Why You Shouldn’t Fear Buying in Any Market

Erika Ceja (00:00)
You know, this is the thing that I tell people. When you’re renting, you’re paying 100 % interest. 100%. All of it is going to the landlord. None of it is going towards any equity for you. So five and a half, six and a half, seven percent. That’s way lower than 100%, right? You’re paying interest, but you’re

Kristen Knapp (00:19)
Right.

Erika Ceja (00:24)
building into your equity, you’re putting it into the savings, essentially. That’s what you’ve got to look at it as. Not only that, but you always need somewhere to live. A lot of people worry about, what if the market goes down? Well, you still need a home? Yeah, you still need a home. So why would you sell your home if the market goes down and your mortgage payment hasn’t changed? And a perfect example is a recent

The recent market that we had past this one was people were selling because the market was crashing. They didn’t need to sell. They were just selling for the fear of their losing money. And they said, we’re going to sell while we can sell it for X amount. We’re going to get out of the market. We’re going to rent. And then we’re going to buy again. Those people got priced out on the market and they couldn’t buy again because now they can find a home.

Kristen Knapp (00:58)
Right?

Erika Ceja (01:14)
as cheap as the one they sold. So, you know, don’t let interest rates hold you back. You can change interest rates. Interest rates go up and down. You can refinance, but you can’t change the price of the home.

Kristen Knapp (02:59)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I’m Kristen and I’m here with Erika Ceja, who is here with Pinnacle, Tidal, and escrow. So we’re going to get into all of those questions. Thank you for being here, Erika.

Erika Ceja (03:08)
Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.

Kristen Knapp (03:10)
Yes, I would love to hear kind of how you entered the real estate market in the beginning.

Erika Ceja (03:14)
It’s a long story, but basically, ⁓ so I first entered real estate because I was trying to buy my own house at 19 years old. Unfortunately, the agent that was representing me or the broker, should say, basically stole my money, my down payment. So never got the house that I was supposed to.

Kristen Knapp (03:16)
Good night.

Erika Ceja (03:36)
He was supposed to have put an offer on and lost my money. But at that point I was like, you know, I’m not going to be able to trust another agent is what I thought at the time. like, I need to go get my license so I can buy my own house. Never intended to get into the actual business of it. I just wanted to buy my own house and be able to do that. So just as the universe would have it.

I would meet people, they’d know my story and they’d ask me to represent them. And the first one I was like, well, I knew, I just got licensed and they’re like, we don’t care, we trust you. And that’s pretty much how I started my real estate career.

Kristen Knapp (04:06)
Bye.

Wow, you really turned a really negative into a positive. Take me back to your mindset when you lost your down payment. Like that must have been devastating.

Erika Ceja (05:16)
Oh, absolutely. First of all, it was two things, not only devastated, but I was excited about owning my own house. Right. So, and it took me a while to realize that they stolen my money because they told me I was an escrow. And so throughout the whole time, I’m so excited. I’m making plans. I’m already giving my 30 day notice to where I was living. It was just an excitement thing. And

Kristen Knapp (05:22)
Great.

Erika Ceja (05:42)
Once escrow kept getting delayed and delayed and delayed. And finally I told the agent, said, well, when is this going to close? Let me call the escrow company directly. Cause he never wanted me to call the escrow company directly. So I said, can you give me the info? He just gave me the name and he said, I don’t have the number with me. I’ll give you the name. So I called every company out there with that name. And finally, by coincidence, they told me, well,

Kristen Knapp (05:54)
Right.

Erika Ceja (06:08)
Yes, this property is an escrow. And I said, great. my gosh. So when are we supposed to close? And she says, what is your name again? And I told her, she said, this is not under your name. When did you go into escrow? And I told her it’s almost going to be 40 days. And she says, this was just open two weeks ago. And that’s when I realized I was like, what? And she said, you better call your…

that’s representing you and then he wouldn’t answer my calls. So it was excitement, you know, and then like what, what just, what? This can happen? You know? I was 19, yeah. Yeah, I was doing well. I was in a different career and I was doing very well at a young age and that’s why I was trying to buy my first towel stand. But you know, I didn’t let it damper me.

