An interview with the co-owner of real estate agency Dwell360
Dwell360 Realtor John Lynch & DGS/a Architect Daniel G. Steger
Real estate agent John Lynch often says that when he calls on an architect to help a client decide about whether to purchase a home, the client ends up happier both in their purchasing decision and in their living situation. To get at the nitty gritty of why he feels that way, I sat down with John, co-founder of Dwell360, a boutique real estate brokerage firm serving the Greater Boston area.
Daniel: When you are taking a client around to choose a residence, why would you bring an architect into the picture?
John Lynch: There are actually three reasons to bring an architect into the deliberations. One of the most important ones is that we get a lot of clients who want to be in a particular neighborhood, but they’re not able to get everything they want. Maybe they can’t afford the kind of house they would truly desire but are looking to put down roots and hope to make renovations down the road. Or maybe they love everything about the house and can afford it, but it’s missing one very important element. An architect can be very helpful in that situation because in looking at the property, he can really set the table for everybody and get a little direction.
Daniel: What do you mean?
John: Maybe at some point — either before moving in or later on — the client wants to create a primary suite or a bigger kitchen. An architect can see things in a way most other people can’t. He sees big changes happen to houses every day and kind of has x-ray vision that lets him look through walls. So he’ll see how the desired effect might be feasible, perhaps by stealing a closet from a hallway to create an ensuite bath or taking down three walls in a chopped-up space to create one big cooking area. Or he’ll know if there’s enough room on the lot to add an addition without running up against setback restrictions.
He’ll also be able to ballpark how much money it’s going to take to get there. The client doesn’t have final plans at that point, but they have direction. “This house isn’t perfect yet, but I can make it exactly what I want,” or “What I want can’t happen here,” or “I love that idea, but I’m never going to be able to afford it and need to move on.” An understanding of feasibility lets them know where they’re going and how to get there.
Daniel: You said there are three reasons for bringing in an architect. What would the second one be?
John: Sometimes somebody looking at a home or a client of mine that has been living in their home a while will call me because they are thinking of doing some major renovation or addition and want to know how it will affect the value of their residence. That is, is it worth it, investment-wise? As a real estate agent, I’ll know how much a first-floor half bath or mudroom will add to the home’s appraisal, but an architect looking at what’s involved in tackling a particular space has a very good handle on the numbers involved in such a project. He’ll actually have a much better idea than a contractor because he’ll understand what lies ahead in terms of meeting code and that sort of thing. In that way, the client learns the delta between the cost of the project and the value of the investment and is better equipped to make a decision.
Daniel: And what’s the third reason for bringing an architect into the picture?
John: A good architect provides not simply a solution but a variety of options for people to choose from. He won’t necessarily say “You can do this” but rather “Here are your options,” both feasibility-wise and dollars-and-cents-wise. Maybe none of the options is perfect, but knowing what they are helps a client reach a moment of clarity, a moment of vision. That really puts a buyer at ease, whether they move forward or not. It allows them to feel secure about what they’d be getting into before they go too far down the road.
John & Daniel discuss a newly listed property’s exterior features.
Daniel: You said before that sometimes a client will call you once they’ve already been in a home for some time to see if something is doable. But doesn’t a real estate agent’s relationship with a client end once papers are passed?
John: My partner, Ed Johnston, and I don’t put real estate first. We put people first. We’re focused on you, not whether you will buy a house this weekend. We’re high-touch, high-communication. And that keeps our clients talking to us; we develop an ongoing relationship. Some of our clients have done, six, seven, transactions with us. We’ve met people before they had children and then, as their families grew, sold their starter home and helped them find their next home, their beach house, and so on. So they think nothing of calling us to talk over an idea of what to do to a home they’ve been in for years, or how to approach the acquisition of another property. That’s why we call ourselves Dwell360. The “360” is a reference to the fact that we bring everything 360 degrees — full circle.
Because of the good relationships we’ve developed with clients, pretty much all of our business is generated by referrals now.
Daniel: How did you get involved in real estate?
John: When I first moved to Massachusetts from Rhode Island, I ran a sales territory for a greeting card company on the South Shore and the Cape. But I always had a serious interest in everything real estate, so at some point from there I went into mortgages. It was the early 2000s. Everybody’s houses were appreciating in value very quickly, and they were refinancing their homes at the higher value to pull out equity so they could settle debt — pay off their credit cards cards or car loans.
For some people it was a great fix. But others ended up under water when their house lost the value it had gained in the real estate bust that came later. And they were now stuck in a 30-year mortgage that in effect meant it was taking them 30 years to actually buy the car they had paid off quickly with the new loan — all while waiting for their home value to catch up again to the value of the mortgage they were paying off. So while I was helping them in the moment, it was causing them problems down the line. In effect, all the industry was doing was helping people get into more debt. I didn’t want to be in that business anymore. I got my real estate license in 2004 and never looked back. -
Daniel & John outside the Dwell360