Laugh if you will, but I am a believer. Call it fantasy, hocus pocus, or superstition.
There is a story, perhaps a wives’ tale, that if you bury a statue of St. Joseph on the grounds of a home that is for sale that the home will sell faster.
As a young boy, I was taught that St. Joseph was a carpenter. I do not think he ever sold real estate, so I am not sure where the belief that he is the patron saint of real estate agents originated.
But why tempt fate?
Over the years I have made it a practice to bury a St. Joseph statue at the home of all my listings, including my own when it was for sale.
There have been a lot of different opinions as to how St. Joseph should be employed. Some say upside down in the front yard. Others say in the back yard facing the house. Still, others say facing away from the house. But that technique always concerned me that the house across the street will sell and not mine.
I once read a story about a seller that did not believe St. Joseph can help sell a house. He dug up the statue and threw it in the garbage. A few days later the county sold the property that the landfill was on to a developer. I am a bit skeptical this report is true.
Of course, fixing up, cleaning, and staging a home for sale can also yield productive results, but that is a subject for another blog post.
The practice also says that once the home sells, that St. Joseph should be dug up and displayed in a place of honor. I like to display my St. Joseph statues in one of my most honorable places, along with the flag that draped my father’s casket when he was buried at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, FL. Dad was a veteran of World War II and served with honor in Burma and India.
One thing I know for sure is that I will continue to utilize St. Joseph, my namesake, to help with my real estate sales. I also will continue to display him in a place of honor alongside my father’s flag. It is the most honorable place I can imagine.
Joe Domino is a Realtor® serving the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. Need more information? Or to Search for your next home, visit www.Scottsdale-AZHomes.com
