Case Study 7 (Trust Sale - Glens)

The following story is the testimonial provided by Karen Olson after I sold her family home of 50-plus years in Woodside Glens. The neighborhood was originally made up of summer cabins for wealthy San Franciscans but is now home to a diverse, yet tight-knit community. The home was owned by Karen and her brother who had lived together in the house since their mother passed away over 20 years ago. In the spring of 2012, they suddenly realized that they needed to sell the house for financial reasons. The home was in need of substantial structural and cosmetic repairs, which was a concern to the owners who were living on fixed incomes with limited savings. The following are Karen’s words told to an independent interviewer. She is willing to share her experience with you personally. Her contact information is provided at the end of the testimonial.

 

My brother and I had owned the house and lived there together since the 1980’s. On March 15, he came to me and told me that he could no longer keep up his portion of the house payment and we had to sell. The next day I told my best friend from kindergarten I had to move and she told me about a house for sale around the corner from her near Placerville. I drove there that day and made a contingent offer on it and it was accepted. I knew we needed to sell quickly, but the house needed a lot of work and I had no idea how I was going to get it all done or how I was going to pay for it.

 

I knew a few Real Estate Agent, but none that I really liked. I trusted my neighbor, so I asked her and she recommended Chris. I called him on March 17 and we met the next day. I asked him if we could sell the house “as is,” but he told me that banks won’t make loans on houses “under construction” that aren’t up to code. He told me that I might be able to sell it to people who could pay cash for a project that they could get for cheap, but I’d be limiting my pool of buyers.

 

Chris had in his head everything that needed to be done, and he estimated it would cost $25,000, but I only had $20,000 in the bank. Chris believed it wasn’t wise for me to go through my savings. He told me not to worry about financing—that he had a person who loaned out money for short amounts of time, so he arranged for me to get financing through a private investor to pay for the repairs. Chris made everything so simple, even though it was pretty scary for me.

 

In two days, Chris had a crew of guys in my living room ready to go to work. I couldn’t even get an electrician to return my calls and he had a whole team from all over the place—plastering and laying carpet and painting. His financial contact walked through the house, figured it was a good investment, and loaned me the money right away.

 

There was interest in the house before we ever got it on the market. Chris put up a “Coming Soon” sign and we had two good offers within two days. One of the offers was a weird, contingency offer that I didn’t understand, but I let Chris handle it. He walked me through everything and helped me pick the best offer from the most financially stable buyer. We closed escrow on the house on May 10.

 

Chris was easy to work with and he listened to my concerns. I don’t think there’s another Real Estate Agent that could have done all that he did as quickly as he did.

 

 

It was an amazing experience all the way around. This was the first time I had ever sold a home and I had no clue what I was doing Chris made it look so easy, even though it wasn’t easy at all.

 

The minute I talked to Chris I liked what he had to say. He wasn’t pushy and he didn’t tell me what he thought I wanted to hear. Chris is very smart and he knows what he’s doing. He knew exactly what needed to be done to the house, how much it would cost, and how to price the house. I’m amazed at how well he works with people. Every time I called him, he either answered right away or called me back within 20 minutes.

 

What we had to do in the time we had to do it was tough, but Chris not only made it easy, he actually made it kind of fun. He builds great relationships and everyone he brought in was so nice. The workers came back to my going away party and brought their wives and kids. That was really cool. The investor sent me a Christmas card and invited me to an open house. Chris is professional, but also heartwarming.

 

 

Chris exceeded my expectations in how he was able to get things done and it all came in for less than we budgeted. Chris estimated it would cost $25,000 and in the end it cost only $22,000.

 

If you’re going to sell your house, have Chris do it, especially if you need a lot of construction done and need it done quickly at a great price. Trust what Chris tells you; he was right every step of the way. He handled everything perfectly. I couldn’t ask for anyone better.