"The Eye
of the Beholder"
I was taking a listing on a home the first year I
was in the real estate business. As I was walking
through the house with the owners I could see that
every wall in the not so old home was covered with
stucco. I was not a great fan of interior wall stucco
and furthermore every interior stucco wall was painted pink and
the sharp points and edges were highlighted in gold. I
went so far as to get an estimate from a local
contractor as to the cost of replacing the interior walls with
new sheet rock and repainting the interior. I would
then tell each and every buyer before entering what
the interior looked like along with the subsequent
cost of the renovations to give the home an acceptable
interior makeover.
It was 4pm on a Sunday afternoon. I was tired
from the day and as I was considering going home a
couple walked into the office. It was evident after
some inquiry that their financial status would qualify
them for the stucco house. This time, as we were
driving over to the house, I did not mention the
stucco interior. We walked through each room and as we
were about to leave on the front lawn of the house the
wife turned to the husband and said "honey, did you
see the stucco?" I was just about to open my mouth and
tell them about the cost of the interior renovations
when the husband said, "yes dear! It's just like our
first apartment when we were first married. I love
it!" They bought the house and paid very close to the
full asking price.
From that day on I never offered my opinion as to
aesthetic preferences, the likes and dislikes of
interior or exterior decorating choices. Beauty is
truly in the eye of the beholder and who am I to
assume that my likes and dislikes are what someone
else would also prefer. |
