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Tina Capras was not exactly an eager or excited home buyer, having been a happy, long-time tenant In Wallingford, but she was frustrated by a $500/month rent increase, and once her leased expired, she had limited time to find a house before her rent increased by another 33 percent!
Tina had a solid downpayment but North Seattle was out of her budget, so we targeted South Seattle, West Seattle and as far south as Burien.
After falling for a house in Burien and then having her heart broken by a bad pre-inspection, we were back on the search. We looked hard but the choices looked grim.
Then, one night we found a house in West Seattle that seemed perfect for her. It was on a nice street, super open and cute with lots of light, and an updated kitchen and bathroom. It had been on the market for seven days and there was no offer so I knew we had to move fast.
I quickly called the listing agent, only to find out that they had already received an offer that the seller was going to review that night. I also learned that the other buyer had an inspection contingency and a non-cash offer, so I persuaded the agent to wait and promised him that we would have a good offer within the hour.
We then jumped into high gear, as it was already 8.30 pm. I called Tina’s lender, who I work with often and asked her to send me an updated pre-approval letter and that she should call the listing agent and tell him that Tina was a very solid buyer.
As we rushed to write the offer, Tina said, “Wow your job is so different from mine, it took me three years to get a new watering can from the UW!”
As they say, you snooze you lose, so we wrote a strong offer with an inspection contingency, so Tina had an out if she changed her mind, given how rushed we were. Success! Tina’s offer was accepted and she did not even have to go over the list price. The inspection went quite well, but the sewer scope did not, so I negotiated a great deal for her, whereby she got a lot of her closing costs paid, as well as a big sewer repair paid for by the seller.
“My coworker recommended Serena to me because he said she wanted to help keep low-income people like me in Seattle homes,” said Tina. “That she did. I was a single first time home buyer with not a lot of down payment, and my prospects didn’t look good.”
“Serena is the only reason I was able to find and close on a home in Seattle. She spent long evenings with me looking at houses. She helped me stay away from houses that looked good from the outside but not on the inside. She gave me good advice on house maintenance and what I would be dealing with as a new home owner. She knows her stuff as a realtor. She only works with solid people (inspectors, loan officers, etc.) and I got the impression they respect her as well. Serena is no nonsense. She won’t sugar coat the home buying experience, but she will get you a house!”
Photo/Tina Capras
As a special agent, my mission is to help you feel safe and well-tended as you make some of the most important decisions of your life, guiding you through the adventure of buying or selling a home with diligence, humor and respect. Call me today: 206-999-8159
