04/10/2026
JUST SOLD! Escrow just closed on this fantastic 3 bed / 2 bath home in Millbrae Meadows.
From the time we put it on the market, to the day we took offers, we sold it in ONE WEEK, with 6 offers, for $350,000 OVER asking price with no contingencies! Oh, and the VERY well qualified Buyer paid their own agent to boot... one less item Seller had to pay for out of pocket.
This home had been the childhood home and a long time rental for my client's family, who now live out of the area, and it was officially time for the next chapter. Having been a rental for most of it's life, my client was a little worried about what it would look like inside, and what we would have to do to get it up to s***f.
I'm not gonna lie... it could have been MUCH worse. Luckily, she had a great tenant who took care of the home as if it was his own. Once we got the keys, we took a good look around, got inspections, and determined the basic minimum amount of work we needed to do to get the best possible price.
We were LUCKY it passed the Millbrae Sewer Lateral point of sale ordinance inspection. That was $10,000 my client didn't have to spend out the gate!
We fixed any active leaks from supply lines that showed up in the home and termite inspections, so that we didn't have an accidental flood. And then we turned to cosmetics.
Interior Paint: Paint is the MOST cost effective way to spruce up a home. And regardless of the condition of the home, the Buyers will walk in and think, "Oh, I think I could totally live here until I can remodel this, that, or the other thing" because it looks and smells clean and fresh! The the entire interior got fresh paint. It was a drastic improvement from the high gloss apricot wall color that unnecessarily dated the house.
Exterior Paint: We gave the front door and garage door a fresh coat of paint, and gave the fascia boards a darker trim, to ground the house, which was previously painted all the same color.
The paint made the Buyer look right passed the things that needed remodeling... because they were fresh and clean.
Then we moved to the landscaping:
We hired a junk hauler to empty out and remove one of 2 outdoor sheds. We left the shed that was in good condition, as it would be useful to the Buyer.
Then we cleaned up the landscaping. That front lawn was too massive to tackle. So we cleaned it up, and left that project for the next person. But we planted some leafy flowering plants like agapanthus, and repurposed some other clustered plants that were there already, and planted them along the boarders of walkways and the front porch.
And BARK! Don't forget the bark! Bark is the outdoor equivalent to paint. It's the least expensive thing to do to make the outside look well cared for. If there was dirt showing, it got barked!
Staging: This is the home's jewelry. It's the very first thing Buyers see when they walk in, and it allows them to picture for themselves, how they will live in the house. My top-knotch, yes very reasonably priced stagers, XO Staging, Shelley and Lesleen, made this gem sparkle.
Was there more we could do? Absolutely. There was PLENTY.
Did we NEED to do it? Nope.
I promised my client we would do the absolute minimum necessary to sell the home at the highest possible price. And most of the cost was paid at close of escrow, due to a program I have access to through my brokerage. I made the process as painless as possible. And boy did that work pay off!
The house sold for $350,000 OVER asking price. The house did NOT even appraise. That means the lender didn't think the house was worth as much as the Buyer offered for it. But because we chose a buyer with VERY good credentials, good bank balance and excellent reputable lender, that appraisal did not matter. Other agents were even surprised at how much we got for the house. But the Buyers loved the house and closed escrow anyway.
Happy Buyers. Happy Seller. And I couldn't be happier about the outcome of this sale for my client.
How may I help YOU achieve YOUR ?
Call me today and let's discuss!
Tina Kyriakis | DRE #01384482
Coldwell Banker Realty,
Los Altos/San Carlos, CA
Direct: 650-947-2260
[email protected]
Realtor serving the Silicon Valley & San Francisco Peninsula since 2003. DRE #01384482
