Sue Fitzgerald and her top-producing Main Line real estate team at Compass have been featured nationally and locally for their expertise in luxury properties and senior downsizing. Sue Fitzgerald was recently quoted in The New York Times discussing the emotional and financial realities seniors face when downsizing. Locally, her team's fast-paced luxury sales and competitive Main Line bidding wars have been highlighted in the Philadelphia Inquirer, alongside her multi-year recognition as a top producer by local publications like Philadelphia Magazine and Main Line Today.
In the News
The Best is Yet to Come: Success Stories from Area Realtors
In early 2024, I sold a gracious estate property in Bryn Mawr, set on over two acres, with a nanny suite, gorgeous pool and even a putting green. The property sold for over $3.5 million, so some would count that as my “biggest sale” of the year. But I’m not so sure.
Later that year, I sold a carriage house in Malvern to first-time homebuyers. They were ecstatic to find a new home where they could begin their lives together. Perhaps that was actually my “biggest sale” of the year?
During my career, I’ve enjoyed celebrating many of life’s mile-stone moments with my clients, including birthdays and school anniversaries of children who were “just a twinkle” in their parents’ eyes when we first met. Buying or selling a home is an important time our lives, and I am honored and privileged to be a part of those special times.
Live the Dream — Dream Barn, That Is: Converted barn in Willistown Township
The barn, which was once part of the 125-acre Dryburgh Farm, had already been turned into a residence by prior owners before being sold in 2004. “The style was lots of white sheetrock walls and white ceilings with beams,” said the current owner. “We had a different vision that was truer to its origins as a barn.”
So for the next 20 years, the owners worked on creating their dream of “barn living.” The sheetrock came down, and barn wood was discovered and repurposed. Stone interior walls were exposed and repointed — a massive, dusty job, but one with enormous benefits of capturing the barn’s special character. Modern amenities were respectfully and seamlessly incorporated into the design by the artist-owner.
This evolution was also a story of wood — reclaimed, repurposed, rescued. Cypress wood floors on the main level, wide-planked hardwood floors, new mahogany floors in the corner crib area of the barn, reclaimed barn wood planking for walls, original mortise pegged posts and beams, striking ceilings with ash and hemlock planking replaced sheetrock. Custom cabinetry by Stoltzfus Fine Carpentry in the kitchen, closets and elsewhere, along with unique wood vanities and backsplashes, plus a hardwood staircase from a Kennett school add warmth throughout the home.
The Hidden Costs of Downsizing
Sue Fitzgerald, a real estate agent with Compass who helped Ms. Smythe and Mr. Reuben sell their home, said that seniors were “often shocked” to find that downsizing was “still quite an expensive step,” even when their homes had appreciated a great deal. This can be emotionally and economically challenging, she added.
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Ms. Fitzgerald, the agent, said that many millennial and Gen X buyers, who are more likely to be interested in larger homes, didn’t have the time or interest to fix up an outdated house.
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Too often, Ms. Fitzgerald said, health scares like falling down stairs force older adults to downsize, stripping them of extra time to plan. Agents urge older adults to prepare for downsizing — to avoid financial and medical calamities — before they know if and when they will flee their nest.
“It’s never too early,” Ms. Fitzgerald said. “The process will go much more smoothly and will be much more successful if it starts earlier, rather than when you are forced, because of an injury or an illness, to move quickly.”
Experienced, multi-million dollar team specializing in luxury homes, staging, downsizing, and relocation.
