For 20 years, Pat Busch spent most of her free time tearing down plaster walls, removing staircases and replacing wallpaper a series of old houses in her native South Baltimore.
An admirer of Baltimore architecture, Ms. Busch bought and renovated the houses while residing in them.
But she decided to pursue more leisurely hobbies four years ago after retiring from a 19-year career with the Motor Vehicle Administration.
So she sold her three-story Victorian -- her latest renovation project -- and bought a new one-bedroom condo a few blocks away at HarborView condominiums in Federal Hill.
She hasn't picked up a screwdriver, saw or hammer since moving into her 1,200-square-foot condo 13 months ago.
"I wouldn't trade this for anything," Ms. Busch says. "The condo doesn't require any maintenance. I have such a sense of security, of being taken care of. And I can walk to just about anything, including the Cross Street Market.
"I loved my old houses. I loved taking something old and redoing it. It's a love I'll never let go. But after I retired and started traveling, I didn't want to be burdened."
Now, she can travel without worrying about her home, or she can just sit in her $175,000, 1 1/2 -bath condo and enjoy her second-story view. Every room -- from her bedroom, to her combination living room-dining room-kitchen, to her den -- has a view of the city. (The long windows with clerestories in her bedroom are 10 feet wide.) There's the HarborView marina below her and, off in the distance, the Domino Sugars sign.
That bright red sign is important to her because her family's history is rooted in South Baltimore.
"As a child, we knew that we were almost at grandmother's house when we could see the sign," she says. "And my grandfather sailed his four-masted schooner into the harbor."
But the view isn't the only perk Ms. Busch gets from living at HarborView. There's a parking garage for tenants, with an elevator that leads to the lobby. There are security cameras that monitor cars arriving at the HarborView complex, and a receptionist who notifies a tenant of a visitor's arrival. There's the building's health spa and pool, and the monthly get-togethers with tenants.
"Everyone is so friendly here," says Ms. Busch, who pays a $298 monthly condo fee, which is based on her condo's square footage.
Ms. Busch decorated with pastel colors because of the condo's small size.
"I decided to make the rooms light and airy," she says. "I had to get rid of a lot of Victorian, marble-top furniture. I didn't want anything too heavy."
She settled on a mix of Victorian, country and modern furniture that she calls eclectic. She bought a pastel floral print fabric and made curtains and valances for her living room window, which runs almost the entire length of the wall. Framed prints of rustic, country life by Pat Buckley Moss adorn the walls.
She chose bleached hardwood floors for the entrance hallway and the living room-dining room-kitchen; tan carpeting for the den and bedroom. The kitchen has bleached cabinets and tan counter tops.
"I have the best of both worlds here," she says. "I'm living in a new home that is in an area rich in history."