I got a call from the clients below a couple weeks into the COVID-19 lockdown in Ontario. Although we had never experienced a province-wide shut-down before, real estate was deemed an essential service and the situation Rod and Blythe were in shows why.
They had purchased a house before the lockdown and like everyone else, including real estate agents and other homeowners, thought there would be no problem selling their present home. Then Ontario shut down in mid-March and the market crashed. Nothing was selling. At one point there were just 7 Ajax homes sold in one week! And worse of all for them, the house they purchased was closing in a month!
That’s where experience comes in. You have to constantly track the market and pivot if necessary. Being through the real estate crash of 2017, the mini recession of 2008/2009 and the aftershocks of 9/11 (2001) has given me that experience. Together with my team, we changed the way we priced homes and developed protocols for showing properties, for inspecting properties like Rod’s without sacrificing social distancing and although hard to find, make sure we had enough masks, disposable gloves and hand sanitizer for the protection of both our clients and our team members. Although there was sometimes a learning curve, we also utilized virtual meeting technology like Zoom when meeting with sellers like Rod and Blythe.
The result was a successful sale in a very challenging time and as you can see below, a very happy client!
My name is Rod James, and I have been a resident of South Ajax for over twenty years. As most homeowners do, we watch our neighbours. And when a home comes up for sale we ask the same questions. Is their house the same as mine inside? Wonder what renovations they've done? And most importantly, what is it listed for?
The other thing we pay attention to is, Who is the home listed with? The name Brian Kondo from Re/Max was everywhere. For over twenty years I had been seeing his “For Sale” signs…a good sign for someone looking for a knowledgeable real-estate agent.
So it was an easy choice when I decided to list my home. From my very first conversation with Brian, he surprised me by saying, "Oh you have a Glenwood!" I had no idea that was the model I had bought all those years ago. He knew as much about my home and particular neighbourhood as I did. He gave me a very detailed analysis of what homes in my area were selling for, how long they usually stayed on the market, and the pros and cons of my neighborhood. To say the least, I was blown away with his extensive knowledge.
I then tasked him with the impossible - sell my home in the middle of the worst economic downturn in recent history…the COVID-19 pandemic. Once again Brian stepped up to the challenge, and within days had come up with a plan to sell it. Two days later I had a sign on my lawn - FOR SALE - Coming Soon!!
He came to the house and gave me a list of things prospective buyers looked for. The little things I hadn't considered because I have been living with them for so long. Some of them hard to hear, but all of it sound advice. Long story short, Brian's team and their extensive network, built with 30+ years of experience, managed to sell my home in just 5 days for 102% of the asking price. All this during the COVID-19 lockdown. Darn impressive in my books.
So thank you Brian, and your whole team, for a very impressive, and stress-free experience.
Rod James
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