Mercury News: Research, right agent land pair in their fist home

MOM, DAUGHTER WERE PERSISTENT RESEARCH, RIGHT AGENT LAND PAIR IN THEIR FIRST HOME

Shiloh Ballard and her mother didn't believe, at first, that they could manage to buy a house. Shiloh is a field representative for a state senator, and her mother, Lani, works in the medical records department at O'Connor Hospital in San Jose. Together, they make less than $70,000 a year. In Silicon Valley, where a minuscule house can cost half a million dollars, the women knew they were facing long odds on finding a home for less than $250,000. But what they lacked in riches, they made up for in perseverance. That could be a valuable lesson for homebuyers in this fall's tight market. Late last month, the pair moved into a $243,000, two-bedroom townhouse on the edge of a city park in Blossom Valley, leaving behind the West San Jose apartment where they'd lived for 25 years.

Early disappointments

Getting there wasn't easy. They made offers on four townhomes and went through three different mortgage lenders before finding a loan that got them what they needed. ''When you're in this kind of situation, things don't fall together perfectly,'' said Shiloh Ballard, 25. They began their search in the spring, after Shiloh's supervisor at work pestered her into calling a mortgage broker. She and her mother were told they could get a loan of about $240,000, and they began to feel cautiously hopeful. Lani, 51, scoured the Web site MLSlistings.com daily to look at what was for sale. Through another of Shiloh's co-workers, mother and daughter found realty agent

Malka Nagel of Coldwell Banker's

Cupertino office. She proved to be exactly the right fit -- equipped with the same stick-to-it-iveness as the Ballards. The first find was an East San Jose townhome listed for $230,000. They were faxing in a purchase offer when the loan approval letter they'd been waiting for finally came in. The lender had approved them for only $190,000, plus offered them a city-sponsored loan for teachers -- though neither is a teacher. The Ballards went to another lender to see whether they could get approved fast enough not to lose the house. That loan fell through too, and someone else bought the house. ''After the first one, we were crushed,'' Shiloh said. The two found yet another mortgage broker, and saw a place in Blossom Valley that they liked. They lost that one to a higher bidder. They put an offer in on another East San Jose townhome, but never evenheard back from the listing agent. Meanwhile, Lani Ballard had taken a look at their future home and liked it, but it was listed out of their price range at $255,000.

Agent steps up

Unbeknownst to them, Nagel was repeatedly calling that home's listing agent, telling him her clients were ready to buy at the right price. The townhouse had been on the market for some time. The Ballards offered $241,000, the seller countered with $243,000, and the women accepted the counter. The unfamiliar process of homebuying was hard, Lani Ballard said, but worth the trouble. ''Suddenly you can do whatever you want to with your house, and it's a nice feeling,'' she said. With the help of friends, Shiloh and Lani Ballard have replaced the bathroom linoleum and painted some rooms. The place is beginning to feel like home. ''When you decide to do it, don't give up,'' said Shiloh Ballard about buying a home. ''It's going to be hard.''

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