The Spiritual Side of Real Estate

Shall I use Laura as my agent again?

I met Laura when I was working as a real estate photographer. My ex-husband and I hired her to help us find our first house. Unbeknownst to her our marriage was on the rocks. So, a year later when we decided to divorce and sell the house, we were too embarrassed to hire Laura to sell it. Fast forward a couple of years, now my new partner Tim and I are ready to buy a home and we’re discussing who to hire as our agent.

Laura did a great job and it’s not about her.

Laura did a great job and it’s not about her. It’s the bad memories of my ex-husband, our marriage, and the former house. It was a difficult and acrimonious divorce. Why be reminded of any of it? I ghosted her and surprisingly Laura stayed in touch anyway. She cares and is happy I have a new wonderful man in my life. Still, I held back, associating Laura with my former life. Not wanting to think about any of it. I moved on.

Keep renting? No way!

Tim and I are renters, and we really want a home of our own. Tim’s divorce was in process before we met and with two small children it’s complicated. His ex-wife, us and our lawyers are working it out and hopefully not into a court battle. So, funds are tight, and we aren’t sure of the final divorce costs. Could we even buy a home now?

Big mistake; live & learn.

We hired another agent from a referral. Big mistake! Not only did she not help us, many of the homes she sent were horrible. Even with our tight budget we thought we could do better. Still, I dragged my feet about contacting Laura. Finally, I called her. I grilled Laura about my concerns, could we even find a home we wanted for 300,000 or less? I didn’t mention Tim was listening in on the call, snarky right? Sheepishly I fessed up and Laura laughed and said ok, now we can really talk. I relaxed Laura doesn’t hold grudges.

Moving forward, literally.

So we hired Laura and she gave us her homebuyer’s vision process. Writing down our needs/must haves, wants/would-be-nice, and wishes/shoot-for the moon items clarified what Tim and I are looking for in a home: a house to start our new life, fixer-upper to build equity, an easy drive to our daughters schools and a house we want to live in not the bottom-of-the-barrel the other agent showed us.

Signs, symbols & eagles

Tim and Katelyn found a house they liked from our online search. I picked them up and we looked at several homes saving the best for last. As we headed to the favorite home an eagle swooped in front of our car, then we saw two more further down the road! Tim told me dad and grandpa’s liked eagles. Tim said his dad died when he was 23 years old. When grandpa died the family went to their lake cabin to spread his ashes at the place he loved. As they scattered the ashes in the lake two eagles circled above. Not many eagles were seen back then. Tim knew it was his father and grandfather making their presence known to the family.

We got to the home went inside and Tim and Katelyn knew it was the one.

The house is in their price range, has good bones, and requires work that Tim can perform to increase its equity. Our offer was accepted, and Tim and Katelyn are homeowners! Tim said he knew the eagles were symbolic, a special moment. His grandpa gave his daughter, Tim’s mom a painting of a soaring eagle. Now that painting hangs in the entry way of our new home. In conclusion, buying this house, trusting Laura and the process, Katelyn and I learned about each other, strengthened our relationship and are more confident and capable people.

The Spiritual Side of Real Estate