Roslyn Harbor neighbors join forces to sell their homes

When three homes on Motts Cove N. Road in Roslyn Harbor went on the market at the same time, Cheryl Goldman, a Woodbury-based real estate agent representing one of the properties, says she saw an opportunity after another seller approached her.

"The homeowner from across the street invited me in and said, 'If you have someone who doesn't want your home, send them to ours,'" says Goldman, who works at Berkshire Hathaway Laffey Fine Homes International. She then talked to the listing agents for the other two homes and came up with a plan to hold a joint open house.

Eileen Gilligan of Gilligan Realty in Sea Cliff, who is listing another property on the street, says such joint ventures work best when all the homes have something unique to offer. "Even when there's a big difference in price, buyers want to see what's available because one house may need work and one may not," says Gilligan.

Lauren Spiegel, a real estate agent with Douglas Elliman Real Estate in Quogue, also held joint open houses for two sets of neighbors on Highland Street in Westhampton. Spiegel, who represents both homeowners, says it made it easy to show both homes. "Most potential buyers request to see both properties," says Spiegel.

One house has since sold.

When the Motts Cove agents held their joint open house in mid-April, the street was full of people looking for a home, the agents and homeowners say. "We were so busy, it was like a revolving door," says Lois Kirschenbaum of Daniel Gale Sotheby's international Realty, who is listing a property with agent Tara Matchton.

Her client, Paul Weisman, who has lived on the street with his wife, Michele, for 21 years, says he was "pretty happy" with the traffic at his house during the open house event and that he thinks the variety in houses, both in size and in style, made the marketing strategy work. "We realized that the other two houses are really very different from our house," says Weisman, who is selling because his children are grown.

The larger open house also turned into a bit of a neighborhood event, the agents say. "All the neighbors enjoyed it — not just the sellers," says Goldman. "A lot of other neighbors from the area came to look. One of the neighbors in the area even asked me about selling her house. So it was a productive day all around."

All three Motts Cove N. homes are still for sale.