Using Feng Shui to Sell Your Home

In addition to being a Realtor I am also a feng shui consultant. I no longer do consultations, but I do use the practice when applicable in my real estate business.

About three years ago when I was still working in commercial real estate, I did a "Feng Shui for Real Estate" presentation to a group of top producers for a local real estate company. At the time, the market was beyond good and homes were selling in days with multiple offers. Perhaps my presentation wasn't timely, in that my focus was using feng shui to sell homes, which didn't need help. One of the points I made was taking down family photos to help a future homebuyer picture themselves in the house. One agent commented that it wasn't necessary to do this. And yes, at the time it wasn't. However, I cautioned her that the market always changes and when it did she would have some knowledge of feng shui to give her an edge above the competition and help sell her listings based on feng shui. Wonder if that agent is using feng shui today?

Feng shui is finally getting a bit of respect. It was the subject of a Bee news article last week. Feng shui is amazing. It's gotten a bad rap as a new age fad based on religion. It is neither of those. Feng shui is the ancient Chinese art of placement. It's about creating harmony in your environment with your personal material items. When you walk into a home and you just want to get comfy and stay awhile, that home probably is using the fundamentals of feng shui and the owner may not even know it. However, when you walk into a home and you can't wait to leave, the opposite is happening.

There are many excellent books on feng shui, but the best starter book in my opinion is Karen Rauch Carter's book, "Move Your Stuff, Change Your Life." It's a quick read and the author has the best sense humor.

Showing Homes in Uncharted Territory

Every real estate agent at one time or another ends up showing homes in an area they know very little about. Most of the time, it takes just a bit of homework to learn an area well and then be able to help a client make an informed decision about a home and its area.

On Monday and Tuesday of this week I became friendly with an area that wasn't just your normal suburban or city neighborhood, I was up in Placer and El Dorado Counties showing properties that even my GPS couldn't find. When I called one agent to ask about the road leading to a property in Placerville off Mosquito Road, she told me it was a "windy a** road" and she was not kidding. If you've never taken Mosquito Road into Swansboro County, the trip is a must. Many parts of the road go down to one lane, with hair pin turns and a one lane, very narrow bridge.

While the trip in was beyond nerve-wracking, by the time I was heading out, I actually had fun driving that crazy road. I'm not sure I'd like to drive it everyday, but the area is so breathtaking and beautiful out there, I can see why people do.

So, I have now added the foothill county communities of Placer and El Dorado to my repertoire of areas I'm familiar with and happy to tour. Seat belts required.