Kristen Knapp (06:36)
It’s just.

Yeah.

I’m like, and you were 19? ⁓ geez.

Erika Ceja (07:00)
I just went and got my license and just like I said, sometimes, and I believe that everything happens for a reason. And so it led me to this career and now I’m a licensed broker, but I represent the title company. And I’m able to partner up with agents and actually help them. And as a broker,

Like I can, how can I say? Like I have the savvy now to be able to guide people on things that I would not otherwise. And being in the industry for over 25 years, I’ve seen many people come and go in the industry. So it was a plus, you know, it was a positive to me. Although initially it didn’t feel like it.

Kristen Knapp (07:47)
my gosh, that, mean, what a traumatic way to enter the industry,

Erika Ceja (07:50)
Ha ha ha ha!

Kristen Knapp (07:50)
but I mean, that’s incredible. And I do feel like you can probably help people feel supported and seen because you weren’t. So you can, you know, make sure to make that up with other people.

Erika Ceja (08:03)
yeah, absolutely. I’m very thorough. That’s one compliment I get all the time from clients in the real estate industry is that, you know, when I was helping buyers and sellers, I was very thorough. And some of them had bought properties several times over. And they told me you are the first one that actually explained everything in a way that I could just understand it. And it was, you know, it’s a compliment. And I think it’s

Kristen Knapp (08:26)
Yeah.

Erika Ceja (08:30)
because of what happened to me.

Kristen Knapp (08:32)
Absolutely, and do you have any maybe like red flags to share with people? You know if they’re kind of working with someone shady?

Erika Ceja (08:40)
Yeah, red flags are if your agent is not calling you back, timely, know. If they are just sending you forms and telling you, I just sent you a form, sign it.

They should be explaining to you what that form is, what it’s for, you know, the details about it. And you’d be surprised how many people actually have heard their agent did that. I have friends who,

you know, after the fact, they told me their situation and they said, yeah, now they want me to help them and clarify some things, you know, like I met them after they had already bought that house. And then I said, well, this is all stuff your your agent should have explained it. I was told, no, they just told me sign. And I was so excited about getting the house. I would just sign. So if your agent does not explain documents to

Kristen Knapp (10:02)
Yeah.

Erika Ceja (10:04)
telling you to sign, you don’t know what it is. Red flag number one, they don’t answer your questions. Red flag number two, they don’t answer your calls. Red flag number three.

Kristen Knapp (10:14)
Yeah, definitely. mean,

there’s so much to lose in that situation. It’s heartbreaking that people go through stuff like that all the time. so tell me how you kind of, so you’ve been a real estate broker for quite some time and when did you kind of transfer, not transfer, but add that title and escrow business to your resume?

Erika Ceja (10:24)
Thank you so much.

it was, ⁓ back in, believe if I’m not mistaken, it was like seven or eight years ago. basically long story short, but I was going through some, personal stuff and, my ex husband said, maybe it would be better for you to get a regular nine to five. Cause I was running a brokerage at that time. had my own brokerage. And so, I was like, well, I’ve been doing real estate for so long. What?

What else could I get into? know? And so I, the title kind of came knocking on my door and it seemed like a simple transition because, you know, I don’t go out and sell title. don’t go out and, and say, here, use my title company just for no random reason. I actually talk to people and I say, what if I can help you grow your business? Can we partner up for that?

and it’s a mutually beneficial relationship, you know, but I, you know, that’s what I do. So my experience in real estate and the fact that I’ve done it for so long and in so many different markets, I mean, I came into the market when the rates were 10 and a quarter and they had come down from that. So from like, I don’t even know what the peak was, but it was really high.

