If you’ve ever been asked to do something that didn’t feel right, you know how heavy that moment can get. Jesop faced that exact kind of pressure in aircraft quality control, and when he refused to cut corners, it cost him his job.
But that line-in-the-sand decision also pushed him toward a career that matches his values. Today, Jesop runs Fern Family Homes in Seattle and focuses on Seattle real estate wholesaling, helping sellers and investors connect through off-market deals,especially tired homes and tired landlord situations.
This is both a story and a practical playbook: how he broke into wholesaling, what his first three deals taught him, and how he builds a pipeline with consistent outreach, honest pricing, and a reputation-first mindset.
In an episode of the DealMachine REI Podcast, Jesop shares how he transitioned from aircraft quality control to Seattle real estate wholesaling, including the real lessons behind his first three deals. Want to hear the full interview? Watch the full episode here:
Seattle real estate wholesaling is when you put a property under contract and assign that contract to an investor buyer for a fee. The seller gets a faster, simpler sale path, and the buyer gets an opportunity that fits their numbers.
Here are the quick definitions most readers want:
Jesop’s goal is straightforward: keep the deal clean, keep communication honest, and make sure both sides feel respected when the closing is done.
Jesop left aircraft quality control because he was pressured to skip inspections, and he wouldn’t do it. In aviation, small failures can cause chain reactions, and he didn’t want that responsibility on his conscience.
That moment didn’t just change his job. It clarified what he values: integrity over convenience, and doing the work the right way even when it costs him. Real estate became a better fit because it rewards consistency, character, and problem-solving, and it gave him a path to build a life by design, not by default.
Jesop grew up seeing what rentals can do for a family’s freedom and flexibility. His grandmother owned around 30 rental homes, and from childhood through his late teens, he helped with maintenance and repairs.
That early experience gave him a long view: real estate can create options. Even though he followed a third-generation family path into aircraft work, the seed was always there, real estate as a better long-term fit for how he wanted to live and work.
Your first wholesale deal can take months, or longer, because you’re learning pricing, buyer expectations, and how to handle real seller situations. For Jesop, it took 1 year and 10 months to lock up and close deal #1.
That timeline is important for new investors to hear. A slow start doesn’t always mean you’re doing it wrong. It often means you’re building the skills that create momentum later: patience, follow-up, and the ability to price based on reality, not hope.
Jesop’s first deal closed because he listened to buyer feedback, renegotiated price, and helped the seller meet lender requirements. The property was in Rochester, WA, a 1.25-acre lot with a worn 1977 mobile home, about a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Seattle.
He tied it up too high. When he started reaching out to buyers, interest was thin. Instead of forcing the deal, he asked the question that unlocked the truth:
“What about this deal doesn’t work for you?”
The pattern was clear: the price didn’t fit investor appetite. Jesop went back to the seller and negotiated a $25,000 price reduction.
Then came the twist. There was only one serious buyer, and they needed traditional financing. Financing brings standards. Standards often require repairs. Jesop partnered with an agent to handle the retail side and then personally drove down for three to four weeks doing painting and scraping so the seller (around 75 years old) could meet lender requirements and close.
You price off-market deals in Seattle by using real buyer feedback to adjust fast, before you waste weeks chasing the wrong number. Jesop’s approach is simple and repeatable:
The Rochester deal is the proof. The $25,000 reduction didn’t “hurt the deal.” It aligned the contract with what buyers would actually fund and fix.
A clean rule that keeps wholesaling honest:
Jesop finds off-market deals in Seattle by calling targeted owner lists every day, qualifying situations quickly, and making clean offers that match real buyer criteria. This is the core “system” section, so you’ll see the tools and calling details here in one place.
Jesop recommends exporting “likely owners” only instead of pulling every possible contact tied to a property. That reduces wrong-party conversations and keeps his effort focused on people who can actually make a decision.
The second deal worked because the price was right from the first appointment, and Jesop protected reputation by avoiding a bidding war. A general contractor colleague brought him the opportunity in North Seattle. Buyer interest was strong, and multiple buyers wanted to compete.
Jesop chose not to squeeze the moment for a few extra dollars. He selected a solid buyer and moved forward cleanly. The assignment fee was $90,000, split evenly with his colleague.
He also learned a time lesson that many wholesalers ignore: chasing an extra $5,000 can cost a much larger deal if it burns your day and slows your pipeline.
The third deal showed Jesop that support can help, but his best conversion tool is his own voice. He tested a VA calling service for four months. The deal he closed from that test basically helped him break even on the service cost.
The takeaway wasn’t “never outsource.” It was that sellers respond to genuine care, and Jesop regularly hears that he doesn’t sound like most callers. For him, being present, thoughtful, and human is the advantage that separates him in a crowded market.
Jesop’s edge is that he prioritizes reducing stress for sellers, not adding pressure. Many sellers aren’t moving because it’s convenient. They’re moving because life forced a decision, divorce, hoarding, debt, burnout, or the need for a clean reset.
Jesop wants sellers to feel certainty:
In his view, getting paid is a byproduct of service: a happy seller and a happy buyer create space for a fair outcome in the middle.
Seattle real estate wholesaling is getting an off-market property under contract and assigning that contract to an investor buyer for an assignment fee. It works best when pricing matches real Seattle-area investor demand.
Most wholesale real estate investors find off-market deals by calling targeted lists like high-equity owners, tired landlords, and absentee owners in Seattle and nearby King County areas. Consistency and clean data usually outperform “perfect scripts.”
A wholesale assignment fee is what you earn when you assign your purchase contract to an end buyer. It’s typically paid at closing and reflects the value of sourcing, negotiating, and coordinating the deal.
Start with buyer feedback. If several investors pass, ask why, then adjust quickly based on repeated patterns like repairs, margins, and neighborhood risk, especially in competitive Seattle submarkets.
It varies. Many beginners take months, and some take longer. Jesop’s first deal took 1 year and 10 months, and his momentum improved once his pricing and process matched what buyers were actually looking for.
Jesop’s story isn’t about shortcuts. It’s about showing up daily, pricing with feedback, and treating reputation like the asset that compounds.
If you’re building a wholesaling pipeline in Seattle, the model is clear:
Because in off-market real estate, trust is what keeps deals and relationships coming back.