Elmcroft Relisted

As of March 1 the Elmcroft Estate has been listed with Nancy Shattuck of Coldwell Banker. Nancy is a long time resident of Woodbridge and has a distinguished career in the real estate business. Previously, the property had been listed by Weichert Realtors from December 2006 through June 2007 and by William Raveis from August 2007 through January 2008. Look for a new listing on Realtor.com in the coming week.

It was Nancy who wrote a letter to the "Rumbold family" and left it in George's mailbox where I found it on November 15, 2007. In this letter Nancy tells the story of being contacted by the Seymour Police Department on November 13. It seems that the police were trying to locate some next of kin. Somehow they learned that George had a connection with the property on Amity Road. From the For Sale sign on the property, they naturally called William Raveis Real Estate. They were told that Raveis no longer had the listing - remember, they had it from 8/07 through 1/08. They were further told that Nancy Shattuck from Coldwell Banker now had the listing. It was very disturbing to me that someone calling the listing agent would be told they did not have the listing. This was, however, not the only reason why Raveis no longer has the listing.

Nancy took a great picture of the rear of the Carriage House, a picture that can only do the structure justice when taken in the winter. Remember my previous blogs showing the repairs to the rear upper loft gable which now shows beautifully.

After many failed attempts in 2006 at trying to find a contractor from referrals, I resorted to calling people advertising in the local weekly paper. Willis Maki was the one person I called who responded and was at the property within a day. I firmly believe that it was not just coincidence that Willis was the one. He proceeded to have custom clapboards and bead board fabricated to bring the structure back to its original condition. He also had custom windows made to replace the two on the stable. Willis has continued to exhibit his competence with the repairs to the bathroom floor, replacing the cellar Bilco door, correcting the clogged bathtub drain, and he will soon be repairing some loose floor boards in the attic.

We have also been blessed to have the able help of Dick Strong as the primary caretaker for the property and Tony Fonte as a grounds keeper. Our tenant, Suzanne, has volunteered to help with a garden planting day in the early spring to make sure that the gardens are beautiful as mom always did. More volunteers are welcome. Date to be announced.