This May will mark my 17th year anniversary of being a Realtor in Pensacola. I am finding this year one to reflect on. I had my own “bad real estate or bad Realtor” experiences before I got into real estate. When I started my adventure as a Realtor, I set out to be the professional real estate agent I thought one should be. I knew what I did not want to be and wanted to reinvent what being a real estate agent IS.
Real estate seemed like the perfect fit for me. It took many of my skills from various experiences and packaged them all into one. From my background in customer service, management, communications, and marketing, to architectural design and construction, it was if pieces of a puzzle came together. Although I work with all kinds of properties in the greater Pensacola area, I specialized in a niche that I felt passionately about – historic and waterfront properties. I started my real estate career during the Great Recession and housing crisis. Nothing came easily and I saw agents dropping like flies. I learned new skills, worked hard, and focused on offering good honest unparalleled service to my clients. I treated people how I wanted to be treated and my clients and I found great success. As time passed, I navigated through the Dodd-Frank Act which reformed the lending industry and affected how we conducted business, the BP Oil Spill that threatened our precious natural treasures, hurricanes and tropical storms and the permitting and insurance issues that followed. Then there were Covid lockdowns where thankfully real estate services were declared an essential service. As in life, the real estate market and its intricacies are constantly changing. That is one of the things I like about it, it is never boring. Home values and market condition, lender financing and home owner’s insurance options, are always in flux. No two days or transactions are the same, just like no two people or homes. The longer I do this, the more this rings true.
The latest shift in the housing market is the NAR Settlement. I happen to think a lot of good will come out of this latest change, as it will avail more transparency to industry practices for the consumer. If you would like to read more about that you can give me a call or visit my blog for updates: https://www.easthillpensacolahomes.com/blog/
Thank you for trusting me with your properties. Your accolades, testimonials, recommendations, referrals and repeat business have meant the world to me. You have added to these 17 years of experience and helped me build a reputation in the industry for which I am proud and grateful.
Cheers! Chris Reid, Realtor
