Toronto Realtor Tour Finds a 1940s Time Capsule Inside a 70-Year-Old Home

Name: Toronto Realtor Tour Finds a 1940s Time Capsule Inside a 70-Year-Old Home
Uploaded: 2026-09-04T12:06:45+00:00
Duration: 28 min 34 s
Channel: Trending Stories

00:00Real estate sisters Karla and Gladys Spiziri were particularly curious about one house after they received a call about it.

00:08They waited patiently before they got the opportunity to look at the house on 148 Jane Street.

00:15The owner wanted to put it up for sale, but it turned out to be hiding an incredible secret.

00:20What the realtor duo found there shocked them.

00:24They have never seen anything quite like it in all their years in the industry.

00:28Are you ready to hear about what they saw there?

00:33Realtors expected the worse.

00:36After getting a call about a 70-year-old home.

00:40Boy, were they wrong.

00:42If you were viewing it from the outside, there was no reason to think that the house on 148 Jane

00:48Street was anything special.

00:50In fact, it looked a lot like the other houses in Toronto, Ontario.

00:55The street was rather plain and simple.

00:58No landmarks in sight.

01:00The home was also surrounded by regular-looking structures.

01:04It was only common sense for one to assume the same would go for the interiors of the houses.

01:10Not many people have entered the house in question.

01:14In fact, many of the people in the neighborhood only knew that the inhabitants have been living there for as

01:19long as they could remember.

01:20Who would have thought that they were so far off the mark?

01:25The story begins when the realtor sisters got a call about a home the owner was planning to sell.

01:31Of course, they first had to see it with their own two eyes.

01:35There was nothing all that unusual about the day before the sisters got the call.

01:40Everyone in the office at had been hard at work, so preoccupied that they did not once consider that it

01:47was going to be a life-changing day.

01:49Everyone answered the phone, looked at houses, and tried to seal the deal with clients.

01:54The real estate agency was owned by none other than Gladys and Carla Spizzeri themselves.

02:01They did not work together before this, although things changed when they learned they made an awesome team.

02:08Why would they want to look for other partners when they already have each other?

02:13One of the sisters looked for properties to sell, and the other talked to their potential clients.

02:19Together, the two of them were a force to be reckoned with.

02:23After earning years of experience in the field, Gladys and Carla knew the ins and outs of the real estate

02:30industry.

02:31They were good at their job and enjoyed what they did.

02:35While the real estate industry is more about routine and steadiness, they get surprised every now and then.

02:41This was a prime example of that.

02:45Even though they have been in the industry for quite a while already, they still found certain things shocking.

02:51This is nothing like anything they have ever dealt with in the past.

02:56The two of them know they had something big in their hands, although they only learned about this later on.

03:03It is hard to see what fate has in store for each and every one of us.

03:07The office had been quiet when the phone started to ring.

03:11Unbeknownst to them, this call was going to be different from the others.

03:16The phone rings many times in a single day at the real estate office.

03:21There was no reason to suspect that this call was going to be unusual.

03:25However, things changed when they heard the person on the other end.

03:30She introduced herself to them as Joyce.

03:33She was an older woman thinking of selling her home.

03:36They could tell that Joyce was still hesitant about making the leap to sell her home.

03:42From the tone and manner of speaking, they knew she had reservations about doing so.

03:47However, it was easy to tell that this was a persistent person as well.

03:52They had a feeling that Joyce was probably going to sell the house than not.

03:56However, she told the sisters something that made them re-evaluate the situation at hand.

04:02Many people who put their houses up for sale think this is a step in the right direction.

04:08This is the reason so many callers sound happy on the phone.

04:12For them, this is the start of a new chapter in their lives.

04:16For some reason, Joyce did not seem happy or excited to sell her house.

04:21Realtors often develop some kind of sixth sense when they talk to clients.

04:27Both sisters knew that Joyce was hiding something from them.

04:30Maybe she was unsure if they could find a buyer for the house.

04:34The sisters had plenty of experience with unpleasant discoveries in the homes people put on the market.

04:40There are a number of things that could affect the process of selling a house.

