Apr 15, 2024
★
★
★
★
★
Our journey in search of an Idaho home started in 2019. Over the years we made a seemingly endless number of trips from the Seattle area to northern Idaho to look at houses. Spending weekends in Idaho turned out to be its own reward. All the trips we made helped us solidify what we wanted and where we’d like it to be. We visited the Parade of Homes annually, and usually combined that event with viewing a list of our own selections with Lisa. We camped in our RV on some trips and stayed in hotels during others.
We’d have long conversations about houses and areas, cullying properties out of the lists of potentials. We’d send Lisa listings; she’d send some our way. When something seemed time sensitive, she’d go to the property and Facetime with us. Sometimes that saved us a trip and others it prompted us to make a mad dash for Idaho to see it in person. It got to the point where I could send Lisa a listing and say little more than, I’d like to know all the usual stuff. She knew exactly what we wanted to know.
COVID put a damper on the search, but not an end. As travel restrictions lifted and people started opening back up, we were back in business. Over that time period, we put in offers on four houses. We didn’t get any of them. When our spirits were low, Lisa’s were always high. We gave up so many times, but she continued to stand by us. I apologized often for taking up so much of her time, and for dragging her all over northern Idaho. I thought she’d drop us as clients more than once. She had nothing but encouragement for us, that and a healthy dose of empathy.
In January of this year, we spotted a house that looked right. We went to see it on the coldest weekend in decades. An arctic storm had the entire US in its grips. The temperature was 15 degrees below zero the morning we went to see the house. The ground was covered in snow. In all we looked at four houses that day, but we made the trip to see the house we would make an offer on and eventually purchase. I’m sure we would not be moving to Idaho without Lisa’s help, encouragement, and above all else her friendship. Maybe the best part of this journey is that we already have a friend in Idaho when we get there.
