We are moving to Magnolia! I can't wait to be able to sit out on the deck and watch the sunset over Puget Sound, walk to the great parks and Lainey's school, and the best part---Robert's commute is going from 60 minutes to 5! It really hasn't sunk in yet. I have never lived in Seattle but sure am excited about it!!
A little background information. We began our search for a home closer to Robert's work a couple of months ago. Magnolia or Queen Anne were our top choices. We then decided to focus on Magnolia for awhile as we have friends that live there, the abundance of parks, and the reputation for being a great family "suburb in the city" type of neighborhood. We compiled a laundry list of wants and needs for a new house, called our agents, and set about looking at homes. We found a house we really liked, and although it wasn't exactly what we wanted, it fit pretty close. We got home and found out it had sold in less than 5 days on the market for full price. That's when we realized we had better step up our game or expand our target area. We decided to see what happened after the first of the year and after our trip to Maui, I kept an eye on new listings. Then this house popped up. I called Robert and said we should look at it and we made an appt for this past Thursday. Thursday night, we wrote up our offer. Saturday we received the seller's counter offer and learned there was another offer on the table in addition to ours. So, we (meaning Robert) crunched some numbers, had some long discussions (meaning me responding to Robert's number crunching...I don't "do" numbers), wrote out a pro/con list, slept on it, or tried, and came up with a counter offer on Sunday. It was suggested that we write a letter to the homeowners in an attempt to connect on an emotional level. I looked at Robert and said, "Well, we've written two letters to birth parents hoping they'll choose us to raise their babies. How hard could this be?" Let me tell you, it was a lot easier!! Lainey and I met our agent with the necessary revised paperwork and a check, and spent a couple hours of quality Mommy-Daughter time that was AWESOME but that's another story. Last night at about 7pm, we got the call telling us we got the house. The best part is, the other offer was actually higher than ours, but it was our letter that got us the house! So.....here it is!
January 16, 2010
Dear Homeowners,
Our names are Robert and Nicole. We have two kids, Lainey, who is about to turn 3 in March, and Beau, who will be one on the 28th. We currently live in Snohomish County and have been saving to move to Seattle for several years. We have friends that live in Magnolia (just a couple blocks away from your home) and the more we visit the area, the more we like neighborhood and everything it has to offer. I am a stay at home mother and fell in love with idea of walking with the kids to Ella Bailey Park and the Community Center. The main reason we want to move is to reduce Robert’s commute. Right now, he spends about an hour on the road each way, leaving very little time with the kids.
We fell in love with your house right away. Lainey walked into the blue bedroom upstairs and said, “This is nice!” and then grabbed the duck off the bed, hugged it and said, “My duck.” She then climbed onto the rocking chair and pretty much made herself at home. Beau went to town climbing both sets of stairs, laughing the whole way. It was raining pretty hard the day we were there so the kids didn’t get a chance to see the playhouse, but we know they will both love it. What caught Robert’s eye was the attention to detail that is apparent in the remodel that was done. He has a critical eye and was impressed with the quality workmanship. I instantly liked the layout and the floor plan but what really caught my eye was the mudroom and the craft/office areas downstairs. What mother wouldn’t love a spot like that to put away wet shoes and jackets?! I envision myself working on scrapbooking projects downstairs while the kids play or later, while they are working on homework. We really love your house. It feels like a home and most importantly, one that we could live happily in for many years to come.
We appreciate you taking the time to read this letter. While we hope you will accept our offer, if it does not work out, we wish you all the best.
Sincerely,
Robert and Nicole
2 comments:
CONGRATULATIONS!!
nice, congratulations! When do you move? We will have to come visit you in Seattle. By the time everyone is settled I will probably be ready to venture out with 2 :)
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