Debbie Jennings Is Just As Legit As Her Zillow Reviews Say
By Matt Levy
Picture this. You’ve thrown your life into renovating your home and you’ve made the sale that’s just about to close escrow. All of your hard work is about to pay off.
Suddenly, the buyer backs out a few days before the closing date. You feel like everything is about to fall apart.
Not so fast.
Enter Chandler, Arizona Realtor Debbie Jennings from Realty One Group. Not only did she negotiate $8,000.00 of the buyers’ earnest money for you, but she also sells the house AGAIN in just twelve hours.
The very next day, you’re joking with Jennings that if buyers backed out a few more times, you could retire early! You laugh and then start to wonder how did Jennings get so good at her job?
Well, for almost seven years, Debbie has helped buyers and sellers create a highly personalized real estate experience in the Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa and Queen Creek areas. By really listening to her clients’ needs, she strives to make sure every single one of them gets what they want. As she says, “The best part of my job is seeing results and beating client expectations.”
Just look at the glowing five-star reviews on her Zillow profile echo this sentiment. Standout quotes from clients include, “This is the second house she sold for me and both sold in record time, one in one day,” “Debbie leaves no stone unturned to find you what you need. If not for her I would have ended up in an apartment again,” and my favorite, “She updated me each week on the locations she was advertising the listing, changing it up as needed to keep it fresh. She stayed on top of showings, giving me a heads up as soon as she was notified. She recommended people to assist in cleaning/repairing the property. Once under contract, there were delays with the buyer’s agent and she kept things moving, even assisting the buyer’s agent with her knowledge.”
There are dozens more stories like this. Debbie simply gets things done.
Like any great orator, salesperson or entertainer, Jennings strives to treat every client like they are the most important person in the world. To Debbie, “Communication is key but so is honesty and integrity.” Yes, she comes across difficult people, deals and situations, but she considers it all a worthy challenge. If it wasn’t, what would be the fun in the job?
Debbie, a Phoenix native and Chandler transplant, has been around real estate her whole life ever since her parents built, managed and lived in a six-plex apartment complex when she was in grade school which ignited her passion. Her father was a Phoenix police officer who worked a lot of overtime, so Debbie, her mother and sister helped wherever they could, fixing things and making the communal, residential space livable for all. It was a lot of work, but a lot of reward.
Growing up, she was a bit of a tomboy at heart. Shy, but rough around the edges, always skinning a knee, rough housing, hopping fences. Jennings was famously quiet until she was involved in a major car accident at 17. She broke a few bones and sustained a head injury. It was awful but also gave her a new perspective. She began expressing herself, and ended up with a sense of humor, became more outgoing, and stopped skinning her knees as much.
Soon after, she found herself pursuing her real estate dreams working for condo developers, architects, housing non-profits, the AZ Dept of Housing, the Resolution Trust Corporation, a division of the FDIC during the Savings and Loan crisis (back when interest rates were double digits!), and since 2014, has been a full-time Residential Real Estate agent with her brokerage, Realty One Group led Nationally by the incomparable Kuba Jewgieniew, because they “focus on caring and giving back.”
That’s how she can close deals so fast. Debbie has been in the game for a while.
Unlike some realtors, Debbie went the extra mile to receive all the education she could to help make her a better Realtor in an effort to ensure her clients receive the best real estate experience possible. Besides her background in the field, here are just a few designations she carries:
* RENE (Real Estate Negotiation Expert) This assists Debbie in properly negotiating for her clients. Buyer or seller, you need your agent to have this designation. Agents have to carefully negotiate through the contract, repair and appraisal process with other agents and clients.
* PLLC — Jennings has a personal limited liability company and is taxed as an “S” corporation. She is a full-time agent, seven days a week and runs her own business as professionally as any corporate business.
* CMRS & MRP (Certified Military Residential Specialist and Military Relocation Professional) These designations help Jennings better serve military clients. Her father and son were in the military, so this is especially important to her.
* SRES (Senior Real Estate Specialist) Jennings has a heart for seniors, many of which are in special situations, or simply don’t have email and need a little more TLC.
* PSA (Pricing Strategy Adviser) Jennings said, “It’s actually a complicated strategy to price your home correctly.” This designation gives her the extra training to assist her clients.
* CSA (Certified Staging Assistant) Debbie usually lightly stages her vacant homes and wanted to show she had knowledge beyond putting plastic plants here and there.
As you can see, Jennings works hard — seven days a week, nights, weekends and the occasional holiday. This doesn’t bother her though. Debbie will be the first to tell you, “I am always available for clients. In most other states, an attorney is required for the transaction, but in Arizona, our license allows us to do the legal documentation required for real estate.”
That’s a lot. Somehow, she still has time to have a life outside of selling.
You can often find her with her husband Craig of 21 years dining at Chandler hotspots like Tryst Cafe and Isabella’s amor. The two of them also love catching movies at the Alamo Drafthouse Phoenix, where Debbie almost always treats herself to the buffalo cauliflower. When they’re not out and about, they’re curled up with their three adorable rescue kittens and puppy. For those keeping score at home, yes, the number of animals (four), outnumber the number of humans (two) in their home.
What gets her going every day though is her passion for her work. Jennings smiled, looking back on the biggest accomplishment of this past year saying,“Winning a buyer in a multiple offer situation without going over asking price in this CRAZY market was a major highlight.” Sometimes there are things more important than just asking price to win the contract, so communication with the listing agent can be critical to success.
What’s next? Well, Debbie is working on listing amazing homes in 2021. In 2020, her sellers sold quickly and her buyers found homes at unheard of low interest rates. She expects this coming year to be even better.
Does Debbie sound like your kind of agent? If so, reach out and find her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Zillow and Twitter.
She’ll respond fast. I promise. I know this because Debbie always gets the job done.
