When Wendy Matthews talks about her work in real estate, she describes not a job but a calling. Her passion and experience help produce many happy endings for her clients in San Diego’s notoriously tight market.
Wendy details an experience with a client, Cathy Hertica, who, like so many of her clients, has since become a friend. Cathy was widowed and wanted to move from Arizona to San Diego quickly to be closer to her daughter, who referred her to Wendy. Wendy says she typically discourages people from making a big decision after a loss, but agreed to help. Within days, Wendy sent her new client some San Diego listings. Cathy responded to one of them immediately -- "that’s my house" -- and boarded a plane the next day to see it.
The trouble was that the sellers were already in negotiation with another buyer. Wendy asked the sellers’ agent to slow down the paperwork. The next day, after "the quickest look at a house that I have ever seen,” Cathy signed an all cash offer that Wendy had partially prepared beforehand and completed with Cathy right after viewing the property. Wendy texted a cellphone photo of the offer to the sellers’ agent from her car.
For fifteen minutes, Cathy and Wendy waited in the car for a response. “Each second, I could feel her anxiety, and I felt my own.” Her preparation paid off. A message appeared on screen: “my client has decided to accept your offer.”
This September, just before Cathy moved into her new home, Wendy arranged a wine and cheese party of family and neighbors to welcome her client into the community.
In addition to passion and experience, Wendy attributes much of her current success to learning from others.
Before starting in real estate five years ago as a “rookie” in unfamiliar territory, Wendy was a 25 year corporate marketing executive for large tech companies.
After she and her husband moved to Southern California to be closer to their granddaughter, she decided to find a new career as well. Fresh off of her recent move and the ups and downs of selling and buying, she felt drawn to the real estate business.
After earning her license, Wendy joined Bennion Deville Homes, where she felt lucky to meet Joe Wogoman, currently Real’s regional growth leader in Southern California. He quickly became a friend and mentor. “Having Joe as a mentor was like having a safety net under me as I got my bearings,” she says.
At this point in her career, having closed sales for dozens of clients, Wendy says she continues to be grateful for her professional community, the kind of community that Real makes possible, and for the opportunity to help people find the house that will become their home. And, she says, she's grateful for new friends she makes along the way.
Written by Elly Eisenberg
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