The year was 2002, and I was a brand new single mom. My son was born 3 months before, and he and I were living in an apartment in North Dallas. It had two stories. So there I was, carrying that baby carrier, groceries, formula, water bottles, and diapers up and down two flights every day. I was working as a dental hygienist at the same job I had been at for a decade, but things were so much more difficult with my new addition. My son was not really a planned circumstance (even though God had planned him), and his biological father and I did not work out. My kind parents offered to watch him for me while I worked, but they lived in Irving, and the daily haul was time-consuming and stressful. My father asked, “Why don’t you buy a house?” It’s funny, but I never thought about buying my own home. I thought it was something you do when you get married, etc. The process seemed overwhelming. I started to look in Irving and called about a house that I saw a sign for in the front yard. The REALTOR® who answered the phone was so sweet. She walked me through the entire process. She told me how to get a loan and put me in touch with financing. She showed me several homes until we found the perfect one. She did all the paperwork and advised me through the inspection. The day after my closing, I remember thinking, “Wow! This place is mine! I can’t believe it!” My son and I had our OWN place. It was monumental. I told that REALTOR®, " You have the best job ever. How fulfilling it must be to put people in their own home. It was just a little 1300 square foot 3 bedroom 2 bath in South Irving, and I loved it! We had a tiny backyard with a covered patio and enough space to put a guest room when family wanted to come spend the night. My mortgage payment was only about 75.00 more than my apartment rent. Why would anyone ever rent at all?
As the years went by, I met a wonderful man, got married, had two more children, acquired two dogs, and we all upsized together into a larger home. I never forgot the amazing experience, though, of that first home purchase. It was just so life-changing. I got my real estate license in 2010 and have had the amazing opportunity to put many buyers into their very first home. I devoured information regarding down payment assistance programs, mortgage help for first-time homebuyers, and help for community service employees, teachers, firemen, and police officers. I spent hours in education learning contract negotiations, multiple offer situations, and changing market conditions. I joined my children’s PTAs at their schools, aligned myself with community outreach services with my church, and carefully researched my neighborhood. Along the way, investors reached out to me and asked me to find them properties so they could put them up as rentals, and I learned about property management. I became well-versed in home staging and diligently searched for reliable and good contractors to add to my contact portfolio. In 2022, I decided to take staging to a new level and entered Interior Design School at Dallas College. I rented a warehouse and opened my own staging company, " Sonya's Simply Elegant Home Staging. Now I offered staging for all my listings. My husband and I also became investors, so we learned the market from a new perspective. I learned about roofing, HVAC units, foundation repair, peeling paint, and electrical panels. I brushed up on my Spanish and learned the ins and outs of title work. I immersed myself in every aspect of Real Estate to further help my clients. If I did not know the answer to something, I researched until I found it.
I love my job. There is something magical about putting someone in a home. It’s life-changing. I’ve had many clients who were so memorable and wonderful. Everyone deserves the American Dream. Their own home.
