Day: May 11, 2024

When Realtor® Johanna Navarro was buying a house in 2017, she says the experience nearly left her homeless. 

The Tampa native, who moved to Wesley Chapel in 1997, says her real estate agent didn’t give her a lot of guidance about how to navigate the overactive local real estate market. She made nine offers before she finally got one accepted. 

Then, the closing date kept getting pushed back until she thought she might have nowhere to go. “After that,” she says, “I realized that it could be done better, and that I could do it better.” 

At that time, Johanna (pronounced “Joanna”) worked in the financial industry. She had graduated from the University of South Florida (USF) in 2010 with a degree in sociology and two minors, in psychology and business administration. 

Johanna realized her desk job at an investment firm wasn’t fulfilling for her. She says she was always the girl who went to open houses, just because she loved looking at homes. So, she decided to become a real estate agent. 

“That whole experience brought to light the potential of what I could do to make this a great experience for the next person,” Johanna says. “Now, my goal is to make every home buying or selling experience as wonderful and stress-free as possible.” 

One thing she says she helps with is staging and preparing homes to go on the market. Johanna helps buyers understand the home inspection process, whether an item is informational versus something that needs to be acted upon. She helps sellers connect with professionals to clear inspection items. On both sides, she helps with the appraisal, the contracts and the entire process. 

Johanna says that knowing what to expect often takes a lot of the stress out of buying or selling a home, so she’s careful to always set clear expectations and communicate effectively with her clients. 

And, it all seems to be working quite well for her. In a little more than six years in the business, Johanna says she’s sold about 120 homes. 

She’s part of a team called “the Roman Group” that works as part of the Century 21 BE3 The Roman Group agency located in The Village at The Grove in Wesley Chapel. 

“We all work together to have a partnership and have each other’s backs,” she says. “If I can’t get to a showing, another one of us can. We really take care of each other.” 

The group had worked with Berkshire Hathaway since 2017 but recently transferred to Century 21. “We felt that Century 21 had more to offer our clients,” Johanna explains. “The marketing platform is by far the biggest of anyone else in the local market, so it has a larger reach when listing a home.” 

Johanna’s daughter Baileigh, who was only 10 months old when she moved to Wesley Chapel, has now been a licensed agent since 2019 and currently works as Johanna’s full-time assistant. 

Baileigh manages Johanna’s social media and helps with emails, market analysis, and client follow ups. 

“Clients get us as a team,” Johanna says. “Whenever you call me, someone always answers the phone. We’re able to return emails quickly and respond to questions faster because you get both of us.” 

Johanna’s son Bryce was born and raised in Wesley Chapel. He is now a U.S. Marine and has been serving overseas since 2020. 

New Construction Homes 

Johanna says she’s “New Construction- Certified” and that a lot of her clients are new construction buyers. She notes that the certifications are provided by New Homes Solutions, a Tampa-based company that offers certification upon completion of a five-day, in-person class which equates to about 34 hours of training in the classroom and also on-site, where Realtors learn about all aspects of the new home construction process, from slab to roofing to contracts.

“You want someone who’s going to look out for you and make sure you’re getting the very best deal you can,” she says. “Not only am I an extra pair of eyes on the build itself, I also can help you understand the contract and make sure it fits you and your current situation.” 

She also says that she cautions anyone who might meander into one of those shiny new neighborhoods on a weekend afternoon about new home communities. 

“Prior to even stepping foot into a new community just out of curiosity, I highly recommend that you contact an agent first,” she says. “If an agent doesn’t walk through the door with you at your first visit, you may no longer be allowed to bring an agent with you at all.” 

She tells of clients she’s worked with for years who stopped into a new neighborhood for a Sunday visit with no interest in buying. They disclosed to the builder that they already had a real estate agent, but when they later wanted to purchase a home in the community, they were told they were not allowed to work with Johanna. 

“My buyers decided not to build with them because of it,” she says. “They also learned a valuable lesson.” 

It doesn’t cost the buyer more to bring your own agent, Johanna explains, and she says she can give you a better perspective on upgrades, the process and the experience, as well as knowledge of all of the communities in the area. “In fact,” she says, “if you’re looking for a specific amenity — such as pickleball courts, dog park and kid zones, as well as homes that accommodate ‘generational living,’ or homes that may offer structural upgrades — I’m well versed on all of the upcoming communities and may be able to guide you to a community you didn’t even know about.” 

Is Now A Good Time To Buy? 

Johanna says she expects interest rates to continue to trickle down, but if you’re on the fence about buying, don’t let interest rates alone be the determining factor. 

“Date the rate, marry the house,” Johanna says. “Right now, you have a better chance of getting a home at a lower price than you did a year ago. The value of the house is going to last as long as you live in it, but you can always refinance your interest rate.” 

She says this is the perfect market to buy in, because she predicts that as soon as interest rates continue to go down, more people will enter the market, and prices will go up. 

“People may feel this isn’t the best time to buy,” she says, “but now is actually a better time to buy than the past four years.” 

Nicole and Daniel Saly bought a new construction home a little over a year ago, trusting Johanna to help them buy that home, and also sell their first home, both in Avalon Park Wesley Chapel. “It was a new construction build, which takes some time,” Nicole explains. “Johanna was there with us through the whole process, dealing with the builder, right by our side.” 

Nicole grew up in Wesley Chapel, left for the military and says she “came right back.” She and her husband are both veterans, so their home purchase included working with a VA loan. 

“Johanna made it a very smooth process,” says Nicole. “She kind of became a friend in the process. She’s a genuinely good person, which goes beyond being a good Realtor.” 

Nicole says she often recommends Johanna to friends and strangers alike, and that she hopes she never has to sell her home, but if she does, “We would call Johanna. She is great at realty, whether it’s selling or purchasing a home. But, she’s also great at communicating, and being on your side through a very stressful process. It’s a big purchase, and she definitely stands out.” 

About The Roman Group 

The Roman Group Century 21 BE3 is owned and led by Jessica Roman, who also serves as the regional president for Century 21 Beggins, with which the Wesley Chapel office is affiliated. Johanna says the entire team at The Roman Group offers a wide variety of specialties, including commercial sales (Jessica leads the office’s commercial division), investment homes, resales, new construction, listings and more. 

Realtor® Johanna Navarro can be reached at (813) 299-9870. For more information, visit WesleyChapelRealtor.sites.c21.homes/. On Facebook and Instagram, search “WesleyChapelRealtor.Johanna.” Or, email Johanna at chapelrealtor@gmail. com. The Century 21 B3 Roman Group office is located at 6013 Wesley Grove Blvd., Suite 206.