Kristy Hairston, president of the Greater Nashville Realtors, continues to deliver incredibly good news to her followers as 2020, in spite of the pandemic, is setting real estate sales records with each passing month.

Hairston most recently noted that there were 12% more sales in July than in August 2019, when the record was set for the most residential real estate transactions. With 4,703 closed sales last month, the area set another record, thrashing last year’s number of 4,189.

Of note, these numbers represent sales in the Greater Nashville area.

In the past several months, while area sales were breaking records, Davidson County sales were lagging behind last year’s numbers, some months by as much as 30% compared to last year. In July, however, Davidson County gained ground with 1,386 sales compared to 1,465 in July 2019, only 79 short.

With 4,192 sales pending, the future looks promising, especially as it compares to 3,493 sales pending at the end of July 2019.

As the city experiences financial turmoil, protests, riots, infections, deaths and mask controversies, real estate sales have managed to the stay the course.

One sale that did not occur might be a foreboding. Many lenders have warned that self-employed individuals are subject to more scrutiny than they had been before the COVID-19 situation.

In this case, the buyer had been approved, had a closing date and time set by the closing attorney. The loan had cleared underwriting, and the moving vans had pulled out loaded with all the belongings of yet another family moving to Nashville. With young children in tow and the wife several months pregnant, the family was ready to begin life anew in Nashville.

Like millions of U.S. citizens, this person had taken advantage of the PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loans. He had disclosed his participation during the loan process, but the underwriters had missed it and found it only after his family’s belongings had been packed, loaded and headed to Nashville.

The seller had vacated and moved to their new city, and the house bare and lonely. It will be interesting to see how these loans wind their way into the fabric of lending institutions for small-business owners as the infections and deaths continue to grow, and small businesses suffer.

Sale of the Week

Christine Quillin, who is affiliated with the real estate firm now known simply as Village, listed a property with a distinguished history, and Joanne Staler, an historic figure in her own right, wasted to time in delivering a buyer onto these hallowed grounds. Staler hails from Re/Max Choice Properties and this one is.

Ironically, the property located at 3701 Sugartree Place is not located within the gated community known as Sugartree, which is walled and gated. Situated on a half-acre lot in Green Hills, this lot has minted money for illustrious owners over the years.

Tim Vaughn and his wife Ellen purchased the property for $79,500 in 1982 and doubled their money over the next 10 years, selling for $160,000. Vaughn is the owner of Cumberland Tool and Die Company, the region’s most revered establishment in that industry.

When Vaughn sold the property, the buyer was a prominent Nashville attorney who, at one time, was the chairman of the esteemed Waller, Lansden, Dortch and Davis, now known as Waller. He then sold the home for $320,000 in 2002 with the house once again doubling in value in 10 years.

The new buyer then sold the house 13 years later for $449,000, picking up $129,000 in that time period and selling the house as a teardown. The Colclasure Company bought the house, demolished it and sold the newly constructed residence for $1.575 million in 2016.

Last week, the home sold for $2.25 million, some $675,000 more than the last sale, or the amount slightly more than the total of the prices paid in 1982, 1992 and 2002.

Quillin described the house as having “an open floor plan, black walnut floors, a gourmet, eat-in kitchen and spa-like bathrooms” located in the owners’ suite. She noted that Ethan Colclasure, the builder, had been cited as 2016’s best builder, and that was the year that he constructed this masterpiece that, no doubt, was influential in his recognition.

With 6,373 square feet. The $353 per-square-foot selling price is in line for new construction in the area, especially with six bedrooms, six full bathrooms and one-half bathroom.

Be on the lookout, as the current buyers will soon have their names etched in Nashville history.

Richard Courtney is a licensed real estate broker with Fridrich and Clark Realty, LLC and can be reached at [email protected].