Oh my goodness, how blessed I am, thank you, Dee

Amanda stands for AWESOME!  I first met Amanda in 2005 when I was relocating from Northern VA to the Atlanta area.    Amanda was referred to me by my daughter and son-in-law, who worked with her on the purchase of their new home.  Before even meeting Amanda in person, I instantly loved her pleasant personality.   Based on my criteria, she would send me real estate listings for the Atlanta area to prepare me for my move to Atlanta.   Amanda was successful in helping me find the perfect home.  As a first time homeowner at that time, she coached me through the home buying process.  I was very grateful for her guidance and genuine concern for me to be happy with my new home purchase.    

Almost nine years later after moving to the Atlanta area, I moved back to the Northern VA area due to a job transfer.   I was so amazed by Amanda’s work ethics and her lovely personality, that I kept her business card after all those years.   I gave Amanda a call and discussed options of renting or selling my house.  After prayer and careful consideration, I was led to put my house on the market on Dec. 7, 2013, with Amanda being the listing real agent.   I am happy to report that I closed on the sale of my house on Jan. 31, 2014.   Amanda is truly an amazing person who cares about her clients’ needs and desired outcome. 

I am truly blessed to have had the pleasure of working with Amanda for the purchase and sale of my home in the Atlanta area.   I highly recommend her to anyone who wants a friendly, great, honest, conscientious and trustworthy real estate agent who cares about her clients. 

With best regards.

 

Dee

Thank you, Mia

Amanda strikes again! Sold! Without hesitation, Amanda was there to assist my mother with selling her home. I had the pleasure of meeting Amanda in 2004 through my husband. We closed on our home in April 2005. I was so pleased with Amanda's service. I referred her to both my mother and in-laws with the purchases of their home here in Gwinnett county. I guess you can say she's family (smile). Her sweet personality and unwavering open heart make her stand out from the rest. Amanda knows her stuff! That's why it was an easy decision for my mother to work with her again when she decided to sell her home. We are thankful for Amanda and know she will continue to be a blessing to families for years to come.

Congratulations, Gabe and Cathryn~

The house buying process was a long and crazy process. Meeting Amanda was the best thing that could have happened to us. My fiance, Gabriel, and I are first time home buyers and had no idea what to expect. With Amanda's help and guidence she was able to find us the perfect home. Not only was she a tremoundous help, she looked out for our best interest and always had our backs. She went above and beyond what we believed the title of a "realtor" would do. At times, I believe Amanda was our sanity and convinced us we could get through it. We will forever be grateful for how accommodating and sweet Amanda is. On closing day I truly felt like Amanda was part of our "team" trying to get us into our home.


Cathryn

It's My Pleasure...

Back in January my husband and I, alongside our closest friends, I decided to look for a two-family home to rent together for a season while we all saved up to own our own homes one day. While at the time it seemed like a daunting task, Amanda Cole immediately made it seem not only possible, but likely that we could figure out a situation that would work for us all. Amanda helped us manage our expectations (and change them up a little if necessary!) and she also helped us manage the dirty details, all the information regarding a lease, what we should expect from the people we were renting from, what we should plan to do during the process, etc. We had hoped to be moved into a home by May but were so thrilled when we got to move in to one even sooner, April 15th! We are LOVING our situation -- the house we are in works so well for our two families... we both have our own space but still get to see one another and spend time together when we want to. We cannot thank Amanda enough for her help in not only guiding us to homes for rent but also in taking care of the "not-so-fun" details instead of having us deal with them ourselves in our inexperience. I will definitely be seeking out Amanda's help again in the future with any real-estate decisions and we would 100% recommend Amanda's services to anyone! She really is the best.

Abs and Kevin

Thank you for Blessing Me with Your Friendship -

About three years ago my wife and I decided to move out of our little basement apartment and find a "real house." The basement worked fine for our first few months of marriage, but we needed to upgrade to more space. We had been friends with Amanda for some time and she had helped us with budgeting and financial advice, so we turned to her for help getting into a new house.

