It's a great pleasure for us to write this letter in support of Karen Sommerfeld's work as a broker in the Santa Cruz area community. Nine years ago when we purchased our unique property in downtown Santa Cruz, Karen was our personal broker. Today, she is our personal broker and personal friend.

We don't think we are a great deal different from most homebuyers. It is the biggest financial transaction we can make: we can't afford a mistake. We want a property that will respond to our personalities, attitudes, values, and priorities. When purchasing a home, we don't want to be surprised later by unexpected repairs and damages. This is especially true in an earthquake zone like Santa Cruz.

When we came to Santa Cruz, a friend gave us the best advice we could have received when she recommended we contact Karen. The best advise we could have received. We were coming in from Tucson, Arizona and didn't know Santa Cruz county properties, their costs and values. Although we saw ourselves as careful, thoughtful buyers, we did feel vulnerable because there were so many things to "look out for."

Our overwhelm and anxieties began to decline immediately when we met Karen's smile and her warm welcome. As webegan to work together, and experience her expertise about a wide-range of properties, and get her guidance about how to proceed methodically toward finding what we wanted, we felt a great release and experienced the excitement of our search much more fully.

Karen urged us to fully relate our smallest as well as our greatest priorities. Her work was to really listen and understand our needs, even when we had trouble articulating them. She never seemed tired, and showed us a wide-range of possibilities as we began to focus ever more clearly on what we wanted. When we felt we might not find what we wanted, she urged patience, and insisted that what we wanted would be there.

When we did find the house we wanted, Karen devised the strategy to buy it. She knew exactly the value of the home, and helped us buy it at a considerably lower price than the seller's broker wanted.

Karen magically managed the paperwork, property repairs, and all the stuff that goes into the transfer of ownership. She walked us seamlessly through the mortgage and purchasing processes. She identified a contractor who did exceptional repair, termite damage reconstruction, and added improvements we wanted.

As though the above, and so much more, was not enough. When we went back to Tucson to prepare for moving to Santa Cruz, Karen went over to our house the morning our house was tented for spraying against termites, and removed all our shrubbery that had been mistakenly put under the tent. If she hadn't, all of our shrubs would have died. What service. How thoughtful.

One caution. Karen carries a cooler and snacks in her car to support those times out looking at prospective homes. If you're not careful, you might gain a couple of pounds. She loves to nurture you.

Sincerely,
Marion & Dick Vittitow