Cheryl Walters, 77, believes in the power of planning.
Four years ago, a retired schoolteacher attended a downsizing workshop hosted by The Steller Group, a Colorado-based full-service real estate team. While Walters was not yet ready to leave her home, she knew she would eventually have to: her 94-year-old husband Cliff has several health issues and she has no children. So she continued to attend additional Steller seminars.
“I had the time and desire,” she says. “Steller changed my thinking to help me look at downsizing as a process.”
Blair Bryant, Steller’s designated broker, shared: “The top three factors that redundant staff face are: what will I do with all my stuff, how will I prepare the house, and how will I time everything?”
In Walters’ case, she expected the move to happen after her husband’s death. But Father Time had other plans.
“My husband is an Energizer Rabbit, so as he became less able to take care of everything related to the household, I knew I couldn’t do it all alone.”
So they chose Carmel Oaks, a retirement community in Lakewood, as their next home. As for the transition, she knew that Steller could do it from there.
Ready to sell
In March this year, Walters consulted with Bryant about what services Steller would provide. After all, there are many things left for a lifetime that won’t make it to Carmel Oaks.
The housing market was booming, rising interest rates were on the horizon, and the house needed some improvements before it was up for sale.
Bryant offered offers and The Steller Group provided services to evaluate and prepare her existing home for sale, including free full-service preparation and strategic marketability improvements such as new paint and the exposure of the home’s hardwood floors. Bryant also helped organize the sale of the couple’s property.
“He made it easy for me,” says Walters. “I didn’t have to look for real estate agents or movers. He gave me offers and we used them.”
The Steller Group also completed the renovation of the house and cleaned the house before putting it up for sale.
“I didn’t have to look for people to do this job, everything was taken care of,” she says.
Facilitate the transition
Walters says downsizing can be difficult, but working with the Steller Group has made the process easier.
Bryant says that’s why the company runs seminars for seniors.
“Cutting down is hard,” Bryant says. “But we provide a way to educate yourself and get emotional from the process.”
Walters agrees. “The thought of leaving your home scares some people.”
Attending Steller Group seminars helped her start the downsizing process.
“It allowed me to casually start planning and thinking about things I had never thought about,” she says. “For example, if I couldn’t sell or give away things, I learned what I could do next.”
Bryant says planning like Walters pays off: “Planning makes everything easier—after all, who knows what tomorrow will bring?”
The Denver Post news and editors were not involved in the preparation of this post.
