Sofia Estrada on lender shopping

One of my favorite success stories, a single mother, Sofia Estrada, and her experience with buying her first home, shares her journey with us and why talking to a few different lenders matters! 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Hello, everyone, and welcome. This is Bad Bath and Banter, Arizona Real Estate Edition. And I am so excited to have our first recorded customer testimonial, and so excited to introduce you to my very, very good friend now, which she was a client first, Miss Sophia Pinky Estrada. Hi, Sophia. How are you? Good. How are you? Thank you so much for having me. So excited. Wonderful. You came on my radio show uh last year and talked about your home buying experience. And I thought, how perfect. We might as well, you know, have you as my my first on my podcast. Um, you have a wonderful story, and I would love for everybody to hear it. So, first off, let's talk about how we met.

SPEAKER_01 0:51

So I was looking to buy a house and it was a little bit of a struggle. I was not an easy case. And I had gone through a couple of lenders, and I realized when my real estate agent told me, she's like, you know, you can shop around for lenders. And I'm like, What? I had no idea. I really wish they people really need to educate buyers about these things. So I went and I did just that. I started shopping around. I went to trustworthy Facebook, went to my Facebook group, and I asked for people. I said, listen, I'm looking for a lender that can meet my needs. And there was a couple of people that tagged you on it. And I'm like, you know what? Let me reach out to her. So I reached out to you. We had a conversation on the phone. And for me, right off the bat, I was like, okay, this is the one. And you said, Do you want to go meet in person or do you want to meet over the phone or over Zoom? And I'm like, in person, please. And you were all about that. So that's that's really what got me.

SPEAKER_00 2:00

Love it so much. And I always say, you know, whenever someone was on Facebook and asks for a realtor or a lender recommendation, there are 40,000 within five minutes. Uh, that's how aggressive our business is. So I'm like, oh, those don't work. But you are, I I've had a few that have worked and they've been wonderful that you are definitely my favorite success story of that. Exactly. I love it. And I said, it doesn't matter if you use me or not for your first-time home purchase. Uh we're gonna be funds and we're gonna do we're gonna do stuff together. So I'm so glad it worked out for all of them. You know, you did your loan through me, and now you know, I love what you do for a living, and that I'm able to refer you as well. Um, but let's just talk about your journey first and then we'll get into your vit mess.

SPEAKER_01 2:43

Okay, sounds good. So, I mean, really, when we, you and I met, I was obviously very confused. I was confused, I was frustrated, I was really discouraged, and you were just straight up, and you're like, listen, if you work with me, you're gonna get everything. You just told me that you were gonna explain everything specifics and hold my hand and simplify it without all the crazy jargon. If I'm not in the business, I don't understand. And everything that you said, you meant. Um, now it's, you know, even with like, hey, even if you don't work with me, we're still gonna be friends, we're gonna do something together. I felt the same way. I'm like, I don't know why this person came into my life, but she came into my life for a reason, and things have turned out better than I ever expected. And so the process for me after meeting with you, after going through three lenders, and where they had me spent unnecessary money that I spent, that I'm still a little, you know, could have used that for some furniture for the new house, but it's okay. Um, so after I met with you, just everything just started feeling more seamless. There was a lot of weight off my shoulders, and you were like every single step of the way. You never left me alone in the sense of, I don't know what's going on. I don't know what the next step is. And so that's what I really liked is that you held my hand through the entire process, and you're like, we're gonna figure this out, and everything is figure outable, and you figured it out. So it was amazing.

SPEAKER_00 4:30

C4 Slam, like it was actually quite, you know, it there was just a lot of pieces and a lot of uh structuring and niggling, and um just we had to use our brain power, you know, and that's where that's where the success and like the the real like it beats my heart where that comes into play. You know, someone comes to me and they're ready to rock and roll and they need no work whatsoever and they have money saved and blah, blah, blah, wonderful. Anybody can look great doing that. But when it's like the little, you know, oh, we have to massage certain things and we have to communicate, we have to work together. Um, and and I mean we got it done in what 30 days, and you're you've been in your house for gosh, it's been almost a year, hasn't it? Yes.

SPEAKER_01 5:11

I um officially we closed on Gap The Keys June uh July 22nd. I moved in uh August 1st, my birthday month, and it was an amazing birthday month, an amazing gift, and it just landed right on time and what I needed in my life, and I just couldn't believe it. And yeah, so we've been there almost a year, and it's just I'm still super happy with it, you know, because you know, when people you think that's the house that you love, and you're just afraid, it's a big lifetime purchase. And you know, eight, nine months later, I still love my house. I'm super excited for what I can do with the house. There's so much that that we can get done, and the neighborhood is amazing. And I'm just super uber grateful that we got into this house. Like you have no idea.

