It’s exciting. It’s scary. It’s a lot. I’m here for all of it.
See how we do this →Buying a home is a big deal.
And if you have no idea where to start, that’s completely fine.
You might be six months away. You might already have a lender and be sending me houses at 11pm. You might just want someone to tell you whether the thing you’re thinking about doing actually makes sense.
That’s where I come in.
My job isn’t to talk you into buying a house. It’s to help you understand your options, ask the questions you don’t know to ask yet, and find the best house or the best value for you.
And hopefully have some fun while we’re doing it.
Perfect. We start with a conversation.
What are you hoping to do? When? Where? What matters to you? And what do we need to figure out before any of this becomes real?
This is where a good lender comes in.
Not just “Congratulations, you’re approved for $700,000!” I want to know what that actually looks like every month, how much cash you’ll need, and whether you still get to have a life after you make your mortgage payment.
Now we’re talking.
We’ll look at houses, neighborhoods, layouts, weird remodels, busy streets, tiny closets, giant yards and everything else you cannot figure out from listing photos. And somewhere along the way, you’ll get really clear on what you actually want.
Okay. Now we slow down for a second.
We look at the house, the price, the competition, the terms and what we know before deciding how we want to write the offer. Then I handle the deadlines, paperwork and moving pieces while keeping you in the loop on what matters.
From the first phone call to holding actual keys, here is the real order of operations. Not the Pinterest version.
This starts with a phone call, not a form. I want to know what you are hoping to do, when, where, and what actually matters to you before we look at a single listing.
Download the Buyer Questionnaire →This is my favorite part. We go look at five to eight houses in one day. They probably will not be perfect. That is kind of the point. By the end you will know things about yourself you did not know that morning. Can you actually handle a fixer-upper? Do you need a two car garage, or was that your dad talking? Wait, you do not want a yard after all? Turns out the kitchen is a much bigger deal than you thought. This is how we find out what you actually want, not just what sounded good on paper.
Sometimes it is obvious. Sometimes it sneaks up on you halfway through a Tuesday you almost canceled. Either way, once it happens, we move fast.
This is where it gets real. An offer is a stack of paperwork covering price, closing date, earnest money and contingencies (the outs that protect you if something is wrong). I walk you through every page before you sign anything. Then we send it and wait.
Congratulations, you are under contract! Also, brace yourself, because your inbox is about to fill up with emails from an escrow company you have never heard of. That is normal. This is also when your earnest money actually moves, into a real account, held until closing, and applied toward what you owe.
We hire an inspector to go through the house top to bottom: roof, foundation, plumbing, electrical, all of it. This is our chance to learn what we are actually buying, and to decide if anything needs to be negotiated or walked away from.
Wait, is this another inspection? No, different thing. Your lender orders an appraisal to confirm the home is worth what you agreed to pay, and yes, you usually pay for it upfront. Annoying, I know. It happens around the same time as your inspection, and it protects your lender, and you, from overpaying.
A few days before closing, we walk the house one more time, just the two of us. We make sure it still looks the way it did when you fell for it, and that any repairs you negotiated actually got done. This is your last real chance to catch a problem before it is yours.
If you did not do anything wild like quit your job, open a new credit card or buy a new car in the middle of all this, congratulations, you made it! Any of those can mess with your financing and can actually delay or derail closing, so as tempting as it is to celebrate early, hold off. Once everything is signed and funded, the house is officially yours, and that is when you get your keys and move in.
Your lender will give you the exact numbers for your loan, but there are a few expenses buyers should know about before we get started.
You do not automatically need 20% down. Depending on your loan and qualifications, there may be options starting much lower.
Money you deposit after your offer is accepted to show the seller you’re serious. It applies toward the money you owe at closing.
You pay your inspector directly. Additional inspections or specialists, like a sewer scope, may cost extra.
These can include lender fees, escrow, title and prepaid expenses. Your lender will give you an estimate so we know what to expect before we ever write an offer.
