A $210,000 Home Library Renovation Over a Decade in the Making

When he bought his Akron, Ohio, lakefront home for $450,000 in 2006, the homeowner, a real-estate investor, now in his early 60s, intended to use it as a weekend getaway. Wary of spending too much on an occasional-use property, he decided to put off making any changes. It was a decision he stood by until 2019, when the fading interior coupled with a desire for a primary residence prompted him to reconsider a design refresh.