Name: Mark and Katy Cobb. Mark is the drummer for Yacht Rock Revue; Katy is co-owner of Sashay Creative Events.
The home: A five-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath home with a basement built in 2006.
Where: Decatur's Oakhurst neighborhood
Why they sold: When a home with Prairie-style architecture appeared on the market in Oakhurst, the couple liked the idea of moving into a larger home with a unique look. With three young kids, the couple expected they would be outgrowing their space in about three years, and this seemed like the right opportunity to go ahead and move within the neighborhood. The home they bought, working with Tanya Mendleson of Atlanta Intown Real Estate Services, was just about a quarter of a mile away. "You barely have time to even listen to the first verse of a song before you're over in our new house," Mark said. After they put an offer on the home they bought, they put their existing home on the market.
Time on market: 17 days
Original price: $769,900
Sale price: $738,400
What it took: The Cobbs were confident that their location would spark a speedy sale of their Craftsman-style home, which had features such as coffered ceiling in the living room, surround sound, and stainless steel appliances and granite countertops. They had seen other homes selling in a day. "Families are fighting to go into this neighborhood," Katy said.
But they didn’t just put a sign in the yard. The Cobbs removed personal photos and rented two storage units for furniture, music equipment and other belongings. Part of the basement was a recording studio for Mark, but he removed drum sets and other gear so that people would visualize the space as a media room or in-law suite, Katy said. The home also had an irrigation system, which they installed about a year before selling, and they viewed it as a perk.
After dropping the price to $749,900, they accepted a cash offer and closed in February, about a week after buying the Frank Lloyd Wright-style home.
Potential stumbling block: The Cobbs have three children, and kid-sized toilet they installed in the kids' bathroom after they had their twins and remodeled the upstairs could have turned off buyers. They discussed replacing the toilet, which was about 10 inches off the ground, with a standard-sized toilet. "I said, 'Let's not change the toilet … maybe a young family with kids will buy this house and they'll be excited about the squatty potty," Katy said. The couple told potential buyers they could remove the tiny toilet, but they were not asked to do so. They also didn't want to paint over the wall mural of the Beatles' yellow submarine in one of the kids' bedrooms, but that did not hinder the sale. When the buyers asked them to inspect a crack in the back of the fireplace, it was deemed safe but they repaired it to avoid jeopardizing the sale, Katy said.
Seller's hint: Clear out the home. "You stand in the middle of your kitchen and all of a sudden you're like, 'Why are we moving? This house is amazing.' " Katy said. "All of a sudden you feel like you're in the new house again. That's the feeling you want to give potential buyers."
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