C raig Gaudry is a name many in Kirkland will recognize, considering he’s been a long-time Kirkland resident and a major player in this crazy real estate market of ours for a good 35 years now. In that time, Craig has helped his clients through multiple recessions, major booms, and a global pandemic. You’d think that would be enough, but now we are experiencing the biggest inflationary period since the late ‘70s, and although interest rates are still relatively low, they are the highest they have been in a decade. Throw in the war in Ukraine and you can imagine the fear and confusion many homeowners are experiencing over whether to buy, sell, or hold in this market. That’s where Craig’s breadth of experience comes in. To backtrack, Craig was hired as a rental agent in 1984 and worked his way into management. His mom and stepdad were working for Richard James REALTORS®, which piqued Craig’s interest, so, in 1987, he got his real estate license. Craig’s stepdad told him early on, “Your job is to get buyers and sellers together and not get in the way… You are there to help people, and the rest will take care of itself.” Craig never forgot that. Craig was on a clear path with a purpose to serve and connect with his community. He embraced a clients-first philosophy, which boded well with everyone he assisted and, over the years, partnered with various brokerages, including Richard James REALTORS®, RE/MAX, Avenue Properties, Sotheby’s, and Windermere, finding immense success working alongside his mentors. Now back with Windermere, Craig’s extensive experience sets him apart from brokers newer to the scene and assures his clients get the best outcome. As Craig points out, “I know how to best represent and help a client navigate, regardless of the situation.” And unlike less seasoned agents, Craig knows where the boundaries are. “I’ve done over 1,600 real estate transactions, and I know how to properly represent my clients,” he says. “You’ve got to know where to draw the line and when to bring in professionals and other specialists to help advise your clients so they don’t get into trouble.”
In March of 2020, when we were locked down in our homes, people were scared. And while real estate was one of the few industries deemed “essential,” there was an initial slowdown, and clients willing to buy or sell during that uncertain time were flocking to seasoned agents like Craig to help them navigate the waters. As Craig points out, “The trust and confidence I’d established with my clients over decades helped to reassure them during this time, especially since getting people past their fears was a big issue,” he says. “I also made sure my clients knew I had a plan in place for dealing with the environment we were in, including having everything buttoned down with the PPE and sanitizing when it came to protecting them and their homes.” As always, Craig’s focus was on his clients first. Yet, despite all the turmoil the pandemic created, Craig admits it gave us a chance to slow down, step back, and think about what was most important to us. For Craig, those priorities include his wife, Debbie; daughters, Oona, Carinna, and Lianna; and son-in-law, TJ Walthers. Other priorities include regularly supporting local organizations such as the Kirkland Boys & Girls Club, Windermere Foundation, Toys for Tots, and Imagine Housing. Now that the masks have come off and we are able to meet face-to-face again, Craig is thrilled as he has always worked hard to understand and interact well with his clients and admits that keeping this level of interaction alive virtually was not easy. And for those wondering, Craig assures it is still a seller’s market but says that unless a property is in “cream puff” condition, you aren’t guaranteed to get multiple offers anymore and even those properties that do are receiving fewer of them. “The market is still pretty hot in the under $2,000,000 price range, but as you get above that, we are seeing a little more softening,” he says. Still, Craig doesn’t see this slowdown as a bad thing and says it is creating more opportunity for buyers. “If you’re a homebuyer who was looking to buy a property within the last two years and kept losing out, this could ABOVE CAPTIONS// Top: Craig reviewing a home market analysis in 1990 Bottom: Craig in his first real estate car with built-in cell phone sponsor spotlight By Jenny Hart Danowski
July 2022 Greet Kirkland22 23 Craig Gaudry WINDERMERE REAL ESTATE Helping Clients Successfully Navigate This Ever-changing Real Estate Market
In fact, risk management has been a fundamental asset Craig brings to his business, and with all that is currently going on in the world and in the real estate market, that is an asset worth taking advantage of.
be a great time for you even though interest rates have gone up because the opportunity to actually be successful in purchasing a home is better than it’s been in the past two years.” He also points out that most expert economists are talking more midto-upper single-digit for appreciation which, by historical standards, is great. We’ve just been spoiled. Going forward, Craig is doing a “deeper dive” with his active clients, as well as past clients, to help them evaluate what they may want to do in this market. “I’ve made that a hallmark of what I’m doing to help reinforce that I am their asset and resource for figuring those things out,” he says. After all, as Craig concludes, “There have been a lot of changes in how we do business since I began, but what hasn’t changed is putting my client’s needs ahead of my own.”
