The Psychology of Real Estate: Three Feet From Goal/Gold

Donald Duck heard a rumour about buried gold. He grabbed his pickaxe in pursuit of finding the gold, which had always been a lifelong dream of his. He didn’t ask for help because he thought he could do it alone. He went out without any direction, and he dug for days.

On the first day, he got dirty. 

On the second day, he got tired.

On the third day, he got injured.

On the fourth day, he got depressed.

He had put in many hours, and he had given it every ounce of effort but on the fifth day, he lost hope, gave up his pursuit and went home.

Mickey Mouse heard about Donald’s quest. He also believed there was buried gold, but Mickey knew that this wasn’t going to be an easy endeavor. He knew he was going to need help and he wasn’t afraid to ask for it.

Mickey recruited a team of seven dwarfs. The dwarfs were highly skilled as they were precious mineral miners. They went back to the very spot Donald had left a day ago. They had specialized equipment and surveyed the land. They took measurements, land samples and made calculations. They determined that it wasn’t a rumour, there was gold, only it was three feet deeper. Had Donald continued for a fifth day, he would have struck the gold himself and his dream would have come true.

This is a common theme in real estate, especially for House Buyers in the Toronto market.

Patience, persistence and positive thinking are components in achieving the dream of owning real estate in Toronto. Quitting is just a decision away and it’s easy to lose hope after three times you’ve found the home of your dreams, three times you’ve been involved in a bidding war and three times you’ve been outbid. This is where persistence becomes the key to whether you achieve your goal or whether you give up on your goal. You never know when you will strike gold, wherever you are, it may only be three feet away. 

Frustration is a result of unmet expectations. Donald expected to find the gold on his own, and when the pursuit took longer than he expected, when he encountered obstacles he didn’t see coming, he began to feel the stress and giving up felt easier than continuing on. He made the decision to quit. Donald was focusing on how long it was taking him to reach his goal, and he was thinking of his hardships.

The lesson is that focusing on how long it takes to achieve a goal is not as important as how persistent you are. If Donald were more persistent, patient and positive, he would have seen a different outcome. The focus would have gone from defeat to success. His troubles wouldn’t have seemed as bad if he had gold to show for it. Once you have achieved a goal, it’s almost irrelevant how long it took, or how difficult the process was.

Mickey on the other hand knew the value of a good team. He had realistic expectations because he received advice from qualified professionals. In real estate, if you’re a Buyer, it’s the equivalent of hiring a trustworthy Realtor, Mortgage Broker, Home Inspector and Lawyer who will take the time to educate you on the process before you even start. This way, you will be prepared for what’s to come and you aware of the obstacles. You may expect the process to take a long time, and even take several tries at an offer.

For example, a Buyer who is prepared will know when a house is underpriced and set up for multiple offers and they will have assessed the neighbouring comparable properties which recently sold for a better sense of the home’s true value. A Buyer who is prepared will know that, to get a competitive advantage, he will need to do his due diligence: home inspection, mortgage approval or lawyer review before the offer date. That Buyer will rely on his team for their expertise and it will help him achieve his goal. A Buyer who is unprepared will take shots in the dark until one day he gives up.

Like Mickey, if you know a goal is worth pursuing and it is what you truly want then the formula for success is preparation, patience, persistence and positive thinking.

THE PRECEDING COMMENTARY IS THE OPINION OF HANNA MACDONALD AND DOES NOT REPRESENT THE INTERESTS OR OPINIONS OF RIGHT AT HOME REALTY INC., BROKERAGE OR THE TORONTO REAL ESTATE BOARD. THEREFORE, RIGHT AT HOME REALTY AND THE TORONTO REAL ESTATE BOARD WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE AND/OR LIABLE FOR ANY OF THE OPINIONS HEREIN.

THE AUTHOR IS NOT LICENSED TO PRACTICE PSYCHOLOGY. THE RESEARCH FINDINGS REFERENCED IN THE COMMENTARY ARE USED TO MERELY UNDERSCORE THE AUTHOR’S OPINION AND OBSERVATIONS.