It’s okay if you know absolutely nothing about me, I love meeting new people. That said, I love it even more when the road to our meeting has been paved by the introduction of a friend, or someone I’ve worked with before. You see, enjoying what I do is paramount. When being offered a referral, it’s not uncommon for me to ask “Are they fun?” Maybe you found your way here after hearing my podcast “Real Estate in the 608.” In that case you’ve got an idea as to how I roll and we’re halfway there. Just like any home, our relationship will need a good foundation. While there is endless information I could, and arguably need, to tell you, our first step and meeting will be an opportunity for me to listen and to learn your goals. While I’ll begin to share with you the best practices and insights that will make the process successful, we’ll also get a feel for one another and decide if we’ll enjoy the process together. I’ve got high hopes.
Buying a home is kind of a big deal. It’s serious and if executed poorly could mean financial ruin. It can also be the easiest way to achieve generational wealth, all while keeping you warm and dry. The first step to making sure we achieve the later, is a meeting. We’ll talk process and gain together an understanding of your wishes, goals, and if they are achievable on your budget. We’ll talk about your income and debts and really understand what those numbers can mean to your ability to borrow, to buy, and to achieve your goals.
We’ll also get a feel for how each other operate and if we’d get along. After all, this is supposed to be fun. Right?
Don’t worry, we’ll talk about great light, hardwoods, re-sale, room-size and neighborhoods too. Together we’ll begin to narrow the scope of the search and zero in on your new house. With luck, we’ll have found the home that either is, or better yet can be, the house you were dreaming of (sometimes that one is more affordable.)
Understanding your finances is a great first step. The calculator below will give you a general idea as to your abilities. We can talk too about how other debt, down payment amount, and credit rating can affect the loan you’ll likely get. For now, you can use what you know to get a general idea.
Mortgage Calculator
It’s as simple as the Three P’s. It’s also very complicated and requires an understanding of psychology and several other disciplines. I’ll likely also address a few M’s.
Price, Prep, Plan. We’ll start there. The very best thing I can help you do is pick the right price. That is done not only through the study of recent sales, but often my having toured those very same homes with buyers. This allows me to know not only what conditions buyers are accepting but what needs be addressed. That’s right, Prep. Price can be a function of Prep. Finding the balance between Price and Prep is all part of the, you guessed it, Plan.
The Plan addresses the relationship between Price and Prep but also imagines a timeline, overlaying reality with our conjecture and imagined outcome.
We can undertake this process in whatever way you are comfortable. I’ll need to assess your home, and discuss your goals. Together we’ll review recent sales and think critically about your home as a product.
Working with a listing agent that works as often with buyers can be a real boon. They know what buyers are snapping up and what they are letting linger. Couple the understanding of what buyers want, with the knowledge of how to achieve lasting and high-impact but efficient updates, and you’re addressing nearly all of the aforementioned P’s.
You’re right. We didn’t cover the M’s. Marketing. Machine. For years I worked alongside Liz Lauer. At Restaino-Bunbury turned Bunbury, and then Keller Williams, I watched her develop and hone a system of marketing and advertising specific to our market and the very clients that are seeking out your home. It was a system that no one agent could execute nor afford. It is that machine that allows me to do all the things I excel at, for you, while the machine does the same for your home.
A visual example and potentially a nearly complete representation of all the homes I’ve sold in my career as either a buyer’s or listing agent. You can see I lean east, but can appreciate beauty and balance anywhere we find it. In the words of Paladin, “Have gun, will travel.”
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