Discovering French Quarter Houses
When I opened my own brokerage, that’s when I started stepping into my own skin. Taking a more humanistic and kind approach (versus transactional) to how I interact with both clients and other realtors became a big thing for me. Sure, I could have decided that making the most money at any cost was my approach, but that isn’t who I am. People before profit is the name of my game, and I’m going to stand by that till the end. My product is myself, and it’s most imperative to communicate that to my clients. Throughout this practice of real estate, I’ve improved, I’ve learned, I’ve set boundaries for myself. What I didn’t know would happen are the unexpected benefits of being a realtor in New Orleans. I’d love the share those with you to give you a glimpse of who I am as a person and a realtor.
Making and Introducing Lifelong Friends at My House
New Friends for All
While I am a native New Orleanian, I’ve always been drawn to people from elsewhere. Maybe it’s my constant wanderlust and desire to know new places. Getting to know folks from all over the country has given me a lot of understanding of many different things. Sometimes, it just helps me realize that there are a lot of ways about New Orleans that are similar to other places. Much of the time, it shows me how friendly, fun, and laissez faire the city I am from is compared to other places that are not so much so. When I became a realtor, I didn’t focus at all on maintaining relationships with people. It took me years, and opening my own business, to realize the importance. Additionally, when I began helping many people move to New Orleans who had no friends off the bat, I realized that hosting parties and introducing them to one another was beneficial to all. One of the many benefits of being a realtor in New Orleans has been making new friends and introducing new friends to each other. It’s truly one of the biggest joys of my job.
Primrose (AKA Prim) Is a Crowd Favorite Rescue Cat I Found While Videoing a House for a Client
Rescuing and Homing Animals
I’m not even close to the level of Zeus’ Rescues or Take Paws, but I do have a soft spot for animals that live on the street. Being a realtor in New Orleans has provided me with a big opportunity to find, rescue, and home animals. It’s been mainly cats that end up as the beneficiaries, but my dog Tater Tot was a great find when I was driving a deposit check to a real estate office. There he was, running across lanes of traffic; and there I was, in the right place at the right time. That goes for Prim, a cat I rescued, brought home, and ended up giving to one of my best friends. It also goes for Willow, a stray cat that was the instigator of me feeding her colony every single day since I saw her. Animals in general give me such complete and utter joy that giving them a home feels like the least I can do. If I weren’t driving around so much, I would never know where these cuties live, so I attribute being a realtor to being able to do this “side” work of rescue.
French Quarter Selling is Still Nostalgic, but Not Scary Anymore!
Discover Different Neighborhoods
So many people who live in New Orleans don’t get outside of their “bubble.” It’s truly a thing here. We refer to our bubbles quite often, and unabashedly state where our bubble is, and why we don’t leave. Being a realtor in New Orleans has afforded my personal and forced education on different areas of the city in which I live. Looking back on how I grew up, I had no idea directionally or actually where certain neighborhoods were or that they even existed. Heck, I’m still learning all the time. Boundaries of neighborhoods give me the jitters because I don’t know exactly where they start and stop. Getting out and doing real estate in a broader way has helped me discover so many new things around different neighborhoods. It helps me better advise out of town clients, who are my main source of business, and helps them have more faith that I know what I’m doing. I remember a time early in my career when I thought I’d never be “good enough” to sell in the French Quarter. Now I’m showing $2M properties there! Never say never, right?
The New Orleans Collection of Notecards - Also For Sale at Roaming with Red!
Start a Notecard Collection
My constant jaunts around town, knowing the different neighborhoods, has permitted my photography hobby to turn into something more serious. Walking around areas before meeting clients is something I often try to do to get a feel for the surroundings, and I am often with my camera or phone camera at the very least. I have now officially started a photograph collection, which has started with The New Orleans Collection. It’s 10 unique photographs I took around New Orleans from my perspective, printed on notecards. I’m an old school letter writer, and my clients know this because I write them thank you notes or congratulations notes. The photos became something I wanted to share with the world and especially for people who love New Orleans. Grab a pen, grab some notecards from me, and send someone a lovely handwritten note. It’s a win for all.
Sporting my Beyond Bourbon St Shirt
Find Out What a Podcast Is
I know Mark probably is sick of me telling this story, but I’m going to tell it again. When I got approached one day by Mark Bologna, podcaster of Beyond Bourbon St, I declined the sponsorship opportunity because I had never listened to a podcast. I had no idea of the value or the idea of what it was. How could anyone possibly want to listen to someone talk? What about music? Fast forward to now, I am a podcast junkie! And I did end up becoming a sponsor of Mark’s podcast, of which I am so incredibly grateful. The section about making new friends wouldn’t be nearly as impactful had it not been for this podcast. I’ve discovered many others that I like and they have helped me and other people with various things in life. From business to questions many of us have but are too scared to ask out loud, there is a podcast for everyone. Beyond Bourbon St will always be near and dear to my heart, though, for obvious reasons. The unlikely even that being a realtor in New Orleans would bring me to being a religious podcast listener is a fun story for me, and for many that I tell. You just never know what this profession can lead to.
The Big Five
So many good and great things have come out of being a realtor in New Orleans. It’s hard to bottle them up into just five, but these are the big ones. Doing real estate, being a realtor, and being a broker and owner of a business has been nothing short of fascinating. At times I’m on top of the world; other times, I am practicing the art of humility. It’s an absolutely wonderful space to be in - I wouldn’t trade it for the world. If you are ready to join the Liz Wood Realty family, please, let’s do this. We’ll make sense of the real estate part and become fast friends during and after. I’m itching to share with you all of the benefits of working with me as your realtor.
If you’re interested in becoming a client of Liz Wood, contact Liz Wood: She is your New Orleans expert.
