Laura and Brad enjoyed living in their East Lake townhouse, which they rented, but decided they wanted a place that offered them more living space and a residential neighborhood feel. The both felt that the time was right to buy their first house.
As they started looking for a new home, their realtor suggested they work with Ruby Grynberg and her team at Salmon Bay Community Lending because Laura and Brad were first-time homebuyers. “We were going to have a lot of questions and didn’t know a lot about the mortgage process, so Ruby was recommended as a good fit,” says Laura.
Both Laura and Brad remember wondering what they were getting themselves into regarding the purchase of a house. The process of getting a mortgage, with all the paperwork and all the finances seemed overwhelming and mysterious, until they met with Ruby.
“It was great,” recalls Laura. “She was just so personable, actually her whole team was, and they explained every step and answered all our questions. They made the process feel way less scary for first-time homebuyers,” Laura laughs.
Talking Finances Locally
For Laura and Brad, the thought of talking to someone about their finances felt strange at first. “As first time homebuyers, we hadn’t done that before with anyone,” recalls Laura. “But Ruby just made us feel really comfortable talking about what our budget would be and what our maximum would be and what we were comfortable with,” says Laura. “It was easy to talk to Ruby about finances,” says Laura. “And to plan for the future and what the ramifications were for our lives going forward,” added Brad.
“We didn’t expect the level of detail that Ruby went into, which was really helpful,” recalls Brad. “We’re both comfortable with numbers but we had no idea what we were doing, so it was really helpful to see our breakdowns and to be walked through.”
Feeling comfortable talking about money with a lender was very important to Laura and Brad, as well as working with a Seattle community lender. “It was easier, more comfortable and more authentic than working with a big bank, as sort of an anonymous lender,” says Laura. “Being able to know the whole team and feel really comfortable talking to them on a regular basis, and know that they’re going to be responsive and answer our questions, honestly, was huge.”
Mortgage Update Videos
Through their journey to home ownership, Laura and Brad enjoyed the weekly video updates that were emailed from Salmon Bay Lending on Fridays. “They were unexpected, and delightful,” recalls Laura. “And it was a really fun way to get information throughout the process, as it felt like we were having a conversation with Ruby every week, which was nice because you have a lot of question when you’re going through the home buying process.” “It gave us a modicum of control too,” adds Brad. “As it felt like we were involved in it rather than it was being done to us.”
If you’re looking for more living space and want to get pre-approved to buy your first-house, please contact us online or call (206) 789-8629 to schedule an appointment. We’d love to help you with your homeownership goals!
Buying a home for the first time can be particularly challenging, especially when you don’t understand exactly what a mortgage is or how it will impact your life. Salmon Bay Community Lending focuses on helping clients better understand their home ownership goals, not just securing the most amount of money they can get approved for. Salmon Bay begins the conversation with two essential questions: