The Real Estate Whisperer?

The Real Estate Whisperer?  Considering the Dog Whisperer and Horse Whisperer and Ghost Whisperer and any other kind of whisperer out there, you may think this “name” is a bit cliche’. But maybe you’d feel differently if you understood the story behind it.

Years ago, my (then) assistant was harping on me to start a blog for a variety of reasons.  I thought blogs were kind of stupid.  I mean, why would anyone care what I had to say?  She said I was smart and funny.  Whatever.

But the spring of 2008 was an interesting one within the real estate market here in the Dulles area.  The times, they were a’changin’. Again.  And I had plenty to say about it.

You see, on May 17th, 2005, our market here in Leesburg changed.  It was like an earth quake.  On that day, I had written 3 contracts and 2 ratified.  None were particularly amazing, they all required financing and none had escalation clauses; and yet, the sellers took them.  Up until that point, for a very long time, the market was so competitive that if you wanted to actually buy a property you had to pay well above list price and promise the sun, moon and the stars. Often you would be competing with 15-30 other buyers when you wrote an offer for a property.  So for 2 of 3 “average” contracts to ratify, it meant no competition.  The third seller waited a week before finally getting another offer and then turning down ours.

I remember that day vividly.  I remember looking around like “Did anyone else see that?”  But it seemed I was the only one.  From that day going forward, the momentum of the market changed.  It took some time before we saw price changes as a result, but that day was the turning point.  It took a long time before you heard real estate practioners speak of it, and even longer before they were speaking publicly about the change.  It made me sad, I didn’t understand… Did they not see the writing on the wall?  Were they in denial?  Or did they just not want to tell the ugly truth?

So, in 2008 when I saw the writing on the wall for the next change, the recovery, I thought I owed it to the consumer to scream at the top of my lungs… “If you want to buy, if you can buy, now is the time.”  I knew prices would soon be going up.

It was at that time I decided to start a blog.  My first post ever was “Can you hear the whispers?”  Even though I knew a small group of us were shouting about the market changes, in the crowd, it surely sounded like whispers.  You can see that first post HERE.

And then, from lack of creativity, I named the blog “The Real Estate Whisperer“.  Then the nickname started.  I am not sure my competition meant it in a complimentary fashion, but I didn’t much care.  I had a message others needed to hear, and I wanted to share it.

One thing that was true then and is true now:  I may not have the loudest voice in the crowd.  I promise always to have the most honest.

…and that is the story.

These days you see less blog posts (I am working on that) but you can always find me on Social Media…

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/TheRealEstateWhisperer

Twitter: www.Twitter.com/REWhisperer