Sometimes Being a Realtor Has Nothing to Do With Selling a House

In June of 1999, homeowners in the Landmark Tract in Huntington Beach received a letter they had been waiting years to receive.

The land beneath their homes was finally going to become theirs.

It should have been great news.

Instead, the questions started almost immediately.

For years, these homeowners had been making yearly payments under a land lease and purchase agreement. Now they were being told that fee title to the land would finally be transferred to them—but there were costs involved, procedures that weren't entirely clear, and deadlines that could affect homeowners who were trying to refinance or sell.

And suddenly, our phone started ringing.

Do we pay this bill now or wait?

When will we actually receive title?

What happens if we're refinancing?

Are these fees necessary?

Who do we call?

Some of the people asking us these questions were clients. Some were past clients. Others were simply homeowners in the Landmark Tract, a neighborhood we had been serving for years.

None of them were calling because they wanted to list their home.

They were calling because they needed help.

We Went to Work

So we went to work.

We reviewed the original land lease and purchase agreements. We spoke with First Team's attorneys and legal staff. We contacted the lease servicing company, the title company and representatives involved with the transfer.

And then we kept homeowners informed.

That turned out to be important, because the process wasn't as simple as everyone had hoped.

Weeks passed.

Homeowners who wanted to refinance were waiting. Others had sent in money but still hadn't received their deeds. There were questions about fees, title insurance and when the transfers would actually be recorded.

So we kept making calls.

And we kept sending updates.

At one point, a representative involved in the process wasn't particularly happy with us. We had been asking a lot of questions and communicating what we learned to a lot of homeowners.

But our responsibility wasn't to make the process more comfortable for the companies involved.

Our responsibility was to the homeowners.

Eventually, the call we had been waiting for came.

Chicago Title had begun recording Grant Deeds to the individual homeowners.

The land beneath their homes was finally becoming theirs.

What the Homeowners Kept Saying

Looking back at those emails from 1999, what stands out to us isn't the paperwork or even the months spent following the issue.

It's what the homeowners kept saying:

"Thanks for keeping in touch."

"Thanks for all the hard work."

"Thanks for all your efforts."

That's the part of real estate we have always believed matters most.

After serving homeowners in Huntington Beach for decades, we've learned that a Realtor's value shouldn't begin when you decide to sell your home and disappear when escrow closes.

Sometimes you need someone who remembers how your neighborhood was developed.

Sometimes you need someone who knows the history behind an unusual land lease, title or property issue.

And sometimes you simply need someone who will pick up the phone, start asking questions and stay with it until you get an answer.

More than 25 years later, we're still here.

We're still helping homeowners in the Landmark Tract and throughout Huntington Beach.

And we're still answering the phone.

Because helping you with your home isn't always about selling it. Sometimes it's simply about being there when you need us.

— The Brant Team