some core concepts leading to some conclusions...

1) real estate has become the largest vehicle for wealth in the world, 2) everyone needs a place to live, 3) the current system of home=$ has contributed to a polarity of wealth that is a part of an out-of-control downward spiral that will ultimately decrease the quality of life for everyone if it is allowed to run to its conclusion, 4) every form of what "runs" our society - government & business - is based on economics, so then my conclusion is 5) the only way to transform the system of real estate is to change the way in which it is purchased.

From that conclusion, I can surmise a couple of things. Sustainable community development is the goal, at the core of the 3 words. Sustainable - getting what we want & need now while adding to or at least not depleting what's left for the future. Community - group who share values/vision that creates a bond of mutual support & well-being. Development - Conscious evolution, our contribution as a species to this planet for good or ill. The combination of the words - sustainable community development - becomes more than just a concept, it is a redefinition of our outlook on life. Rather than strictly unwilling pawns in a sea of victimhood, we become active participants in the shaping of our existence, collectively and individually.

Then back to the process - we have a defined goal. The method of "community development" in how it is practiced today is hugely flawed. Development is a for-profit and speculative endeavor, rather than a planned goal-oriented plot of action agreed upon by the groups that would be most highly impacted. We assume that ultimately the forces that converge - economic, social, governmental, etc - will balance through our capitalistic self-induced illusion that "price" is the ultimate determinate of "value". This is at the root of housing - how much is it worth? What is the value? As realtors, it has been our duty to get the buyer to pay the most amount of money by "creating" the most amount of "value" for the property.

To do this, we tell stories. We speak of what this person here has paid, and why. What the village, the neighborhood, or the city is doing to improve the quality of life of the residents. We bring our clients to restaurants to taste, touch and hear the experience of what the lifestyle that is available in the vicinity has to offer. We share epics of the struggles, we weave tales of the triumphs - all in an effort, for each individual property, to justify the price that we're asking.

Back to community: When the questions are properly framed, it turns out that most people want the same things. When asked "war or peace?"; "feed the world or let it starve?"; "healthcare for all or let them die?"; "shelter or step over them in the gutter?"; we have been taught to ask about the costs. What does it cost to do these things? Can we afford to do it? These questions have been traditionally the openings for more stories to be told - and those stories have been tales of scarcity. We have been told stories that tell us that there's not enough to go around, that war is inevitable, and that suffering is simply a fact of life. What is missing is our own responsibility for those stories. Collectively, we have made the choices for war, for starvation, for death, and to deprive quite a large percentage of the world's population from what we would consider "adequate" shelter. Most of this is because we don't have that shared sense of community responsibility. We feel out of control.

The stories that we create ultimately shape our lives.

We have multiple upcoming crises on the horizon - oil, war, natural disasters - and the consequential "challenges" that they will subsequently create. The stories of gloom and doom that are being spread around are fierce. By telling stories of horror and strife with no room for hope, we curl up and await the inevitable.

I believe that we need to tell some new stories, and quickly. I have seen how much unseen influence the real estate industry has over the way that we relate to "home" - and it's not possible to change that alone. Collectively, I think we as a species are due for some really big surprises on the horizon - and I want to be prepared with some solutions when those things happen. I also want to write this stuff down, and to write some new stories that can be told. We are in need as a people for stories of hope that apply to our lives.

Our real estate system has to transmit the goal of sustainability in each purchase.