Buyer's Guide

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A Step-by-Step First Time Buyer's Guide

Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by our team will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.

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Step 1: The buying consultation

  • Discuss your needs, lifestyle, values, and timing.
  • Talk about different neighborhoods, floor plans, and prices for homes that best fit what you are looking for in the cities you are interested in
  • Explain current market conditions and a strategy to get you from A to Z with ease in any given market condition. 
  • Go over the entire process so you know exactly what to expect. We believe in the more you know the more confident you will be and the more confident you are the more you will enjoy the process. 
  • Create a “Home Collection”, this is a curated collection of properties made just for you. It is the best way to collaborate, discuss and save listings all in one beautiful and easy-to-navigate place. During our consultation, we will show you how this amazing tool works.  Buyers LOVE IT.
  • Refer you to vetted local lenders, CPAs, escrow officers, and Insurance brokers.
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Step 2: The “Collection”

  • The Collection will have: Active, Coming Soon, and Private Exclusive listings that you can see in real-time; meaning if they go pending or sold you will be notified; in other words, you can follow the market closely all in one place.  By the way, Zillow and other sites like it will not have “coming Soon or Private Exclusive listings” you can only access those here. 
  • You are also able to communicate in the collection with me, ask questions, request tours, request disclosures, and see similar homes that have recently sold and similar homes that are coming on soon.  
  • All communication is saved in the collection making it easy to remember what you loved and didn’t love about each home.
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Step 3: Digital Tours

  • When you are ready to tour properties and have selected the properties in your collection, we will set up a smart digital tour link and send it to you the day before our tour. This tour is SMART.
  • You are able to sync the tour with your phone’s GPS for easy navigation,  and when you sync it to your calendar it will prompt you to stick to our showing schedule. This makes caravaning from home to home easy and timely.  
  • Your digital tour is also connected to your “Collection” so you can make notes after touring each home and be able to look back at all the tours you have been on. This is great to keep track of homes all in one place! 
  • You can also just print the tour and bring it with you on the day of your tour.
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Step 4: Once in Contract

  • Once you are in contact on a home, you are then sent a timeline of all the sensitive dates so you can easily follow and understand what the next steps are. 
  • Our attention to detail is crucial and we have dedicated transaction coordinators to make sure no ball is dropped, and you are always updated by a call, text, or email. We will communicate with you in whichever your favorite modality happens to be. 
  • We take care of every detail and can recommend vetted Home Inspectors, Roof Inspectors, Pest Companies, Pool Inspectors, Home Warranty Companies, Title, and Escrow Reps, HVAC companies, Handymen, General Contractors, Solar Companies, and everything you may need when buying/owning a home. 
  • A gift of gratitude and a photo opportunity with our pro photographer (an option) on closing day.
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Step 5: After Close VIP program

  • We do not just disappear after you move in!!! We have a VIP program for all of our clients. This VIP program includes invitations to 4 events per year. March e-waste recycling event, Summer Free movie nights at the Vine Cinema, Spring Ice Cream Social, and Fall Appreciation Party at a local Livermore winery. Investment seminars (coming soon) 
  • We also provide you with a digital “Home Valuation” report twice a year, that way you will always have an accurate idea of the value of your home, and won’t rely on Zestimates or Homebots.  We all know algorithms are just not as good or as accurate as humans when it comes to real estate.  
  • You will also receive a once-a-week “Into the Weekend with Gigi” email newsletter that has curated local events, lifestyle tips, home decor ideas, our weekly blog, and the real estate section. Our clients LOVE this newsletter and thank us for it all the time. 

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Anna G.
Scott D.
Veronica C.
WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
I was looking for a local realtor for the purchase of my first home and my best friend referred me to Gigi. I can not tell you how thankful I am that she did! From our very first phone call I knew Gigi was the perfect realtor for me! She is extremely knowledgeable about the market and explained everything to me about the purchase process from start to finish. I loved that she went over how she works and ...

— Anna G.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
We have now sold 2 houses and purchased 2 houses with the help of Gigi and her team. Gigi makes sure that everyone understands the process and works with you on your schedule. On both houses sold, we were able to get them ready and on the market within weeks, and, due to great prep work by the team, both sold within days for well over asking. Gigi is always available and WILL make sure that everything ru...

— Scott D.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
In a crazy, fast moving Bay Area real estate market its is hard to find the right home let alone get it, but Gigi made it happen with ease. Firstly, she made her time available for us at a drop of a dime. Secondly she helped us understand market conditions and provided us with property disclosures and values, instantly.! We weren’t sure where and what type of home we really wanted, but Gigi went the extr...

— Veronica C.

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You can be confident that you’re in good hands with our experts on your side. We know what it takes to get deals done and have executed more than 500 transactions locally for buyers or sellers over the years — so we’re always up-to-date on all of today’s pricing outcomes!

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CONTACT DETAILS
GIGI SROUR | CA DRE# 01200388
 
900 Main Street
Pleasanton CA