04:45The caller did not attempt to hide any problems.

04:48Most people did, however.

04:50Joyce did not hide anything nefarious,

04:52such as a malfunctioning water heater or black mold.

04:57It was secret they did not even expect.

05:01Are you ready to find out what made her home so unique?

05:05At any rate, the sisters took on the challenge.

05:09They were positive that they could sell just about any house.

05:13The two of them had a good reputation in the industry.

05:17And they are always on the lookout for a new opportunity.

05:20Even though they had plenty of experience already,

05:23this was one challenge they had never seen before.

05:26What could be the reason for that?

05:28Realtors often develop some kind of sixth sense when they talk to clients.

05:34Both sisters knew that Joyce was hiding something from them.

05:38Maybe she was unsure if they could find a buyer for the house.

05:41The sisters had plenty of experience with unpleasant discoveries in the homes people put on the market.

05:48There are a number of things that could affect the process of selling a house.

05:52The caller did not attempt to hide any problems.

05:55Most people did, however.

05:56Joyce did not hide anything nefarious such as a malfunctioning water heater or black mold.

06:04It was secret they did not even expect.

06:07Are you ready to find out what made her home so unique?

06:11At any rate, the sisters took on the challenge.

06:15They were positive that they could sell just about any house.

06:19The two of them had a good reputation in the industry.

06:22And they are always on the lookout for a new opportunity.

06:26Even though they had plenty of experience already, this was one challenge they had never seen before.

06:32After spending such a long time in the real estate industry, they thought there was nothing that would shock them.

06:39They already dealt with many things that other people would consider hopeless.

06:43If anyone could handle such a big surprise, it was going to them.

06:48That was what they had been thinking when they went to look at the house at the very least.

06:53They talked about the matter at length and even speculated about what Joyce was hiding there.

06:59They came up with a lot of crazy theories, but they were actually off the mark the whole time.

07:05Let us take a look at what happened when the sisters arrived at the property.

07:10At that point in time, the sisters had spent three years in the real estate industry already.

07:16They knew the nitty-gritty of Toronto very well.

07:19They were the people you go to if you want to buy or sell properties in the popular neighborhoods of

07:24Toronto.

07:25They were experts who had the experience to go with it.

07:29There are times when they lucked out and found a property that needed the most minimal effort.

07:36These places basically sold themselves on their own.

07:40Do you think this was the case for Joyce?

07:44They did not know the answer to that until they saw the house for themselves.

07:48On the phone, Joyce did not sound excited about selling the property, but they still needed to inspect it on

07:55a personal basis.

07:56When Joyce called the real estate office, she gave them some information about the house.

08:01She said something surprising that was going to impact the sale of the property if she proceeded.

08:08She let them know that they were going to be in for a surprise when they entered the house.

08:13What was that about?

08:15Joyce was a senior citizen.

08:18To be specific, she had been 96 years old when she made the call.

08:23Despite this, Joyce sounded lucid and had no hearing problems.

08:29Carla Spaziri found this impressive because her grandma always asked her to speak louder when they were having a conversation.

08:37It was incredible to find someone nearly 100 years old in great shape.

08:41However, this was nothing compared to the surprise they found after checking out her house.

08:48We sure hope you are ready to hear what they found.

08:51When the realtor sisters entered the house, they had pretty low expectations.

08:56Who would have thought something incredible was waiting for them?

09:00From the outside, Joyce's house did not look anything special or out of the ordinary.

09:06In fact, it looked just like the other houses along the street.

09:11However, their evaluation changed when they walked through the front door.

09:16Joyce let the sisters know that she had been living there for 70 years already.

09:20This is incredible, but could mean bad things for them.

09:25For one, she never changed or remodeled it, with the single exception of the upgrade she once gave the kitchen.

09:33After they learned about this piece of information, the sisters began to dread paying a visit to the home.

09:40If this was the case, it probably meant that it was neglected.

09:44When Gladys and Carla drove all the way to 148 Jane Street, they were both skeptical about what they were

09:51going to find.

