The One I Didn’t Get
In the summer of 2010, I had been working as an internal consultant for sales and marketing at a major pharmaceutical company. The next role for me within the company was to be a District Sales Manager. It had been a goal of mine for several years. I had taken on roles and jobs within that company over the course of five years in order to prepare myself for that sales manager job.
That summer I applied to five different sales manager positions within the company that would have moved me from the middle of the country back to one of many great cities on a coast, which I desperately wanted. Two of the positions, I was able to get a live interview for, which was a big deal. I thought one of my strengths was actually in face to face communication. It turns out, when you work for a great company in their sales and marketing department, there are many other people who share that same great strength. I did not get offered any of those positions that summer, although I heard I was the second choice for one of them. Which turns out, really doesn’t matter.
I was coming to the end of my 3 year assignment in the consultant role, and wasn’t willing to take on another role within the company. So I left. My #1 job didn’t pan out, so I went for my #2. I left the company, and the middle of the country, and started up my runner-up career. That was in real estate in Portland, Oregon.
The Runner Up House
Sometime getting your #1 house is a little like that. Your #1 doesn’t pan out, so you’re going for the runner up. That’s happening quite a bit right now. Many houses are getting multiple offers, and there’s only one person or family that’s getting that house. Often that means there are more disappointed than delighted buyers.
Or sometimes the #1 house isn’t what you thought it would be when you actually walk through it. There is only so much pictures, and even a video tour can convey. I have had several clients buy a property sight-unseen, and it’s worked out very well. In a competitive real estate market, sometimes that’s going to be the best option for getting a house that checks all of the boxes. And there are ways and strategies to mitigate that risk. But there is no replacing being inside the house and seeing it for yourself.
For my most recent out-of state buyers, their runner up house became their #1 house. Fortunately, on their trip to Portland to see the one they thought they wanted, we saw a couple others. This Irvington house was one of them, and is now the place they call home. Unsurprisingly, this house was the right choice for them, and I think this career was the right one for me too.
This restored beauty in Laurelhurst commanded multiple offers well over $1M. Check it out here.