We just closed escrow on 3056 Alabama Street, La Crescenta, and here’s how it went:
I first met with the seller in December. He and his wife were thinking of relocating. Over their years of ownership, they had made some significant improvements: they added a primary suite with a balcony, solar, an updated kitchen, and many conservation items. The downstairs bathroom was the only weak link to this three-bedroom, two-bath home.
We met again at the end of March and started preparing this La Crescenta home for sale. The seller hired their contractor, who completed their addition, updated this bathroom, and painted the interior. They moved to Northern California, and Harb & Co. took over. Harb and Co. had the home professionally cleaned, and Upstage Design staged the downstairs. We had the remainder of the home virtually staged.
We were in the MLS as coming soon on May 24 and went active the next day with a list price of $985,000. By June 3, we had six offers. We opened escrow on June 5. We closed escrow at $1,126,000, $168,000 over the asking price. This is the dilemma buyers are having: how much to offer. This buyer also waived their appraisal contingency which is very important in today’s market.
Escrow was scheduled to close on July 6. We closed one week late. Why? Unfortunately, the listing agent does not pick the buyer’s lender. And this buyer’s choice of lender was awful. The lender was slow and uncommunicative. As we had other offers, we insisted that the buyer release a portion of his earnest money deposit to the seller as good faith. If not, the buyer would lose the home. It makes a difference what lender you select.
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Well that extra 168,000 surely covered the cost of the bathroom upgrade!