Client Success Story

Sometimes, when you are not in the driver’s seat, your course in life can be changed for the better. That’s exactly what happened to me on a Megabus ride from NYC and on an Uber ride through Philadelphia. I’d like to share my journey on wheels. It’s a road trip that led me to profitable investment properties, a fantastic business relationship, and an unsuspecting friendship as well.

My Story

Let me give you a little background about my journey to buying property in Philadelphia. I was born and raised in Korea and came to America to attend school in NYC, where I have lived for close to a decade. While in undergrad and graduate school, I’d often make weekend trips to Philly to visit friends at UPenn. I marveled at the progress and development emerging throughout the city. Initially, my plan was to buy an investment property in Queens, New York, but one day on a Megabus ride back from Philly, I came to realize that I loved it here so much! Those Megabus rides became more frequent as I began to look at houses. While my search started with all of Philadelphia, it quickly narrowed down. After going through a rollercoaster of emotions that often come with the house buying process, I finally found a home that I felt was a worthy investment. At settlement, I met the seller’s agent, Stephanie Somers.

Meeting Stephanie

My first clue to how awesome Stephanie is came as we finished up on that settlement day. As we were about to leave, she offered to share an Uber with me. During the ride, she gave me tips for a first-time homebuyer on how to improve the house and gave me a lowdown on the neighborhood, amongst other things. As the seller’s agent, Stephanie was not working for me. She had no motivation to be so helpful other than just being a good person. She even followed up with an email listing all the things we had discussed during that ride (she also insisted on paying for the ride!) Touched by her thoughtfulness, I followed her on social media and subscribed to her mailing list and didn’t give it much further thought as I wasn’t planning on buying more property any time soon. 

Working with Stephanie

Cut to two years later and I had begun thinking about buying another investment property but had no real timetable in mind. One day, an email appeared in my inbox from Stephanie that highlighted a new property that had just come to market, and my interest was piqued. I quickly reached out to her thinking she probably wouldn’t even remember me from two years prior. Her recall proved me wrong as she remembered me, our shared-ride home, and even small details about the first property I bought. After catching up a bit, I let her know that I was interested in checking out this property and our journey picked up right where we left off. This time Stephanie was my Realtor! After some bumps in the road, and with her expert guidance, I was able to close on the house, adding to my growing portfolio.