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Why Hasn’t Anyone Bought the Betty Crocker House?

If you’ve always wanted a hint of what Betty Crocker‘s actual kitchen looked like, now’s your chance. This quaint old home in Norwell, MA, was owned by one of the many women behind the famous fictional cook.

While Betty Crocker products have been flying off the shelves for nearly a hundred years, the house has yet to find a buyer. Currently listed for $665,000, the three-bedroom home has been on the market since April.

The woman behind Betty

Though she captured the hearts of many hungry husbands, Betty Crocker isn’t real. However, she was inspired by real women who gave real advice to homemakers. Janette Kelley was one of the six women who personified the original domestic goddess. Kelley owned this historic Massachusetts home during the 1930s and early 1940s.

Kelley’s work for the brand included answering questions sent to Betty, setting up Betty Crocker test kitchens, and running those kitchens as she worked to create recipes for “Betty Crocker’s Kitchen Cook Book.”

Her work contributed to Betty Crocker becoming the second most recognizable woman in America in 1945—second only to first lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

The house (and the kitchen)

Built in 1681, this historic home is way older than America’s favorite fictional homemaker. Crocker was developed to dispense homemaking advice in the 1920s.

And with a name like the Betty Crocker House, its focal point is expected to be the kitchen. But a buyer into baking might need to update the space. Kelley made changes to the kitchen when she owned the house, but no owner has changed it since she left. The only exception? A dishwasher was installed.

The kitchen is iconic, but the living room shouldn’t be overlooked.

“The kitchen is charming,” says listing agent Poppy Troupe, “but the living room, with its oversized fireplace and wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, is stunning.”

The living room was once the carriage house on the property, but it was renovated and incorporated into the main part of the house over the centuries. Its high ceiling and wood beams give the room an old-school charm.

Why hasn’t a sale bubbled up?

While the association with the Betty Crocker brand makes this home famous, it could also be why it hasn’t found an owner. In a market that values chef’s kitchens with state-of-the-art appliances, the home’s vintage kitchen might be hindering its marketability.

Which brings up an existential question a buyer must consider: If the kitchen is revamped and brought up to modern standards, can it still be considered Betty Crocker’s kitchen?

The home’s age may also be keeping buyers away. But age shouldn’t factor into the equation for Crocker’s place.

Historic homes have a reputation for being money pits, but that’s not the case with this property.

“Many antiques are updated and lose the charm that makes an antique an antique,” says Troupe. “The current owners have invested the effort and money into this property while keeping it within its period.”

Because the home has been well-maintained over its 335-year history, it’s ideal for a buyer interested in a historic property who doesn’t want to do battle with ill-advised renovations. See you at the dinner table!

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