KANNAPOLIS, N.C. -- About a 25 minute drive from Center City Charlotte, Pine Creek is a gated Kannapolis neighborhood with big lots and million dollar custom homes.
"It's impressive just from the gates into the neighborhood," said real estate broker Heidi Hines who listed a house in Pine Creek eight months ago. She's had showings at the five-bedroom, six plus bath home, but no offers.
"There are a lot of homes that are custom built, but the things that this homeowner put into this house when they built it, I mean they have very good taste," she added.
Owner Fred Waite gives all the design credit to his wife. He is extremely proud of the way the house turned out, which leads to the question, why sell at all?
“It is an ever expanding family and we want to get close to our kids school," said Waite.
The couple has three children now and is in the process of adopting two more. Being closer to school is one concern, having a different layout is another.
Hines first priced the Waite's home at $1.8 million, but recently lowered it to $1.5 million.
"We lowered the price because we found that homes between $1 million and $1.5 million were selling," she said.
It may have been a smart move, but it still has not sold. In hopes of increasing traffic through the house, Hines and Waite started looking for something they could offer buyers agents to give them extra incentive to show and hopefully sell the home.
The result is an impressive list of one-of-a-kind trips thanks to Waite. The agent who closes a sale by December 31, 2011 will get to choose between exclusive access to the MTV Video Music Awards, the MTV Movie Awards, the Primetime Emmy Awards, Teen Choice Awards, the ‘American Idol’ finale, The Academy of Country Music Awards, the Super Bowl, a Hollywood movie premiere or a Golden Globes party package. Waite is also offering roundtrip airfare for two along with a four day, three night hotel stay.
As soon as Hines added the offer to the listing, the calls started coming in. "I have agents who call me up and say, who is your seller?" she said.
"I'm just a guy who owns a tech company and a manufacturing company," Waite laughed. But he also happens to have two very well-connected friends. One friend lives in New York and the other in L.A.
“Both of them are in the entertainment industry and can really make anything happen for anyone at anytime," he said. He asked them for the favor and they came through.
Hines says the offer certainly sets the property apart from other listings in the price range.
"Everybody gives a thousand dollar bonus or a trip to the spa or whatever. I mean the bonus that my seller is offering, I can't tell you anyone else who has offered that bonus or anything like it. I mean I want that bonus," she said.
The incentive is to the agent, but we had to ask what if the buyer wants a trip too? Waite says for the right offer he'll go back to his buddies and ask for more.
"Absolutely,” said Waite. “For the right offer... go to the Super Bowl or to the Music Awards... I've been to both and they're pretty amazing.”
