Cures for the closet-obsessed

I went house hunting with a client yesterday let's call her "Alice." Alice's particular homebuyer neurosis is "closet" post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). And she's not at all in the closet about the fact that she has it -- in fact, to the contrary. She's extremely clear -- in her head and with what comes out of her mouth -- that ample closet and storage space is a must-have in her home-to-be and, by inference, the lack thereof is a deal-killer for her.

Alice currently lives in a duplex that is very nice, private and in a great area, but has virtually ZERO closet space. This is a problem, for a gal who I have never -- I repeat, NEVER -- seen repeat an outfit. She's young, single, makes a great living and has a great figure, so she has, let's just say, embraced her inner clotheshorse.

The result? Her bedroom is always a mess. Not dirty, but messy, because she has dramatically insufficient storage space. The No. 1 rule of feng shui is that old adage: a place for everything, and everything in its place. But following this rule of thumb is impossible if there is no place for all of the things!

Could she downsize her collection of stuff? Sure. And she probably will, as she's actually an orderly person by nature, and fiscally smart, so I know she will not want to spend a single cent moving a single unneeded or unwanted item. Nevertheless, she knows herself well enough at this point to know that to live out her Vision of Home -- including the vision of a totally orderly, fabulously organized home with a place for every loafer and every miniskirt in its place -- she'll need to set herself up for success by ensuring that she picks a place that has either huge closets, or supersized storage, or a plus room that can be used as a closet ... or something.

I work with a lot of well-dressed women, so this is certainly not the first time this exact issue has come up. In fact, there's a recent article in the New York Times real estate section in which a couple of single, women house hunters express the challenges of finding either "closets together with prewar charm and personality," or sufficient closet space in newly constructed units.

One such woman cut straight to the chase: "Why would you build a new condo with only two closets? Just because you are across the street from Manhattan Mini Storage does not mean you do not need more storage."

In fact, it's likely that in this era of conspicuous frugality, the opposite is true. Want to get inside the mind of a homebuyer? Then understand that when she selects a home, she is often looking for a place that will eliminate the need for any other real estate rental fees that she is currently paying.

This is not limited to just the rental on their home, but parking space fees, storage spaces -- the ideal home is one that obviates the need to pay for additional space: period.

And this issue is not just a woman's issue. Couples actually have more collective stuff, and so need more collective storage. The husband of a house-hunting couple I toured with this weekend exclaimed with delight when a place had garage space sufficient to park both his car and his Total Gym.

Storage and closet space are primary dealmakers and -breakers in homebuying, and are especially attractive or deterrent at the extreme ends of the spectrum.

It's not just about sticking your junk somewhere, but in those wished-for closets live a buyer's vision of living an orderly life where before there was disorder. Of course, for some, it's about a "hoarderly" life, but that's neither here nor there. ...CONTINUED

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