The Sell: a downsizing couple spiffs up their multi-million-dollar mid-century modern home

The Sell: a downsizing couple spiffs up their multi-million-dollar mid-century modern home

The Sellers: Wendy Davis, the 47-year-old owner of a concierge service called Zebrano, and Peter Vesely, a 51-year-old retired investment banker who collects and sells 20th-century art and objects.

The House: A 4,000-square-foot, four-bedroom, three-bathroom house across from Cedarvale Park, near Bathurst and St. Clair.

The Story: Davis and Vesely had lived here for 12 years, turning it into a showcase for their mid-century modern furniture collection. By late 2009, they were itching to travel more and started to think about selling their big house to move into their second property, a Barton Myers–designed townhouse on Hazelton Avenue, which they’d been renting out. Then their dog, a 12-year-old Bouvier named Cruise, died. “We’d always said that losing Cruise would be the right time for us to make the transition,” says Davis. They listed the uptown house in March to attract the first spring buyers.

Listed for: $2.45 million Sold for: $2.45 million (Image: courtesy of Harvey Kalles Real Estate Ltd., Davis by John Cullen)

The Strategy: Davis brought in five employees from her concierge business to prep the house. They hired contractors to resurface the floor of the four-car garage, polish the terrazzo in the basement, paint the whole house and sort through the furniture. All told, the primping took four weeks and cost roughly $50,000. Then they held an open house for agents, and Elise Kalles and two other Harvey Kalles listing agents led escorted viewings for more than 20 prospective buyers.

The Offer: At the end of the day, there were three interested parties. One young family of four fell in love with the house and lingered for over an hour. They offered the asking price the next day, and Davis and Vesely had such a good feeling about them, they didn’t seriously consider any other bids. Two days later, the deal was done.