If She Comes Back, It‘s Meant To Be.

This one is a tale of heartbreak with a happy ending.  I had the honor of working with my sweet friends, Mary and Gene, on the purchase of their first home.  Having just had twins, they had outgrown their rental and were ready to settle into a house of their own.

Very quickly into our house hunting, we found their dream home on Mason.  It sits up high away from the street with a giant wrap around porch.  Mary was in love before we even opened the door.  She was picturing iced tea/momtails on the porch in the summer with hanging plants and the kids and dog running about.  Gene was anxious to get dwonstairs in the basement to plan their crossfit gym.  There really is that feeling that comes over you when you’re looking at houses and you’ve found the one.

The house blew us all away.  It had been so tastefully remodeled that their wasn’t really any detail that they were talking about changing.  It has 5 bedrooms and 2 baths, plenty of room for future kids/guests.  It’s super centrally located, in a good school district, and no reason to move ever again.  It’s one of those houses that makes me start questioning my own house and making me itchy for something bigger and nicer.

We were the first to get our offer in and everything was looking good.  At the 11th hour, a cash offer came in and we were told we needed to come up significantly in price if we wanted it.  Since that wasn’t really an option, we amended some terms and made it an AS IS sale, and gave the sellers a free 2 month rent back.  Still, at the end of the day, cash is king and we lost out.  We were all so bummed.

From there we set out several more times and saw everything on the market, some really beautiful homes.  But at the end of every showing, the same sentence was uttered “the house is nice, but it’s no Mason.”

About 2 weeks later my phone rings while I’m driving from a number I don’t recognize.  The guy introduces himself and I still don’t recognize him.  Then he says “Andrew, from the house on Mason”, and my heart stopped.  I pulled over and let him explain that the cash buyer suddenly got cold feet and had terminated.  Since we were in backup position the house was ours if we still wanted it.  I screamed a million Oh My God’s at him, thanked him profusely and hung up to call Mary.  It was the best moment in real estate I’ve had in a while.

The house inspected near perfect, it was a rather uneventful deal after this, aside from the sellers needing some extra rent back time, but since it didn’t really matter to Mary and Gene, I was able to negotiate some furniture for them.  We sailed happily to closing and my dudes are the proud owners of their dream home.  I couldn’t be happier for them.  Congrats you guys!!!

Reg Martocci

Broker

Originally from Worcester, Massachusetts my love affair with real estate began when I was 19 and owned my first triple-decker. Being a landlady at 19 quickly taught me  the importance of learning DIY skills to turn an old junky three-decker into a place someone would love to call home.  There is nothing more satisfying to me than watching a property transform.  Since then, I have been fascinated by the idea of home and the aesthetics that appeal to people and warm a space up. What is it about a space makes a person feel at home?  Is it an open floor plan? A garden? Hardwood floors or a south facing kitchen?  It is different for everyone and I would love the opportunity to help you find it. I graduated from Umass Amherst with a degree in Sustainable Living and Natural Health and naturally moved to Portland to find my people. Waiting tables and bartending all over Portland for the last 10 years has allowed me to really get to know many of the neighborhoods this beautiful city has to offer.  I've lived in and rented houses all over Alberta, Concordia, Hawthorne and Division until buying a house and settling in Kenton two years ago. If I'm not working you can bet that I'm somewhere in Oregon thrifting, at the river, working on my house, or catching happy hour with friends. Reg Martocci reg@livingroomre.com 508-340-1456 t 503-961-8224 f

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• T: 508-340-1456
• F: 503-961-8224
• reg@livingroomre.com