Sold by Sharon Stories: Nicole and Dan 

 

Do you believe that a house chooses you? I recently had an experience with buyers Nicole and Dan and everything worked out so perfectly it was like the house was meant to be! I am happy to report that after one month these newlyweds finally have a forever home in Westfield. The entire process was so smooth, and they are still friends with the owners! You couldn’t ask for a better Sold by Sharon Story! I am so happy for Nicole and Dan!

 

 

Tell me a bit about yourselves…

Nicole: We met a little over six years ago and are celebrating our first-year anniversary in a couple of weeks! I grew up in Bridgewater and am a 1^st grade teacher in Mountain Lakes. Dan works in the city and has lived all around! We were living in an apartment in Somerville, NJ prior to buying our home.

 

What made you decide to move? And why Westfield?

Nicole: Honestly, we were sick of paying rent! We started looking for a home three years ago. We’ve lived all over as renters and even Westfield for a while. We really liked living in the area and was focusing our home search in the Cranford/Westfield area. We ultimately picked Westfield because we found the perfect house that had just dropped in price!

 

What are some of your favorites in Westfield?

Nicole: Well, we are so excited that our favorite restaurant in Cranford now has a location in Westfield – Ambeli!!! We really like the downtown area and the commute to the city. I’m a teacher so we were drawn to the great school system. We are just excited to finally be a part of a community and a town!

 

How did you find Sharon?

Nicole: We have a close friend in Cranford and they knew Sharon as the seller’s agent with their own home. She came highly recommended. We had been through so many realtors prior to focusing in on this town. We didn’t want the “typical realtor” anymore that was just in it for the business and didn’t care about their client. We knew Sharon was something different!

 

What made you fall in love with this particular home?

Nicole: It’s actually a funny story. Dan did all the house searching for the past 3 years. I gave up because every home we wanted just didn’t pan out. So one rainy Sunday we were out looking at open houses in Cranford and Westfield. Nothing was working – it either wasn’t in our price range or had some feature that we didn’t want. I told Dan to pull over and I wanted to do one quick scan on Zillow or one of those sites before we went home. Our Westfield home just popped up and showed that it was a new price reduction! We immediately went over and fell in love! It was everything we wanted, the right neighborhood, the price had just lowered, and there were no other offers!

 

What features of the home immediately made you fall in love?

Nicole: The huge bay window! Everything! The fact it had a guest bath and an attached garage! We also loved the quiet street and neighborhood.

 

Did anything cause anxiety/stress during the home buying process?

Nicole: It was a really smooth process. The seller’s agent was equally motivated to get to the closing. The inspection went very well, and the sellers did almost all that we asked for – including the home warranty!

Dan: It went surprisingly well!

Nicole: They even had the house professionally cleaned and left a bottle of champagne for closing day! We actually now friends with the owners!

 

Any renovations for the future?

Nicole: The house is around 65 years old and the owners kept such good care! We redid the floors and painted the rooms – just those simple things and it looks like a completely new home!

 

What did you enjoy the most about working with Sharon?

Dan: She was quick to respond to all of our inquiries and any issues we had along the way. I didn’t feel pressured or rushed to make any decision.

Nicole: She was very REAL – and I appreciated that!

 

Best advice that you can offer other new home buyers?

Nicole: I’m a very impulsive person – so every house was like, “I want that!” Dan’s the one who kept reminding me that we needed to stop and think. I realized that many times I might have gotten myself into a situation where I was stuck with something I didn’t fully like. I’d tell people not to settle or rush – make it a slow process if you can. Make sure it’s everything you want – the location, etc. My mother always told me, “You can change the house, but you can’t change the location!”

Dan: I would tell them not to force themselves into a situation and also…to always assume the renovation will be above budget! Plan accordingly when you are sitting down to come up with a number for that mortgage!