Chris always put us first

“Without reservation, we can heartily recommend Chris Olsen as a real estate agent.  Based on our Greater Cleveland home buying experience with Chris, when we go to sell our house and buy a new one at some point in the future, he will be the agent we will use.

When we knew we wanted to buy a house, we spent some time shopping around for agents.  Based on those that we initially talked to, Chris immediately emerged as the front-runner due to his knowledge base, genuine desire to help us, and forwardness in dealing with us.  Unlike everyone else we talked to, Chris doesn’t charge any transaction fees.  He was very transparent in explaining how real estate works and how he gets paid.  As first time buyers we found Chris to be a trustworthy individual who put our interests ahead of his own financial gain.

We were able to draw upon Chris’s experience as an appraiser to help us make a better informed decision about the future resale of the properties we looked at.  He was able to point out things we hadn’t considered that might affect the interests of future buyers when it can time to resell.  His knowledge also paid off when it came time to negotiate the purchase of the house we decided upon, saving us thousands buy having us make a cheaper offer than what we originally thought the house was worth, and getting repairs performed on the house as part of the offer.

Chris’s connection to top-quality service providers was an excellent benefit.  Chris was able to get a great home inspector to inspect the house the same day the offer was accepted, as we were visiting from out of state to purchase our home.  The inspection provided allowed us to gain a comprehensive perspective of the true condition of the property we were buying, and contributed to the seller paying for repairs that were not part of the point of sale inspection.  When there was a slight problem with the electricity in the garage several days prior to closing, it was the electrician that Chris recommended to the seller that got everything completed on time so the sale could go forward.

Since we were moving in from out of state, many lenders would not approve us since their guidelines required us to be working in the state for some period of time before they would approve a loan.  Chris was able to point us to a local lender that would approve us for a loan, despite the fact that we hadn’t started our new jobs yet.   He was also able to suggest a title/escrow company that worked with us to close on the property while we were still 1600 miles away and in the process of moving.

Chris always seemed to put us first.  I know that he was working with other clients at the same time he was working with us, but it really didn’t seem like it.  He always put us first.  He was always available, whether by phone or email, to answer any question or concern that we had.  He also had a plan for every contingency, and was quick to react to anything to popped-up during the process.  I know that we couldn’t have been the easiest clients to work with, living 1600 miles and several time zones away, but Chris’s use of technology such as emails, PDFing documents to sign, as well as coordinating with local service providers on our behalf, was a huge time saver and made our home buying process very efficient, despite our remoteness.  He even went to the final walkthrough inspection in our absence, and thoroughly photographed everything and made it available to us online.

Chris Olsen is a highly competent, highly professional, responsive, innovative, thorough, and straight-shooting real estate agent who has a comprehensive knowledge of property valuation, excellent connections, and an attention to detail.  Chris provides excellent customer service and I recommend his services as a real estate agent without hesitation.”

Devon (J.D.) and Heidi (M.D.) H.