Lessons learned when it takes a village to close a deal

Earlier this month, a group of about 12 real estate professionals and clients met on the outdoor patio of a Danville, California, restaurant on a sunny, warm evening for cocktails and appetizers. They were meeting to celebrate the culmination of a series of deals -- which nearly didn't happen a number of times over. From start to finish, the whole process took almost five months, ending with the sale and purchase of three homes in the San Francisco East Bay Area suburbs of Concord and Danville. Michael Hall and Tricia Soliz Pacific Union team Tricia Soliz and Michael Hall were the hosts of the party. Soliz led the multiple-transaction deal, which involved difficulties such as a widow client whose name wasn't on the title and who had, er, stars in her eyes about what her under-maintained home was worth. It also involved a bank that wouldn't budge on being flexible about the title situation -- which was admittedly complicated -- and a low appraisal on one of the p...