09:52They were convinced that there was no way for Joyce to have maintained her house all on her own.

09:58For them, the best thing to do was prepare themselves for the worst-case scenario.

10:05As the day of the visit approached, they could not help but feel more worried.

10:10First of all, they dreaded that they needed a lot of time and effort to give it a chance in

10:15the market.

10:16How much were they going to have to fix it up, considering that it has not undergone renovation in decades?

10:23They also worried that she was a hoarder.

10:27It was possible that she accumulated a lot of junk over the past 70 years.

10:32However, there were some things that made it desirable.

10:36For one thing, the house was located in a prime area, which increases its value.

10:41The housing prices in the neighborhood has been steadily going up for a while,

10:46so they knew they could get a good price for it.

10:49When it comes to real estate, the location is one of the biggest concerns.

10:54After the conversation they had with Joyce over the phone,

10:57they began to compute the numbers to see how much the property could go for.

11:02They arrived at a figure that was even higher than their initial expectations,

11:06so they knew the company was going to benefit from sealing a deal.

11:10Of course, they still needed to take a look at the property

11:13before they could even think of putting it up for sale.

11:17As most people already know, it is not wise to count one's eggs before they hatch.

11:23The house was found in the Old Mill neighborhood of Toronto,

11:27which is one of the most ideal areas in the city.

11:30They have previously sold a number of houses there and always made a huge profit off of them.

11:36However, there were still other factors they needed to consider

11:40before they could arrive at an accurate figure.

11:43At the moment, they estimated that they could sell the property

11:47for an impressive $968,000.

11:51Of course, the number could still change.

11:54It was going to depend on the interiors of the house.

11:57They needed to take into account the cost of any renovations they needed to do

12:02to make it a suitable place to live in.

12:05However, there was something else they needed to do.

12:09Could they convince Joyce to sell it?

12:12When Joyce first got in touch with them,

12:15she did not sound convinced about going through with the sale.

12:19Of course, this was a cause for concern for both Gladys and Carla.

12:24The older woman said that she was thinking of selling the place

12:27she has called home for the past 72 years.

12:30It must be difficult to let go of a place after spending such a long time in it.

12:35Without a doubt, she had many precious memories there.

12:39The way Joyce spoke gave the real estate agents another thing to worry about.

12:44Was she that upset about letting go of the house?

12:48Or did her hesitation have something to do

12:50with the something that made the house unsellable?

12:54It was only natural that she felt sad about leaving a place

12:58one has become attached to.

13:00However, they would have a lot on their plate

13:03if it were the other one.

13:06Before they got ahead of themselves,

13:09Carla and Gladys decided it was time to pay 148 Jane Street a visit.

13:14Of course, they were aware of the possibility

13:16that the house was a fixer-upper.

13:19If that were the case,

13:21it was going to cost them money to improve things,

13:23so they needed to inspect the condition of the house.

13:27The real estate duo arranged a date and time to pay Joyce a visit.

13:31When they see the state of the property,

13:34they could determine what needed fixing.

13:36At any rate, they did not expect to find what they saw there.

13:40When you find out what they saw,

13:42you would understand the reason they were so shocked.

13:45Before they dropped by for a visit,

13:48Carla and Gladys only had the location of the home

13:51and a photo of its exterior as a basis for their value estimation.

13:56By themselves, the number could be inaccurate.

13:59Aside from this,

14:01they also took into consideration the fact

14:03that it bore a resemblance to the other houses in the area.

14:07It seems like Joyce has finally arrived at a decision.

14:10She planned to sell her home,

14:12which is why the realtors had to inspect the state of her home.

14:16At long last, the day to conduct the inspection arrived.

14:20They arrived at the address Joyce provided them.

14:23When they got there, the older woman greeted them.

14:26The sisters could not believe their eyes

14:29when they saw what she had been hiding from them.

14:32They did not have a clue about what they were going to find in the home.

14:36Nothing prepared them for the sight that greeted them.

14:40After they went through the front door,

14:42the only thing they could do was stare at the interiors.

14:46No, Joyce was no hoarder.

14:49Neither did she neglect the house.