It wasn't long before Amanda's search process found us a great town home option. We went one day and looked at the place that would be our home for two and half years. As soon as we walked in I had the sense that "this is it." Turns out I was right. We were very grateful for all of Amanda's diligent work in the process to find us a place that fit all of our needs.

At the beginning of this year, we decided that we wanted to make another change and once again talked to Amanda about our options. We were expecting our first baby and our needs had changed for that reason. Amanda immediately went to work on finding us yet another place to live.

After a few weeks of searching, we found yet another place that had the immediate feeling of home when we walked in. It was the perfect layout for our needs, a great area and a nice yard. We knew that with God's help and Amanda's expertise we had a good shot at getting this wonderful house. So we prayed and waited for something to happen.

What was different about this second place was that the agency listing the home were far less professional in their processes than our previous management company, so there were several hiccups in the process. In spite of all the difficulties and hurdles, Amanda consistently went to bat for us to make sure that we were informed, well covered, and got the correct lease and deal that we needed. We got the house after what seemed like a long struggle.

We have now been in that house for over a month and couldn't be happier. It has provided for us the space, peace and privacy that we needed. Our daughter's room is almost ready, and we are enjoying every day of preparation.

Throughout all of our dealings with Amanda, we know that she makes good, godly decisions using the wisdom God provides. We know that she prays for her clients to find the right place, and trusts God's provision throughout the whole process, even through extreme frustration and uncertainty. That is why we are so thankful for Amanda's role in our lives as our real estate agent, our financial advisor, and our very good friend. We have seen God work in so many ways through her ministry, not just for us but for many of our friends as well. I know that she will continue to bless so many families through all that she does. Thank you Amanda for serving God and for serving others so well. We love you!

Jonathan & Aubrey

First there were four and soon there will be five - - - His timing is perfect

My real estate experience: My experience was wonderful! My mind was at ease knowing that Amanda truly had our best interest in mind and continually sought to protect it.

Aubrey

You'll finally made it, congratulations and thank you!

We thoroughly enjoyed our journey working with Amanda to find our new home. She genuinely cares about not only finding her clients the right home, but cares about them as people first or foremost. We began this process with an agent and ended it with a friend. Marijo P.

Mary, you're the bomb!

Hi Amanda!

I just wanted to take time to express my gratitude for the time you've spent to financially coach me.
Last week I paid off one of my student loans. It not only feels GREAT, but it's provided the momentum to keep going strong with it!

Thanks so much for teaching me!

-Mary

Looking forward to 1/2015 - Great job, you two~

I am Corbett and my husband is. We had a plan set in place and Amanda completely altered our path. This is our story.

Richie and I are currently renting a three bedroom condo with two and half baths at $900 per month all included. Not bad for our first home. However, with the market today, you can buy a house with a mortgage of $900 a month. So we got to thinking, maybe it would be wise to look into the idea of buying our first home. We have several friends who have worked with Amanda and highly recommended her. After I received her information, I contacted her immediately. She required us to complete a few documents to better help her understand how to work with us. This information included: our monthly income, monthly bills, monthly spending, savings, debt and much more. Richie and I had a pretty extensive debt list which included his student loans, my student loans, my car loan, and my credit card and so on. After filling out all the required information for Amanda, we were ready for our first face to face meeting.

My expectations: I was expecting Amanda to have a list of housing options ready for us.

My reality: Not what I expected.

During our meeting with Amanda, she encouraged us to pay off some of our debt by using the snow ball method from Dave Ramsey. She also suggested Richie and I get on the same car insurance in order to save money. We informed Amanda that Richie was thinking about going back to school to receive his master's in Theology. She said that was not wise due to the fact that we both already owe on student loans. She then spoke to us about God's order. Our God is a God of order. Some things require patience, hard work and self control, but the result is golden. She bluntly stated that we have over $50,000 in debt and going back to school is not an option for us. Talk about crushing someone's dreams. House was no longer labeled a "Good" idea and Richie going back to school was out of the picture. By this moment, I did not exemplify the best of attitudes. Amanda said that she needed a week to look over our finances more in depth and that she will meet with us next week.