We’ll talk through all of this before you’re making decisions with a house on the line.
I know. Not nearly as fun as looking at houses.
But a good pre-approval tells us a lot more than the maximum amount a lender says you can spend. We want to know what your payment looks like, how much cash you need, what loan programs make sense and what price range actually feels comfortable.
Then when the right house shows up, we’re ready.
Not sure where you would land? That is exactly what the call is for.
These are people I’ve worked with, trust and happily send my clients to.
Guild Mortgage · NMLS #1494618
He literally flew me to an inspection. There’s a story there.
Movement Mortgage · NMLS #396723
There’s a very good chance we’ll laugh our way through the transaction.
Movement Mortgage · NMLS #754378
The lender in sneakers. If you know Greg, you know.
MK flew me to an inspection. This is the kind of lender support I mean when I say I refer people I trust with my own clients.
Greg was one of the very first interviews I did for my Renton Spotlight series, back when I was just getting that going. Take a peek before you ever call him.
If you want the vibe before you ever call him, this is it. Fair warning, you are going to like him immediately.
Buying power
Totally fair. Plug in a city or an address and get a general idea of what buying could look like before you ever call me.
This is where Zillow becomes real life. We’ll notice the things you can’t see in photos: the street, the neighbors, the light, the smell, the roof that looked totally fine online, the “fourth bedroom” that is definitely a closet.
And we’ll probably change your wish list along the way. That’s normal. Looking at houses isn’t just about finding one you love, it’s how you learn what you’re willing to compromise on and what you absolutely are not.
Homes.com
Connect with me on Homes.com, browse homes, save the ones you like, and keep me connected while you figure out what actually feels right.
Connect + Start BrowsingWe’ll talk about the offer, what we know about the property, what we don’t know yet, and what protections make sense for you. Then, once we’re under contract, we investigate.
Once we’re under contract, your lender orders an appraisal. A licensed, independent appraiser visits the home and compares it to similar recent sales nearby to confirm it’s actually worth what you agreed to pay. This usually happens in the first couple of weeks after mutual acceptance, around the same time as your inspection. If it comes in at or above your price, you’re clear to move forward. If it comes in low, we have options: renegotiate with the seller, cover the gap yourself, or, depending on how your contract is written, walk away.
At the same time, a title company is working in the background. They research the property’s history to confirm the seller can actually transfer clean ownership: checking for liens, unpaid taxes, easements, boundary issues, or anyone else with a claim on the home, and clearing them before closing. You’ll get a preliminary title report to look over, and title insurance is issued at closing to protect you if anything was missed.
These are people I trust to tell us what they see without making every little thing sound like the house is about to fall down.
Family-owned, 20+ years of experience, with whole-home inspections plus sewer scope, mold, air-quality, thermal imaging, and more.
VISIT KEY →Construction-trained team with whole-home, sewer-scope, and lab-testing options, plus detailed reports and broad Western Washington coverage.
VISIT TITAN →There is so much paperwork and stress and decision-making between “I think I want to buy a house” and standing in your new kitchen with the keys. So yes, we celebrate.
The transaction may be over, but this is the part you did all of that work for.
You’re choosing your grocery store, your commute, your coffee shop, your Saturday morning, maybe your kid’s school, the route you’ll walk the dog: the place you’re actually going to live your life.
I’ve lived all over this area, so I created Rooted to give you the version of these cities you won’t get from a relocation guide.
“Very much like your best friend.” Tanya told him what he needed to hear and helped him get an accepted offer in two days.BRENDAN LERSCH
When the market made her want to give up, Tanya kept going. “And now, I own my own home!”MARGO HOOPER
She guided them through disappointment and stress, and made sure they understood every step.CAROLYN B.
You don’t need to know your budget yet. And you definitely don’t need to have all the right questions.
Schedule a time with me and tell me what you’re thinking. We’ll start there.
Schedule with Tanya →