Enjoying the beautiful sunny day here in Kirkland.  Thought it was long overdue and time to start a blog now that I have my new website up and running.  For my first entry - how about how I got into the real estate business?

 

1999 - I was graduating from UW School of Business with a focus on Marketing and Management.  Now it was time to start the job search.  During college I was doing a ton of remodeling jobs on the side.  Ever since I could walk I was helping the Old Man with remodeling his 100 year old Victorian on Capitol Hill.  I loved these projects.  The creation and satisfaction of getting something accomplished.  I also loved marketing and knew that I am the type of person that would need to work for myself eventually.  Add an unending curiousity of what houses look like, floorplans, updates, why this house is more than that house, how neighborhoods impact values........ Throw this combo together and real estate seemed the perfect fit.  So I got my degree from UW and back to Real Estate School.  I soon signed on with a small company and was up and running selling real estate and doing home loans.  I figured why not do them both because I like numbers too.

 

My first month I managed to sell 4 homes.  3 or which actually closed.  Not sure if that was luck or networking, but I realized at that moment that I had found my niche.  I also quickly realized that the loan aspect of the deal was not for me.  I love helping people search for a home, listening to their needs and wants and finding a solution.  My favorite calls are "Joe you have to see what I did to the house.  Without you this wouldn't have been possible."  Although, it still would have been possible, it always puts a big smile on my face to know that I am warmly associated with a friend's home.  Now loans on the otherhand...  These involve digging deep into a person finances and personal information.  Many times you have to let people know that they can't afford the home of their dreams or that they need to clean up their credit.  I learned quickly that this was not the role I wanted to play.  I also learned quickly that helping somebody buy or sell real estate is more than a full time job and being a loan officer is also a full time job.  I think it is better to do one thing very well as opposed to doing both mediocre.  So I have now surrounded myself with a team of loan officers who update themselves multiple times a day on the latest news while I am out helping my clients buy or sell and enter the next phase of their life.

 

The rest as they say 'is history!' 

 

Stay tuned for more of the "History", current market updates, deals that are too good to pass up and much much more real estate!