During the next week, I spent much needed time with the Lord praying. Asking the Lord to show me His order, and what this looks like for Richie and me. Not much clarity, but peace was given which was enough for me. Richie and I were also able to pay off his student loan and my credit card. Things were starting to make since.

Our second meeting with Amanda, she came up with a plan. She said I have to options for you. One, I can get you into a house by June 2013. Two, I can get you debt free by January 2015. Without hesitation, Richie and I looked at each other and said option TWO. I think we were all shocked by our responses. With the debt free option, we had to cut down on some things and pay double to our bills. I started paying double on my student loans. I refinanced my car. My car loan interest rate went from an 11% to 3.75% with USAA, and I started paying double on my car loan. Richie and I got on the same car insurance with USAA. We are also going to move into a basement apartment which will save us $300 month. On top of everything else, Richie and I both received a raise at work. Plus my credit score went from 524 to 703. By January 2015, Richie and I will have paid off $50,000 in debt and be completely debt free.

Conclusion: God has order for our lives. Once we surrender to His order, doors began opening and blessings began to flood.

Amanda, I thank you so much for supporting and believing in Richie and me. I can't wait to see what else the Lord has in store for us in the future.

More updates to come.....


Sincerely,
Corbett

Elaine, You Encourage Me!!! Thank you~

Hi Amanda, We met with you about a year and a half ago after taking Financial Peace at our church. I wanted to let you know about our progress and how good God is! We are still in debt, but we are able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. At the time of our meetings, we were not able to make more than minimum payments on our credit cards and did not see a way out. Actually, the only way we could even make those payments most months was to withdraw from our savings account which was basically our "income tax refund" account. Every year when we get our refund check back, we put it into savings in order to help with paying our bills. When we were meeting with you, we were trying to figure out which path to take to start the process of getting out of debt. Then God allowed something wonderful to happen! We were paying my father-in-law $220/month on a debt we owed and still had another year before it would be paid off when he called to say that we didn't have to make any more payments to him. What a blessing! That $220/mo extra was used to pay off a small bill and the rest of a college loan. Then with those two things paid off, it freed up money that we were able to use to pay off our smallest credit card debt. From there, we are continuing to pay on our highest interest credit card by paying an extra $200-$300 a month above the minimum payment. God has also blessed us by allowing my husband to have a seasonal job and the money earned will be used to pay some of our debt. We still have a ways to go before we are credit card debt free, but we are on the right track. Oh, and just last month we were able to refinance our house and bring our payments down $200 a month. God has truly been good to us. I wanted to thank you for the time you spent meeting with us, the advice you gave us, and the encouragement to not give up. Have a blessed day! Elaine

Happy Home, Meagan & Derik!

Amanda, There are not enough words to express our gratitude for all you have done for us. You have been a gift from God and an answered prayer for us. Thanks for everything. Derik and Meagan

