For Jeff and Carolyn, the decision to move came from the desire to live in a home that appealed more to their modern taste and aesthetics.
“We lived in our home for the past 20 years and loved it, but were ready for the next chapter,” said Jeff.
Their current home was a wonderful place to raise their children as it was located in a great school district with many nearby amenities, but children became adults and they knew it was not their “forever home.”
They wanted a change…
Did they Buy or Sell First?
A savvy homeowner, Jeff was aware that the current market conditions would favour sellers, so they decided it was better to buy their new home first before selling their current property.
“I knew that inventory was low and that we would have no problem selling our home,” he said. “I wasn’t at all worried about being stuck with two houses.”
So what did the house hunt entail?
“It took about a year to find our ideal modern house,” Jeff said. “We were looking for something really specific in our area that just doesn’t come up for sale very often. After spending about a year keeping an eye out online, when the perfect property finally popped up, we made the decision to bring in an agent.”
Enter, Ana
Jeff and Carolyn had seen signs for Ana Santos all over the community, and they even met her once before at a house showing a year earlier.
“We were immediately impressed with her straightforward personality,” said Jeff. “She was involved in many listings in the area and that she had a great reputation for stellar negotiation skills. We had been exposed to her before, and that prompted us to work with her for our transactions.”
What Was the Selling Process Like?
Once Jeff and Carolyn secured their ideal home, it was time to sell their current property. Initially, the home was an exclusive listing. “Ana posted about it on her Instagram as coming soon, and we actually had an offer come in for full list price after the first showing,” said Jeff.
However, the deal wasn’t meant to be.
That’s when Ana’s experience and resourcefulness kicked into high gear.
Looking for more proof? Read some of our recent testimonials right here.
“Ana’s Got a Guy”
“Ana had a clear vision for how to maximize selling price and recommended we do a lot of work to the house, and she was able to take care of everything for us,” Jeff said. “She’s got connections everywhere–painters, decorators, concrete guys, you name it, Ana can get it done for you. She even went to the lighting store herself to pick out all-new lighting fixtures that would appeal to buyers, it was impressive!”
Even during the height of the pandemic when tradespeople were backed up and working with significant delays, Ana came through and was able to complete significant work to Jeff and Carolyn’s home in a mere 3 weeks.
“We invested in a refresh in the home,” Jeff said. “We installed a new AC and heating unit, did some exterior concrete work, installed all new light fixtures, and repainted the entire house.”
Preparing your home to sell is one of the most important steps. Investing a little in some prepwork can drastically increase the value of your home and result in much higher offers. Here are a few blogs to get started:
- 3 Tips for Selling Luxury in the Current Real Estate Market
- 5 Reasons You Should Stage Your Home to Sell
- How to Boost Your Home’s ROI with Landscaping
What Were the Results?
The house was sold for $200,000 over asking in less than three weeks.
Jeff and Carolyn were blown away by the results, and credit the successful sale to Ana’s keen eye and transparent approach.
“In real estate, I think you can come across a lot of ‘yes men’ that will just tell you what you want to hear,” said Jeff. “Ana is not like that at all. She knows what works and what doesn’t work and she’s not afraid to give you her honest opinion, even if you might not like it. We really appreciated that.”
What’s it Like Working with Ana?
Jeff and Carolyn say that they realized they made an excellent decision as soon as they started working with Ana.
“She just gives you the straight goods,” said Jeff. “You can see how hard she works and how attentive she is. She’s not a ‘good enough’ person and she never settles for second best.”
In addition to Ana’s keen eye for design and her ability to identify cost-effective improvements that can offer a huge ROI to the sale price, Jeff and Carolyn were impressed by her professionalism and negotiation skills on both sides of their real estate transaction.
“At the end of the day, we feel that we made back every penny we paid Ana and then some,” said Jeff. “I couldn’t recommend her enough.”
Thinking about moving in the near future? Working with an experienced real estate team like Ana Santos and Sara Branco can mean the difference between settling and finding your dream home, or accepting an ‘ok’ offer and getting maximum return from your sale. Learn more about buying or selling with us here: