Wow. Where to start?
In the 10 years I've lived in the U.S., Sharmistha "Mish" Dutta is the best realtor I've dealt with. She's also one of the most patient, determined, and kind-hearted people I've ever known.
I moved from L.A. to New York, and Mish represented the seller of the New York house I hoped to buy. Due to her amazing availability and professionalism, she eventually became my agent also (i.e., on the buying side).
From my many initial questions to negotiations to contract signing, Mish was there providing timely responses and lucid straightforward information. I never once got the impression anything was sugarcoated, or more or less than the clear truth.
But... all of this was kinda just the start.
Problem: Once the price was hammered out, there were a number of processes regulated by New York law that needed to be followed, most of which I was unfamiliar with as a Californian.
Solution: Mish was able to connect me with Stenger, Diamond & Glass, an outstanding law firm whose services were vital in legally settling the real-estate transaction. This included an unexpected step in which an affidavit was needed to gain city approval. Mish, along with Jessica and Sandra from the law firm, worked hard to get me over this hurdle expediently.
Problem: A far bigger hurdle was the fact that I was misled by my moving company. Despite stating 60-day delivery time was likely, this moving company ended up unexpectedly announcing that they were going to drop off my possessions before my arrival date. In other words, the "60-day delivery time" was merely a tactic for motivating clients to pay more to avoid "delays".
Solution: Mish ingeniously brainstormed an idea and worked with the seller of the New York house to land an out-of-the-box solution that eliminated any time pressure on me, and fit my needs perfectly.
Problem: Active insurance was mandatory for closing the deal. I spent an entire afternoon calling five to six insurance companies (e.g., Allstate, Progressive, smaller vendors). Due to the $1.7-1.9M assessed replacement value, they all failed to offer coverage, citing risk.
Solution: Mish arranged support from Katy, her teammate from Weichert Realtors. Katy was able to immediately issue an insurance policy, unblocking closure with zero date impact.
To sum up, the kind of resourcefulness and dynamicism shown by Mish is rare among professionals from any industry (i.e., not only real estate). She was instrumental in making my New York dream a reality.
Based on the above, I feel like Mish and I have been through a lot together. And as a result, I'm blessed to consider her more a friend than a realtor. read more
