The Lighter Side of the World of Real Estate

Real estate is often portrayed as all power suits, marble countertops, and serious negotiations conducted in hushed tones. But anyone who’s spent more than five minutes in the industry knows the truth: real estate is many times accidentally hilarious. From listing descriptions that stretch the limits of imagination to home tours that feel like improv comedy, the funny parts of real estate are everywhere—you just have to know where to look.

The Creative Writing Olympics (aka Listing Descriptions)

Real estate listings deserve their own literary award category. Agents are masters of euphemism, turning even the most questionable features into “charming opportunities.”

• “Cozy” means you can touch both walls without extending your arms.
• “Delicious” to describe anything other than food is wrong  
• “Needs TLC” means bring a contractor, a priest, and emotional support.
• “Original condition” means nothing has been updated since the Carter administration.

And then there are the listings that go full poetic chaos: “Sun-drenched” rooms that never see direct sunlight, or “open concept” homes where someone just removed a door in 1994 and called it a day.

The Photos That Raise More Questions Than Answers

Listing photos are another goldmine. There’s the classic wide-angle lens that turns a half bath into what appears to be a ballroom. Then there are the mystery items—a random mattress in the kitchen, a single chair facing the wall, or a refrigerator inexplicably located on the back porch.

Let’s not forget pets. Cats lounging proudly on countertops. Dogs photobombing every room like they pay the mortgage. Pot Belly pig  that lives in the basement or chickens free ranging the entire first floor. ( We are in VT)

Bonus points for the agent who didn’t notice themselves reflected in a mirror mid-photo, crouched like a gremlin. 

Open Houses: Live Theater, No Rehearsal

Open houses are where real estate becomes performance art. You’ll meet:

• The neighbor who “just wants to see what it sold for last time”
• The couple loudly critiquing the house as if the walls can’t hear them
• The person who uses the open house as a bathroom break during their walk or ski.

The Emotional Roller Coaster

Real estate is dramatic. Deals fall apart over $500. Appraisals ruin weekends. Inspections uncover things no one emotionally prepared for (“Wait… the house is missing what?”).

Everyone is calm until they’re suddenly not. We are people and sometimes spiral over light fixtures, drapes and rose bushes.

Why We Love It Anyway

Despite the chaos, real estate’s humor is part of its charm. It’s a people business, and people are wonderfully unique. No two real estate transactions are alike.  We are human we have questions, concerns, phobias, anxiety, fear of heights (and remember after climbing a ladder to a second-story home at a construction site).  Buyers, Sellers, People, should ask questions and lots of them.  As professionals we don’t always have the answer at our fingertips  but we know where to get it and we don’t stop till we do.  We are your  trusted source for our customers, clients and community for all things real estate.

At the end of the day, real estate is about homes, dreams, stress, money, and emotion all colliding at once. Of course it’s funny. Sometimes you laugh so you don’t cry. Sometimes you laugh because someone staged a bathroom with three identical soap dispensers and 6 ferns.  Finding humor in the simple ordinary stuff in our everyday real estate transactions is part of what keeps up on our toes.  We are lucky enough to meet and help people with sometimes scary big decisions and many times lighthearted fun ones.  We realtors are up for it all.