SPEAKER_00 6:04

Well, and before you met with me, you already had an accepted contract with your real school agent's preferred lender. Um, and you were kind of going through the process, and you were just like, I don't know, I'm not comfortable with this. Let me get a second opinion. And uh, if I memory serves me correctly, what he was trying to do with you was it was gonna cost you way too much money for no real benefit for you.

SPEAKER_01 6:31

It was they wanted to one, I didn't even he didn't even explain the type of loan I was getting, he didn't explain the the down payment that I needed, he didn't explain any of it. So I was just trusting him blindly, and most of the business was being done through text message. Yeah. And I, you know, yes, we're in 2026, people don't pick up the phone, they don't communicate, it's all through text message. I'm cool with that too. But when it comes to a lifetime purchase like this, I need to at least meet you once in person. Like buy me some coffee and explain these things. So there was, it was gonna cost a lot of money. So there was a lot of red flags. Um, I you tried consulting with other people and you're like, this doesn't sound right. Um, he also had me pay off a whole bunch of credit cards unnecessarily, paid them completely off because it was gonna work and it was gonna make my credit better, and none of it, none of it worked. And even when I uh we actually had put in a contract for one house uh with this with this lender, and there was just a lot of just led red flags that told me, you know what, I need to pull out of this, pulled out of that contract, and he never really responded. Um no nothing. It was just really just cold and dry, and that's not what I needed at that time, right? I needed a namey.

SPEAKER_00 8:06

Oh, I love that, and I'm so happy we found each other um because I needed you to. I just didn't know it yet. So um, so you trusted your gut, which is what I preach all of the time on this show. Trust your gut and get a second opinion. Leave. If something doesn't feel right, just make a phone call. It doesn't hurt anything to just make sure you're feeling comfortable about this huge financial decision you're about to make, and that you're comfortable with the information they're getting to you.

SPEAKER_01 8:37

Yeah, because people don't realize that some, you know, and I let other lenders know, like, hey, I'm now starting to shop around for lenders, and it's kind of like a doctor. Doctor says, Hey, this is your diagnosis, this is all I can do for you. It's like, okay, this is all you can do for me. Let me shop around and let me look at other doctors and see what they can offer me and do for me. So I didn't know that I can shop around. I'm super glad I did. And now I know and I tell everybody, I'm like, please shop around for lenders, somebody that fits you and your needs. You might be good with the other guy that just does this entire transaction through a text messages, but it wasn't for me.

SPEAKER_00 9:23

Agreed completely. So, um, what advice would you give other than shopping for someone that was in your position? On what do you wish that people would have told you?

SPEAKER_01 9:35

Um, I really is knowing exactly what you want, but also being okay with getting something that you didn't think you would have liked. So, what you think you like in a house or a location. For me, I really did my research. I anytime that I decided on a house, I was a little crazy. And I would drive around the neighborhood. I would drive past the house during the daytime. I would drive past the house at the nighttime. That might be a little bit extra for some people. It's just finding somebody that fits you, finding a real estate agent that fits you, fits your personality. Um, so that really all depends on you and knowing what your goals and your needs are, and finding a lender that will go the extra mile for you. Um, a lot of things that I wish I would have known is that is you can shop for lenders. You can also shop with real estate for a real estate agent, um, unless you sign a contract with them. So never sign a contract right off the bat. Like just kind of just hunt and see, hey, who's gonna be my best fit? And also making sure that it fits within your budget. Because yes, maybe a lender will say, Yes, you can afford this, but only because I can afford it now doesn't mean it's the right thing. So I think a lender, and something that I wish I would have known, is having somebody a lender or somebody to say, hey, you know what? Yes, you can you might be able to afford $5,000 a month, but this is gonna be what's best for you at $3,000. So for me, it's the mission before the commission. I love that. I might be stealing that at the LLC doing it. Do it, and that's yeah, that's it's for me, it's heart-centered. I don't want to feel like a transaction. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 11:38

And I don't know why anybody would want to feel that way. But like you said, a lot of people just don't know and they blindly follow whatever referral they get. Um, even if they feel uncomfortable or know something's off, they just don't act on it on the biggest purchase of their life. I I can't help you on that. So I'm glad you listened to your dad.

SPEAKER_01 11:58

Yeah. Oh yeah, me too.

SPEAKER_00 12:00

Me too. Another thing, and we're gonna talk about your business for a minute. Um, another thing that really drew me to you was your passion for what you do for a living. So not only was I like, okay, great, I wanna, I want to make her dream of homeownership come true, and I want to be a part of that story for her. Um, I love what you do and why you do it, and I want to contribute to that. So, what is it that you do for a living?

