Covid-19 Home Seller Success Story

Mike and Jessa have such a perfect success story from selling their home that we wanted to share it with you.  The cards were stacked against them in every way imaginable.  They were relocating across the country so timing was already a challenge.  Jessa was nine months pregnant and the baby could come any day.  Oh, can’t forget we are in the midst of a global pandemic.  

In the end, none of those challenges derailed their ability to sell their home quickly for top dollar while saving a ton of money in commissions in the process.  After just 1 day on the market, they had secured a full price offer with an equally viable back up offer.  They closed in 30 days and are on their way to their next chapter in life with their 3 kids.  

Their success wasn’t just luck though.  A lot went in to them making this all happen, and that’s the story I want to tell so all of our current and prospective clients can learn a few things from them.  

Mike and Jessa’s roadmap to success.

They bought the right home

There is a saying in real estate that “you make your money when you buy and not when you sell”.  Mike and Jessa proved that’s true here.  So how did they make the right buy?

• They bought a home on the mid to lower end of the price range of the neighborhood giving them room to grow in value.
• There were several value-add opportunities to create additional value and equity.
• They focused on the right features.  

1. Large kitchen
2. Multiple living spaces
3. Spacious master suite with a great master bath
4. Good outdoor space
5. Functional floor plan.

They made great choices on their renovation 

I have a few before and after photos to show you how they spent their money wisely to add value.  Their core projects were:

• Kitchen: Major work done in the kitchen that added a tremendous amount of value without breaking the bank.  They painted the cabinets so they didn’t have to replace them.  Added a new backsplash, light fixtures, appliances, countertops and paint. It looks brand new without the price tag of a new kitchen. 

• Floors:  The original floors were dated, scratched and not appealing.  After replacing them, the home took on a whole new look.

• Paint: Without question, paint has the highest return on investment.  It cost the least out of all of their projects but created the greatest transformation.  They picked a neutral color that rejuvenated the home.
• Outdoor space: When they bought the home, they had 1 child with another on the way so they knew a great outdoor living space was huge for their lifestyle.  Being in a large home in a very family friendly neighborhood, there was a great chance this would be important to the next buyer too.  Adding the covered patio and creating  the outdoor living space was a huge value add. 

They priced the home to sell without leaving any money on the table 

Mike and Jessa spent a lot of time analyzing the comps in their neighborhood to ensure they priced their home well.  In the midst of a pandemic, they did not want to languish away on the market and have a revolving door of showings.  So it was important to price the house right to bring in buyers quickly and efficiently.  They made plans to be out of the house for the first weekend to allow for a lot of showings in a controllable time period.  Their careful planning and pricing strategy worked, two offers immediately after hitting the market and executed a contract before the first weekend was over.  

They understood how to use leverage 

Because they were lucky enough to secure a backup offer, they were able to leverage that into a smooth inspection process.  As a result, they only had to agree to a couple small repairs that cost a few hundred dollars.  Had they not had a back up in place, they likely would have conceded more.

In the end, over a 3 ½ year span, Mike and Jessa sold their home for over $150,000 more than what they paid for it.  If you back out what they spent on renovations (roughly $30,000), it’s still an incredible profit and sets them up perfectly to roll that in to their next home.  In large part, that’s all thanks to the vision and strategy they had from the beginning.  And even in the middle of a pandemic, they still had buyers beating down the door.  

We were very fortunate to work with them here at ListingSpark and ultimately helped them save over $16,000 in commissions.