Location, Location, Location

You've probably heard it said that the three most important things in real estate are location, location, and location. It's usually spoken in regard to property value and resale value, which has validity.

What you don't hear as often is how important location also is in personal value. It's so important because it's something you can't change. You can create interior place in your home that reflects you wherever you are...but you can't change the location of your home. That's something you choose but can't change unless you move, and if it doesn't fit it can have a profound impact on your sense of well-being.

If you're considering a move, it could just mean moving to another part of the area where you already live, but it could also be that you are looking for a whole new place experience. If you are considering a move to a different city, area or country think about the different factors that make up that sense of place and what impact they will have on you. Sense of place includes things like:

• Geography, climate
• The way people live on the landscape
• The sights, sounds, music, smells
• The people, myths, stories and other intangibles that give it a specific 'feeling'

If you're ready for a change but don't know where you want to go, a couple of fun sites that can help you find a place that's a good fit for you are linked below. They both have a quiz to take to help you identify possible locations that could be a good fit for you.

• http://www.bestplaces.net/
• http://www.findyourspot.com/

As far as I'm concerned, I continue to love the sense of place in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Our walk yesterday on the Stone Arch Bridge over the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis demonstrates the wonderful mix that creates our Twin Cities sense of place...water, trees, parks, walking/riding paths, flourishing arts community, thriving city.