Late last year when I was selling my house with Jake, he mentioned he had his own place on the market, too. It was interesting to be working with an agent who was going through a lot of the same processes as me. When my deal wrapped up, I knew Jake had received an offer on his home, but in the excitement of closing, I never got the scoop on what happened next. I decided for this week’s post I would check in with Jake to see how it played out.

“I believe its something every agent should go through,” Jake told me. “If you haven’t gone through it in 20 years, you’ve probably lost touch with the emotions involved.”

Over the course of our chat, Jake came back to that word a lot – emotion. “Going through it ourselves really helped solidify the concept of needing that third party to separate you from your emotions,” he told me. “And it reminded me how much emotion can play a role in clouding your judgment. ”

When an offer came in, Jake could sense he wasn’t being as rational as he would be with a client. So he asked for help. “A few times during the negotiations, I checked in with other agents, colleagues I trust. They said ‘Does the offer get you what you want? Do you have enough to move on? If yes, you’ve attained your goal. Don’t lose out on everything for a few thousand dollars.’ It was conversation I could have with a seller that I couldn’t seem have with myself. This really hammered home the importance of hiring a professional. Having distance is important.”

The process of listing and going through open houses was also emotional. “I’m a true believer in sharing feedback from open houses. But going through it myself has made me more understanding of when people get upset when they get negative feedback.” But, he says, he still thinks it’s vital to share it and be honest.

On the plus side, Jake told me the opportunity to really use all he’s learned about staging was exciting. “It was set up to sell. No clutter, clean, all the bulbs all working, windows washed. It can be difficult to explain to a client, but you are selling something. Think of a car dealership, making a four-year-old car look brand new. Staging really helped us sell for more money and faster.”

For Jake, the experienced reminded him of what his role as a listing agent is all about. “I want to be an asset, and I want to help people through a process, and get them to the next step in their life.”

Scroll back on our Facebook timeline to check out more pictures of Jake and Anne’s house at 119 Stephen Street, now sold!

Next week, I’m taking on home inspections and how to think about them when you are house hunting.

– Stephanie.

This is part of a new blog launched by the Jake and Anne Caldwell Real Estate team. I’m Stephanie, and I’m a writer sharing some of my own thoughts as a homeowner, but mostly working with Jake and Anne to get their thoughts and expertise out into the world.