The Robert J Fischer Team is honored to be the top listing team in the area, selling 270+ homes each year, but it’s truly serving our clients that energizes our team every day. We frequently work with owners who are selling homes for the first time. It is common for people to feel anxious. Sellers fear long waits, big hassles, lowball offers, and costly delays. While the majority of our clients experience smooth transactions, we believe the true value of our team shines through when there are bumps in the road that require true real estate expertise to fix. We would like to share the story of one client, Kim King, who experienced multiple problems during the sales process but still ended up with a happy outcome.
The Home: Single family home in Buttercup Creek in Cedar Park, Texas, in need of repairs
The Seller: First-time seller Kim King
The Problem: 3 contracts, 2 back outs, problems revealed on home inspection
The Solution: Experienced Robert J Fischer Real Estate Team
The Results: Multiple offers, Full Asking Price
A First-Time Seller
First-time home seller Kim King found out about the RJF Team when she received a call from our office letting her know that we had buyers interested in homes in her area. According to Kim, “The team actually reached out to me by phone at just the right time. We were looking for a Realtor, and your marketing team called me saying there were buyers looking in my area.”
After a bit of research, she decided that the team approach to buying and selling was an attractive option, and she went with the RJF Team to list her home. According to King, she “really liked this (team) concept and thought it was a wonderful way to do business. Someone is covering every step of the way.”
As this was her first time selling a home, King was understandably nervous. “My biggest fear was not being able to sell the house and then not selling it for anywhere near what we were asking! Fortunately this never came true!”
A Complicated Journey
Jonathan Finley, REALTOR®, former RJF Team Listing Manager and current Expansion Partner, and Shannon Ficklin, REALTOR®, RJF Team Listing Specialist, assisted Kim with the sale of her home in conjunction with other members of the RJF Team. After just a few days on the market, they found a buyer. Unfortunately, the initial inspections revealed a number of expensive repairs would be required. The would-be buyer balked.
“The first buyers backed out after the inspection because they didn’t want to put that much money into the repairs. Our client realized her roof had issues and lowered the price to market it more aggressively,” Finley said.
The RJF Team continued work on behalf of our client. Finley continues, “Due to her situation she decided she would sell the home as an investment. We found an investor who looked promising. He requested a longer than normal option period to have his own inspector look at the property. The inspector came back with an extensive report, and the buyer asked for another $20,000 off the asking price.”
Our experienced listing professionals believed we could obtain a better outcome for our client. Finley said, “We passed on the deal and went back on the market again. During this entire time our client was going through an emotional roller coaster. She wanted to sell her home soon because she was paying two mortgage payments.”
Though anxious, King trusted the knowledgeable specialists at the RJF Team. She said, “Any questions or fears I had were quickly addressed, and I was reassured often. That was really important considering I had never sold a home before, so I had no idea what I was doing!”
The team continued to aggressively work on behalf of King, making sure that as many buyers as possible discovered her home through online and traditional marketing. She said, “When my first two buyers fell through, Jonathan did an amazing job of getting the home visible again to other Realtors and back out there.”
After working through strategy, Finley said, “We suggested she repair the roof to position her home better. She agreed, and her insurance company offered her $5,000 to repair the roof. We used this to market her home.”
The RJF Team’s efforts resulted in multiple offers within a week for our client. “This buyer had an inspection and requested around $7,500 in repairs. Since our client was getting $5,000 from the insurance company, [we were able to negotiate down to that amount in repairs]. So in the end, it was a win-win with the insurance check, and her home sold before another payment was due.”
According to RJF Team Transaction Manager Wendi Trevino, this client certainly had a memorable experience. “Her house went in and out of contract three times. She had multiple offers back out. The big thing is that we were able to get her home under contract multiple times and that we stood by her through a difficult process of multiple terminations.” Even with the multiple delays, the RJF Team helped our client sell the home in only 45 days.
Seller Kim King shares, “What made me the happiest was knowing everyone was working really hard for me to do everything possible to get my home sold. I had two buyers fall through, and as soon as the home was back on the market, I had multiple offers. Once we found the right buyer everything went smoothly. I was always kept up to date on the status of everything.”
A Happy Ending
According to Trevino, “In the end, the client’s home sold for her full asking price.”
King said, “I can’t think of anything the team could’ve done differently. We always had multiple offers, and we were so impressed! We just wanted the house sold quickly, and you guys delivered!”
When asked if she would recommend the Robert J Fischer Team to friends or family, Kim King said, “In recommending your services, I would recommend you all highly. You fought for me and did whatever it took to get the home sold. Fantastic marketing, and always pleasant to talk to. Easy peasy! This whole experience could’ve been a nightmare that drug out for months, but I was so happy you guys never let that happen!”