A Time for Everything - thank you Matt & Sarah

Almost three years ago we contacted Amanda to help us look for a house. It was January and our first appointment was cancelled due to snow and ice. Enough had melted by the next day that we were able to make it out of our apartment complex parking lot and drive to the homes on our list. Over the next few months we looked at dozens of homes on multiple outings trying to find the perfect place. Amanda stuck with us and was patient and helpful. She treated us like friends more than clients and it was so refreshing after previous agents we had worked with. We were looking for a house for ourselves and an ill family member and were trying to find where God would have us be. After many frustrations and dead ends we finally found the home we wanted to buy. We felt a peace and a calling that God didn't actually care about the house itself, just that we took the next steps. It felt strange at the time, but we soon found out why. After living in the house for a short time things started to fall apart. Our good intentions didn't pan out and it seemed that all of the plans we had made, thinking they were God's, were falling through the cracks. We didn't realize at the time all we were being taught. We desired clarity and God was teaching us faith. We put the house on the market and hoped for a speedy sale. We waited. And waited. And waited. Two years passed and after many showings, we didn't have even the slightest nibble. During these two years quite a bit happened. The home we were trying desperately to make a distant memory was weaving itself deep into the fabric of our story. We saw our two children born and pass on to heaven. We saw community come around us and support us in ways that pass understanding. We saw our marriage grow and we saw growth in ways that seemed impossible. Despite the work that was being done there was still a constant frustration that this chapter of our lives that we wanted closed would not finish. We were two weeks from taking the house off the market for the holidays and deciding what would come next when we got a call for a house showing. It was just like any other and we didn't think anything of it, until we got a call back that the folks that came by were very interested. That night we got our first offer. Everything went as smoothly as possible and less than a month later we were sitting at the closing table across from a very nice couple moving to Georgia to be closer to their first grandchild. Amanda told us early on that God had the right people for us and that it was just a matter of time for them to show up. This is exactly what happened. It took some time, but I have no doubt this was exactly how it was meant to be. We are so thankful for Amanda and all her encouragement and support over the past few years. She has become a friend and we truly appreciate her being in our lives. We are excited to move on and start the next chapter. We've learned not to stress over making it perfect, but to trust God that it will be according to His will for our lives. Whatever happens, we know it will be leading us deeper into the story we are writing and closer to the Kingdom story we all are writing every day. Matt and Sarah

Thanks, Deanne

I began the adventure of building our new home and I was not convinced I really needed a real estate agent since I had been in the building industry prior and I thought I could easily handle the decisions to be made. However, I quickly realized that Amanda's experience and services were desperately needed on almost a daily basis. I don't think I could have kept a positive attitude throughout the ordeal without Amanda's great support and friendship. I am so blessed that God has reconnected our lives and it was an amazing jourmey to have gone through this process with Amanda by my side. I am now settled in and the frustration is but a mere memory and we are blessed to have an amazing home for our family and an amazing friend to share in our joy. I wish you the best in all your future endeavors and pray that God blesses you and your family as much as you have blessed our lives.

Two of My Fav Guys Make it Happen!!!! Way to Make that Extra Money, Guys!

Kevin and I got to talking a few months ago about how he had worked on one or two of their cars that they got cheap, fixed them up and then ended up selling them for a good profit. I said I had a business idea to go with his skills – and we talked it out. He has a passion and knowledge when it comes to fixing up cars, and I had some business thinking as well as capital. We agreed to a “one car at a time” partnership – where I put up the funds for purchasing a super cheap car and doing the repair work. We agreed that on any given car we could not exceed $1500 total (between purchase, insurance, title and repair work). Once we sold the car we would repay on the capital investment and then split the profits 50/50. For Kevin, this gave an opportunity to make extra money to help pay down debt by doing something he enjoys. For me, this gave an extremely low risk way to invest a little bit of my money to help generate income to pay off debt. We entered in with 2 main things in mind: 1) We were using money that was sitting in savings at the moment and earning 1%-2% interest. By using this money for this business idea, we would be able to return a much higher rate in short time. Our goal would be to make 30%-70% ROI per car, but even if we made far less, it would still be better earnings that just sitting in the savings account. 2) My car is on it’s last leg – meaning we will need to purchase another car soon. In this scenario, the risk of owning another car we cannot sell is lowered even more because it means that (worst case) I could pay Kevin a couple hundred dollars and just keep the car that he has worked on – now having a more reliable vehicle and knowing the guy who has done the work on it. Our first vehicle we did this with ended up being just over $1100 total between purchase, repairs and all the sales fees. We were able to sell it for around $2300 within a month of purchasing it. This meant we each made about $600 on the car in a month’s time. On top of that, we sold it at a price where the purchaser got a deal – because the car was worth a little more than the selling price (meaning we were able to make great money, provide someone with a great car, and leave some value in it for them to do more repairs). We currently have our second vehicle ready to sell. We have spent $870 on it in total, and currently have it listed for $1900. We expect to be able to sell it for around $1600-$1700, which will mean another $350-$400 for each of us. Cory & Kevin

