How Donsha Sold Her Vacant Stone Mountain House From Three Hours Away

When Donsha first talked with Jason, she was in the middle of a hard season. After a family loss, she had moved about three hours away to be near her daughter and grandchildren, and she had been driving back and forth to her Stone Mountain house for months.

The house was a big two-story with four bedrooms and three baths on about half an acre. It had been the family home for a long time. Now it sat empty, still full of furniture, and it was simply too much house for one person to keep up from a distance. Her plan was clear: sell it, and use the money to buy a home close to her family.

Why a house like this is hard to sell in Stone Mountain

Stone Mountain has plenty of solid, older two-story homes in quiet subdivisions, and plenty of them come up for sale. That means buyers have choices. A house that still has its original kitchen, a primary bath that needs a full redo and windows that have never been replaced gets compared with homes that are already updated, and the offers reflect it.

Fixing all of that first is a real project. On this house, the kitchen, the primary bath, the windows, old carpet in the formal rooms and fresh paint added up to tens of thousands of dollars of work. Doing it from three hours away, while also grieving and moving, is not something most people want to take on.

A vacant house also brings its own headaches. Someone has to let in inspectors and photographers, keep it secure, meet repair people, and be there when a buyer's appraiser shows up. When the owner lives hours away and can only get there on weekends, every one of those steps can turn into a week of delay.

What stood in the way

• Donsha lived about three hours away and could usually only get to the house on Saturdays.
• The house was still full of furniture and belongings.
• The kitchen, primary bath and windows were original and dated, and she did not want to manage a renovation.
• Because of the family loss, the closing attorney had to confirm whether any estate paperwork was needed before the sale could close.
• Once a buyer was found, there was a short list of items to take care of before closing: the gas had to be turned back on, smoke detectors were needed and a missing piece of soffit had to be replaced.

How we handled it

Jason gave Donsha more than one way to sell, explained what each option really meant for what she would walk away with, and let her decide with no pressure. She chose the option that let us market the house as-is to a wider pool of buyers. From there, our team did the legwork.

• Instead of making Donsha wait for her next trip, our transaction coordinator Michael arranged to pick up the key from her family, about three hours away.
• We installed a lockbox, did a full walkthrough, took photos and made a 3D tour, so buyers could see the house without Donsha needing to be there.
• We handled every showing and every call from interested buyers.
• When early offers came in lower than anyone hoped, Jason called her with a straight update on the market and laid out her options honestly.
• Our closing attorney checked the title and confirmed no probate was needed, and Donsha already had the documents to back it up.
• Michael met the gas technician at the house, installed new smoke detectors on both floors and repaired the missing soffit himself.
• When the appraiser could not get the stove or the hot water going, Michael drove out, lit the pilot lights and showed her the repairs that were done.
• We lined up a clean-out crew for everything left in the house, paid at closing, so Donsha never had to empty it herself.

Donsha never had to make a repair, schedule a contractor or come back to meet a buyer. The house sold as-is, and she could keep her focus where it belonged, on her family and her next home.

Thank you for trusting us with your home, Donsha. We hope the new place near your grandkids feels like home fast.

Own a vacant house in Stone Mountain you can't get back to?

Whether you are downsizing after a big life change or relocating to be near family, you do not have to manage an empty house from hours away. We buy houses in Stone Mountain and across Georgia as-is, and we can handle the keys, the showings, the repairs and the clean-out for you. See how it works.

Read what other Georgia homeowners say about us, or tell us about your house and we will give you an honest answer, with no pressure either way.