Minneapolis couple sells without stress during pandemic

Ken and Sharon Nichols used Zillow Offers to better time their cross-country move

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Minnesota native Ken Nichols vowed he’d never leave his home state, and for 73 years he was true to his word. But his wife Sharon, his daughter and their extended family had other plans. They had been pushing for a move to Colorado Springs where the couple could retire closer to family.  

“We needed to make this change and have a new start in life,” says Sharon Nichols. “But there was one really big issue.”     

The Nichols had to sell their Minneapolis-area home of 24 years before moving west.   

“Packing up, canceling cable and changing addresses — that’s all simple,” says Sharon. “But the stress of selling a home is just unbelievable.”  

“I thought about people tramping through the house and everything else, and we just figured there was a more relaxing way to do it,” adds Ken, referring to the showings and open houses that can come with a traditional home sale. 

“It is so much easier selling a home this way, and I think everybody should do it this way”

Sharon Nichols

The Nichols requested a no-obligation cash offer from Zillow Offers, the safer, simpler way to sell a home that’s virtually entirely online and available in 25 markets nationwide.    

“Sharon told me they’d been dealt some tough cards and would really like it if I could go easy on them with a fair offer so they didn’t have to try to sell their home any other way,” says Brandon Schewe, the Nichols’ Zillow Offers advisor.

Both Sharon and Ken have overcome serious health problems. Sharon survived a heart attack and cancer, while Ken has cerebral palsy and is recovering from hip replacement surgery.    

“We’re fighters,” says Sharon. “But now in our seventies, it was kind of nice having somebody right there to help us through this process.”

“When I presented the final offer, I could really hear the relief in their voice,” says Schewe. “What they wanted was a fair market value offer, and that’s exactly what we gave them. So I knew right then, the Zillow Offer was going to be the right choice for them.” 

The Nichols were under contract to sell their home through Zillow Offers in nine days, and by choosing their own closing date, they could better plan their big adventure out west.  

“No hassle, no stress. That’s the amazing part,” says Sharon. “It is so much easier selling a home this way, and I think everybody should do it this way. It causes less headaches in your life!”