I think one phrase encapsulates Marina:
"Above and Beyond"
I met Marina serendipitously through my housemate, who introduced me after I shared I was looking to purchase a home in the bay area.
Now, I had a very specific type of property in mind. The requirements looked simple but the devil was in the details, the reqs:
1. A property located close enough to major downtown areas to attract younger, millennial renters.
2. The property needed to have enough rooms so that I could live in one, rent the others, and that the rent captured would exceed the TCO (Total costs of ownership), meaning I live "rent free".
3. The property needed to be large enough in the common areas to support multiple tenants.
4. A nice enough home that could retain long term tenants, but also be eventually sold to a family.
5. In an "up and coming" neighborhood.
Simple right? Maybe in any other state in the USA, but in Silicon Valley this was next to impossible to find given requirement #2. Marina put in long hours vetting potential opportunities across the bay before we found a 4/3 that I converted into a 5/3 - which allowed for #2 to be satisfied. #2 allowed me to save $24,000/year in rent, after taxes, which I've used to improve the property and save for my next home. That's nothing short of life-changing for someone in their early 30's. Oh and the house has appreciated significantly.
During the deal, Marina also compared the comps in the area and negotiated a better deal saving us 70k. After we closed, Marina helped us with qualified contractors who did amazing work at a great cost. Even today, as of writing this review, Marina continues to help me whenever I have questions about home improvement, real estate, etc. She did such an amazing job, that my parents ended up hiring Marina to help with their own properties.
In closing, Marina is not only an amazing real estate agent but also an amazing person. That goes a long way when you're making one of the most important purchases in your life.
Still reading? Alright get ready for this one.
One of my favorites stories with Marina was checking out a 7 bed, 5 bath close to the SAP center in San Jose. On paper this one looked like a winner, but the issue was the tenants were not allowing people to come inside which is why it had been on the market for so long. When we got there they were adamant on not letting us in, claiming no one had told them people were coming, they threw every excuse but the proverbial (but could have been literal at this point) kitchen sink. For the other realtors, it was clear why they said you had to purchase "as-is" - but not for Marina.
Marina was professional, courteous, and through some sort of mental kung fu convinced the tenants to let us in! What we saw was a complete disasters on the inside - while it had the rooms and bathrooms, the house was like an episode of hoarders got crossed with a zoo, complete with dogs in cages and rooms you couldn't even enter. The costs alone to deal with the issues would not net me a positive ROI.
