TESTIMONIALS
“Sharron is simply a superb real estate agent. She has excellent and thorough knowledge of the DC/MD/VA market, which she imparts in a way which is easy to understand. She guided us through every aspect of selling our house with such calm and competence that we always felt relaxed and totally confident in the process. We ended up with two extraordinary offers, and she handled the negotiations so skillfully, we ended up with a much higher sale price than we ever could have imagined! Honestly, it was extraordinary. She is very cheerful and patient and just an utter delight to work with - we highly recommend all her services!” Barbara K.
"We recently downsized to a condominium, and Sharron Cochran did a wonderful job representing us as buyers, and then selling our home of 28 years. She knows the market well, recommended a great stager, priced our home correctly, and sold it for us in two days for well over the asking price. Of course, we highly recommend her. She was completely available to us throughout the entire process, and has a wealth of information for buyers and sellers. Selling a home today is much more complicated than in prior years, and having a knowledgeable and professional agent like Sharron is so important. We can't thank her enough for all her hard work." Walker & Deborah N.
"After interviewing several real estate brokers for the sale of our Westmoreland Hills home, my husband and I selected Sharron Cochran to represent us. Her careful preparation before listing our home was very impressive, including the luncheon she hosted for other brokers to preview the house, the professional photographs and virtual tour, the "staging" of our house, and the attractive, well-written descriptive material available on site to potential buyers. Sharron is very detail-oriented, extremely personable and in every respect, a consummate professional. We recommend her with enthusiasm and without reservation." Bob & Sarah M.
"We first hired Sharron as our buyer's agent when we started looking for a new house for the first time in 18 years. In contrast to our first buying experience, we found her to be extremely knowledgeable and insightful, without applying any pressure on us. We benefited from her thoughts about the homes we visited and she expertly guided us through the negotiation process. We were thrilled to ultimately end up in a great new home at a great price. After we moved, we needed to rent our old house so we hired Sharron as our listing agent. Once again, working with Sharron was a great decision as she provided valuable advice and service provider referrals to help us get our house in listing condition, and then she prepared an attractive listing and made herself very available to show our house to prospective tenants. Sharron found us a qualified tenant in just a few weeks and smoothly handled the rental paperwork and hand-off process. After trying out being a landlord for a couple of years, we engaged Sharron to sell our rental property. She did an expert job of staging and marketing the house; we received five bids after the open house and sold it for 6% above our asking price. I can't recommend Sharron enough as a trusted real estate advisor." Chris & Francesca R.
"I highly recommend Sharron Cochran for anyone looking for a real estate broker who will close the deal. Sharron left no stone unturned during the sale of my property. I secured Sharron’s services after another realtor was not able to sell my property. She jumped in with zeal, conducting open houses every weekend and getting her coworkers to cover them when she had scheduling conflicts. She is always available by telephone or email, and kindly answers any questions that arise. Although Sharron could not advise me on [the legal issue of] the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), she sent me numerous information sheets that helped me build a foundation of knowledge before I spoke with an attorney. In sum, Sharron is a smart, passionate, personable, and thorough real estate agent whose expertise got my property sold with ease." Abra M.
"Sharron’s contributions to selling our house began long before we engaged her as our listing agent. We had met her at one of her open houses, mentioned that we were thinking of moving at some time in the future and asked whether she might give us some advice on how to make our house more marketable. She visited us and gave us a wide range of professional advice – paint colors to change, furniture arrangements to consider (such as arranging the living room so eight people could sit down), wallpaper to remove, etc. Because we started working on these projects almost a year before we finally decided to sell, we were able to move very quickly when we finally found a house in Michigan. In fact, after we called Sharron from on the road to say that we had made a bid and were finally ready to sell our house in Bethesda, we arrived home to find that she had already had the gutters cleaned and yard blown free of leaves and ready for an open house just a few days later. She acted with equal speed to get a spectacular set of pictures taken of the house and to prepare an impressive sales brochure. At every stage of the sale, Sharron did much more than we expected. She gave us expert advice on pricing our house, told us when to lower the price, and the slight reduction she recommended resulted in a full-price offer for that amount, with no contingencies. She never failed to follow up on all leads and expressions of interest in the house, and she gave us great advice about how to stage the house using our own furniture and possessions. Her perspective was realistic but very positive, and she made us feel confident that our buyer would appear before long. Sharron made all the paperwork - the listing agreement, the offer for the house and the closing documents - easy to understand. Experience counts, and in this instance, Sharron’s time in the business made us confident that we were in good hands. After we had partially moved to Michigan, Sharron generously appeared at our house to let in various inspectors and workers, and she even lent us her cleaning person to prepare the house for the final walk-through. She also introduced us to the people who helped sell the furniture that we did not plan to take to our new house. Working with Sharron was just a great experience, and we think of her as a friend as well as our realtor. We would recommend her with great enthusiasm to anyone thinking of selling a home in the Bethesda area." Jerry B. & Deborah D.
