HGTV's Alison Victoria on Borrowing $400,000 From Friends to Build Her Dream Home (Exclusive)

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, «is not some rich girl story.»«I had to ask hard questions, and I had to do the research, and I had to constantly just go for it,» she said. «Now I'm in a place where I'm like, 'OK, I'll work my ass off to make money to pay my friends back to live in this dream home.' I'll do just that, but it's still a reality that this wouldn't have happened without so many people and I'm just really grateful.»The dream home almost didn't come to fruition amid Victoria's legal woes, as she had initially decided to sell everything she owned in Chicago and move out west.«I was in kind of a mess of lawsuits and was ready to leave the city,» she explained. «This was the last thing I had for sale.

It would have been the last tie to the city that I grew up in, lived in and loved.»When Victoria got an offer on the property and learned that the potential buyer wanted to rezone the office space for residential living, the HGTV had her lightbulb moment.«I said, 'It's off the market,' and then it began,» she said. "… This is my home and now I get to dream so, so big.

I’m just the happiest I've ever been personally, professionally.«For Victoria, the renovation was „the easiest“ she's ever done in one respect, because she „knew exactly what I wanted.“ The financial aspect, however, was a whole different story, as Victoria had two moments when she realized, „I don't know if I'm going to afford to pay for that.“»It was such a roller coaster," she admitted. «The emotions were the real challenge, because it was such an emotional time.

I wasn't here half the time, I was out of my apartment, I lived out of luggage for seven months.»It was all worth it in the end, as Victoria ended up with a stunning space that she describes as European, industrial and.