 The Fall market has provided a slew of great listings and savvy Buyers have jumped in to take advantage of this last final push before the holidays are truly upon us.
In Piedmont, we saw more houses on the market in a single week in September (16!), than we did in any given week all last spring, and true to form, if they were priced correctly, they found a qualified Buyer in quick time. ("IF" being the operative word.)
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 Given the high demand that good Stagers attract, it’s inevitable that, whether through timing, budget, or Seller preference, we Realtors are going to be forced to work outside our tried-and-true group of trusted vendors. (There's a reason they are "tried and true" and why we hate doing this!)
Such an occasion happened last week with a new listing where the Sellers were anxious to get their home on the market almost immediately. Unfortunately, the Stagers I most often collaborate with were booked for at least a month out.  In my experience, every life lesson worth learning, is hard earned. If there's an easier way, I haven't found it. And sadly, I'm not the only one.
Last week, I put a beautiful listing I represent into contract only to hear from one of the rejected Buyers afterwards that I should do whatever I needed to keep him in play. He's now in back-up at a substantially higher price than his initial offer. (First the test, then the lesson.)  "Did you fall asleep before the end of the show?" my husband teased, knowing the answer without having to ask. (Why yes, I did.)
I don't know if my nodding off in front of the TV is a function of genetics (I still remember my dad snoring in his recliner each night), of hard work, or of advancing age, but with each passing year, I tend to wake up earlier and earlier; thus, I now struggle to stay awake much past 9:30 at night. (Okay, I'm dull.)  I spent last weekend bouncing back and forth between two new listings - each unique in their own way - and each entirely terrific.
Apart from these fantastic homes, I was struck by the similarities of the Buyers that came through. For the record, I held a Saturday morning open (to coincide with the Farmers' Market nearby), and a Sunday afternoon, 2-4:30 (as is standard). In short, I spent most of my weekend successfully manning open houses.  It's been a busy week for me, what with Jill on a well-earned vacation exploring the Pacific Northwest, Canada and Glacier National Park with her two girls in a cool Camper Van that's sure to show up on Instagram!
Which means that I'm manning the fort alone: meeting the inspectors, primping properties (as opposed to pimping properties), planting pots, watering beds, chasing down permit histories, editing marketing copy, picking up lighting, dropping off donuts, running to the hardware store (again and again and AGAIN!) and doing the 101 tasks I typically assign Jill on a weekly basis. (I miss her already and she only left town on Tuesday.)  I'm not sure "surrendering" comes naturally to anyone. There's something incredibly difficult about the concept that makes us feel as if we're giving in and giving up, when in my experience, the exact opposite is true.
The tendency to fight instead of letting go, reminds me of a story my friend recently shared about being stuck on a sandbar in the Russian River.  I just turned 500! Well, not me personally, but today marks the 500th Perspective. (Whew!)
That's 500 compositions, 500 e-mailings, 500 stories, 500 anecdotes, 500 challenges, 500 lessons learned, 500 solutions, 500 opportunities for growth, 500 acts of service, 500 spiritual experiences (I've prayed a lot through the years), 500 new friends and at least 500 typos. (You've let me know about everyone of them.)  We're heading to Santa Cruz this afternoon for a brief holiday before Tristan returns to college, so I've pulled out my rental contract just to be sure my dates are correct.
Years ago, we excitedly showed up, bags in hand, at SFO 24 hours ahead of our trip to Hawaii, and while admittedly, it was a dumb thing to do, thankfully, it wasn't 24 hours after the plane had departed. Instead, we gained a day of no work, no phone calls, no appointments, and no stress (and went to the movies instead)! It may have been the best start to a vacation . . . EVER! |
AuthorJulie Gardner, referred to as, "the pulse of Piedmont," has been writing The Piedmont Perspective for 11 years. 
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McGuire Real Estate 2991 Oakland Avenue Berkeley, CA 94705 office: 510.883.7000 Cell: 510.326.0840 |
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