Excerpt from the Des Moines Register (December 11, 2009):

The house at 1075 26th St. could use a new lease on life. With any luck, its new owner will find a way to give it one.

The 120-year-old folk Victorian in the Drake neighborhood is the first structure on the Des Moines Rehabbers Club's 2009 list of most endangered buildings in the city.

The four-bedroom, 3,115-square-foot house on the southeast corner of 26th Street and Cottage Grove had been vacant for quite a while before it was purchased during a tax sale earlier this year. That buyer's plans changed, though, and the house was placed back on the market.

Neglect is obvious: Siding has been stripped and torn, there are holes in the once-stately front porch, and parts of the structure are open to the elements.

But the home's proud exterior detailing, though tired and faded, remains in place.

Tony Strang, an agent with Re/Max Real Estate Concepts in Des Moines, said the house recently was purchased again, but he declined to reveal details of the sale.

"It's a cash sale, and we're hoping it will be finalized by the end of the year," Strang said.

The Drake neighborhood organization in partnership with the City of Des Moines has received two grants to fund a sample survey of historic structures across the neighborhood. Hopefully, this survey will pave the way for future historic district nominations in the coming years. National Register historic districts make contributing structures eligible for historic rehabilitation tax credits of up to 45% of the eligible renovation costs, depending on the use of the building.