b'Project Managing a MoveWorking with Caroline GosselinBY ELLEN DONKERD I N G H ON MIA ftern livinga forF E had being lovingly maintained. With twoyearsinsix bedrooms, it had plenty of room Ma hatt n,to accommodate the baby girl theyre DaniandJimexpecting in December and many ex-Valcourtweretended visits from Danis mom. And readytoputit met all of the criteria the Valcourts down roots andhad so meticulously captured on their move to a house in the suburbs. Withspreadsheet. careersinthelifesciences,JimasaBynowthemarketwasslowing scientist who develops new medicinessomewhatperhaps it was the rising and Dani as a management consultant,interest ratesand the couple submit-they tackled their search as they wouldted the winning offer. Gosselins team aworkproject.Theydefinedtheirshuttled them through the process to budget and the features of a house thatclose on the house, and in early August were important to them, documentedtheymovedin.Weresupergrateful them on a spreadsheet and researchedthat Caroline and Nicole have such a the possibilities. Dani says, I do a lotgood network here of folks to carry us of project management for work. Itsthrough the process. part of the territory. In the first few weeks after they ar-Sinceashortcommutingtimerived, neighbors dropped by to intro-was of prime importance, the coupleJim and Dani Valcourt treated their house hunt as a learning experience and foundduce themselves. And it turns out that zeroed in on Maplewood and Souththe home of their dreams. the Valcourts baby-to-be may have a Orange. Visiting Danis work acquain- little playmate across the street. Dani tance in South Orange confirmed foron buying a house. Jim says, Nicolethe list. Theyre tall people and didntsays,Despitealltheheartbreak,it them that this community was a goodandCarolineweresogreat.Theywant to have to duck to do the laun- was definitely worth it. I cant imag-fit. She says, It was just so cute andtaught us the ropes and we wouldntdry.Othermust-haveswereaddedine living anywhere besides this house fun and obviously very family friendlyhave been able to navigate it withoutto their spreadsheet: ample space fornow.really diverse as well. that. When the Valcourts started theirhostingandentertaining,amaster Next, on the advice of Danis uncle,search in late December 2021, hous- bedroom en suite, a garage, and a lot a realtor in Bergen County, they wereing inventory was low and the numberthat wouldnt flood.referred to Caroline Gosselin from theof buyers high. That made for an ex- ThisdatahelpedGosselinand Experience NJ Team of EXP Realty.tremely competitive market, and theyherteamprovidevaluabledirection Dani says Caroline and teammate Ni- lost out on five homes. Seeing the sil- on what to show the Valcourts. Says cole Prato really helped us turn thatver lining, Dani says, Looking backDani, They got a quick read on what (spreadsheet)intoanactualplacetoon that first house, we now are like,we were comfortable with and what live. She continues, [Caroline] andits such a great thing that we didntwe valued in the house. And I think her team were super happy and excit- get that offer accepted because it wasthey gave us advice that respected our ed to work with us even though wereway farther out from the train than wepreferences,andalsomadesurewe first-timebuyers.Theygaveustonsultimately wanted it to be.didnt go too crazy on anything that and tons of information about not justIn fact, the couple treated the pro- would have been a bad decision. Jim MaplewoodandSouthOrange,butcessasalearningexperienceandasdescribes the team as their guardrails. other towns nearby that they know arethey viewed each house, they discov- ItwaslatespringwhentheVal-common for folks who would be com- ered new factors to consider in theircourtsfoundabeautifulhomeon Caroline Gosselin helped the Valcourts muting into the city.search. For instance, homes with lowHickory Drive in Maplewood with pe- navigate the process of finding their first They also gave them an educationbasementceilingswerecrossedoffriod details and beautiful gardens thathome.finding home /55'