Bert en Nicole

It was a great house

Before we bought this property, we lived in a lovely 1930s corner house in Haarlem Noord, says Nicole. Over the past few years, we had completely renovated this house and made it our own. It was a nice house, but over the years, with three children now, we began to feel a bit cramped for space. However, for us to move, something really special had to come our way. Our wish list was quite long, so we didn’t think this would be achievable for us.

When a property in our former street sold for a significant amount, we started to feel intrigued. We cautiously thought, “Maybe our house is worth more than we think, and maybe taking the next step is possible.” Thanks to the equity, we ultimately had a larger budget than we initially thought. A more spacious corner house with at least 4 bedrooms, a sunny deep garden, garage, and driveway in the Haarlem-Noord or Santpoort area suddenly seemed much closer.

Nicole shares:

“We had quite a few specific requirements; our list was long. So, we didn’t expect to find something that met our criteria quickly. But we secretly started keeping an eye on Funda. The ‘special something’ came much quicker than expected when we stumbled upon this beautiful 1930s house while scrolling through Funda.

I then called the selling real estate agent myself to inquire if the property was still available. It turned out the property was still for sale, viewings had already started, but we could visit the property. The next day, Bert and I rushed to the property with the idea that this probably wouldn’t be feasible for us anyway. That’s why our expectations weren’t very high as we headed to the property.

We didn’t expect the first house we viewed to be a perfect fit, but in hindsight, it was. As we walked through the house, our hearts raced. It felt just right immediately, and we were wildly enthusiastic. But buying a house isn’t something you do every day, so we wanted to enlist the help of a real estate agent to advise us on this property.

That’s when we turned to Leef! for their expertise. I knew Suzanne from the schoolyard. Our kids were in the same class, and I knew she was a real estate agent at Leef. I immediately thought of her when we needed advice on purchasing this property. From that moment, things moved quickly. Suzanne also visited the property so she could advise us well on its structural condition and value. It was a nerve-wracking process where we were allowed to make a one-time offer on the property.

We didn’t think our offer would be accepted because we expected the property to ultimately sell for a higher amount. But Suzanne said, if you want to make an offer, you should just try. By offering good terms and accommodating the sellers’ sale preferences regarding the longer delivery time, we significantly increased our chances.

Ultimately, we wrote a nice letter to the sellers introducing ourselves and explaining we were so interested to buy their property to enter our next phase of living.

I will never forget the moment I heard that we were the buyers. I was waiting for my kids on the schoolyard, and Suzanne called me and asked if I was sitting down… Then she told me the good news: we got the property.

I will never forget that moment; I was so happy, and it felt very surreal.

We didn’t have the highest bid but we had the best terms. We never thought this would be possible for us.

The second step

Then came the second step: selling our current home. We found this quite nerve-wracking. Despite making a safe calculation we secretly hoped for a higher selling price.

Because the delivery of our new home was half a year later, we had time to prepare carefully. Suzanne came to see us again, this time with colleague Willemijn, so there was always a real estate agent who was informed about everything and ready to help us if we had any questions. The support and collaboration with Leef!’s back office was also very nice; everything was well-coordinated, and we were kept well informed throughout the entire sales process.

Thanks to the smooth collaboration and expert sales strategy, we had confidence in the sales process. Our house was sold within 2 weeks of being listed.

Recommending Leef! Makelaars

I can recommend Leef! Makelaars to anyone who plans to buy or sell a house. I did in fact, when neighbors a few houses down expressed their plans to move. A few months later, their house was also listed with Leef! and the sale was successful.

Throughout the entire process, we had confidence in Leef!’s guidance. They are nice people who pay attention to detail and go the extra mile for you. Truly recommended!