By Living Room Realty, March 20, 2019
Sometimes when the past catches up to you it is a wonderful thing even if the events surrounding it are not entirely favorable. This young buck, Gary to most, will forever be Coach to me. Some two decades ago Coach was not only the man who pushed me in the pool training to give it my all, but he was the close friend who shot the breeze with me in his office time and time again and he was the mentor who counseled me when the combined burden of science, math and swimming felt insurmountable (oh how I wish that those were my greatest challenges still). After graduating from Linfield and his tutelage I promptly moved out of state but always made a point to surprise Coach each time that I visited Oregon. In the first few years after moving back to the Portland area just over a decade ago I made special trips to the McMinnville campus to see my dear friend but those subsided when he retired.
After a few years out of touch Coach resurfaced in my life when he came to me for my professional counsel regarding the sale of his condo. Coach had a lot of history and memories tied up in his home and it was a deeply emotional process to pore over each document and sort through precious photos and objects but my trusty partner Sean and I were honored , to sit with him and hear his stories while sorting and organizing. It was a true privilege to provide such intimate service to a man who had given so much to me. We shared hauling and pressure washing and there was painting and cleaning and decorating and so, so much love. By the end of it all not only had the sale gone off without a hitch but the seller had become Coach to Sean too.
Parting with his house gave Coach a fresh perspective and inspired him to do a little travel, take a short bit to enjoy alone-ness and ultimately foster his relationship with Janet, the wonderful women who has since become his wife. I’m sure that Coach thanks the Heavens often for all the ways in which Janet has enhanced his life and because he is so special to me I am infinitely grateful for her too. Thankful for the the humor, the light-heartedness, the family, the joy and the love that they share. The two of them can be quite the comics and their combined laughter is so damn infectious.
Although we are in touch a few times a year I was surprised and saddened when Janet recently reached out requesting help to sell the estate of her mother who had been recently admitted to a care facility (actually Coach reached out first but sometimes communicating about business isn’t his forte – again, thank God for his lovely bride ;). At one time Janet called the house her home but it’s since become dilapidated well beyond repair. Although not for the reason one would have hoped, it was for the best that her mother was made to move since the neglected state of the house makes it a place in which it is unsuitable and unsafe to live. As guardian to the estate Janet was tasked with navigating the ins and outs of the legal procedures involved and such things are never straight forward but she powered through to complete all of the tasks on her checklist en route to listing the property. Not having previously sold a house deemed a “tear down” I faced the challenge of convincing the probate judge why my pricing recommendation, $110,000 below his Zillow informed minimum sales price, was valid. With adequate due diligence the judge came around and here we now sit, Janet, me and good ol’ Coach, hand and hand, once again working together intimately this time in an effort to show mama the money for the care that she needs. Let’s get ‘er done, friends! Go team!
If you are looking for someone to provide compassionate real estate service whether times may be challenging or fantastic, I would love the opportunity to coach you through the process! – Carly
503.250.1687 | carlyvanaart@gmail.com
