One thing was clear when Hyun Chu Chang started her house hunt: She needed plenty of closet space.
“Having had my background in fashion, one of the big things I was looking for was giant closets. I needed multiple closets,” said Chang, who previously worked for high-end retailers in Los Angeles, including Barneys New York and Escada on Rodeo Drive.
Her career now, as a product manager with the Rainmaker Group, a software firm, was so busy that Chang, 44, didn’t have time to renovate a home. The competition was stiff for move-in-ready homes in north Buckhead and Sandy Springs.
“The area I was looking at was maybe a 2-mile radius,” she said. “All of them came in with multiple bids and offers.”
Chang remembers her agent, Collette McDonald with Re/Max Around Atlanta, telling her a couple of times: “Don’t lose faith. You’ll find the right house. Don’t get discouraged.”
She considered these three homes.
No. 1 -- Closet of dreams
A four-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bath townhouse on Lenox Road in Buckhead offered luxury upgrades, including in the master closet, Chang said. One bedroom had been converted into a closet so incredible that Chang was willing to consider purchasing a townhouse, although she preferred a single-family home. The closet had an island and built-in storage areas for shoes, belts, scarves and jewelry, along with mirrors and lights for displaying items such as purses. The four-story townhouse also had an elevator. Built in 2002, it was listed for $539,000.
No. 2 -- Fabulous foreclosure
A four-bedroom house on Carmain Drive in Atlanta, with four full bathrooms and two half baths, had an amazing master suite with a fireplace in between the bedroom and bathroom, which had a claw-foot tub. French doors that led to a patio, custom tile and marble, and a two-story entryway were features that made the home seem worth much more than the asking price, she said. The home, built in 2006, was listed for $580,000.
No. 3 -- Entirely updated
A five-bedroom, four-and-a-half bath home on Goodwin Road in north Buckhead looked brand new on the inside. The brick home had been renovated, and the kitchen boasted granite countertops, a double oven, higher-end cabinets and stainless steel appliances. There were three closets alone in the master bedroom. An extra was the finished terrace level, which was set up for a kitchenette. The home, built in 1995, was listed for $625,000.
The Choice
No. 3. Chang put offers on all three, but was beat out by other buyers for Nos. 1 and 2. “I’m walking through these homes envisioning myself living there already. By the time you make the offer and it doesn’t come through, it’s so devastating,” she said. She viewed No. 3 the day it was listed and immediately put in an offer (two others followed hers). When the seller countered in the middle, Chang accepted the number on the spot. She more than tripled the size of her apartment, which had one bedroom and about 1,200 square feet. Chang, who moved in during 2012, now has enough bedrooms for her nephew and two nieces, who visit for sleepovers. “It’s a lot more space, and it’s amazing how I’ve already grown accustomed to it. I absolutely love it here.”
