“Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while you could miss it.”—Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
After living at home with her parents for a few years, Emily had steadily saved. As many potential 1st time home buyers might do, she debated whether to buy or rent, but chose to buy because it was more economical to buy in the long run. What she didn't realize is that once you decide to go for it, things can turn around very quickly. When she saw the house that she would ultimately purchase, her parents, her most trusted advisors, were on vacation. Ultimately, she moved quickly and submitted an offer for it. Life may move fast, but it didn't move far. She bought a house on the street she grew up on!
"Anna was always very prepared. I gave her the parameters of what I was looking for and she knew enough about me and my family to determine the best house at the time without me knowing what I wanted."
When the "right house" came on the market, Emily's parents were on vacation. Normally she would have waited, but she didn't want to miss out on the right opportunity. As it turns out, the house was just down the road from where she grew up - on the same street.
Emily had never been through anything like this before. She was very young when her parents bought their house so she didn't remember the process.
"I think the most surprising was the speed with which this all went."
After giving Anna a call to look at buying a house, she thought it would take a few months to find something and go through the buying process. Just 3 weeks later, Emily was looking at "the house" and found herself writing an offer letter.
One of the things that stood out with her experience working with Anna was how patient and prepared she was. As she was looking at houses, Anna could read her body language as they'd pull up to a house and would know right away the house wasn't the right one. It's not as if she could predict the future, but Anna picked up on the cues that a trusted Realtor develops over time and was able to support Emily through the process.
For Emily, knowing her parents were not in town to help through the process was definitely nerve wracking. Buying your first home is not a small investment and it's the kind of experience through which she would have relied on her parents - to see the house, write the offer, and take in their guidance. Knowing she could rely on Anna, who also knew her parents, Emily was more confident with the process from beginning to end.
Emily's first home purchase was a "double" welcome! As a first time home buyer, and with guidance from our trusted lender, Emily was able to take advantage of the Welcome Home Grant program. In addition to the nest egg she had built up for her investment, she received a grant to boost her equity right away. Once moved in, she dug right into updating the space to make it uniquely hers.
"Do your homework. You don't have to know exactly what you want, but kind of a rough idea because that gives the Realtor a better sense of you."
Ron and Anna gave Emily a questionnaire with boxes to check off what she was looking for in a house. Having this information in hand made it much easier to narrow down the options based on Emily's budget.
