By Leanne Bach, September 1, 2020
I’ll be honest, most of the offers I’ve made for people without them actually seeing the property in person, have usually been for investors. They do their numbers work to make sure the finances pencil out for them, and then they trust me to make sure the property doesn’t have any glaring wonky issues. I help them navigate a realistic offer price and figure out a strategy from there.
Over time, more and more of my buyer clients have to rely on me to scout out properties for them as soon as they hit the market. Portland’s housing market has become so competitive, that waiting 48 hours to see a property may be too late. It’ll already be pending and would have had multiple offers. Most people living here can usually make it to see a property pretty quickly, but what about the influx of people moving to Portland from out of state? They can’t jump on a plane every time something interesting hits the market. Doesn’t make sense. And now that we’re living within the confines of a pandemic, it’s become much more difficult, and just plain unrealistic, to jump on a plane.
Thankfully, technology has made 3D virtual tours a standard, or they should be a standard anyway, in my opinion. I used to have to visit the properties myself and either FaceTime my clients with a walk through or do the video walk throughs and, trust me, they were far from perfect. And I don’t have the correct equipment to make it visually helpful. The age of Matterport, allowing buyers to “walk through” a home without leaving the comfort (and safety) of their own home, have made this process immensely less difficult for buyers to consider making an offer on a property, sight unseen.
I’ve made 5 offers this year for buyers that never saw the property in person, beforehand. So far, I’m 5 for 5. We made the offer, got it accepted and then my clients hopped in their car on their road trip to home ownership. Luckily, the properties worked for my clients and we moved towards closing, so it turns out, my track record for long distance client relationships isn’t so bad!
I’ve always prided myself in listening to my clients’ needs, but I think my senses heightened when I knew I was in charge of REALLY making sure the house would work for my clients. The pressure of having my clients leave their home and incur road trip expenses is immense, to say the least. At least I can say I’ve honed a new skillset though, right?
5801 N Yale St Portland OR 97203
4 bed | 2 bath | $530,000
Leanne Bach
Principal Broker | OR & WA
She/Her
Leanne has experienced the real estate boom on the frontline. Her integrity and persistence have helped clients navigate the outcomes of the 2008 financial crisis, as well as coached and guided buyers and sellers through a competitive, fast-paced market of today. Licensed since 2003, Leanne’s drive and skills of being a natural connector, put her at the top of her field. She finds great joy in establishing a client’s needs and uniting them with a solution. She sees challenge as an opportunity and proactively wins trust while still getting things done. Real estate involves a network beyond the client. Leanne connects with the community through volunteer efforts. She has built a solid network of contractors, lenders, caterers, bankers, and accountants, as well as caregivers, artists, and organizers. Her goal is to connect a buyer’s vision of home to reality and connects a seller’s financial goals to the best possible outcomes. This is the fuel that motivates Leanne in her career. She believes strongly in creating harmony between work and life and it shows by what her clients say about her. She feels lucky every day to be able to call this her job and feels fortunate to have clients that are multi-generational, helping parents of clients and children of clients through all the stages of life. The relationships she’s built are truly rewarding.
“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.” -Albert Einstein
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- T: 503-349-7890
- leannebach@gmail.com
