Affinity Realty Deals Abound; Unions, Professional Affiliations Provide Help to Home Buyers and Sellers
When the Air Force captain was transferred to Washington from New Mexico last winter, he decided not to use old-fashioned networking -- asking friends and colleagues -- to find a real estate agent.</br></br>It would have been easy, Alvarado admitted. After all, he said, "Everybody knows a Realtor; it's just like knowing a stockbroker."</br></br>But because he and his wife, Kathy McConnell, were so unfamiliar with the ar\ea, Alvarado decided he needed extra help and attention. So he sought out USAA, a company that provides insurance and other financial services to military officers.</br></br>With just one phone call, Alvarado was linked to a local realty firm and an agent. It took Alvarado and his wife one month to find the right home. A relocation consultant called Alvarado every other week to make sure he was getting all the help he needed, sending along extra material on interest rates and living costs in the District.</br></br>But the best feature came at settlement: Simply by using USAA to find an agent, Alvarado got $800 cash back when he settled on the $225,000 Silver Spring town house in February. "We used the money to buy a nice rug to cover the hardwood floors," he said.