SPEAKER_01 12:26

Oh, thank you. So I am a life insurance and wealth management. Well, I own a life insurance and wealth management company. And so the way our approach is is an educational approach. And when I first got my life insurance license, I thought I'm just gonna be selling life insurance and that's it. I realized that it was so much more. Um, I became a broker where I have access to a lot of carriers and different solutions for our clients. But the reason that I really, really became passionate about it is when I started learning the financial education that goes behind all of these strategies, including life insurance. You wouldn't think that life insurance is a financial strategy, but it is. So I started learning a lot of financial concepts that I wish I would have learned a long time ago. Um, I remember when I was learning the financial concepts, very basic ones, like the rule of 72, learning about compound interest. I was excited and I was pissed off at the same time.

SPEAKER_00 13:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Because I'm like, wait a minute, hold up. How come I didn't learn this in high school? I didn't learn this in college. I why didn't anybody teach us this? And as I was getting licensed, as I was getting, you know, doing my state exam and learning all these concepts, I get a phone call from my dad. And he was one year away from retirement. Uh, he was gonna be 65 years old, and he thought he had all his ducks in a row. And I don't know who has ducks, but none of us have any. But who he had all his ducks in a row and is gonna pay his credit cards and just retire a year later and you know, right off the sunset. Uh but then he called me and he's like, hey, I have bad news. He's like, I just got laid off for my job. After working there for 20 years, blood, sweat, and tears, no 401k, no pension plan, no severance package, no thank you, nothing set for himself. And that for us was a really, really hard pill to swallow. And that was really the moment that I knew I'm gonna teach education, financial literacy for the rest of my life. Because if somebody would have reproached my parents with the strategies that we teach, it would have changed the trajectory of their retirement. And nobody ever taught my dad. You know, I would ask them certain questions. How come you don't have this in place? He's like, I thought it was a scam. How come you don't have the? I thought this is the way it worked. And I'm like, oh my gosh. If somebody would have taught him, and that's where my passion comes, is really teaching the middle class. And those are the most that needed, like teaching the middle class of what solutions and strategies that we can do so we can break the poverty cycle. It takes, you know, it takes three generations to break the poverty cycle, and we're starting to, you know, it's gonna take three generations to create some wealth, and we're starting that with my son. So we're changing for your journey.

SPEAKER_00 15:45

I mean, you had a down payment for a house, which actually isn't that calm. You know, people really struggle to come up with the money to buy a house, you know, even though it's only, you know, $10,000 or $15,000. That's a lot of money. And the through your avenues with your business and your life insurance products, you were able to see well over that over the timeframe that you worked on it. And you were able to bring in your own down payment on your very first home at your age. That's incredible.

SPEAKER_01 16:16

Thank you. Yeah, I was so lucky. Um, you know, it in not just becoming an agent and getting license. It really, really has benefited me and my family. And like you said, I when you said this is a down payment, and I said, I have it. Where's it coming from? From my life insurance contract. And that's really for me really powerful to share that because, like you said, I would have had to scramble and I was desperate to get into a house. I would have had to scramble. And I don't think we would have been able to have it have that happen if I didn't have that solution set in place that I set in place years ago.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

I love it. I love it so much. Well, I obviously, you know, encourage anyone I talk to to talk to you. Uh I'm a huge fan of the life insurance cash value products that you uh offer. And I mean, I've had mine personally for gosh, I'm old, but like 20 years, 22 years. Um, and it has a you know life insurance uh amount and then it has a cash value amount. So over the 20 years, whatever I put into it, it's all there plus some. Yeah. And you know, the financial aspect of it is, you know, you're doing it and you're rocking it. And I'm so proud of you.

SPEAKER_01 17:44

Thank you. Thank you so much. I love this partnership. And thank you so much for having me on your radio show and your podcast. And I'll do it again and again.

SPEAKER_00 17:54

Yay! Thank you, Sophia, for making me look good. I appreciate you. And so you want to reach anyone on our team at any time. You can find us online at keeping it realistate with ndb.com. And I would absolutely love if you have any interest or desire to learn more about the products that Sophia offers, please reach out to me and I will get you per information. What is your website, Sophia?

SPEAKER_01 18:17

PinkySophia.com, P-I-N-K-Y-S-O-F-I-A.com is my personal website. We like to keep it fun and I'm just your life insurance bestie.

SPEAKER_00 18:30

Making life insurance make sense. You cannot forget Pinky for sure. Um, I don't call her Pinky, but that actually is her name. So you can call her Sophia Pinky. Just make sure you call her. Thank you so much for joining us at that and bancer and have a diplomat.