It was a sunny spring afternoon a year or so ago, when my cell phone rang.
“Hi my name is Ben Johnson and you worked with my in-laws a few years back. They are in that great home in Scandia.”
“Sure, Ben, I know who you are. I spoke with your wife, Kim, a few years back but you weren’t ready to make a move then.”
“Well we are now! Could you show us a few homes tomorrow? We are interested in a few horse properties that are on the market in Isanti and Anoka Counties.”
“Great! I will set them up!”
So began the quest to the perfect home for the Johnson family. This story does have a very happy ending but the middle was rather a long drawn out process. Ben and Kim had a St. Paul home to sell. When they sold their first home more than ten years before, it sold in just days. They were certain that their home would again sell quickly, even in the slowed down buyer's market. A number of friends and acquaintences had indicated they were interested in the two-story, centrally located St. Paul home. But selling a home for-sale-by-owner. or FSBO, is not as easy as it would seem. After exhausting their contacts, they listed with me at the end of the summer.
From our first meeting, the Johnsons enthusiastically signed a buyer’s representation agreement. They wanted to be working with one specific professional REALTOR® and chose me. Kim and Ben’s dream was to live on acreage so they wouldn’t have to board their horses. The Johnson’s wanted land to ride on and memory-making views of golden sunsets. Driving from North Branch to Linwood and Stacy to Scandia, we scoured the countryside. We found many near-perfect places for this family while they waited for their home to sell. The Johnsons wanted their offer to be non-contingent on the sale of their current home so needed to find a buyer for their St. Paul home first.
Over the December holidays, the Johnsons chose to remove their home from the market. Their busy schedule included celebrating with a number of chi
ldren and grandchildren. Showings didn't fit in the plan. During the time their home was temporarily off of the MLS, a buyer contacted me as my sign was still in the yard. She was ready to buy and love the home from the outside and the photos online. I spoke with her agent and the day the house re-listed in January, she wrote an offer which was accepted. Of course this offer had to timed with the first big snowstorm of the year. The snow did not stop us. The Johnsons and I trekked out in the elements to see new homes. After viewing properties from East Bethel to Chisago, the perfect home was found in Forest Lake. Unfortunately, the person buying the Johnson's home wasn't as pre-approved as their letter lead us to believe. A day later the earnest money check bounced. So we were back to the drawing board.
A few weeks into March and my clients were more dedicated than ever to find the perfect home. Kim and Ben had just had a new roof put on the house and made every repair recommended in their required truth-in-housing inspection. They decided to offer a warranty on their 1960's era home so a new buyer wouldn't have to worry about an older dryer or boiler. They lowered their list price and showings picked up. The Forest Lake home they had their eyes on in January had sold, but new homes were coming on the market to consider.
As spring turned to summer, my clients were home sellers frustrated with the slow real estate market. The Johnsons dropped their price again. Weeks later, we were contacted by an agent that an offer was being written. Out we headed again to find a perfect place for the Johnson's to call home. This time there were homes in Scandia, Stacy, Columbus, North Branch and Linwood to consider. A perfect Scandia home was located.
An offer did arrive by fax the next day. It was from an investor who wanted to close within days. When the sellers countered with a new closing date, the investor rejected the counteroffer and bought a different home. A week later the Scandia home went into pending and another dream faded.
As August approached, Ben and Kim remained positive and determined to have a new home for the school year. Another price adjustment and another offer came in. The third offer was definitely the charm!
Now, it was time to get to work finding that dream acreage! A perfect horse property was available. It was a second choice to the Scandia home. An offer was written, accepted and on a bright sunny fall afternoon, both homes closed. The Johnson's dream was finally a reality.
The lesson here is a professional REALTOR® is in it with buyers for the long haul. Because of the Buyers' Representation agreement we had signed, I was with my clients through all of the sketchy buyers and the changed real estate market. I showed them homes in four counties and several communities for over a year until their timing was right.
When I checked in on the family a few weeks after closing, the Johnsons were very pleased with their new home. Of course there were minor issues that need to be resolved but overall the family was satisfied and feeling at home in the country. Their children were adjusting well, the horses were grazing in the back and life was returning to a new normal on 10 acres in the country.
This is why I love being a REALTOR®. My job is to make dreams reality no matter how long it takes.
*The story is true though in interest of my clients' privacy, I did change the names.
More Articles on Buying Real Estate that might be of interest:
- Are You a BUBBA?
- Rent VS Buy? It's Time to Revisit the Question!
- How to Choose a Realtor-Why a Good Friend is Not Always a Good Option
- How to Choo-Choose a Realtor and Avoid a Train Wreck!
Copyright 2009 Teri Eckholm http://www.terieckholm.com/
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