NextHome Park Place Homes Group  |  Midland, Michigan

Call Me First.

A not-so-subtle reminder that I do a lot more than put signs in yards.

Let me set the scene.

Someone you know is thinking about making a move. Maybe they drive past a house with a sign and wonder what it's listed for. Maybe they've been casually thinking about selling for a year but haven't told anyone. Maybe an agent contacts them with what sounds like a perfect opportunity and things just kind of... happen.

And then it's done. Papers signed. Agent hired. House listed or home purchased.

Without a single phone call to me.

I get it. Life moves fast. Opportunities appear. People assume I only care about listings and closings and commission checks. (For the record: I care about people. The rest is paperwork.)

But here is what I want every single person in my world to know, written down in a place they can bookmark and share and come back to: you can call me first. For almost anything.

Let me explain what that actually looks like.

1. You don't have to be actively looking to call me.

I know. Groundbreaking.

Real estate people are conditioned to only reach out when they need something. I understand that. Nobody wants to feel like they are inviting a sales pitch into their inbox. But I promise that is not what a call to me sounds like.

If you are driving down a street in Midland or Bay City or Freeland and you see a sign and you wonder what they are asking, call me. I will tell you in about forty-five seconds and we will probably also end up talking about something completely unrelated to real estate, because that is just how these conversations go.

If you are at a cookout near the Tridge and someone mentions they heard about a great deal, call me before you start Googling things at midnight. (Midnight Zillow spirals never end well. I say this with love.)

Curiosity is a perfectly valid reason to pick up the phone.

2. I do more than houses. Much more.

People ask me all the time what I actually do. Honestly? I solve problems. Sometimes those problems involve a house. Sometimes they involve someone's bathroom ceiling and a plumber who actually shows up.

I have spent years building a network across the Tri-Cities region specifically so you do not have to post "does anyone know a good electrician" on Facebook and hope for the best. Here are a few things you can legitimately call me about:

●       A reliable painter, plumber, handyman, or contractor

●       A dog sitter who will not lose your golden retriever

●       A landscaper for the yard that has gotten away from you

●       A good local moving company

●       An honest opinion on whether that renovation is worth it before you spend the money

I am Shelley, broker-owner of NextHome Park Place Homes Group in Midland, Michigan. I have been working in this community long enough to know the people worth calling and the ones worth avoiding. That knowledge is yours to use. Just ask.

3. Before you sign a buyer's agent agreement, call me.

This one is important, so I am going to say it plainly.

Real estate has changed in the past year. Buyer's agent agreements are now a standard part of the process, and once you sign one, you are in one. That is not inherently a bad thing, but it matters who you sign with and what you are signing.

Another agent might approach you with a house they know about. An opportunity that looks to good to resist.  Things that move fast and feel exciting and make paperwork feel like a formality. And maybe it really is wonderful.

But a five-minute call before you sign anything could save you a very uncomfortable conversation later. And I am being polite when I describe it that way.

I am not asking you to be loyal out of obligation. I am asking you to give yourself the benefit of a conversation with someone who you know, who knows your situation, your neighborhood, and what things are actually worth across Midland County, Bay City, Saginaw County, and everywhere in between. That is it. Five minutes.

4. Get your home value from someone who knows your home.

If you want to know what your home is worth, please do not let Zillow be the last word on the subject.

Zillow has never been inside your house. It does not know that you finished the basement or put in a new roof or that your neighbor's overgrown hedges are affecting the way buyers see your street. It pulls numbers from public data and makes an educated guess, and sometimes that guess is in the right ballpark, and sometimes it is off by forty thousand dollars. It is not lying to you. It just does not actually know.

I pull real comparable sales from your actual neighborhood. I look at what has sold, what is pending, what is sitting, and what it all means for your specific situation. And I will tell you the truth, not a number designed to flatter you into a listing.

To be fair, there is a version of this where I do the work for you every month without you having to ask. I send free monthly home value updates to anyone who wants them. It takes ten seconds to get on the list and costs you nothing, and when the time does come to think about a move, you will already have a realistic number in your head instead of a Zillow estimate and a lot of questions.  And better yet, if the number looks off to you, I am quick phone call to run through it and get you a real, “feet on the ground” value, not a Tuesday Zillow value.

5. Moving out of state? Want an up north cottage?  Still call me.

I know what you are thinking. "She can't help me if I'm moving to Nashville."

In reality, I can. Not by getting my Tennessee license overnight, but by connecting you with the right agent in the right market before you spend three weekends at open houses with someone who doesn't quite fit.

I am part of a national network of agents who operate the way I do: people-first, no pressure, actual human beings who know their local markets. When someone I care about is making a move to another state, I make a call on their behalf. I find them someone I would personally trust with my own family's transaction.

You don't have to just pick a stranger from the internet. Call me first. I'll find you someone good.

6. Thinking about an area you don't think I cover? Call me anyway.

NextHome Park Place Homes Group serves the Tri-Cities area and surrounding communities: Midland, Bay City, Saginaw, Freeland, Hemlock, Merrill, Beaverton, Mount Pleasant, Sanford and more.  That is a lot of geography.

But even if you are thinking somewhere outside that footprint, call me before you assume I can't help. The worst that happens is I point you to exactly the right person. The best that happens is you find out I cover more ground than you thought.

The short version.

I built this business on the idea that humans come before houses. That means being useful to the people in my world whether or not there is a transaction involved. It means answering the call at 7pm when someone has a question about an offer they just received. It means knowing enough plumbers that I never have to say "sorry, I don't know."

What it does not mean is waiting by the phone hoping you remember I exist when you are ready to make a move.

So consider this your standing invitation. If you have a question that starts with "I wonder if Shelley would know about this", the answer is probably yes. And if it's not, I will find out who does.

Call me first.

I promise I'm easy to talk to.

Broker-Owner, NextHome Park Place Homes Group

Serving Midland, Bay City, Saginaw, and the surrounding Tri-Cities region in mid-Michigan.

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