My experience with Jessica Griffith, our real estate agent, has been nothing short of stellar each time we have
enlisted her. She has been very kind, innovative, and most importantly, professional. We had some very unique
circumstances and she was able to accommodate each transaction flawlessly, despite some unforeseen hiccups.
We needed to sell my late mother’s home going through probate, and since then we purchased our own home. If
you are unfamiliar with probate, it means the deceased person had assets, like a home, that either weren’t in a
will, or were not very clear, and thus the State must decide what goes to whom. As you might imagine, it’s not a
fun process.
We had to meet with a probate attorney, and he called for an immediate appraisal and the value of the home was
$540,000 on 7/9/12. The value came in but Jessica knew the value was too high. After reviewing the appraisal,
she asked the attorney to send the appraiser back out because the comparables he'd used were in average
condition and did not need any repairs. This would have been a huge issue to the estate because the taxes are
based on value at time of death. But if the appraiser had taken into consideration the incomplete work, expired permits and fixer
condition he would have used different comparables. So the following time, she met the appraiser at the property and provided him
with estimates for the work, a summary of information pertaining to the condition and permit status and he re-appraised the property,
arriving at a value of $470,000. This took about a month.
My mom’s house had incomplete renovations because my dad passed away during construction several years prior, so it needed some
updates and renovation. Being in the real estate industry, she has great referrals for contractors. We had two estimates submitted to us
before the end of September and then the work was underway. She would visit the property once a week to ensure the work was up to
speed and before the close of the year the work was completed. The time delay was mostly city inspections and finalizing permits.
And by January the property was staged by Jessica, among her many talents, and we were waiting for the court paperwork to get the
property listed.
The property was listed on 2/19/13 for $599,000 and by 2/25/13 we had 3 offers, 2 of them over list price. The final sales price was
$625,000. The property closed escrow on 4/3/13 with only $500 in concessions for roof repairs that needed to be completed. Even
though the buyer had initially asked for more, she was able to use the multiple offers as leverage to minimize the final seller
concessions.
The initial estimate for repairs was $34,865, the final invoice for repairs was $33,740, which was less than the initial estimate! How
often does that happen? Almost never!
With an investment of $33,740 in pulling permits, finishing a remodel and updating the kitchen and baths, the home went from a value
of $470,000 to a final sales price $625,000. That was a 25% increase in price for a 5% investment of money and 5 months of
preparation, staging, and marketing.
She spent an incredible amount of time caring for and nurturing this transaction, and I don’t think it could have gone any more
smoothly. It was an amazing experience that I know many are deprived of when listing their home. If you list, please do yourself a
favor and list with Jessica!
A. Smith, Costa Mesa CA
