Team RED’s Featured Senior Transition Project
Written by Kathryn Kleber, Senior Specialist
Candy Kenoyer, or “The Bling Lady”, keeps very busy with her custom sewing business, Classy Custom Embroidery. And, Jim Kenoyer also stays very busy with work and volunteer groups in the community. Early in 2022, Candy and Jim were facing a daunting challenge to move from the home they had loved for 27 years. The steep driveway and long staircase to Candy’s office did not provide a good option for aging in place.
I met with Candy and Jim after getting a call for advice.
SITUATION: This is what I learned
Space Planning: Candy and Jim had visited a 2- bedroom condo that they thought might work for them if they just put Candy’s sewing in the dining room. The loft space in their house had provided 567sf for her business and it was full.
Buying Strategies: They planned to place an offer contingent on the sale of their home, but with multiple offers coming in on the condo, they could not win. And even if a contingent offer has been possible, getting their home on market in the required 5 days would be very hard.
Home Preparation: They thought they had to do all the preparation for getting their home ready for market on their own.
Move Management: They pictured packing and moving to be physically and emotionally exhausting and they were not prepared with a plan to sell, donate, or discard items they no longer needed.
SOLUTION: The Team RED Difference
Space Planning: I recommended looking at ramblers that would provide separate office space for both Candy and Jim, eliminate the stairs, and offer easier landscape maintenance. To know how much they could afford we first looked at what they would get from their house when it sold.
Buying Strategies: In early 2022, multiple over-asking offers with minimum contingencies made it challenging to place an offer contingent on the buyers’ home sale. Team RED partnered with a lender to create an effective buy-before-you-sell option and that worked well for Jim and Candy.
Home Preparation: The Team RED provided home sale success system starts with a seller pre-inspection. We then obtain bids for work that is recommended. Advanced knowledge provides the greatest control and optimum outcome.
Move Management: Team RED provides a full-service project management approach to home buying and selling. This includes our team of strategic partners for packing, moving, and unpacking; the sale, donation, or discard of remaining items, and all aspects of home renovation and repair.
The Kenoyers’ home purchase and the project management support we provided: We located a 1880sf 4 bed 2.5 bath rambler on a level Oakbrook lot that had been on the market for 32 days and had 2 rescinded offers. We showed Candy and Jim how our contractors could update the house to give them a fresh new look and we negotiated a $52,000 hold-back for major inspection issues to be addressed by the seller. The house closed and our contractors did the full scope of renovations to make the home ready for the Kenoyer move. They now have a beautiful home with a large master suite, plus 3 additional bedrooms so they did not lose their guest room and they both have their own home offices. Voila!
The Kenoyers’ home sale: During the renovation of their new house, we worked with the Kenoyer family to prepare for their move, decide what they were taking, and how we would distribute the items they no longer needed. Our packers assisted in the process, the movers did the heavy lifting and the packers again assisted with the unpacking. The steps of donations and discard followed, and the home was freshly painted, cleaned, staged, and put on the market.
It has been a complex process involving many team members and we are now so glad to see the Kenoyers enjoying their new aging-in-place home knowing they will have increased comfort, safety, and security for many years to come.
