Hey everyone, I wanted to share a valuable lesson I learned recently with my listing at 136 E 5th Ave. We initially listed the property, but then had to take it off the market due to some permit issues with the City of Escondido. On top of that, we weren’t getting any serious offers, so my client and I agreed that if we could at least get the permit process started, it would improve our chances. That’s exactly what we did. During this time, my client (the seller) was under a lot of stress, especially since he was losing money on the deal — by “losing” I mean he was really struggling, with multiple flipped properties sitting on the market. He gave us a week to get the property under contract — just one week — and the permits were still uncertain. We even raised the price by $30,000 compared to the original listing. If we didn’t deliver, he was ready to switch agents. I wanted to tell him we could absolutely get it done in that timeframe, but that is overpromising, which if I didn't deliver not that promise, the company, our brand and my image would all be ruined to that client. Instead, I put my head down and let the results speak for themselves. I assured him that I understood his position and promised to do everything I could to meet his expectations. I decided not to overpromise but to underpromise — that way, I could focus on giving it my all. The result? Not just one, but two offers over asking price, and everything worked out in the end. It’s easier said than done, and I had a ton of support from my team lead, so a big shoutout to him. But the takeaway here is clear: You can’t promise what’s out of your control. The key is to focus on what you can control — stick to the basics, work hard, and overdeliver. Have ya'll ever had a similar experience?

This listing started with a cold phone call to a potential seller. During our first conversation, she shared that her mother had recently passed away and that the family’s single-family home was at risk of foreclosure due to a reverse mortgage. To save the home, she planned to sell her mothers duplex. After gathering information, I reviewed comparable sales, toured the property with a buyer (ensuring the tenants were unaware of a potential sale) and even brought her an offer within two days. Unfortunately, the offer was too low, and she decided not to accept it or list the property. What followed was two months of consistent follow-up: texts, emails, voicemails, and even a personalized Loom video walking her through her options and a proposal. Despite my efforts, she would infrequently respond.. but knew there was motivation there. Then, I noticed a nearby duplex—an excellent comp—had just been listed. I shared updates via voicemail and email, including how much activity the property had on Zillow. Still, I heard nothing. When that property went pending, I called her again. This time, she answered. The Turning Point On that call, I explained the comparable sale, but before I could finish, she interrupted me to say she was ready to list. She apologized for being unresponsive and said she admired my persistence and market knowledge. She even declined an in-person meeting, saying, “I trust you.” She agreed to my commission without hesitation. Later in the call, I learned she had taken a hard money loan on her mother’s home to avoid foreclosure. Selling her duplex wasn’t optional—it was essential. The Outcome This seller never met me in person but felt confident enough to entrust me with her listing. By consistently providing value, demonstrating expertise, and respecting her timeline, I earned her trust and the opportunity to help her resolve a critical situation.

We recently just closed on a two unit development deal in the Clairemont submarket. The seller had a price in mind that was above all of the sales comparables and my buyer was $50k off. This buyer had purchased an identical property across the street earlier in the year for $100k less, so we had good credibility going into the deal, however this was not enough to bridge the gap and reason with the seller on price. I typically won't recommend this, but in this situation, it was our last resort. I told the buyer's that the property needed a good amount of work and if they wanted to, I thought there was a decent chance that we could get the seller to agree to a price reduction after showing him the amount of work that would be needed on the property since he had self managed for a long time and hadn't been to the property in years. Buyer's agreed and we came up in price to get the deal under contract. During the inspection, it was obvious that there was going to be more than $50k in work estimates to help our case. I made sure that the seller's agent was with me when I talked with each of the contractors about all of the issues. It was apparent that she was unaware of the problems with the roof, plumbing, foundation and electrical systems. Once the inspection was done, I jumped on a call with the buyer's to discuss a gameplan and where they would need to be to move forward. Buyer's needed to be at a $50k reduction to move forward with the deal, so we started the negotiations out at $100,000 so we had some room in case the seller was going to be stubborn. After many calls with both sides, the seller got back to us and let us know they will meet us in the middle at $50k, exactly where we needed to be at. When I let the buyer know, he was stoked that we got the job done and asked if that was the seller's best. I told him we can give it one last try to see if we can get anything more. We went back to the seller's agent and told her that the buyer's appreciate their willingness to work with us, but they are still taking on a lot of risk with the current state of the property. The buyer's weren't asking for help with any of the minor cosmetic issues, but rather big issues that whoever owns the property moving forward will need to address asap. The seller's agent agreed with us and they came back and offered another $10k, totaling $60k in concessions. Buyer agreed to the offer and closed the deal. Seller was happy because he felt like he got a great price and was alleviated from the looming issues of the property, and the buyer was happy because he got the deal for less than what they were planning on paying for it and were already aware of the issues that the property would have needed. Great way to build a relationship with a strong buyer in the area.

Wanted to share this small win because I almost thought I hit a dead end with an ROE lead that ended up having a high ROE at 7.5%... In my follow up call, I was straight up with him and told him that his investment property is performing really well at a 7.5% since a healthy ROE is 5-6% or higher. I congratulated him on his investment property's performance and asked if he had any plans for the property or needed any resources. He told me he's planning on converting the detached garage to an ADU so I sent him some vendor referrals and resources. He then told me that he wants to keep in touch for off market deals because his friends will be cash out refinancing soon and want to buy a multifamily property as well!