If one is to believe what they are reading in the news, Armageddon is just around the corner. I have to say, what I am reading and what I am living are very different realities.
First, my phone has rung more in the past week than in the previous two months. I had an offer written on one of my listings yesterday, I am writing an offer tomorrow and I have two showings on one of my listings this weekend. I got a referral from someone for a familiy member looking to buy in our neighborhood. For someone who has not been that aggressive in getting more real estate business, it's raining business.
I live on the east side of Cleveland in Highland Heights. I moved here 5 years ago from Toledo. On a side note, I met a man on a blind date in 2002 and in 2004 I was loaded up and moving here. I had a successful real estate practice in Toledo and I have to admit for the first couple of years, I did not have the normal "fire-in-the-belly" that it takes to start a real estate career in new surroundings. During 2008, I partnered with another Realtor. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my partner, I had an "ah-ha" moment--I realized that I really missed real estate.
With the start of the new year, I decided to take a new tact to my work. The first thing I did was to become a professional home stager and redesigner. I have taken my love of decorating and combined it with my love of real estate and voila--I have re-invented myself. I am so excited and looking forward to have a fun and profitable year.
Having sold real estate in Toledo and now in Cleveland, I find there is an interesting social phenomena--a city's native people are the most critical and negative about their home towns. It's those of us who come in from the outside that find the area appealing. Why is that? Of course, Cleveland has its share of problems--what city doesn't? No one is immune from change and trying times. But Cleveland has so much to offer--it has all of the amenities of a big city--great theatre, great restaurants, professional sports teams (no comment on the Browns), yet there is no traffic, it's a good quality of life and, I have found, there is a sense of community. And, if I hear one more person complain about the weather--hello, we live in Cleveland. It's supposed to be cold now.
House values are very very affordable. Although housing prices have come down somewhat in the last year or so, Cleveland has not been impacted to the same degree as other metropolitan areas such as Phoenix, Las Vegas, Southern California. Interest rates are at historical lows. There is still money out there for those with decent credit. And, yes, houses are selling.
I'm determined that 2009 will be wonderful. I hope you share my optimism. I think we should all try to accentuate the positive and maybe little by little, good things will happen for you as well.
Comments(4)