We don’t ask our sellers to spend money on anything that won’t give them a significant return on their investment. The updates, the staging and the ability to keep this deal together when a massive rainstorm caused leaks during escrow were all key factors in the success of this sale.
It was no small feat to get the leaks fixed, manage the entire process while keeping all parties happy and calm.
Let’s walk through the before and afters on this Montcalm Street home.
We know what home buyers value. Bedrooms sell for more than offices so we staged two small rooms as bedrooms. Knowing home buyers also value flexibility we frosted the lower portion of the loft windows giving the buyer options for the space.
“We had an exceptional experience working with Ruth Krishnan and her fabulous team to sell our Bernal Heights home. With two small children, we really appreciated the degree to which Ruth and team took most of the complexity of a home sale off of our shoulders and made the process as smooth as possible. From the first meeting it was clear that Ruth and her team bring a tremendous amount of experience, professionalism, and efficiency to the process of selling a home.
On the first visit to our property she brought along contractors and stagers to determine the highest ROI areas for improvements and proposed a thorough and detailed budget and calendar for making improvements prior to bringing our home to market (ultimately we remodeled two bathrooms and made several other cosmetic upgrades to make our house show its best). Her well organized team ensured that all work was done on time and on budget, organizing various contractors and external parties as necessary.
When it came time to list Ruth expertly analyzed the rapidly evolving market to help us with pricing strategy, and her marketing strategy and negotiating skills allowed us to go into contract after being on market for only 24 hours with an offer 13% over our asking price and well above what we bought the house for just 4 years earlier.
If this had been our whole experience with Ruth and her team we would have been thrilled, but what happened next truly put her service on the next level. Just one week before we were set to close a historical atmospheric river storm system pounded the Bay Area, causing water intrusion and extensive damage at the property, throwing our pending deal into doubt.
Ruth calmly and masterfully negotiated with the buyer to keep them at the table while she simultaneously set her team to work getting bids from various contractors to make the necessary repairs. Her team handled EVERYTHING, sourcing bids, negotiating prices, booking contractors, keeping everyone’s schedules straight, and keeping us and the buyer updated as everything developed. Her deep connections with local contractors of all kinds made this whole process seem smooth, and we were able to close just one month later than we originally planned. The level of service her team provided was amazing. She is a true professional and we would hire her again in a heartbeat.”
– T.D., Seller, 128 Montcalm St.
We also updated the tile in one bath and painted the cabinets in another. Additionally we refinished the wood floors, painted the interior and the bathroom cabinets and freshened up the back yard.
I could not do all of this with out my incredible team. Every listing we sell has a full time project manager so our vendors can be carefully managed and our vision properly implemented. We have a vetted list of vendors that do projects on time and on budget with very careful oversight. Our sellers just hand over the keys, sit back and wait for the proceeds to hit their bank account.
It’s easy to think that properties sell themselves but stories like these show that thoughtful property preparation, correct pricing and solid marketing make a huge difference in the final outcome.
There is no one size fits all approach. Having an experienced agent who not only understands what buyers want but also has a background in design is critical to helping sellers get the highest possible price for their homes. See more of our before and after work.
We’d love the opportunity to help you (or someone you know) sell your home for top dollar. Contact us anytime.