Lorraine - August 2012

Amanda, How do I even begin to thank you for your kindness? Thank you so much for all you did for me. From the countless emails to the positive encouragement, you helped me take a huge step as an adult: buying a home. Thank you for walking me through every step. Thank you for everything! Once I get married and have children, I will use you again, and I have already given your number to many friends who are first time homebuyers. Sincerely, Lorraine

Kevin and Abigail

My husband, Kevin, and I were married December 17th, 2010 – exactly one month after this, on January 17th,we found out that we had become victims of identity theft and that the person (a family member) who had put almost $40,000 of debt in our name. Needless to say, to a couple of newly-weds who “kind of” knew how to manage their own money this was a huge blow. Not only was there the legal damage and credit score issues to work through, but the emotional fallout was incredibly painful –and still is at times. Thankfully for us, Kevin and I were able to meet up with Amanda, a friend of mine, who is a certified financial coach -- though at the time we weren’t aware of that fact. The story goes that Amanda overheard me crying one day to a friend at church and asked what was wrong – once I explained to her the situation she informed me that she was a financial coach and that she, too, had also gone through a similar circumstance. She offered to meet up with Kevin and I that week so we could try to begin to process the situation and figure out how to deal with it all. At that time Kevin and I had personal debt of $7000 in school loans and $7800 of credit card debt. As soon as we got together with Amanda she gave us council on how to deal with the fraud situation (freezing our credit score, following up with a police report to secure that no new credit cards/charges could be added to our name, etc.) and then helped us begin to tackle our own finances. Helping us see beyond the fraud and helping us deal with our personal financial barriers was extremely encouraging as we tried to deal with everything – keeping in mind that we still had responsibilities and work that could be done in our own time and with our own hands outside of the family chaos and police reports was, oddly enough, extremely comforting. Amanda advised us to make a personal budget to see what kind of expenses we were actually working with as opposed to the vaguely estimated budget we’d created in our mind that we “kind of” stuck to when we made purchases. Kevin and I were both, at the time, extremely stressed and disheartened about this because we felt that we had no money and struggled to make payments at the end of each month. We purchased a financial worksheet tool offered at the Dave Ramsey website and I realized almost immediately that the reason we thought we had no money was because our math skills were atrocious. Thankfully, we were able to create a budget after punching in different combinations of numbers in our cash flow worksheet that, although tight, was actually manageable. It was with a budget with no more than $1.00 of breathing room that we began making baby steps towards paying off our very high-interest credit card. At the time we both felt like paying off the card would take forever – we were discouraged, though determined. After a few months we started to see that the dent we were making was actually substantial. Through various extra jobs I was offered and some ingenious deals consisting of car buying and selling that Kevin came up with we were able to pay off about half of the credit card within our first year of marriage – now THAT was extremely encouraging! All along the way we continued to meet up with Amanda and talk through big financial decisions we needed to make. I figured out how to re-work our budget to where we had more than just a dollar’s worth of room to breathe and we began to try and figure out if we could get rid of our credit card entirely within this past year, rather than in the 2 years our “debt snowball” was telling us it would take. After turning down an expensive (but awesome) vacation with friends, buying used cars and fixing them ourselves, and sticking (mostly!) to our budget, we were able to figure out how to make enough payments using our extra income (refunds from school financial aid, Kevin’s military allowance for his being in school, extra jobs, etc.) to make our final payment on the credit hard by the end July of this year! This means that in about a year and a half the credit card that once haunted us was completely paid off! This was a HUGELY gratifying experience! Our credit card interest was so high at one point that over half – I say over half of our payment was going towards interest, not debt! When we both calculated how much we’d spent on interest in year one it made making difficult sacrifices financially MUCH easier. We are now thrilled to say we are credit card debt free and well on our way to paying off the school debt! We are so grateful for the direction we received from Amanda and the payback that discipline, grace (for when sticking to the budget actually didn’t happen like we’d planned), and teamwork helped us accomplish. Managing our finances as a team and having a third party to go to for conflict resolution has been a huge asset to Kevin and I – we are so thankful to have one another to help when one of us wants to just go blow the budget and do something crazy! – We are also grateful that when we both feel this way, Amanda is there to keep us in check! We feel very strongly that living debt free is the best way to live – I cannot explain how free we both feel now that the weight of “owing” a bank is off of our shoulders. Being enslaved to another is not a way to live – we are one huge step closer to fulfilling our personal dreams of having a house and family one day – and we’re making these steps with faith, friends, and each other. If you’re at a place where you’re starting out with a large load of debt or are in the middle of what feels like an irreconcilable financial situation – take heart! Over the last year and a half much restoration has happened with Kevin and I’s family, we have paid off a credit card, and are stronger in our marriage for it all. Many tears were shed, angry words were definitely spoken, but with grace, discipline, patience, and outside help all of these things were ultimately used for the good of our family and we consider the pain completely worth it. It may not always be easy, but then again, what that is worthwhile ever is?

