"It's been two months since we moved into our new home in Saratoga. We are very happy with our new home and I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for everything you did for our family and to make this dream a reality. When we met more than two years ago, Vasanta and I were impressed with not just your knowledge of the local real estate market dynamics but especially with your strong set of relationships with other agents and service providers. We were very grateful for your patience with us as we explored the various properties on the market. Even though we did not end up buying a house in 2011, we knew that we had found the right partner for us. When we did jump back into the home buying fray in 2013, we had only one call to make. It was definitely a seller's market when we began looking for a home in September 2013. The house we bid on had multiple offers. You gave us incredibly compelling insights to help us with pricing our bid but encouraged us not to go beyond what we were comfortable with. Our offer was not accepted and we were disappointed. However, you were masterful in building a trusted relationship with the seller's agent and when their first offer fell through, you were the first call that the seller's agent made. Your persistence and relationship-building skills paid off beautifully! We go the house without even being the highest bidder. You realized that the seller cared more about the speed to close rather than the price paid and your structured the transaction accordingly. Your instinct said that we should insist on having our own inspections done prior to signing off on the contingencies. You were right. Thanks for your foresight and savvy negotiation with the sellers, based on the results of the inspections, you were able to renegotiate the price down without putting us at risk of losing the property. You saved us tens of thousands of dollars with your keen instincts! Last but not least, you took on the responsibility to make sure we got a good contractor for all our remodeling work and you got personally involved to ensure timely and high-quality service. This in my mind is going way beyond the call of duty. Thank you for your dedication and diligence. We were happy to refer you to a family member in November when they were confronted with an unusual property buying situation. Again, you came through with flying colors."
"I felt compelled to reach out to you to express our gratitude for all that you did to facilitate and deliver smooth and successful transactions for our new home in Saratoga and the house you helped us sell in Sunnyvale. After an exhaustive home search and numerous Realtor® interviews starting in August 2012, I was fortunate to have met you at an open house in Saratoga. I was immediately struck by your professionalism, dedication, and deep experience in the business as well as your connections and extensive knowledge of the south bay at large. The geographic reach you have, combined with an excellent marketing plan and premium virtual tour, enabled us to attract prospective buyers from all over the bay area creating tremendous competition; every seller's dream! Moreover, the fact that you personally represented us at the open houses versus sending another broker from your office was critical to us. I hired you for your talent and wanted to ensure that we “got you” every step of the way – which we did. I’m confident that this is one of the key reasons that we were able to realize the maximum price on our home in Sunnyvale, setting an all-time-high price precedent for the neighborhood. Equally important were the tireless hours you spent searching for our new home and negotiating a great deal. Your attention to detail and in-depth knowledge of the real estate business and contracts clearly contributed to the fair deal we were able to secure with our new home. It was comforting to know during this stressful time that you were watching our backs and had our family’s best interests in mind every step of the way. We couldn’t be happier in our new home and we love the neighborhood!"
"My husband and I met Lara Carlson about five years ago at an open house she was hosting. We were impressed with her warm welcome and had a great chat with her. She really stood out among all the other real estate agents we have met. When we had a question about real estate one time, we thought of her and called her up to get the information. She followed through in a timely manner even though we were not active clients. Her information enabled us to make a wise decision. When my husband and I decided to put our townhouse on the market, our first choice was to ask Lara to represent us. She was quick to pull a lot of information together for us to analyze the market and our position. Not only that, she covered all other aspects of getting the townhouse ready and competitive in the market. She advised us to upgrade the kitchen and even made a trip to the granite supplier with us to pick the granite. She works at light speed and her mind is crystal clear on what needs to be done and what is the next step. Efficiency is not Lara's only strength, she is also very, very thorough in going through all the real estate paperwork to make sure we understand everything and everything is done correctly. Her dedication to her job and her clients is of the highest quality. We have not met other real estate agents who balance professionalism and customer relationship as well as Lara. Our townhouse was sold quickly and we were very pleased with the outcome."
"We cannot begin to thank Lara enough for helping us find our first home! Being first-time home buyers, we were uncertain as to the home-buying process. We had an idea as to what we were looking for and the area but nothing beyond that. We came to know about Lara through a friend and during our first few meetings, Lara spent quality facetime meetings (due to covid-19 we could not do in-person meetings) with us to ask us questions, to get a better understanding of what we were looking for and educating us about the nuances on reading and understanding disclosures. She handpicked properties that fit our requirements and arranged for tours adhering strictly to the Covid-19 measures. We never felt pressured to look at homes that did not meet our requirements. When walking into a house, she was giving her honest and thoughtful opinion when asked and gave tips about home layouts, issues, positives, and negatives that are hard to notice for first-time buyers like us. She was understanding of all our questions - and never made us feel like any of our questions were dumb. When the perfect home for us was listed on the market, Lara got us in for a showing the very next day and helped close the offer quickly. We were very comfortable with the whole process. Lara is someone that is highly recommended as a partner for your house hunting. Thanks, Lara!"
"Lara has helped with the purchase of our first house. She was very thorough, went through the contract before we even saw a house, and explained all kinds of scenarios and strategies one could employ when finalizing a contract. When we were interested in putting down an offer, she always brought her contractor to go through the property inspection report with us. This is especially important in the market of sold as it is or no contingency. As this was our first home purchase, we were obviously nervous. Lara didn't rush us at all, she patiently explained the pros and cons of each house we were interested in, which really helped us to make the right decision. She also followed through patiently with the sellers' agent on the agreement we had signed after the house was closed. Unfortunately, our sellers' agent was not particularly collaborative and it was a little stressful at times. Thank goodness that we had Lara taking care of all the open issues diligently with the sellers' agent even months after the contract was signed. If you are looking for a trustworthy agent with high integrity, Lara is the person you are looking for!"
"We just wanted to thank you for making our home purchase such a wonderful experience. We truly appreciated your diligence, professionalism, and patience. You were always willing to show us every house we wanted to see. Since we were new to California, we were grateful for all of your help familiarizing us with all the possible areas we might be interested in living in. We were very impressed by your attention to every detail. The time you spent explaining the contracts and the offer process was so helpful. We always knew what to expect, and there were no surprises when it came time to make an offer. Thanks for introducing us to John. The loan and the closing process were flawless. We couldn't have asked for a better experience. We hope you realize what a great service you offer to your clients. Buying a new home can be such a stressful time, but you really made it fun and enjoyable. You didn't just help us find a new house, you helped us find our new home. If we ever have to sell or buy again, you will be the first people we call."
Lara enjoys working with both Buyers and Sellers and has gained a reputation with her colleagues and clients for being professional and efficient.
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