From the city to the suburbs

By: Jane Lintelmann

I love working in real estate. One of the reasons why I love it so much is because it gives me the opportunity to guide clients through major life changes. As a pragmatist to the core, breaking down an emotional and complex time into manageable steps and parts feels like a calling. And because of where I am in life, those big changes usually involve one of two things: an upsize (friends with growing families), or a downsize (my parent’s empty nester friends).

My pragmatism was put to the ultimate test just a few weeks ago as I helped my own parents through their major transition.  About 11 years ago, once my brother and I officially left our childhood home in Morton Grove, my mom and dad bought an amazing townhouse in Old Town. They wanted to be closer to the Cubs, city restaurants and theater and me and my brother (in that order!). All of us loved living close to one another in the city so the arrangement worked perfectly. 

But as with all good things, this one came to an end.  My husband and I had our second daughter and city living didn’t feel like the right fit any longer. We sold our condo and headed to Skokie – back to the northern suburbs where I grew up, and where we knew we wanted to raise our girls. 

 After our move, my parents realized they too were done with city living and wanted to live close to their grandchildren. Since they weren’t in a hurry to move, we began with a broad search. I also researched options on Top Agent Network (TAN), as well as the Private Listing Network (PLN) to make sure not to miss any prospective new homes.  

 As time passed, my parents started to get a little antsy. I decided to refine the search a bit and switch up some of the details. I made personal calls to other Skokie brokers to see if they had anything coming on the market of interest. I even spoke to neighbors on our weekend walks with the girls to see if they were interested in selling. And then suddenly it seemed like I might have found it: their unicorn! Before getting their hopes up, I went to the property by myself to check it out. I sent them some photos and videos, and they were intrigued. 

 We went to see the prospective house together the next day, and the second Mom and Dad walked inside they knew they were home. This place checked off literally every item on their list! After some intense negotiating, they were under contract and then closed within just a few weeks. 

 Of course, we also had to tackle packing up and selling their Old Town townhouse. I was so glad I had Busby Group’s concierge team to tap into! Emily, our director of concierge helped us create a seamless process, and get my parent’s home ready for professional photos. 

We encouraged my parents to take it a day at a time and to focus on organizing one room per day. To minimize the pain of moving furniture, but make sure the photos looked amazing, we used a combination of virtual staging and editing. We also created a timeline that allowed them to move to their new home before we started showings. The townhouse was under contract just a few weeks after listing! 

 Careful and thoughtful timing was the key to success with my parents, and so many empty nesters. I always consider how two transactions will impact my client’s day-to-day life. I’m so glad it worked out so well for my parents. They are now totally settled in their new home, close to us and the grandkids.  All of us couldn’t be happier!