Congratulations, Marco & Jordan!

My husband and I have known Amanda for about a year now, and we could not have asked for a more awesome person to purchase a home with. She is honest, straightforward, and willing to fight for what we wanted and what we felt God wanted for us, and that is rare in any business dealing. We genuinely appreciate everything she has helped us with in finding our dream home for the next several years. We couldn't have done it without her, nor would we want to! Any time I hear of someone thinking about buying a home, I tell them, "Hey, I have a really great agent..." because I want other people to have the best experience possible, too! Thank you for everything!!! Marco & Jordan Rosa

Thank Roger and Rozy~

Amanda not only knows how to get things done quickly but is excellence in motion.  I recommend her to all our friends and family.  Amanda is a woman of integrity and intelligence and that makes for a wonderful real estate experience.

Congratulations Brie! Here's to an exciting 2012~

          Talk about an incredible woman of God! Amanda Cole is a dedicated, professional, Godly, and considerate realtor. I’m so thankful for the direction she allows God to have in her life. When I first met with her in June 2011, I remember her saying that ‘God is a God of order, and that He intends for us to do things responsibly and in order’. This has stuck with me ever since! In saving money and working through the budget she initially gave me, I truly saw the meaning in what she initially told me. Because she is also a financial advisor, she knows the responsible and correct ways to go about finding an appropriate price point and sticking to it!

         

          Amanda’s expertise in real estate is evident! I’m thankful for her confidence in allowing me to trust her judgment and guidance. She’s furthering her knowledge of real estate by attending classes and seminars to keep her work ethic and knowledge up to date. She made every experience I had with her very comfortable, honest, and reassuring. I truly enjoyed going to look at houses with her because she was always prepared, always informative, always had a great attitude, always observant, and always aware of things to be pointed out. She is quick to respond to emails, calls, and texts! She was very flexible in dealing with my crazy, busy schedule!

          Most importantly, she was by my side, extremely supportive and encouraging of the home-buying process even after closing! I appreciate her dedication and initiative in helping me find the house that ‘makes sense for me’. She lives by God’s direction and it is evident in the way she does business. Amanda loves life and is a joy to be around! My home-buying process was smooth, enjoyable, and happened in perfect timing! I am now in a home that I am so excited about and proud of! By God’s grace, I also was able to get an incredible interest rate and secured an offer that couldn’t be passed up! Thank you Amanda for your love in helping find a home for Daniel and I to start our marriage in! I pray for the Lord’s blessing and favor in your life for years to come! PS. I look forward to having you and Barry over for dinner once we get settled in our new home!!

-Brie

Baby Step Celebration!

Amanda,

So far, we are doing pretty good. Last night was my sister's birthday and she wanted Ben and I to come celebrate, but of course it was an expensive restaurant in Buckhead.  Even though this would have pretty much emptied our "outing" money out for the rest of the month, I know God wants me spending time with her so we just went. On the way I stopped at my Grandma's house and she gave us money for the dinner without us even asking! LOL! Just thought I'd share! :) These kind of things have been happening so much lately!

Hope training went well this weekend!

Laura~