Kristen Knapp (11:40)
and

Erika Ceja (11:46)
So I’ve been through all the markets back in 08 when the market crashed. So I can really, you know, my experience going into title, I can really, really help agents and investors guide them on how to find deals, how to navigate the market. So yeah, about seven or eight years ago, and I felt like it was, it was an easy transition because it’s still real estate.

Kristen Knapp (12:08)
Absolutely, and what would be your advice to people who are kind of maybe reticent about entering the market right now?

Erika Ceja (12:14)
You know, this is the thing that I tell people. When you’re renting, you’re paying 100 % interest. 100%. All of it is going to the landlord. None of it is going towards any equity for you. So five and a half, six and a half, seven percent. That’s way lower than 100%, right? You’re paying interest, but you’re

Kristen Knapp (12:33)
Right.

Erika Ceja (12:38)
building into your equity, you’re putting it into the savings, essentially. That’s what you’ve got to look at it as. Not only that, but you always need somewhere to live. A lot of people worry about, what if the market goes down? Well, you still need a home? Yeah, you still need a home. So why would you sell your home if the market goes down and your mortgage payment hasn’t changed? And a perfect example is a recent

The recent market that we had past this one was people were selling because the market was crashing. They didn’t need to sell. They were just selling for the fear of their losing money. And they said, we’re going to sell while we can sell it for X amount. We’re going to get out of the market. We’re going to rent. And then we’re going to buy again. Those people got priced out on the market and they couldn’t buy again because now they can find a home.

Kristen Knapp (13:54)
Right?

Erika Ceja (14:09)
as cheap as the one they sold. So, you know, don’t let interest rates hold you back. You can change interest rates. Interest rates go up and down. You can refinance, but you can’t change the price of the home.

The price of the home is what it is.

Kristen Knapp (14:24)
Right, completely. mean, I think that’s really good advice. And I think a lot of people let fear dictate how they move in the market, whether it means they’re selling too quickly or whether they’re just kind of paralyzed and not wanting to enter at all.

Erika Ceja (14:37)
Absolutely. And, know, it’s like anything, don’t let fear hold you back. Jobs would say that. Every successful entrepreneur would tell you, don’t let fear hold you back. And one of the most secure investments out there, history has shown, is real estate. So whether it goes down or up or down, whatever goes down, it’s going to go up.

Kristen Knapp (14:37)
Yeah.

Right.

Erika Ceja (14:59)
So even if the market goes down, dips a little bit, whatever happens, it’s gonna go up. The people that sold in and away and got priced out, now the homes that they bought for 140 and now they’re 500,000. Yeah, don’t let fear hold you back. You can change the rate as soon as the rates changes. They always ebb and flow.

Kristen Knapp (15:12)
Mm-hmm.

Completely and it’s also very market specific as well. Each market is a little different and which market are you in?

Erika Ceja (15:25)
I’m in Arizona and when I started real estate, was in California. And so yeah, you know, the market over there would shift at a different time that it would shift here. seemed like California is always slightly ahead. Just because there’s more, I don’t know if it’s more population or what it is, but, but yeah, it depends on the market, what the market’s doing, but usually interest rates will

affect any market. And again, don’t let interest rates hold you back. You’re not married to them forever. You could refinance.

Kristen Knapp (15:58)
Absolutely. And then getting to kind of like the title and escrow part of your business, I know we talked about scammers in the brokerage part of it. Are there, is there stuff like that in title and escrow? Things you need to drop for it? Yeah.

Erika Ceja (16:11)
Absolutely. Absolutely.

And that’s why now, least here in Arizona, there is a disclosure now, it’s called the wire fryer fraud disclosure that makes every everybody aware that there is this happening. And what happens is this. You’ll get an email that looks like let’s say it’s called pinnacle. It’ll stay pinnacle as in with a E.L. as opposed to Ellie, right? They’ll change something slight.

