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Coming through Renewed
Written By: Luke Osteen | Issue: 2020/07 – July | Photograph By: Marjorie Christiansen Photography
Since the real estate market is fundamental to the Plateau’s economic health, the arrival of the Coronavirus and its social distancing mandates added another layer of anxiety to an already shaken population.
“All of a sudden, all of us in real estate were dead in the water,” says Terry Potts, owner of Country Club Properties. “Of course, everyone closed their offices, which meant we were doing our best to conduct all of our business online. The only trouble was, there really wasn’t any business to do online.”
That time at home gave Potts and his fellow real estate professionals across the Plateau the chance to formulate sensible health policies that would ensure that the field could once again thrive.
And sure enough, once the social distancing restrictions began to be lifted, Potts implemented those procedures for his employees and his buyers and sellers.
“We’re applying hand sanitizer throughout the day, and we’re masked in the office and when we’re out showing properties,”
he explains.
For the other part of the equation, Potts reports that after keeping their distance during the quarantine, buyers are once again looking to buy on the Plateau.
“I think being cooped up wherever they were for quarantine made it clear to a lot of people that they’d really be happier living here in this part of Western North Carolina. Once Georgia opened up, a lot of people were coming up the mountain to see what we have to offer.”
Of course, the other part of the equation means that some sellers have reservations about letting agents and prospective buyers into their homes while Covid-19 is a possibility.
“If that’s the case, we can still show homes through virtual tours and let the buyers go through the floor plans. That allows them to sit in the comfort of their home and visit properties all over the Plateau.”
