I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and have lived in Washington State for over 30 years. I arrived in Bellingham in the summer of 2010, thinking that it would be a short stop along a series of travels and new destinations, as I was an artist and a musician, often on tour. Instead, I fell in love with a city uniquely its own, making lifelong friends while exploring the surrounding wilderness and islands, and embracing the lifestyle Bellingham afforded me. I began putting down my roots. I started searching for a home in Bellingham about 6 years ago, which in a roundabout way led me to Julian Friedman of Julian & Company, who I reached out to after having heard glowing reviews around town. Seeing as I am not an investor, not a moneyed California transplant, and not the recipient of a trust fund or inheritance, I always figured buying my first home would be one of the most stressful and daunting things I'd ever do. Working with Julian & Company was the complete opposite: they made this process so streamlined, exciting, and enjoyable. In my initial phone call, Julian and I discussed my house needs and house wants, which helped us set a budget, timeframe, and realistic expectations. Julian got to work immediately and was able to quickly narrow down the search to a handful of promising options. During this process, he was readily available to bounce questions and ideas back and forth, and patiently answered a myriad of questions about all things housing and financing. Within a month, we looked at three dream houses, and we made one offer on a beautiful craftsman in the Sunnyland neighborhood. Our first offer beat out dozens of other potential buyers, many of them offering tens of thousands of dollars above mine, and landed me in my first home. And the house appraised over what I got it for, and I still got to have an inspection in an increasingly competitive market while securing a historically low interest rate. I have no doubt all of this is because of Julian and his team's combination of intuition, experience, hard work, and care - and it happened so quickly and effortlessly, my only regret was that I didn't approach them sooner. All of this is to say, thanks to Julian Friedman and his team, I now own my first home, and I am thankful for all the joys, large and small, that come with it: we've since made many amazing meals in the remodeled kitchen, played badminton in the backyard, enjoyed sunsets from the deck, and had game nights and movie marathons with friends. Last spring, I planted a garden with my dad, which provided fruits and vegetables all summer. I still see Julian around town, and he always checks in and asks me how I am and how my house is coming along. Last year, Julien delivered sugar cookies to my door, and this winter, he brought me a pie for the holidays. Julian & Company, thank you all so much, sincerely. I am grateful we crossed paths, and continue to do so.