We recently listed a short sale for a couple we had sold the house to...short sales are hard...I don't mean the time it takes, the lender negotiation...the explanations to realtors who "should get it" and the consumers who "never heard of it"....I mean watching the emotional toll it takes on someone...in this case someone we knew for years before the listing. They took a tremendous amount of pride in this home that they loved and nurtured it...from the oriental garden outside the deck to the bathrooms that were updated top to bottom...ceramic tile, gorgeous vanities, walk in spa shower....the new roof...the list goes on and the heartbreak of leaving it all behind and losing the financial and emotional investment had to become reality when they had to leave the state to find employment.
We believe that everyone comes into your life for a reason...you are here to learn and experience...there are no accidents...no chance meetings...there is a design and a reason...everyone needs to appreciate what can be learned...even it is who to stay away from...who is honest or dishonest. In this case, I knew from our first phone conversation...lively, inquisitive and intelligent...this was a person I wanted to get to know better...whether they bought a house or not. Her exhuberance for life...her natural curiousity about the whole short sale process...her willingness to learn and admit she knew some things and not others...was refreshing and exhilerating. She and her husband wrote an offer which was accepted...she (wisely in the case of short sale) refused to get excited about the house and the move and didn't share the news with their children that an offer had been written. Kind of like announcing Santa would be arriving soon at Halloween...not a good idea.
We made the offer fly through the lending channels as quickly as possible...and at long last, or what seemed long...but was really six weeks faster than whatever "normal is"...Sale approved, sellers moved, closing set. Mrs. Buyer...My NBF....(New Best Friend) had many e-mail "conversations" over the course of the weeks between the offer and lender acceptance...comfort during stressful times for everyone. She takes everything in stride and shoulders the responsibility of being a wife, mom, business owner and landlady with exceptional grace. She is honest and forthright without being offensive...wants to hear it like it is...and handles it...Laughs easily and loves a lot.
On Easter Sunday, we have the honor and pleasure of being a part of the tour and surprise when NBF and her husband bring their children to see their new home for the first time...run through the yard...check out their bedrooms....we are as excited as the kids would be IF they knew what a great treat was in store for them. I know that as their pre-teen daughter has so wisely predicted....next year at this time, we will be OBF (Old Best Friends) and in the years to come...BFF....Best Friends Forever...we have been touched by her and her husband's kind hearts, quick wits, contagious laugh....It IS a Good Friday.....we have an NBF.....Go find one....Put your attitude sunny side up and see who you attract your life.
Sally K. & David L. Hanson, ABR, CDPE, CSS, e-Pro,ILHM, REDS
