Why Real Estate

On March 9, 2020 - four days before the president declared coronavirus a national emergency - I was sitting in a Portland real estate office exploring the possibility of obtaining my sales agent license. A gut feeling? A sixth sense? Whatever it was, I had a hunch my upcoming summer photography commissions were about to be cancelled.

Over the next several months I worked toward completing the necessary real estate coursework and took my exam, coinciding with a season of cancelled weddings, events and portraits. There was no in-person school for my children. No summer camps. No travel. But there was an unprecedented BOOM in Maine real estate!

For my first few months in a new industry, I was wide-eyed and absorbed all that I could as quickly as I could. I was grateful for my background in journalism and the practice of meeting quick and often challenging deadlines. Experienced agents shook their heads at the pace having never seen anything like it; I was invigorated by the speed!

Architecture, interior design, and the buying and selling of real estate is an area I have always been interested in. Scrolling real estate apps was a favorite nightly ritual before turning the lights out (SNL definitely nailed it in their Zillow skit, don't you think?). "You'd be really great at that!" friends would exclaim when I would share how meaningful homeownership is to me.

Looking back as I finish my first full year with Legacy Properties Sotheby's International Realty, I can see so clearly that everything fell into place as it was meant to. I am still able to photograph select weddings and portraits capturing the Maine landscape and the people who love it here, while also helping so many be able to call Maine home!

Fortunate Magazine recently named Portland, Maine as the #1 place to invest in real estate in 2022! Can't wait for what is ahead!

Photo by Courtney Elizabeth