1220 Chickering Rd
At $8.6 million, the house at 1220 Chickering Road speaks to the strength of the Nashville Real estate market as it, like houses priced $7 million less, sold in one day.
Unlike the lower-priced homes, this house could not boast that it sold for more than list price, but when there is a price tag of $8.9 million, bragging rights are not a factor.
As a matter of fact, the house sold for $300,000 less than list price. But, as they say, “Wait for it.”
In her description of the property, listing agent Leslie Karl had this to say: “This grand residence is ready to be restored and taken to the next level.”
Yes, this is a fixer-upper. At least if the new owner wants to “restore it and take it to the next level.”
There are two sets of plans, she wrote, one for renovation and one “to scrape and build brand new.”
To be clear, this might not be a fixer upper. It could be a teardown. Karl also mentioned “the home is currently in the framing stage.”
Your eyes did not deceive you as you read the opening line. This house sold for $8.6 million and stands ready to battle the bulldozer or meet a lucky renovation contractor.
Leslie did disclose she is related to the seller. The Chinese dish “Happy Family” would apply to this group of relatives the day this one closed, at least to Leslie and the family member who sold the property.
By the way, the seller bought the property for $5.25 million in 2016, so there was likely significant equity in the property.
There is one characteristic of buyers who pay more than $8 million for a home: They have access to $8 million to spend on a home, and that money was made by making calculated, thoughtful investments.
The fact that the buyer did not pay the list price indicates the buyers are savvy in the ways of acquiring property. They made an offer the sellers could not refuse and paid a big number, but not the list price.
Buyers with significant worth do not accumulate that financial position by cavalierly investing and overpaying. As large as the price is, this was a wise investment, and the chances are that the buyer, after making the necessary improvements, will be able to realize a substantial gain, all the while residing in one of the finest homes in the city of Nashville.
The listing agent described this property as a “once in a blue moon opportunity. Brilliant Nashville songwriter Pat Alger once penned a song titled “Once in a Very Blue Moon,” which might have been slightly more appropriate for this house to sell.
Based on trends in the local market, $8.6 million sales will be commonplace within a few years, and this property will increase in value significantly.
Homes selling for $1 million-plus were once rare. Now, they occur almost daily.
In 2017, 14 houses sold for $3 million-plus in Davidson County. In the last 12 months, 83 houses have sold for $3 million-plus.
In the past 12 months, five houses have sold and closed for $7 million-plus with another pending with a solid contract. There was one in the five-year span ending Dec. 31, 2019.
A songwriter who does not live in Nashville by the name of Smokey Robinson once wrote “Get ready ’cause here I come.” The Nashville market should get ready because here it comes, the “it” being sales in the $15 to $20 million range, with one transfer of $20 million-plus occurring last week.
Back to the house at 1220 Chickering Road: It’s situated on 8.9 rather expensive acres, has at least six bedrooms, seven full bathrooms and three half bathrooms. Despite its groundbreaking technology, the Multiple Listing System failed Leslie on this listing as she noted the “Home has too many rooms and options to share on MLS.”
The house has 11,726 square feet and guest quarters with 2 bedrooms and two bathrooms. These rooms can be accessed by a covered walkway. In addition, there is a four-car garage, a feature that has crept into the Nashville market and is required in homes selling for big numbers.
The buyer’s broker in this transaction was Keri Cannon, one of the top producing Realtors in Nashville and recognized as one of the most giving, self-sacrificing Realtors in the country by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Keri and her mother, Pam Kidd, founded Village Hope, a group that feeds 2,000 people a day at schools in Zimbabwe, where parents were forced to make tough decisions. The education there is not free, and the schools do not feed the students. Forced to decide between food and education, most parents were understandably choosing to nourish the bodies rather than the minds of their young.
This condition caused enrollment in the schools to decline sharply. When a population is not educated, poverty ensues.
Seeing this situation, Kidd and Cannon took action and raised money to nourish and feed the children so the parents could afford to educate them. Now enrollment is up, children are eating and learning, and Cannon is selling $8 million properties so that she and her group can continue to feed 2,000 students each day and allow them to escape poverty.
Richard Courtney is a licensed real estate broker with Fridrich and Clark Realty, LLC and can be reached at [email protected].