STAY HOME!

I’ll get right to the point. Cheri and I will not be showing any more houses, or listing any more houses, until this crisis eases. We just don’t think there are safe ways to conduct business at the moment. And we think that unless there is some absolutely critical reason you have to buy or sell, then you should sit out this spring market. (If the need really is dire then call us and we’ll counsel/advise you as best we possibly can.)

I wrote pages of argument over the last couple of days to support this decision. Then crossed out a lot of it because I sounded too frustrated, or too angry, or somehow jealous of those who have evidently decided to soldier on and who will likely make some good money before all hell breaks loose. And then I wrote some more about the willful blindness I see around me to the reality of our situation. About the doctors on the front lines begging us to stay home. About the thousands of waiters and waitresses putting up the chairs in their pubs and restaurants for the last time and heading off, mid-night, into months of uncertainty and financial peril. What makes us realtors so special we think we can act differently? 

But I’ve scrapped all that (well most of it anyway). Because I think we all know damn well, without me going on endlessly, that it doesn’t make any sense to let a stream of strangers through your house right now. Or for buyers to think some shitty woodworking mask and a pair of running gloves is going to keep them safe. It’s mad, it really is. 

There are some who still think that business can be conducted safely if we keep it mostly virtual. That agents can provide buyers with personalized video walkthroughs of any property they like the look of. And sure, maybe they’ve read something I haven’t. But my questions would be, How many houses was that agent in before they came over to yours? And, Where did they get the coffee they set down on your cutting board while they shot their iPhone video? And do you really think you’ll see full market value for your house that way?

You can see where I’m going with this. But I say it again: In our opinion, there is no way right now to safely conduct business-more-or-less-as-usual. The government is telling you to stay home. Doctors are pleading with you to stay home. Please listen to them.

We’ll be back when things settle down. And we hope you’ll still remember us. It’ll be busy, we really think it will be. We think there will be more inventory than we’ve seen in a while, and loads of buyers, and low interest rates. Enough of everything to satisfy all that pent-up demand. So wait for it, if you’re able, we implore you. And stay safe.

Lastly I’d just say that we’re very grateful for the trust that this community places in us regularly to do the right thing for them real-estate-wise. And if we can help in other ways in the difficult weeks ahead, let us know. We’re around and we’re certainly not going anywhere.

Or send us photos and stories. Maybe we can focus the website for a bit on the people inside the houses, instead of on the houses themselves. We’d sure like that.

Talk to you all soon.