Selling Multiple Apartments: Lee Evans and Matt Vodola, Sellers
West Village, New York
As West Village die-hards, we were surprised to hear that five years after we helped Matt and Lee negotiate and close on a one bedroom plus home office apartment on West 12th Street, they were ready for a house with a yard outside of DC. A lot had changed in that time — there were now three of them (welcome Emma!), and both parents were working from home. When a studio across the hall became available post-pandemic, Matt and Lee scooped it up to offset growing pains with plans to keep it as a pied-a-terre moving forward.
In order to show 4AB off to its best advantage to prospective buyers, we devised a plan to pare down, stage and un-stage the property between showings — using multiple storage containers and taking advantage of the studio space.
Work and Emma’s schedules had to be coordinated prior to showings to accommodate the hour before and after appointments needed to make it all work. We tried to make the process as stress-free as possible by limiting appointments to Sunday Open Houses.
How did we do?
Jeanne and George, once again, were phenomenal in their ability to stage the apartment for prospective buyers while minimizing impact on our (chaotic) lives. They are a fabulous team to work with: expert communicators, efficient, stylish, and ultimately very effective!
We often advise our buyers to get involved in their co-op boards. The board recruited Matt during the interview. Do you feel being a board member helped you enhance the value of your apartment?
Without a doubt. Having inside knowledge of the building’s finances and the ability to influence capital improvement projects, such as new heating/cooling systems for the entire co-op, added tremendous value — not only while we were residents, but in the sale process as well.
You planned to rent for a while in the DC area and hold on to the studio, but when you found a home to purchase, you decided to sell. Was it difficult to give up your piece of the West Village?
It is very bittersweet. We miss the West Village, but thankfully, we still have friends and neighbors in the area, and it feels like home when we visit —which we plan to do often!
