After 26 years of raising their family in this quintessential family home the, now widowed and soon-to-be empty-nested, owner asked me to guide her through her first solo home-selling process.
I was happy to do so, but first spent several months showing her potential purchase options that might fit her next empty-nest phase of life. It was important to narrow down the options and determine what she really wanted before making any big moves and giving up her existing family home to which she had moved as a newlywed so many years ago.
After we found her next dream home, I quickly helped her prepare her home for sale including purging a mountain of child-raising paraphernalia, painting the very green home office to a more neutral hue, and my complimentary “restaging with your own stuff” throughout the property. With this roomy family home, huge yard and great location, we were off to a great start and quickly negotiated a sale. However, as was the case in this frothy Calgary market with 20% of conditional sales falling through, the buyers got cold feet and failed to finalize the deal.
With two more open houses and ongoing marketing, we ultimately ended up in a multiple-bid situation and a sale that was finalized before my client took possession of her new, inviting empty-nest home. By buying first with a long possession date and then selling, I was able to provide her with the security of a beautiful home to move to along with a firm sale of her old home before she took possession of the new and a comfortable couple of weeks to conduct an orderly move from one home to the next.
All’s well that ends well in this eventful journey!