My First Home Loan was a Fun Experience – Catherine’s Story

The complex Seattle real estate market can seem daunting for people looking to buy their first home. When Catherine and Carlos decided they were ready to purchase their first home together, Catherine was understandably concerned that the home buying process would be overwhelming, or, even worse, terrifying.

At Salmon Bay, we hope that buying your first home – to start a new life with your loved one, or a new chapter for yourself or your family –  is a journey that is empowering and ultimately joyful. But, we understand that acquiring a mortgage can also be intimidating. For Catherine, her home loan experience ended up being a very enlightening and happy one.

Apprehensive by the idea of financing a loan at first, Catherine’s perspective completely changed when she financed her first home with Salmon Bay Community Lending. It wasn’t scary, it was fun!

What was the difference for Catherine?

Environment

“Coming to Salmon Bay was incredibly different than what I would have expected a mortgage lending office to be like,” says Catherine. “I expected cold and calculating and very intimidating.  And what I got was
extremely welcoming, fun,  and wonderful.” Catherine enjoyed visiting the  inviting Salmon Bay Community Lending office; a blue two-story house on a small scenic hill in the Seattle Greenwood neighborhood.  From the playful landscaping to the homelike interior, it was a comforting and relaxing place for Catherine and Carlos to discuss home loans and their mortgage options.

The Team

Catherine found Ruby so warm and connected that she immediately felt comfortable working with her. She also found the whole team to be friendly and responsive. The personable nature of the entire team was a quality Catherine did not expect from a mortgage banker.

Transparency

What Catherine calls “spectacular” is the way that Ruby and her team work from the assumption that buying a home can initially seem like a “terrifying” prospect and as a result Salmon Bay offers plenty of education, and makes the extra effort to be crystal clear on all the details.

Fun!
Catherine surprises herself when she looks back on the mortgage process and the word fun comes to mind.

It’s more than friendliness that makes the Salmon Bay Lending experience stand out as fun.  There is joy, confidence and ease that comes from the patience, education, and support they provide throughout the process.  Catherine says she felt taken care of from a “details perspective, a numbers perspective and a heart perspective”.  All qualities that add up to a fulfilling, unexpected and fun experience.