14:51It turns out that the older woman was a traditional woman

14:55who took great pains to maintain her home

14:58as well as she possibly could.

15:01Who would have thought that the house was this stunning from the inside?

15:05They could not believe just how well-maintained the house was.

15:09It was basically perfect no matter where they turned their eyes.

15:14Yes, it was clean and pristine,

15:17but it was more than just that.

15:19Gladys and Carla could not believe the condition of this house.

15:23They could not help but feel like they just hit the jackpot.

15:27They did not expect to find this at all.

15:30Knowing this, they were thrilled

15:32because they knew they could now sell it for a higher price.

15:36Who would have thought it would be in such great shape?

15:39What else did the house have that impressed them to no end?

15:43Well, no one expected that it was going to be a time capsule.

15:47If you go through the front door,

15:50it is like you were transported to the 40s.

15:53This makes sense because Joyce moved into the house in that decade.

15:57She picked the curtains, furniture, flooring, and wallpaper all by herself.

16:03The ladies started a tour of the home.

16:06They were glad to find that all of the rooms were more attractive

16:10and cleaner than the last one.

16:11This was the most pristine and best-maintained house they have ever seen,

16:17which is not an easy feat.

16:18It was not your regular house at all.

16:21It was basically a tribute to the past.

16:24They could see just how much effort went into the maintenance of the lovely home.

16:29They now understood why she had hesitations about selling it.

16:33Although it was in great condition from what they could see,

16:36they had an issue with it.

16:38Their concern could either make or break it.

16:41They only hoped it was not going to be a huge problem for potential buyers.

16:46They felt a little worried because the house was decorated in a very feminine manner.

16:51Although it was beautiful and well-maintained,

16:54this was going to be a tough sell for most men.

16:58Most men would probably find it too pink or floral.

17:01The color scheme might be a big issue if the buyer did not want to put in the effort

17:06to redo the interiors.

17:08After all, redecorating home required plenty of money, effort, and time.

17:14These are resources they could put into the exterior and other parts of the property.

17:20The house was full of golds, pinks, and purples,

17:24which was not a draw for any male buyer.

17:27Of course, there were going to be women who did not find it appealing as well.

17:32There was a particularly unique room in the house as well,

17:35although it was another matter of acquired taste.

17:38The basement had a room that had a wet bar and wood paneling,

17:42which could be the ideal man cave.

17:45It looked this way,

17:46so the buyer just needed to change it a little to make it their safe haven.

17:51Without a doubt, this was a room meant for a man.

17:55In all likelihood, this was the private space where Joyce's husband retired to.

18:00We bet he spent time there on his own or with his friends.

18:04It was quite the breath of fresh air from all the florals and pastels found everywhere else inside the house.

18:11The house was definitely gorgeous from top to bottom,

18:15although the backyard was a different matter altogether.

18:18It was easy to see that this part of the property did not get the same maintenance.

18:23There was astroturf there, but this was the only effort put into the landscaping.

18:29Even though it came with an unimpressive backyard,

18:33Gladys and Carla knew they could get an awesome price for the property.

18:37The two of them knew an opportunity when they were presented with one.

18:42Aside from the initial inspection they conducted,

18:45they still had to bring over inspectors to check for hidden flaws and invisible damage.

18:50Even though the house looked amazing from where they stood,

18:54it was still possible that there were issues they could not see.

18:58Sometimes the foundation suffered problems that could not be easily fixed.

19:03These things matter because they could translate to a big price slash.

19:08But Gladys and Clara felt confident that nothing was wrong with the place.

19:13However, their gut feeling was not going to be enough to assure any potential buyers.

19:19Perhaps Joyce failed to address a problem deep in the bones of the structure.

19:24After they let the inspectors do their job,

19:27they were in for yet another huge surprise.

19:31What did they find?

19:33The home inspectors got to the property

19:35and started to work without a moment's hesitation.

19:39They went through every corner of the house.

19:42They made sure to check every nook and cranny,

19:45looking for any surprises that might be hiding beneath the flooring and walls.