"Sharron Cochran was suggested to us in 2005 when we looked for our first home together. She is a wonderful listener and takes a lot of time to not only solicit her clients' wish list but also actively edit based on feedback from suggestions. Sharron is extremely practical and down to earth but also very tactful. She has a great eye for not only seeing gems but also identifying challenges and their fixes. Like any good matchmaker, she wants to find the best fit - her list of "serious potentials" for us resulted in making a great home in a wonderful neighborhood. 7 years and 3 children later, it was time to find a larger house that was better suited for our expanded family. Given our limited time to house search, Sharron personally previewed the homes she recommended to us and made sure to provide to us the reasons why each place was worth a second look: including any pros and cons about each property. This attention to detail found us another wonderful place and neighborhood to call home in short order. Additionally, her help to get our new house ready and make our move as smooth as possible (as it can be with three toddlers) was invaluable. When it came to selling our "1st house" - partnering with Sharron was a no-brainer. Her suggestions for small, easy, and cost-effective updates made a huge impact on how our house showed to potential buyers and resulted in a contact in 3 weeks. Her Rolodex of resources can't be beat and she is wonderful member of your team whether you buy or sell. We couldn't recommend her more highly." Alix & Ben S.
"We really enjoyed working with you on both the sale and purchase of our home/s. Our decision to move was very sudden and we were on a tight timeline. You seemed to drop everything, and dove into an intense home search on very short notice. You provided perspective and focus we needed to make quick but critical decisions. We appreciated your assistance with the buyers of our old home, who were working without an agent. Your support, guidance, and attention to detail (from financing scenarios to helping obtain contractor estimates) enabled us to manage all of the logistics and tasks involved with moving, with efficiency and confidence. The best part is that we love our new home and neighbors!" Suzanne & Chris R.
"Now that that this sale has been successfully completed, we are writing to commend you, on the record, and express our gratitude for your truly outstanding services as our broker in this matter. Over a period of fifty years, we have bought and/or sold real estate in Maryland, Florida, Illinois, New Mexico and Puerto Rico and dealt with many brokers in the process. But nothing in our history can compare to the complexity and difficulty we faced in this sale under the now prevailing laws, regulations, taxation and procedure of Montgomery County and Maryland. There were even more challenges in completing the preparation, marketing and sale of this particular property. We were over a thousand miles away here in Florida and so all the myriad details fell on you. The house needed a lot of painting and other repairs, staging and presentation of the listing, all of which you supervised – skillfully and thoroughly. When you formally listed it in late August, you achieved an offer within hours, at a price of more than15% over the listing price, and from a well-qualified buyer. The only hitch was in dealing with the Veterans Administration who financed the purchase. This added more complexity, requirements and inspections, which you handled flawlessly. We did not attend the closing and you represented us there without flaw. You were always responsive, efficient and cheerful. No detail was too small and no difficulty was too great for you. It was a rare pleasure to work with a true professional of such high standards, thoroughness and patience. Thank you, Sharron! " David & Tess D.
"I was impressed at the patience, knowledge, calm, and determination that Sharron showed—both in helping us find our “dream house” and in selling our existing home in the current market. She constantly was on the lookout for us, gave us candid assessments of properties from her vast experience, spent many weekends and evenings showing us new listings, and showed understanding and learned quickly from it when a property did not meet our criteria. She also created a highly professional and eye-catching brochure for our existing home, placed ads in numerous fruitful sources, and attracted a lot of interest among home-buyers. Moreover, she gave us savvy advice on pricing and display of our existing home and recommended several terrific contractors. We’re grateful for all her assistance and with the results of all her hard work—we’ve sold our previous home at a fair price and have a new home that we love." Jon N. & Pauline S.
"We recently had the pleasure and good fortune to work with Sharron Cochran as we made our first home purchase. We entered the market in the midst of a buying frenzy, and Sharron spent many, many weeks tirelessly previewing homes and showing us the most promising of the lot. She accommodated our busy schedule, patiently explained the process to us, carefully discussed and understood our needs and wants, and always gave us her honest, unvarnished opinion. Even after coming up short with our first several bids, Sharron never pressured us to make an offer we weren't comfortable with. When we finally found the perfect home, she worked with the sellers' agent to make sure the bidding--and ultimately the closing--process went smoothly, and she always kept us informed of the latest happenings. Even after the closing, Sharron has continued to help us by recommending various services we've needed as we settle into our new home. Sharron turned an otherwise frustrating and intimidating experience into something pleasurable, and we would recommend her without hesitation to anyone looking to buy or sell a home." Chris & Heather A.
