It’s hard to sell a home you love- even if it makes good business sense.

Andrew and You You didn’t plan to sell Columbus.  They had already moved to a previously purchased home and were all set to rent Columbus to a great tenant…in fact, the lease application was on You You’s desk.

But You You is a brilliant business woman and she realized that while the lease was a good short-term solution, in the long term her best bet was to sell. The problem was that this pivot was logistically very difficult. The whole family was about to leave on a long family holiday in two weeks. They would need to get everything ready before they left.

What was going through your mind when you decided to sell?

You You: I realized that I felt the market was at a really high place in terms of price. If I rented the house, I might miss the peak and not be able to sell. It made sense to sell it now, and bank the money.  Eventually, the market will correct itself and then we can buy a multi-unit building that will bring more profit and cash flow.

Andrew: I was a little more hesitant because I love this home, but I know that You You was right. It made more financial sense.

How difficult was preparing for sale in such a short time frame?

You You: yes, we were really busy! We already had a lot on our plate before we decided to put the home on the market. However, we had already done things to get ready for a new tenant so it was not as bad as it might have been.

Andrew: we appreciated your advice and priority list of what we could do to maximize our time and our resources. The people you recommended did a great job and we loved having Simone coordinate everyone.  I had a big project due, so You You had to do most of the work- she is amazing. I think it turned out well!

Your home is stunning all by itself. Why did you decide on using a stager?

We’ve seen a lot of the DIGGS listings and we noticed that the homes that are staged sold for more money. You had mentioned that Columbus can be a crowded street and that staging would help the buyer focus on our house and the backyard. That idea really resonated with us.  You also recommended that we paint the dining room a lighter, neutral color. That was really difficult because we loved that dining room and it’s quirky stencil patterns.

In the end, we were really pleased with the results. The home felt much more sophisticated and appealing.

What happened after you left for vacation?

Andrew:  You guys took over. We’ve come to trust you over the years, so we knew you were going to do a great job. You called us with updates and it was exciting to see the offers appear on the spreadsheet.  We got 11 offers to choose from, so that felt pretty great! There was a lot of information to process, but I appreciated how you presented everything in a clear format. If the information isn’t clear it is hard for me to make a decision, but you made it much easier.

You You: Yes, I liked how you gave us your opinions. We don’t know how all these facts relate and you helped us to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each offer. In the end, I think we got the right buyer for our home and the price was really good.

What advice would you give to people in your position?

Andrew:  Hire DIGGS. Work hard to make your house appealing to a lot of people. We loved the dragon stencils and rich color in our dining room. It was hard to paint it white, but it was gorgeous, especially after the stager decorated it.

You You: Make your improvements while you live there so you can enjoy them. I wish I had finished that patch of dirt into a patio a long time ago and it was so simple to do- I just never got around to doing it.

Here are the results

The Brothers choose a “Fair Market” strategy when selecting their list price. They invested in painting strategic rooms, an exterior power wash and installing a paver and gravel patio in the backyard. They also invested in a full staging of the home. We attracted 11 offers on this home during our standard 11 day launch period and the home sold for $75,000 over the list price.

Epilogue

Andrew and You You netted more money than they had expected from the sale of the home. They are busy expanding their original plans to expand and renovate their new home located in a better school district for their daughter. The additional money will allow them to add a guest suite for You You’s mother’s visits from China. we can’t wait to see what they create!

As always, thanks to DIGGS Tribe Member Steve O’Bryan- street photographer extraordinaire- for his great photos of the Brothers. Follow Steve at www.smacksmog.com Staging was done by Robyn Navarro of Upstage Design. Follow Robyn at www.upstagedesign.com