19:50They had to inspect a lot of spots in the house,

19:53so it took some time before they could call it a day.

19:56Their findings came as a shock to everyone involved.

20:00No one expected to find the house in perfect condition.

20:04It must have been in even better shape than the day Joyce bought it.

20:09She and her husband cared for the house so well over the years

20:13that nothing else had to be done before they could put it up on the market.

20:17As a matter of fact,

20:19Carla and Gladys just needed to return to the office to finalize the details.

20:24This was the first time this happened.

20:27Upon their return to the office,

20:29they put the house on 148 Jane Street on the market

20:33with the asking price of $699,000.

20:37While this was on the higher end of the market,

20:40the reception came as a complete surprise.

20:43A bidding war started when people saw how amazing the interior of the house is.

20:49They saw that the interiors looked perfect as it were,

20:52so potential buyers wanted it for themselves.

20:55The bidding war continued for quite some time.

20:58We bet people who were not originally in the market for a house

21:02suddenly wanted to buy it as well.

21:05As a matter of fact,

21:06people not interested in buying it

21:08even tuned in to see who would end up buying the home.

21:12It was no wonder that such an amazing place

21:15ended up going viral on the internet.

21:17As a matter of fact,

21:19no one was surprised to see it on the news.

21:22People were fascinated by the house

21:24and the old lady who owned it.

21:26No one could believe that a 96-year-old lady

21:29maintained it by herself.

21:31However,

21:33public exposure only made the price climb further.

21:36Those who tuned in to the story

21:38must have thought the house

21:40sounded more like a museum than a house.

21:43The house would not look out of place in the 40s

21:46because the furniture and decorations

21:48matched that time frame.

21:50Joyce was eager to keep everything

21:52that did not need to be replaced.

21:54Even though the place did not change much over the years,

21:58Joyce admitted that there was a part of the house

22:01that she upgraded at some point.

22:03In the 60s,

22:05she modernized the kitchen

22:06to make things more convenient for the entire family.

22:10By then,

22:10the original kitchen was no longer practical.

22:14For Joyce,

22:15it was more important to cook things efficiently.

22:18Even though that was the last and only time

22:21the house underwent a renovation,

22:23the appliances were still in good condition.

22:26Considering just how much effort she put into the home,

22:30it is not surprising to learn

22:32that this is what it is like.

22:34The sisters truly hit the jackpot with this house.

22:38They did not expect to find a time capsule-like home.

22:41As you might have guessed by now,

22:44Joyce was an aspiring interior designer.

22:47She even explained to Daily Mail

22:49just how much she liked interior design.

22:53We really do think

22:54she would have been amazing at the profession

22:56if she went down this career path in the past.

22:59However,

23:00the time has come for her to let go

23:02of the masterpiece she created over the decades.

23:05What did the future hold for the talented woman?

23:09The media learned that she was selling the house

23:12because she wanted to find a way to fund a stay

23:14at a retirement home.

23:16She did not want to spend her twilight years

23:19taking care of such a big home on her own.

23:23Now retired,

23:24she used to work as a seamstress.

23:26Who would have thought

23:27that she could make the interiors look so beautiful

23:30despite her lack of professional training?

23:33She explained to HGTV,

23:36I've always tried to be individual

23:39and follow my own styles.

23:41In 1942,

23:43Joyce and her husband moved into the house

23:45at 148 Jane Street.

23:48If you know your history,

23:49you already know that the Second World War

23:52was still ongoing at the time.

23:54Most people were preoccupied with the conflict

23:57when the couple moved into the two-story brick house

24:00and made it their own.

24:01Many people were curious

24:03if the new owners wanted to retain the interior design

24:06or work on a makeover instead.

24:09It seems like a big shame

24:11to ruin all the hard work Joyce put into the house.

24:14However,

24:15we do not know

24:16what exactly the previous owner did to the house.

24:20We can only assume

24:21it has since been sold

24:22because the listing is no longer up.

24:24It is not an actual museum

24:27nor a heritage site,

24:29so whoever ended up with it

24:31can fix it up any way they want.

24:33At any rate,

24:34we sure hope they did the right thing.

