Lisa Bianco had never sold a home before. Though she and her husband owned property in Montclair, she had never been on the selling side of a real estate transaction until her father passed away and she inherited their Waldwick home.
Ms. Bianco’s father, Paul Bianco, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty’s Allendale office, died of pancreatic cancer in January. Her father lived in the home at 106 Waldwick Avenue for nearly 40 years, according to her daughter. So when it came time to sell the property, Ms. Bianco enlisted the help of her father’s best friend, Lisa Ubanni, also a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty’s Allendale office.
“Thankfully, (Uvanni) was there to guide me every step of the way. Lisa was my dad’s best friend from his days at Coldwell Banker and my dad worked with her,” Bianco said. “So after my dad passed away, I asked her to be the real estate agent for the house, and she was happy to oblige.”
The property was listed on the market in mid-March for $398,000, received a total of 79 offers and sold earlier this month for $535,000, $137,000 above the asking price.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom center-hall Colonial-style home has 1,000 square feet of living space and sits on 0.11 acres. It has hardwood floors throughout, plenty of natural light, an enclosed backyard and a one-car garage. Ubanni said the home sits on a completely flat lot, which not all homes in the area are, and it’s within walking distance to the train station and local restaurants.
“Everyone in Bergen County, New York City and the surrounding areas went crazy over our $398,000 home in Bergen County. It was crazy, we had offers even before we listed it,” Uvanni said. “First of all, the home is only 1,000 square feet. Second of all, the kitchen had never been remodeled. 1,000 square feet is too small for most people. Even the apartment I lived in was over 1,000 square feet. The basement is unfinished. We need a new roof. We have a lot of needs, so I didn’t expect it to be this expensive. It was pretty shocking.”
When it came time to prepare the house to sell, Bianco said it was an easier process than she expected: Her father was a very organized man, so there wasn’t much that needed to be thrown out or organized before showing the house.
“I felt like I had great guidance, so I wasn’t stressed or anxious at all,” she said. “I spent a lot of time at my dad’s house, so I felt very close to him throughout this process.”
Then, once the home was officially listed, Uvanni said, they held a broker-only open house followed by two public open houses over three days that drew a total of about 700 people. Bianco said they initially expected 10 to 20 applications, but after seeing how many people attended, they expect many more to come.
On Tuesday, the day after the open house, Ubani solicited top and final offers from potential buyers. By 4 p.m. that day, he said, he had received 40 offers, and by the end of the day, he had received 79. Two more offers came in the next day, but they were not considered because the top final deadline had passed, Ubani said.
“I’ll be honest, it was a little overwhelming, but in a good way,” Bianco said. “Obviously, there were a lot of offers and a lot of choices, so we went through all the numbers and terms. Lisa enlisted the help of our manager in the Allendale office, and the three of us spent an hour or two going through all the offers together.”
After reviewing the offers, Bianco and Uvanni each made a list of their top 10 offers to compare, and both said they found the exact same offers in the top five, which made the decision easier.
“It’s a small house, but people have said it’s very charming, and I was grateful for that. My father was very proud of his house, so I think he was really, really pleased with the response,” Bianco said. “I hope my father is watching and is really happy with the response, with how things have turned out, and with how Lisa and I have worked together. I hope the next owner will cherish it as much as my father did.”
Maddie McGay is a real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering all the joys of living in North Jersey. Instagram @maddiemcgay, upon From @maddiemcgayyand sign her up North Jersey Living Newsletter. Have a tip, trend, or great home you think she should know about? Email her MMcGay@Gannett.com.