Or it’s going to look very similar, like it’s coming from Pinnacle Title. You’ll get an email that says, make sure you wire your funds to this account. And that may be different than what you were originally told. Anytime you get any email, do not follow the email. All you ask for is for sure. Because that is going on. has happened. You know, fortunately has not happened to Pinnacle Title, but

I know that it has happened to other title companies where, you know, the buyer sent their wiring, their, their funds to an account that was on an email. And then upon closer inspection, that email was not from that title company. The phone number even looked very close to the escrow officer’s number. So the person thought it was legit. And unfortunately, you know, it’s.

once the money goes out and it’s a direct wire, it’s almost impossible to retrieve if it’s going overseas somewhere. So yeah, be careful with those kinds of scams. Always verify with your escrow officer what the wiring instructions are, if they’re different from anything. We usually give a disclosure, we give a form that shows where the funds should be wired. When you’re signing,

your lending documents. So if you get something that states otherwise, just it’s not that hard to pick up the phone and it’ll save you hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Kristen Knapp (18:04)
Right, I’m sure if people have maybe an inkling that something’s off, it probably is, and to follow your gut on that.

Erika Ceja (18:11)
Absolutely. If it feels wrong, it probably is wrong.

Kristen Knapp (18:15)
Well, you know, on the positive end of it, you know, not talking about scams, I would love for you to just talk about how gratifying it is to help people in both facets of your business, you know, especially going through what you’ve gone through.

Erika Ceja (18:27)
my gosh, I love helping people. I love helping agents. know, that’s one thing that I love about Tidal is like I said, I’m not out there saying, hey, here buy my Tidal insurance. I am offering first value and saying, I would love to get your business. And in exchange, I’m going to try to help you grow your business. And it is so rewarding to be able to help people with tools and resources that help them manage their clients.

and learn how to prospect. Cause the number one thing that I have learned in title, is that, you know, because when you’re in real estate, it’s just you, you don’t know what everybody else is experiencing, right? You’re just going through it. And I thought like, when I got into real estate, like, ⁓ I just didn’t have a great broker. didn’t teach me much. And so I kind of navigated it myself.

But now being entitled, I speak to all kinds of agents. And one thing they’re not taught, and especially not in school, is how to get the business. And so that’s something that I’m very thankful that I can work with a whole bunch of agents, learn what they haven’t, what they need to, what is maybe the thing that they need to improve in their business. And with…

Kristen Knapp (19:23)
Mm.

Erika Ceja (19:37)
you know, my knowledge and experience, I can help them actually improve it and set a plan into motion. ⁓ The other thing that I’ve learned, though, that’s secret to having plans is actually doing them. ⁓ Yes, yes, but it’s very rewarding and it’s especially rewarding when you see somebody’s business change, right? When you see them like maybe they were onesie twosie here and there.

Kristen Knapp (19:45)
Mm-hmm.

Right. Yeah, you can make plans all day.

Erika Ceja (20:06)
and now you partner up with them and now their business is growing. That is very fulfilling. And obviously I get to see that when we see the escrows open and I’m like, my gosh, you got an escrow, that’s so It’s really exciting for me. I love that part of my job.

Kristen Knapp (20:22)
I love that. Well, I mean, this has been such a great conversation. It’s going by really quickly. How can people find you and work with you?

Erika Ceja (20:29)
Um, you could go to aztitlegal.com. That’s my title website. Um, all my info is there and I’m, I can also give out my number. Um, uh, area code six Oh two cause I’m in Arizona three, two, one, one zero one zero. Uh, but AZ title gal is my website. It’s also my social media. So I’m at AZ title gal on Instagram and Facebook. So you can find me easy.

Kristen Knapp (20:34)
I love that.

Erika Ceja (20:55)
typing an AZTitle and going, I’ll pop it.

Kristen Knapp (20:57)
Incredible. Well, thank

you so much, Erika. I really appreciate you being on today.

Erika Ceja (21:01)
well, thank you for having me. It’s been a great experience.

Kristen Knapp (21:05)
Yes, and thank you everybody for watching and we will see you next time. Bye.

Erika Ceja (21:09)
Bye.