Why You Never Get the Home You Want
Price Per Square Foot — And Other Ways to Talk Yourself Out of the House You Love
📏 Price Per Square Foot — And Other Ways to Talk Yourself Out of the House You Love
Let’s start with the obvious:
No new buyer gets on Zillow and searches for “homes between $826 and $847 per square foot.”
No one.
Ever.
They search by price range.
They set a budget in their head (or a limit in their pre-approval) and click:
“Show me homes from $2M to $2.5M.”
Then they scroll.
They dream.
They see pictures.
They click on the homes that match the vision in their head — location, view, pool, yard, kitchen, furnishings, vibe.
They schedule showings.
They walk in the door.
They feel it.
And Then… the Switch Flips
The second they decide, “This is the one!”, the conversation changes.
Suddenly, it’s not:
“This home is perfect — it’s got the Gulf view, the chef’s kitchen, the garage, and the walkability we’ve been looking for.”
It becomes:
“But it’s $900 per square foot… and the one down the street is $860 per foot.”
As if that single number explains everything.
The Reality on 30A
On our stretch of coastline, price per square foot only explains about 48% of what drives a home’s value.
The other 52%?
Gulf view or no view
Walkability to dining, shopping, or beach
Pool (and not just if there’s a pool — but what kind of pool)
Garage vs. no garage
Decor and furnishings
Whether it’s new, remodeled, or original condition
Privacy, yard size, outdoor living spaces
That list goes on… and on.
If you reduce all of that to one blunt instrument — price per square foot — you’re ignoring more than half the value.
🔴 Buyer Mistake Checklist (AKA: The Wrong List)
(Often lovingly provided by the agent you hired to “protect” you)🚫 Compare ONLY price per square foot
⚠️ Ignore the view, lot, privacy, and pool
🚫 Pretend furnishing quality doesn’t matter
⚠️ Discount walkability and neighborhood feel
🚫 Overlook garage/storage convenience
⚠️ Assume all houses are the same “except for price”
🚫 Talk yourself out of the one you love because a spreadsheet says so
✅ Buyer Success Checklist (The Right List)
(What an agent who actually knows the market will help you focus on)✅ Confirm budget first, not just per-foot math
🌊 Weigh lifestyle factors — views, outdoor space, walkability
📈 Consider long-term resale appeal (not just purchase price)
🛋️ Value quality of finishes, design, and furnishings
📍 Recognize that location and lot can’t be changed
🏊 Factor in cost of adding what’s missing (pool, garage, upgrades)
🏖️ Ask: Does this home create the life we want?
📌 A Real Example From the Field
We recently had a showing set by another real estate professional here on 30A — and he knows what he’s doing.He advised us of the other listings his clients were seeing in addition to ours.
Within their budget, the price per square foot for those three properties was:
$1,781
$1,490
$986
His clients loved the one at $1,781 per foot.
Why? Because it checked the life boxes — not just the spreadsheet boxes.
That’s how pros do it. And we appreciate working with pros here on 30A.
And the Average Buyer Agent?
Most aren’t tuned to this.
They’ll happily march you into the house you love… and then help you talk yourself right back out of it.
Because they can’t articulate the value of the life that home creates.
They’re too focused on the spreadsheet instead of the sunsets.
📌 Bottom line:
Price per square foot is a tool, not the truth.
Use it as a reference, not a religion.
Buy the house that gives you the life you actually want — not the one that makes the spreadsheet look neat.