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Selling a bi-level can be tricky.
“It comes down to square footage. There’s no basement in a bi-level and most families are looking for that extra space,” said Steph Mahon with Compass, the agent who listed the home.
But the sale of this one might’ve broken a record for that type of house in Chatham, she said.
“The house itself is really special,” Mahon said. “They were meticulous sellers. Everything was beautifully maintained.”
The sellers had lived in the four-bedroom, three full-bathroom home for 30 years. “They renovated it in 2018-2019 to empty-nester standards,” she said.
They turned the fourth bedroom into a wine room and made a custom-built wet bar in the lower level recreation room with a four-tap keg system, an ice machine and a dishwasher.
The wet bar and adjacent wine room in the lower level.
Mahon, through her company Dwell New Jersey, did a “take over and make over” package for the home, which included new interior lighting, painting the kitchen cabinets and putting down a new runner rug on the stairs.
The refresh was meant to make the home appeal to younger, first-time buyers. And it did.
The home was priced at $1,195,000. “Because it was a specific buyer I was thinking we would get six to eight offers,” Mahon said. “I really needed to attract affluent first-timer buyers whose budget starts in the $1 million to $1.4 million range but who have the money to go higher.”
The open houses on Saturday and Sunday each attracted 100 people. There were 21 offers and the home closed for $1,520,000 – that’s $325,000 above asking price.
“They made seven times back on the money they gave me to invest,” she said, adding that she focused on modernizing the main level to match the lower level improvements.
Buyers in this market are discerning. Because interest rates and prices are so high, they want the home to be move-in ready, agents say.
“The most competitive price point is $1 million to $1.5 million and those buyers don’t really want to do anything to the home,” said Mahon, who works primarily in Chatham, Summit and Short Hills. “Buyers are more willing to spend on a house that’s done versus getting a house with more square footage that needs work.”
Are you an agent, buyer or seller who is active in this changing market? Do you have tips about New Jersey’s real estate market? Unusual listings? Let us know.
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Allison Pries may be reached at apries@njadvancemedia.com.
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This article was originally published by a www.nj.com . Read the Original article here. .