Since 2020, I’ve gone from being homeless, sleeping in a shelter, to staying in a hotel room, to an apartment, where I was the first person to occupy the unit. Then, over the last six years, as my income & credit got better, the conditions in the apartment building gradually got worse, to the point where I needed to find a new place.
Rent, being as high as it is in Portland, I was facing a substantial increase in my cost of living, with nothing to show for it. I decided it was time to look into using a VA loan I’ve had available to me for forty years.
When I first started looking, a friend joked, “What you learn from looking for a place, is that you don’t know what you’re looking for.” That would turn out to be prophetic.
I was put in touch with Team Maben at Harcourts, and James Fossen. When I first met with James, he asked me what I expect from a realtor. I listed a few things, and he pointed out that “honesty” and “communication” weren’t among the things I’d listed. I realized that I wasn’t even sure what I was looking for in a realtor, let alone a house.
After a week or so of looking, James called me one day and mentioned a property that had recently been pulled off of the market. He said it looked like something I’d like, and he wanted to ask the agent if the owner would be willing to show it to me.
The place is a one bedroom condo in a nice complex, in a great neighborhood. The owner said she would be happy to let me come by and have a look. She was painting, when we arrived & it looked like she was getting ready for a tenant rather than to sell it. I saw definite possibilities, and she liked me, so when we put in the offer, she accepted it, and decided she wouldn’t put it back up for sale.
It took all of two weeks to get to closing after that, it was the proverbial “white knuckle ride”, all the way. I had to pack up and arrange for movers, make appointments for signing paperwork, and keep working as close to full time as I could with the purchase going on.
James was there, checking in with me every day, making sure I was comfortable with the purchase, and everything was going as planned. We closed on a Wednesday morning and Friday, I moved out of my apartment & home for six years, and into my new condo & home for, I hope, at least as long.
Twice before I considered using my VA loan. It didn’t work out either time. I guess the third time really is the charm. James knew what I wanted, when I really didn’t even know myself.
James Fossen, Jennifer Maben & the team at Harcourts made the process of moving into homeownership as painless as possible. I’d definitely recommend them to anyone looking for their first home.
Michael P McCracken, USAF Veteran