After looking at homes with tiny kitchens, old electrical systems and zero curb appeal, Julie Ahern finally found a place in Brookhaven that only needed a bit of paint. But the negotiations for Ahern, who was moving from a Buckhead apartment, were a bit unusual because a Greek Orthodox church owned the home. Ahern, 27, a senior consultant with Protiviti, an internal audit and risk consulting firm, chatted about her purchase in the Mount Brian Woods neighborhood.
Q: What were you looking for in style and location for your new home?
A: I definitely wanted to be inside the Perimeter. I knew as far as my price range [low $200,000s] that I would have to be looking at an older home. I knew it would probably be a ranch style.
Q: What did you find on the market?
A: When we first started looking, I was wondering if I was ever going to fall in love with something that was within my price range. I would find these great houses online that were priced way below my price range and then find it was a short sale.
Q: Were you expecting to make updates?
A: I have a lot of family nearby. I knew I could handle a little bit, but I wasn’t looking for a fixer-upper. I was looking for something that the family would tolerate helping me with.
Q: How did this home meet your wishes?
A: There’s a lot of potential, but not a lot that I have to do right away. The bathrooms are updated and they’re fine as is with just a little paint, and they look great. The dining room is the focal point of the house, and it has a tray ceiling. The backyard is huge. The kitchen is huge. It’s not updated, so it kind of leaves me some room for creativity to work with it. It’s been taken care of very well. It just kind of made sense.
Q: Did you have any reservations?
A: It’s a two-bedroom, two-bath. I would have loved a [three-bedroom, two-bath], but I needed to be realistic with my price range. The two bedrooms share a wall. For a roommate floor plan, that’s not ideal. The third bedroom is the dining room.
Q: Were you able to negotiate?
A: It was kind of interesting. Basically what we [she worked with Cindy Wallace of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage] learned after going back and forth a couple of times was [the church] was selling it “as is.” We were the first ones in there. They priced it aggressively to sell [the original price was $229,900]. We were just in there at the right time.
Q: What changes have you made and do you plan to make?
A: I’m repainting everything. There’s one doorway into the kitchen and the rest is all walled off. Eventually, I want to break through the wall and open up the kitchen into the living room.
About the Author
