Tyler - I have to say that I'm wondering if you had considered that your budget is really inadequate for this project. In looking at the photos I thought instead of just complaining I'd like to make some suggestions: 1) Pool up all your money into 1 or 2 areas of the house that matter most to you and spend a decent budget on those areas. Wait on the rest of the house until you can afford to do it right. Otherwise your money will be wasted re-doing it later when you are unhappy or when items of poor quality disappoint you in a year or so. 2) Like many new home owners or couples, save before you spend. Spend your money on a good sofa and a good mattress. After that save up for the stuff you love, and yes, hire a designer to come up with a concept for you that you love. Then save up for each piece in the concept and buy it as money allows. You are not the only person in the world who would be "house poor". Many rooms in my own house stayed incomplete or even empty for years. It's better to do it right - ONE TIME - that wrong over and over with stuff that won't last. It actually ends up being more expensive in the long run. Hope that my two cents will help you in some small way.

Curtains: need to touch the floor. Yours are too short. If you can't find curtains that are long enough, consider adding a band of a different coloured fabric to the top or the bottom. I'll find you some example pics. So the chaise is against that wall next to the fireplace? Could you move it away from there a bit? Or how about moving it to the other side of the room? Would that be an option? Generally I'm not the biggest fan of ceiling fans (ha!), but sometimes they are necessary. If they are not necessary... hmm. But I have to say that I looked at yours and thought that it looked quite characterful. But if you don't like it I would remove it and hang a lamp that you really like there. If you go for taller bookcases than the ones in the Eagle Rock photo, you could add lights to the top that shine down the bookcase. That always looks lovely. Think about the lighting in your room. Only a ceiling light isn't the best or most interesting way to light a room. Here's an ideabook about lighting a room: https://www.houzz.com/magazine/10-ways-to-get-your-lighting-right-stsetivw-vs~10558866

@tc hudson, I LOVE my refrigerator and it was my big splurge along with the Vermont Danby counters. The space is so small and the refrigerator was going to be near the dining table so I thought it really needed to be hidden.

The OP said bad location, not bad neighborhood. Everyone here seems to be considering a negative location as something broad, like a failing school district or a crime-ridden neighborhood. We've always targeted a pretty precise area when house shopping and then considered location within that area, whether that's in an upscale suburb or transitional urban neighborhood. We currently live in a town with an excellent school district--the one we chose to hunt in--but declined to purchase a house on a very busy road or too close to a noisy expressway. Even if the house is "better," I wouldn't buy next to the high-tension power lines, or on the street that gets blocked in every morning by the carpool line--those things can impact resale or quality of life. But they are subjective to some degree, too! We have a steep driveway that might have scared others off, and no sidewalks on our street, but more square footage than houses on flat blocks with sidewalks.