Valerie Garcia
It all started with a question from Valerie Garcia to the Inman Coast to Coast Facebook Group:
“Curious … do street names ever factor into a buyer’s decision to purchase? Have you ever had a buyer not buy a house because the street name was weird or hard to spell? Do you have streets in your town that no one wants to live on because of the name?”
Having once lived on “Flynt Place” in Crofton, Maryland, I can attest to the fact that I never turned into my small cul-de-sac without thinking about notorious pornographer Larry Flynt and Hustler Magazine, so this question really resonated.
Apparently, it hit a nerve with a number of other group members, and what follows are some of the best anecdotes we could gather, both from the Facebook chat and HARO about the impact of street names from real estate professionals across the nation.
“Found the perfect home for my client. Only reason he didn’t buy it was it was on Taint Street. Honestly can’t blame him,” Travers Peterson of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Cambridge/Mass Ave, said.
Dave Marshall
“My story is regarding my contracted listing of a single-family detached home in Palm Desert, California, and buyers from the Los Angeles area,” said Dave Marshall of HomeSmart Professionals in Palm Desert, California.
“The buyer found the property with many issues associated with it on the internet. A contract had been executed and escrow opened for a 30-day close. The seller had to continue asking the buyers to extend as he was trying to contest the filing of a lawsuit by a family member preventing the sale.
“Many extensions were agreed to by the buyers. The buyers were starting a business in Palm Desert and wanted a second home in the area. The buyers’ home in the Los Angeles area was located on a street with the identical name as the proposed new property in Palm Desert.
“The buyers’ agent informed me that the reason the buyers were continually agreeing to extend the purchase was due to the identical street names! The lawsuit was finally settled thereby allowing the seller to sell and close the escrow five months after scheduled closing.
“Street names can be vitally important to some people!”
Nicole Canion
“I have had one client get so caught up on a house because the street name rhymed with their last name,” said Nicole Canion of Intero Real Estate in Discovery Bay/Brentwood, California.
“Foundation issues is what it took to stick a pin in that dream.”
“We have a location in our area, ‘Poor Farm Road’ and that definitely hurts values. Some buyers won’t even look at a home there,” said James Cosgrove of Keller Williams Realty in Portland, Maine.
“Yes, street name was Mobile Home Lane. The street used to be for a mobile home park, but it was torn down, and I showed a $500,000 home on the street,” said Kris Bowen of Bowen Adams Real Estate in Salt Lake City, Utah. “Buyer didn’t buy it for that specific reason.”
Jodi Moody
“A seller once told me he didn’t understand why his home hadn’t sold yet after being on the market a few months. I told him that the street address may be putting people off,” said Jodi Moody of Smoky Mountain Realty in Lenoir City, Tennessee.
“He laughed and said ‘That can’t be; people are just dying to be my neighbor!’ The address was on Cemetery Rd.”
“Buyers I once worked with who wouldn’t buy a house because the adjoining street shared a name with the husband’s former girlfriend, and the wife refused to see that name every time she came home. (BTW, it was his girlfriend before he met his wife),” Matthew Rathbun of Coldwell Banker Elite in Fredericksburg, Virginia, said.
Nancy Berryhill
“I personally bought a home with my ex-husband because it was located on Easy Street. He still lives there, and we raised four kids … not so easy!” said Nancy Berryhill of HomeSmart Professionals in Palm Springs, California.
“Life on Easy St. had its ups and downs, but we sure had some great times.”
“Apex Barbecue Road — my wife has always wanted that address,” said Keith Bliss of Bliss Real Estate brokered by eXp Realty in Cary, North Carolina.
Ryan Fitzgerald
“Street name makes a difference … to some people,” Ryan Fitzgerald of Raleigh Realty in Raleigh, North Carolina, said.
“One of our homebuyers was originally from Flint, Michigan. When they found a home they liked and it was on Flint Avenue, they sort of convinced themselves it was the ‘one’ before we even saw the house!
“Once we arrived for the showing, they loved everything about the property. It is not lost on me that this home had a special place in their heart before we even viewed it because of the street name, and they found reasons to fall in love with it once we arrived. They ended up purchasing the home, and they continue to tell me how much they love it years later!”
“I’ve sold a couple of houses on Stoner Lane — always a fun laugh!” Linda Licause Hobkirk of RE/MAX Real Estate Results in Bentonville, Arkansas, said.
“Guess who bought a house on Maker’s Mark Drive!” said Stan Collins of Columbus Realtors in Columbus, Ohio.
There you have it. Street names do matter to a lot of buyers.
Have a good street name story? Please share in the comments section below.
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Christy Murdock Edgar is a Realtor, freelance writer, coach and consultant with Writing Real Estate in Alexandria, Virginia. Follow Writing Real Estate on Facebook or Twitter.
