“Experience has taught me that you cannot value dreams according to the odds of their coming true. Their real value is in stirring within us the will to aspire. That will, wherever it finally leads, does at least move you forward. After a time you may recognize that the proper measure of success is not how much you’ve closed the distance to some far-off goal but the quality of what you’ve done today.”
I find that many rea
l estate transactions are tied to dreams. That dream home a buyer imagines, or a dream realized with a new job, a new love, or a new life. When she was around four, my daughter, Amanda, loved to watch the movie Miracle on 34th Street starring the young Natalie Wood. If you haven’t seen the movie, it is about a little girl named Susie and her struggle with believing in Santa. She decides she will only believe if Santa gives her what she wants for Christmas – her dream home she saw in an advertisement. In the movie, dreams do come true. Not only does Susie find the house of her dreams, but her mother and their neighbor (who saved Kris Kringle) marry and live happily ever after in the dream house.
In both buying and selling, it is how we move people toward what they may or may not know is their dream home – stirring in them what they aspire to.
When we are working with sellers, I try to help them think about how their home can be the dream home that a buyer may be imagining. For some buyers, it is the dream of prestige, for others it is comfort, and still others want the type of family home than Susie longed for. The more the home shows as clean and uncluttered (yet with a touch of love), the more a potential buyer can see themselves in the home.
Looking for more resources to help you buy a home? Read these posts next:
- What to Expect When You Start Looking to Buy a House
- How to Shop for a Lender: Questions You Be Asking While Shopping
- How to Find the Best Value When Buying a Home
Sellers may not always be able to provide that dream home off the bat, we are all busy and our homes tend to get cluttered and dinked up here and there. However, don’t fear! We work with sellers every day to declutter and stage their home to tell the best story of their home and to help stir something inside a buyer’s heart and mind that will move them to act. I have been in multi-million dollar homes that did not have a soul that a $300,000 condo that did. It’s not about the money it is about the care and attention to details.
I often talk about the changes we’ve seen in real estate, but I think this one element is so important and unchanging. In Miracle on 34th Street, Susie formed the opinion about her dream home from an ad in the paper. At that time, the only way to see inside a home was to go there in person. Now anyone online can peek inside any home for sale and dream about it. Therefore, it is vitally important for sellers to understand that presenting their home online must stir the soul of the buyer. Sparkling windows, no clutter, and attractive furniture (aka staging!!) that appeals to their most likely buyer all play a role in helping a home to shine. It truly makes such a difference to a potential buyer.
Selling your home soon? Here are a few more posts you might find interesting:
- What to Do if Your House is Not Selling?
- Should You Set a Home Offer Deadline?
- Are Open Houses Necessary for Selling a Home?
A buyer may think they are not be able to afford their dream home in our market, but with the right touches, your home, no matter how big or small, can stir something inside a buyer that moves them to buy. We will help you make your home into a buyer’s dream. It could be emphasizing the neighborhood — how a buyer would be able to ditch their car and walk to shops. Alternatively, buyers may aspire to have land around them or a garage to tinker in or a garden to grow. It might be an open kitchen where they can cook or entertain and still watch their kids play in the next room, or maybe a luxurious master bath or closet. What stirs your soul?
We are in the business to make dreams come true. We facilitate the dream of the seller selling their home quickly and for as much money as possible. For the buyer, we are tasked with helping them find that something in a home that aligns with their vision or dreams. Sometimes, just owning a property is a dream come true.
If we can help you with your real estate dream and finding your dream home, please don’t hesitate to call, text or email. We love nothing better than helping buyers and sellers realize the very best for themselves.
If you’re looking to buy or sell in the DMV, we’d love to help. Contact us today! You can fill out the form below, call us directly at 703-362-3221, or email us at sue@thegoodhartgroup.com or allison@thegoodhartgroup.com.
