30A's Real Estate Dream Team

rev·er·ie / ˈrev(ə)rē . / noun a state of being pleasantly lost in one’s thoughts; a daydream.

With little more than 10 months under its belt, Hilary Farnum-Fasth, the Broker/Owner of Hilary & Reverie, 30A’s Luxury Brokerage, along with her VP of Agent Development, Michele Bailey have blazed a trail towards a banner first year in luxury real estate sales, national speaking engagements and prestigious awards. As seasoned businesswomen, they have both worked tirelessly to make this daydream into a reality.

Kicking off the year, Michele Bailey joined a panel of speakers to close out Sellabration, a CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) National Convention held in Las Vegas, Nevada, speaking to over 1,200 attendees. Michele addressed the audience on the challenges and successes of selling in a secondary market, where the majority of your sellers and buyers live elsewhere but seek to purchase along Florida’s Emerald Coast. A natural on stage despite her nervousness, Michele had this to say about being in the spotlight:

“Winning gold in the Olympics or summiting Everest must feel something like this. I managed to speak somewhat intelligently in front of 1,200 of the top 1% of realtors in the country, and public speaking is a hurdle for me. Living outside my comfort zone has become a way of life and gives me resources to empower other agents to find ways to get comfortable being uncomfortable.”

Well received by her peers, she was invited to present a webinar hosted by the Residential Real Estate Council on Second Homes in May to a live audience. This hour-long webinar covered a plethora of topics that included everything

The 1st quarter of 2019 started off strong” Hilary explains, “with the Feds announcing that they would not raise rates, which helped many buyers make the decision it was a good time to purchase their dream beach home.”

Hilary Farnum-Fasth on looking back at the 1st Quarter of 2019

from the hidden costs of a second home to marketing tips in a secondary market. Secondary markets are the “norm” along Scenic Hwy 30A, a stretch of 16 unique beach communities in South Walton County along the Emerald Coast, where the sugar white sands draws more than 4 million visitors every year according to Visit South Walton the local tourism board, making it the perfect location for an investment property for short term rentals, a vacation home or a forever home to embrace beach life!

Looking back at the 1st Quarter

Along with the stable market, and the new construction at the 30A’s newest boutique community Grace Point on 30A, Hilary Farnum-Fasth has set the bar high for 1st quarter sales, with her personal numbers north of $30M in residential luxury sales.

“With my new brokerage focusing on the luxury highend market on 30A,” she explains, “we saw closed sales prices rise as much as 30% plus in that area of the market. In the amenity-rich resort communities along 30A, we saw an average sales price ranging from $1.4M to almost $2.5M. With these higher prices, and as the market moved closer to the spring/summer season, the typical rise in inventory to the market occurred. We have a healthy inventory going into the prime seasons.”

The secret is out!

The secret is out about the “30A” region of the Panhandle, and the investment opportunities that are available, which means the prime season is extending more and more – and networking is key to closing deals and growing their businesses. It’s safe to say that both women recognize the power of referrals.

Hilary & Michele have both worked tirelessly to establish a reputation that developed into a solid referral network and investors that know, trust and buy with confidence. Having sold real estate along the Emerald Coast for over 22 years, Hilary has cultivated relationships with investors through several local residential developments and continues to do so with her current partnerships with Point Construction, at Grace Point, and future developments planned.

Michele is extremely active with the political side of Real Estate, serving as an “At-Large” director for the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors® and also participating at the state level on multiple committees and also participating at the state level on multiple committees and forums for Florida Realtors® and Women’s Council of Realtors® Florida.

“I never planned to serve on so many levels with our local and state associations when I started in real

estate,” Michele explains, but I quickly found the time spent giving back was returned ten-fold in relationships, industry knowledge and referrals from agents in our feeder markets. I highly encourage agents to give time to their industry which gives them so much.”

Locally, Michele served as the 2018-2019 president of the Women’s Council of Realtors® Emerald Coast during which time she grew the membership by over 30%, and winning awards for her network for events ,such as “Speed Date a Builder” which afforded the attendees the opportunity to ask local Builders (in a timed setting) questions about the building process in speed-date style.

“The demand for newly constructed homes continues to be a constant,” Hilary adds, “and the sales of new construction continues to be one of the strongest segments of our market.”

Michele will graduate from the Florida Realtor Leadership Academy in October and be featured in 2 future editions of the Florida Realtors® magazine in 2019.

Both women are also heavily involved with the community, with a passion for Food for Thought Outreach, a local nonprofit that provides backpacks filled with healthy, easy to prepare food for students who are dependent on free or reduced school meals.

“Being a part of Food for Thought has allowed me the opportunity to give back to my community,” Hilary explains, “and help stop the cycle of poverty.”

Hilary serves as the 2019 Vice President on the board of directors, and both ladies can often be found packing backpacks full of snacks for the 3,000+ children served weekly but this outstanding organization.

Final thoughts

Looking forward both ladies are anticipating a healthy 2nd half of 2019 in both real estate and professional accomplishments. When asked how the market is along the beautiful Emerald Coast, Michele smiles and says:

“Have you heard the saying the best time to buy is yesterday? Well, it’s true, because the secret is out

about our beautiful beaches and they aren’t making any more.”

Hilary offers this final word of advice to future investors & homeowners –

“It’s not all about price per square foot in a resort area, there are many variables that determine the value of a home.” Hilary further explains, “Experienced local agents can help you understand the true value of the 30A market, as price per square is only one small part. In a lot of cases not even applicable because the homes here are all so unique.”

To contact Hilary Farnum-Fasth, Broker/Owner, please call or text 850.685.0171 or email hilary@hilaryreverie.com

To contact Michele Bailey, Broker Associate, please call or text 850.586.1382 or email michele@hilaryreverie.com