I have gotten quite a few email and social media questions about why I auctioning my home. It starts back in 2001 when my wife and I designed the home with an architect, landscape architect, and home automation consultant. We wanted the new home to be beautiful but full of advanced infrastructure and technology. I said I would live there forever. Things change. The big change is with children. We are blessed to have four of them. They loved to visit the Whipstick house at holiday times. The pool table, kitchen, and 102-inch theatre got plenty of use. However, as the children got older, got married, and had children of their own, things changed. Some moved far away, and they did not visit as often. When children get married, they have in-laws. At holiday times, the children need to see both sets of grandparents. 

After being married 50 years, we are happy to live anywhere, but the big house became more than we needed. We decided to downsize to a Toll Brothers carriage house about 12 miles away. We are quite happy there. I miss the office, but was able to get the same cabinet maker to use the same South African ribbon mahogany to remodel a room in the carriage house to be my office. It is not as large, but it has the same ceiling coffers and features. I no longer need so many book shelves and file drawers, since all my documents are all digital. In fact in the new office, I have no file drawers.

Now the question is how to sell such a special home. As I told the Wall Street Journal, I like the auction model because it is action oriented. See quotations in the WSJ article. I learned about Platinum Luxury Auctions from a friend, I checked out their website, and visited a property they were auctioning not too far away. I liked their approach and professionalism. After signing up with them, I was quite impressed with the marketing program they launched last week. The producer came in with some amazing cameras and a high-end drone. See the video from the drone here. The website, video, and WSJ article are getting a lot of hits from all over the world. The showings began this week. A very professional business development manager will be at the house every day for three weeks from 12 to 5. 

Some say an auction is a risky approach to selling a home. I say relying completely on the traditional home selling method is also risky as the carrying costs mount. One is wait and see, the other is make something happen through an aggressive marketing program and professional handling of bidder interest. I will know if it was a good decision on July 28. I am optimistic. If you have a friend who is looking for a Ridgefield, Connecticut outpost, please share this with them.