Published July 6, 2026 • By Black Ridge Contracting
Sherman Hill is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Des Moines, and one of the only places in the metro where you can still find Queen Anne Victorians, Italianates, and Second Empires from the 1870s and 1880s standing side by side. The architecture is the reason people fall in love with the neighborhood. The 150-year-old construction is the reason they call us.
If you own a Sherman Hill home or you're thinking about buying one, here's the practical view from a contractor who works on pre-1900 Iowa homes. The character is worth keeping. It just takes the right approach.
Why Sherman Hill Is Different From Every Other Des Moines Neighborhood
Sherman Hill is a designated historic district at both the city and federal level. The neighborhood is on the National Register of Historic Places, and the City of Des Moines has its own Sherman Hill Historic District Commission that reviews exterior work. What that means in practice is that anything you change on the facade, roofline, or visible exterior usually requires a permit and Commission review.
Interior work is generally not regulated, but the original construction itself is what slows projects down. The framing is true-dimension lumber. The plaster is original lath-and-plaster. The wiring was usually updated once in the 1950s and is now due for a third round. The original wood windows are 130 to 150 years old and the sashes have been painted shut for decades.
The Foundation Is the First Thing to Look At
Most Sherman Hill homes sit on a stone or early brick foundation that has been moving for 130 years. Some movement is expected and normal. Sherman Hill foundations specifically tend to settle unevenly because the soil under the hill itself has loaded differently over time.
What to watch for:
- Cracks wider than a half inch in the foundation wall, especially horizontal cracks. Horizontal indicates pressure from outside soil, which is a bigger problem than vertical settlement cracks.
- Sloping floors in the main level. Some slope is character. Sloping more than an inch over ten feet usually means a joist or beam under the floor needs work.
- Sticking doors and windows that have gotten worse over the last few years. That's active movement, not historical movement.
The fix for active foundation movement is usually carbon fiber reinforcement, helical piers, or steel I-beams, depending on the specific failure. The right diagnosis matters. Bracing the wrong way can make settlement worse.
Original Plaster Walls and Ceilings
Most Sherman Hill homes still have original plaster on wood lath. Plaster has a few advantages over modern drywall that are worth keeping. It's denser and quieter. It holds heat differently in winter. And it shapes around the original trim and ceiling medallions in ways drywall cannot replicate.
The downside is that plaster cracks. Settlement, vibration, and 130 years of seasonal humidity all leave their marks. Repair is almost always the right call. Skim coat over the original plaster with a thin layer of new plaster or joint compound, addressing any sections that have separated from the lath. Replacing entire walls with drywall on a Sherman Hill home flattens the texture in a way that's visible to anyone who knows what they're looking at, and it tanks the resale value.
Ceiling medallions, crown molding, and trim profiles can be replicated. We've sourced custom trim from local mill shops for Sherman Hill restorations that matched original profiles down to the bead and reveal. It takes longer and costs more than off-the-shelf moldings, but the result reads correct.
Original Wood Windows and What to Do About Them
The original double-hung wood windows on a Sherman Hill Victorian are part of what makes the house a Victorian. Replacing them is usually a bad idea both aesthetically and from a permit standpoint. The Historic District Commission generally requires replacement windows to match original sight lines and materials, which removes most of the cost savings of going vinyl.
The right approach for almost every Sherman Hill window is restoration. Strip the paint from the sash channels, repair any rotted sills, replace broken sash cords or convert to spring balances, and re-glaze with traditional putty if the original glazing has failed. Then add interior storm windows for thermal performance. Done well, original windows with interior storms perform within 10 percent of modern replacement windows on energy efficiency, and they keep the original wavy glass and proportions.
Roof and Exterior
Most Sherman Hill roofs are complex. Multiple gables, dormers, decorative shingles, and steep pitches all add up to more roof per square foot than a typical home. That makes roof replacement more expensive and tear-off more involved. Expect roof costs on a Sherman Hill Victorian to run roughly 30 to 50 percent more than a comparable footprint in a newer neighborhood.
For exterior paint, the Historic District Commission has color guidelines that favor period-appropriate palettes. The Victorian era ran toward saturated dark greens, deep reds, and warm tans rather than the lighter modern palettes. Most successful Sherman Hill restorations lean into the historical color guidance because the architecture was designed for those tones.
Mechanical Systems
Most Sherman Hill homes have had their electrical and plumbing updated at some point in the last century. The question is when, and how well. Knob-and-tube wiring is still present in many homes, sometimes hidden behind a more recent panel that masks the original branch circuits. Cast iron drain stacks are common and have a service life that's right around their 100-year mark.
Before any cosmetic renovation, get a real assessment of the mechanical systems. Replacing electrical and plumbing during a renovation while walls are open costs a fraction of what it costs after you've finished the rooms. A real-cost Sherman Hill renovation budget always includes a mechanicals contingency, usually 15 to 25 percent of the project total.
Realistic Cost Ranges for Sherman Hill Renovations
Numbers depend on scope, but here is what we see across recent Sherman Hill projects:
- Exterior paint and trim repair: $20,000 to $40,000 on a typical Victorian footprint
- Roof replacement: $15,000 to $30,000 depending on complexity and material
- Window restoration: $400 to $800 per window depending on condition
- Kitchen remodel with period-appropriate finishes: $60,000 to $120,000
- Plaster repair and skim coat: $4,000 to $9,000 per major room
- Foundation stabilization: $15,000 to $50,000 depending on the failure mode
- Full interior restoration: $200,000 to $500,000 for a typical Sherman Hill Victorian
The biggest variables are scope, original condition, and the depth of mechanical updates. A walkthrough where we can see the foundation, the panel, the attic, and the original windows is worth more than any phone estimate.
Working With a Contractor Who Knows These Homes
Sherman Hill restorations require methods that don't apply to newer construction. The framing, plaster, original windows, and Commission review process all add complexity that most general contractors don't deal with regularly. When you interview contractors for Sherman Hill work, ask three things:
- How many Sherman Hill or pre-1900 homes have you worked on?
- Do you have a working relationship with the Historic District Commission?
- How do you handle plaster repair versus drywall replacement, and original window restoration versus replacement?
The answers will tell you whether the contractor actually knows historic homes or is treating yours like any other project.
At Black Ridge Contracting we work on pre-war and pre-1900 Des Moines homes regularly, with respect for what makes them worth keeping. See our remodeling services or call us at (515) 219-4654 to schedule a walkthrough.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Sherman Hill is a designated historic district within the City of Des Moines and is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Most exterior changes require review by the Sherman Hill Historic District Commission.
A full exterior restoration is typically $40,000 to $90,000. A complete interior renovation respecting the original character is $200,000 to $500,000 depending on size and the depth of mechanical updates.
Replacement is generally discouraged and may require Commission review. The preferred approach is to restore the original wood sash and add interior storm windows for thermal performance.
Foundation movement and original plaster failure are the two most common issues. Both are fixable but require methods that respect the original construction.