Jonathan and Kirstin Bradberry marked their son’s first birthday by moving into a Brookhaven home and throwing a party. There were many reasons to celebrate, after making three unsuccessful offers on homes and searching for about five months.
The family moved in the week of their son Kai’s birthday, after outgrowing their two-bedroom condo.
The priority
The couple had lived off Ashford-Dunwoody Road, near Brookhaven, for about six years. Jonathan, 27, a tax accountant for PwC, and Kirstin, 28, a financial analyst at Turner Broadcasting, were happy with their commutes to Midtown and downtown Atlanta from that location. They also had to determine if they wanted a home with a garage (often sacrificed inside the perimeter).
The search
The couple focused on Dunwoody and Brookhaven, searching with Susan Levy, a real estate agent for Prudential Georgia Realty. They wanted a home with at least three bedrooms, two baths and a yard for Kai to play, but otherwise they didn’t have many must-haves.
“I don’t think we were too picky,” Kirstin said. “We knew it was going to be our first house.”
They looked at many homes that were older and needed updates.
“With us having an almost 1 year old at the time, it was just going to be too much for us to try manage him, our jobs and to try to do home repairs at the same time,” Jonathan said.
Competition was fierce among buyers, and they lost out on three offers. Levy emailed them pictures of the home they purchased on a Thursday, the same day the house was listed. Jonathan picked Kai up from the daycare while Kirstin had a work function and viewed the home. “I told him, ‘If it looks like the pictures, put an offer on the house and I can go see it tomorrow.’ That’s exactly what happened,” Kirstin said. “Within a manner of 15 minutes, we all settled on the price. It went really fast.”
The home
The three-bedroom, two-bath home was built in 1954 in the Ashford Park neighborhood but had been renovated throughout. The builder, Gus Pounds Homes, added a walk-in closet and double vanity in the master suite, hardwood floors, and granite countertops, slate backsplash, antique white cabinets and stainless steel appliances in the kitchen. The way the kitchen opened to the living room and dining room were selling features, and make it worth not having a garage (the home has a carport) and fireplace.
“The fact that it was a newer house obviously made a huge difference,” said Kirstin. “I love our kitchen. Then the hardwood floors, they’re just beautiful.”
They closed within 30 days in 2012, a few months before Brookhaven became a city.
The lifestyle
The couple, who had been renting nearby, already were fans of Brookhaven.
“It’s kind of like a suburb of Atlanta and has that family feel,” Jonathan said.
Now that they’re homeowners in Brookhaven, they constantly see families at the Ashford Park playground or while walking to shops and restaurants such as breakfast at J. Christopher’s. “There’s so many people around here that have kids,” Jonathan said.
