Candy: What Else Can We Say About 2020?

It started to feel like Christmas around here in early December. I went to a business dinner that was half outside, all of us spaced apart, at the Second-Floor Exchange in the ATT Discovery District. It was a new restaurant, and the opening was (shocker) delayed. Fewer than half of us were in attendance.

This was the third time I had been in a restaurant since March 15.

I had to drop something off at Executive Editor Joanna England’s house in Casa View Haven. Drove into the neighborhood, saw the proliferation of warm holiday lights and decorations, and found Joanna’s darling house.

Despite a year that had provided, among other things, a pandemic, lay-offs, illness, fear, deaths of loved ones and friends, and vitriolic political divisiveness, I felt a lightness I had not felt in months. Every home was decorated for the holidays with bright lights and colors. This little neighborhood had decided to forge ahead with life and go all-out with holiday spirit!

Homes are one of our strongest foundations in Dallas-Fort Worth. The beautiful homes that sold me on this city when I moved here as a young bride from NYC spread magnificently from Rockwall to Weatherford, creating the heart of our coverage area, where our award-winning stories are read and devoured daily — now more than ever.

I knew, when the pandemic hit and we were told to shelter-in-place, that our homes would become more important than ever. (Others were not as hopeful.) I knew second home sales would tick upwards. 

And I knew that our efficacious digital-first environment would emerge as a winner. We didn’t have to pivot like old media, we didn’t have to re-group to build an online audience.

We already had it! 

Highlighting this year, we saw brokers and agents adapt at lightning speed to sell homes sight-unseen through technology, utilizing every digital tool available. At the same time, technology will never replace the experience agents provide to consumers. If anything, 2020 proved that agents are more vital than ever in the real estate transaction. And in turn, agents and brokers have seen CandysDirt.com as a vital tool in their marketing arsenals.

While we witnessed one local demise of the “iBuyer” even before the pandemic, OpenDoor went public with a staggering market cap of $20 billion. We saw a dip in condo sales as families headed to the suburbs for space and the exurbs for even more. Big houses that sat a little longer than we liked even after the tornado of Oct. 2019 finally changed hands — the pandemic led homebuyers to reassess their housing, reconsider home sizes, and their locations.

Which is having a huge impact on D-FW. Starting with Dr. Phil, we are seeing the exodus of business and buyers from California and other areas.

This will all have a significant impact on our market in 2021. Now more than ever, stay tuned and subscribe.

From the team at CandysDirt.com, have a wonderful holiday!