When you go with a firm, you're counting on the fi...

When you go with a firm, you're counting on the firm's reputation. However, firms lend their reputation to inexperienced, inept agents so they have a place to start.

My wife and I had a horrible experience with Long and Foster in Blacksburg (by the hospital), where we had submitted an offer to a divorced/ing couple who flat refused to respond to anything. The agent at L&F balked at getting anyone else involved (his boss, or the seller, or the seller's boss), so it took over a month to get our $1k deposit back.

When we left L&F, we did what we should have done to begin with - look for a small realtor! Wainwright and Co. is a father/daughter company with maybe one or two other agents, and they stay in business on their own reputation.

We worked with Ashley Wainwright Donahue, and it was awesome. She's been in the area all her life, and can tell you histories about the neighborhoods, schools, restaurants, and more.

It was nothing like the experience I had with L&F. With them, people would trip over themselves trying to greet you when you went through the door, but rides to/from properties would be silent, or the agent on his/her phone talking to someone else the entire time.

Ashley's very personable, a Redditor, and awesome to ride with. When you're not talking about neighborhoods and attractions, she can give you recipes, ideas for birthday parties for kids (sometimes there's even a toy or two to play with in the car), and much more.

It was a fantastic experience, couldn't recommend highly enough, have and will again recommend to all my friends, and we'll go with again after we have kids and need a bigger house!