24:36Even though we adore the property,

24:39there was actually a catch.

24:42Unfortunately,

24:43the furniture was not going to come home

24:45with the winner of the auction.

24:47The furniture pieces

24:48definitely had a big part

24:50in the feel and design of the place,

24:52so let us hope they were informed of this

24:54before they made the leap.

24:56Her daughter wanted to keep the furniture

24:58for herself

24:58as part of an inheritance.

25:00Since she grew up in the home,

25:02we are sure she has

25:04lots of precious memories with them.

25:06However,

25:07there is no point in denying

25:09that this would lessen

25:10the appeal of the house.

25:11While it will make the effect less powerful,

25:14it is still worth it.

25:16During the time she moved into the house

25:18on 148 Jane Street,

25:21Joyce was just 24 years old.

25:23She lived there for 70 years

25:25before she reached the decision

25:27that it was time for a change.

25:29She spent most of her life living there,

25:32but not once did she neglect her house.

25:35This simple brick structure

25:37might look pretty ordinary from the inside,

25:39but her decorating skills

25:41and knack for interior design

25:43made it a thing of wonder.

25:45During her later years in life,

25:47she spent a lot of time

25:48in the master bedroom.

25:50Even so,

25:51we dare say

25:52that it looks as immaculate as ever.

25:55The chairs even look like

25:56they have never been used.

25:58The bed also looks brand new.

26:01If you had no idea,

26:03you probably do not know

26:04that they date back to the 40s.

26:07When she talked to the press,

26:09she explained that her personal preference

26:11was tone-on-tone pieces.

26:13She likes matching designs

26:16and soft colors as well.

26:18From the way she decorated the house,

26:20she clearly likes pastel shades of aqua,

26:23pink, purple, and blue.

26:26It would probably look off anywhere else,

26:28but this is what makes the place so unique.

26:31With her masterful hand,

26:34she managed to make it look inviting and comfortable.

26:38She took her time

26:39picking out everything in the house.

26:41She had a great eye for detail,

26:43which is why everything comes together easily.

26:47Even the towels,

26:48toilet seat covers,

26:50and photo frames

26:51were chosen with care.

26:53This is the reason the house looked amazing,

26:55even though not much has changed

26:57in the past 70 years.

26:59We really do think

27:00it is a huge accomplishment

27:02that not many people can achieve.

27:04In the three-bedroom house,

27:06you will find two bathrooms

27:08with wall-to-wall carpeting and wallpapers

27:11that retain an old post-war charm.

27:14There are also other details

27:15such as floral sweeps,

27:18baroque patterns,

27:19metallic wallpaper,

27:20and gold touches.

27:22While it sounds a little lavish,

27:24you should trust us

27:25when we say

27:26that it looks great together.

27:28You will also find

27:29fireplaces all over the place,

27:32and they are ideal

27:33for battling the Toronto cold.

27:36The rooms in this house

27:37had been decorated

27:38and planned

27:39with consideration and care.

27:42This is why

27:43it is basically a museum.

27:45The hardware and cupboards

27:47were all tailor-made

27:48and customized.

27:49The color choices

27:50were picked

27:51with great effort, too.

27:53In the master bedroom,

27:54you will find lilac

27:56and purple colors

27:57with fuchsia

27:58and aqua accents.

28:00The rooms in the house

28:01all boasted

28:02of a fascinating color scheme.

28:04The rooms on the main floors

28:06of the house

28:06might be gorgeous,

28:07but we think the basement

28:09is the most fascinating part.

28:11The laundry room

28:12had wooden cabinets

28:13that looked great

28:15with the washing machines there.

28:16They might not come

28:18from the same time period

28:19as everything else

28:20in the house,

28:21but function still

28:22comes over form.

28:24Joyce had a great time

28:25taking care of

28:26and decorating the house,

28:28but she also managed

28:29to maintain it

28:30on a standard

28:31that very few people

28:32can achieve.

28:33Have a great day.

Toronto Realtor Tour Finds a 1940s Time Capsule Inside a 70-Year-Old Home

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