We Never Go Out of Style 🫶

I had the pleasure of hosting the open houses over the weekend for one of the most adorable homes I've ever seen.  206 Columbia St in Malden had charm out the wazoo, and enabled me to do one of my favorite things in real estate: have all the fun with none of the pressure.  I absolutely love doing open houses in general because it's like hosting a party for which I neither need to cook nor stay up late.  Perfect.  And when it's someone else's listing, there's far less stress when the party isn't all that well-attended.

However, that wasn't the case at all at Columbia St.  For pretty much every minute of the three hours I was there holding the house open, the place was packed.  And people were enthralled.  It didn't really matter that the bedrooms were tiny or the lot was a postage stamp or that the roof was older or that there was no cooling.  Why?  Because of the vibes, man.

In all seriousness, the aesthetic appeal of this house was absolutely off the charts.  The kitchen had a retro-feel that wasn't cheesy, it was executed perfectly.  Straight out of a magazine.  And that center-piece of the house served as the core of a theme that existed throughout - whether it be the decor, furniture, or house itself.  It made sense to go for a new, but throwback kitchen when you have a home with stunning built-ins and original hardwood floors throughout.  The art, trinkets, record player, etc all of it fit the theme.  And the abundance of plants gave the house a feeling of being alive - perfectly contrasting with and challenging the notion that retro has to mean old.

But enough of my gushing, let me get to the real point.  Price-wise, there are really no comps for this house.  I met several unrepresented buyers at the open houses, and I'll be working with one of them to submit an offer today.  The first thing I said to him when we had our follow-up call was that I really could not point to even one comparable recent sale that justified what he wanted to offer on the house.  He couldn't have cared less.  And that's OK.

There are probably many experienced real estate investors (or even just long-time homeowners) who might scoff at what my new buyer is about to do.  But hey, I am a big believer in the notion that a property is worth what a buyer is willing to pay.  And again, as someone who was there for every minute of every open house, there's essentially no chance there won't be other people offering similar amounts.  This will be competitive.

Is this a situation of a house just being an outlier?  Perhaps, or maybe it's a sign of things to come.  A shift, if you will.  Maybe first-time homebuyers are finally tiring of white Home Depot kitchens and rooms devoid of personality?  Lord, I hope so.  Either way, my take home (hardy har har) point is that style matters.  Like, so much.  This is residential real estate, and the goal when you're selling is to elicit emotion.  It's easy to not care about comps when you've fallen in love.  And who am I (or you) to judge?