"We have bought two houses with Sharron as our Realtor, and will use her again the next time we buy or sell. Sharron is thoughtful and loyal to her clients; they become her friends. For our second house, Sharron did a great job in working tactfully with the less-than-completely-organized seller’s agent. Without Sharron gently but persistently reminding the other agent about legal requirements, gaps in the disclosures, and other issues, the deal might not have gone through, or might have taken much longer. Since buying our house, Sharron has provided outstanding references to plumbers, pest control, electricians, and painters. She has extensive contacts with all kinds of service professionals; she knows them personally and I trust her recommendations. She always tells me what she knows about them and how they have worked out in the past for her or others. Sharron truly enjoys her work, and this is reflected in the happiness of her clients." Valerie T. & Oleg B.
"We were referred to Sharron by a friend, and it was the beginning of an incredibly successful real estate experience. Sharron learned about our family and our priorities as individuals very quickly, and worked tirelessly to find us the right home. She accompanied us on long searches of a variety of neighborhoods throughout the metropolitan area; we can honestly say she willingly took us to about 50 homes in two days, never expressing frustration with our indecision. In each visit to a potential house, Sharron was able to point out countless pros and cons of the location, the house, and the property. We were incredibly impressed at every turn with her knowledge not only of house construction, layout, and amenities, but also her expert understanding of the various implications of the landscaping surrounding a home (we'll never see bamboo the same way after spending time with Sharron). We felt respected throughout the process, despite the fact that Sharron needed to walk us through each and every step in detail as we were first-time Maryland home buyers. She was instrumental in helping us make an offer that was competitive, yet within our price range, and once we had settled, offered us a bevy of excellent suggestions for people to service our new home (from handymen to chimney sweeps). It's an understatement to say that we couldn't have done it without Sharron; if anyone were to ask us for a recommendation for a real estate agent in the Washington area, we would certainly respond: There is only one you should consider: Sharron Cochran." Linda & John M.
"Our decision to move from our Bethesda home of 48 years was not easy. The preparation was significant and would not have been possible without your conscientious performance and commitment. People sometimes refer to performance that is “above and beyond” as “going the extra mile.” In support of our move, you ran a marathon. You were there to guide and support us as we moved through the selling process which has changed dramatically in 48 years. Your knowledge, patience, responsiveness and understanding made this daunting task possible. We were lucky to have secured you as our agent and the Long & Foster Real Estate organization is fortunate indeed to have you operating under their banner." Fred & Ilse C.
"This letter is to commend to you my real estate agent Sharron Cochran. She did a lovely job photographing, advertising and selling my home within three weeks. Sharron was exceptional in providing above and beyond service: when she discovered the movers had forgotten some of the furniture in the house, she made sure they picked them up before the walk-through. She cleaned out the garage and leftover garage-sale items when the person I hired to do so did not show up the day before the walk-through. She engaged a truck and made 3 trips to the dump in her own car. She made an extraordinarily stressful time actually enjoyable." Helen C.
"Thank you so much for all your help with the home buying process! I really appreciate all your expertise and extra support for a first timer. It helped being able to contact you anytime and you could always accommodate my busy schedule. You even went to investigate some houses on weekends I couldn’t, which was great. Closing was much better than expected thanks to your help- you prepared me for everything I needed to know, walked me through the process and even helped me with utilities and numerous others things I would never have known about. Thanks for your help with the inspection and walk-through (going when I was unable to take off work) and even giving me numbers and information about service providers in the area. I am extremely pleased with the help you provided and would definitely recommend you to anyone I know." Kristin B.
"We cannot thank you enough for making our dreams come true. Your tireless work ethic, unselfishness and knowledge on all matters concerning the search for a home were so impressive. You asked all the right questions, answered all questions and made the process amazingly smooth. All of our doubts were eased because we were working with such a great agent. We would recommend you to anyone in search of a home. You made the experience so much more enjoyable and stress-free. We feel like without you, we couldn't and wouldn't have gotten such a great deal. We can't wait to invite you over and see the gem that you helped us find!" Chelsea & Josh M.
"What a splendid job you did selling my house, Sharron! And so quickly, too. I quite literally left the whole job of staging it and selling it in your hands, and went immediately out of town! You, however, didn't falter at all but picked up the job and ran with it - alone and at record speed! I was and still am stunned at all you did, so graciously and with great ease and competence. Everything was taken care of, from dealing with the contractors to a terrific [virtual] tour and marketing campaign for selling the house. It was all beautifully orchestrated and the price the house sold for is wonderful. Thank you, Sharron, for your exquisite professionalism." Katharine H.
"We could always count on Sharron to give us prudent and objective advice about the homes we looked at. It is obvious she has a lot of experience. It was also nice to work with someone who genuinely cares about her clients and the choice of home they end up making." Corinne G.
"Long & Foster is extremely fortunate to be represented by Sharron Cochran. Her knowledge of the real estate market, her effective marketing and communication skills, and her extraordinary common sense helped make our recent buy/sell transactions painless. She adeptly facilitated the purchase of our current home (for less than the asking price) in a highly competitive, fast-paced market, and she then brought about the quick sale of our previous home--above the asking price. She's honest, tireless, and attentive to every detail. Most importantly, she truly cares about her clients." John & Sarah B.