"Hi. My wife and I are looking for a realtor. We know your company has an eye for design and architecture, and we hope you can help us find a home. We'd like a realtor who can help us understand every step of the process. I would appreciate a call this week. Thanks for your time!" - Future Client Email, April, 2012
when it comes to real estate and design, there is puh-lenty of shit to navigate.
For me, getting into this business was always about the people. (And the homes. And the marketing.) I like to make sure that my clients always win. The house they want...the price that makes sense. For a seller, that may mean the highest price with the fewest repairs. For a buyer, maybe the lowest price with the most concessions. For a design project, it may translate to small tweaks on a tight budget. Whatever it looks like, it can be tricky to navigate.
For every pretty post on Instagram that makes it look as though our line of work is all sunshine and roses, there are likely 10 or so hours of work that made that single, beautiful image possible.
We try to focus on the "fun stuff" as much as we possibly can, but inevitably, the dirty work creeps in and takes over the majority of our work days. Truth be told, that's perfectly fine with me. We'll wade through the muck and the mire with a smile...happy clients make it all worthwhile.
The email at the top of this story has one such joyous ending that we love to see. We helped them find their dream home five years ago, and we watched them make it their own. We saw a family of two become three, and we made friends of them (family, really). Most recently, we were able to help them make a big move...from that home they so loved five years ago when they found it, to something that so perfectly suits them today. So we celebrated those last weeks in that previously-perfect home with a friendly gathering. Have a look at the photos...this is what love looks like. Each time I look back on gatherings like this one, it inspires me to keep doing exactly what I do. I'll do the dirty work 24 hours a day if it means putting folks squarely in the space they were born to occupy. Loads more of this in 2017, I say. Let's get you home.
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