About
I listen to my clients and try to only show them homes that match their desires. I try to avoid homes that have poor locations or dysfunctional floor plans. As a former real estate appraiser I know what will affect value over time and try to ensure the client gets a great house.
I get to meet lots of different people with different needs and desires. I like finding just the right house for a buyer or assisting a seller in making good decisions when deciding to list and sell their home.
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
I like to listen to them and determine their needs and then present a process that works for their needs. It may include research and my e-mailing them information and then reviewing that information with them to make sure we are on the same page.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I am a Certified Residential Specialist which is a specialized group of training and certification by the best group sanctioned by the National Association of Realtors. I take continuing education each year to stay current and make sure I am working towards helping my clients at my best efforts.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your services? If so, please share the details here.
Typically, the seller is charged a 6% fee for listing, and a portion of that amount (3%) is shared with the buyer's agent when they bring an acceptable offer to the seller.
If I am required to assist in getting contractors in to refresh a house before placing it on the market, there is no markup of the contractor's pricing and I do not add any charge to the seller for that service.
If a seller has a vacant home and decides to stage it to show better, I can recommend a staging company who will charge to set-up, design, and take down the furniture, artwork, and staging accessories. Since we are selling within 30 days there would not be charges for second months, unless it didn't sell.
Buyer's fees are typically paid by the seller, so usually, the buyer is not spending anything to be represented by me.
How did you get started in this business?
My background includes having been a loan officer for nine years, owned a landscape and maintenance business for five years, owned an interior decorating company for five years, was a real estate appraiser for three and one-half years which lead to the natural progression of selling homes.
I have used all the experiences of my life to make sure the real estate sales portion has been done well. It has been over twenty-two years that I have been selling homes, so that has worked well.
What types of customers have you worked with?
I have worked with first-time homebuyers or sellers all the way up to a final home purchase, by an experienced buyer.
I have sold homes from $35,000 to $1,000,000 in the last twenty-two years. I work well in all price range homes.
Describe a recent project you are fond of.
I sold a house to a client in 1998. They lived there for ten years and then moved to another state. He held it as a rental and then decided several years later to sell it.
I needed to orchestrate the new roof, interior and exterior paint, and the new dishwasher and carpet and pad.
Once finished we marketed for about a week and sold it for full price.
What advice would you give a customer looking to hire a pro in your area of expertise?
Hire someone with experience!
An HVAC contractor was called out to look at an air conditioning unit that wasn't working. He listened to it and looked it over and went out to his truck and got a large hammer and proceeded to hit it once and it worked.
The contractor sent a bill to him for $100 and the person thought it high for one hit of the hammer so he asked for an itemized billing. The contractor replied with $5 for the actual hammer hit and $95.00 for knowing where to hit it.
The moral of the story is to hire someone who knows what they are doing and let them help you.
What questions should customers think through before talking to pros about their needs?
What do they want to buy?
Have they seen any homes on-line that they liked?
Does the Realtor have a website they can use that would be accurate so they don't fall in love with a house that has already sold?
Where should we apply for our mortgage loan so we come pre-approved for our financing?