly with the Chester community.”

Other highlights found throughout the eclectic interior include wood salvaged from an 1800s barn, bar tops and architectural elements from local businesses and theaters, a glass-enclosed bedroom, and a bookcase/secret door that leads to a deck overlooking a waterfall.

“When you first enter, there is a giant art deco entryway piece that looks like something you would see in ‘The Great Gatsby,'” says Graham. “It actually came from a French restaurant downtown. The property also has a babbling brook, and up the street is Jennings Pond, which flows into Pattaconk Creek that runs behind this house.”

Its unique eco-friendly design has been featured on EarthxTV’s “House of What” (segment starts around 17:20) and named one of Curbed’s Top 70 Airbnbs near NYC.

While the project took Senay more than a decade to complete, he is now looking to slow down a bit and enjoy retirement.

“He hopes the next buyer enjoys it as much as he does,” says Graham. “I have shown it to a retired couple, another one who was looking for a second home, and others who are looking to use it as a rental property. You could even live upstairs and run a business on the lower level, but it has been really successful as a rental property. It’s one of those properties that you don’t know what it has until you go inside and take it all in.”