Author Archive

Christopher Zabka & I have launched a new blog titled Real Estate Politics and we’d love to get feedback from the Geek Estate audience. The purpose of the blog is to encourage balanced discussion of industry topics, with the goal of allowing both sides to have an equally strong voice. Related to that, one thing we have done is create a “Great Debates” series, where two authors will go at it by debating a hot issue related to the industry with arguments and rebuttals. Yesterday, … Read More »

With all of the digital media being used in real estate today, there is one relatively new medium that could invigorate your marketing: the digital picture frame. You know, the things you connect a flash drive filled with family pics into that sits on the fireplace mantle automatically telling the story of your life? Consider this: You’ve just shot a camera full of properties and neighborhoods on your new Canon SD1000. Back in the office, you upload them to your Flickr account for distribution to … Read More »

Blogging is one of the primary activities associate with real estate web 2.0 and a vital means of creating community, according to Brian Boero of 1000Watt Consulting in his post-NAR interview on Inman TV interview with Joel Burselm. While Blogging can be a powerful tool, we are noticing that without adherence to a set of standards or sticking to a cohesive theme, there is a tendency for bloggers to venture far from their early path of building a strong, locally-driven focus, and delve down the … Read More »

Coulda Been a Contender Audio I’ve been engaged in several blog discussions in the past couple weeks that have come down to the fundamental question: “Is technology innovation within the scope of a brokerage’s core competency?” It has taken me back to a post I read by Brian Boero of 1000 Watt Consulting Titled, “Redfin: A gift from the venture community to traditional real estate.” I met Brian through his partner Marc Davison in his former capacity as a VP at Onboard LLC. Marc and … Read More »

Congratulations to the Zillow Team, your stock option net worth just had a significant emotional experience today. $87 million is spectacular and Zillow must have some pretty amazing plans since some very intelligent investors have partnered with them. However, this news struck a sour note with me for a reason unrelated to Zillow. For me, this aggressive risk-taking by a smart, fearless industry outsider further highlights the complete lack of gusto, courage, and leadership from within the industry. I am not meaning to be exclusionary … Read More »

I read a post today by Michael Wurzer titled “Is Data Free? Is There No Free Lunch?” at the FBS Blog. By the way, this is phenomenal blog if you have an interest in MLS-related topics. I am not completely sure what FlexMLS does, but their clients are MLS’s. Considering their clientele, their blog is very balanced and they write some very thought-provoking material on the current topics of MLS data availability, standardizing IDX feeds, etc. Mr. Wurzer’s post took a look at the Google … Read More »

My job in Baghdad was a civil affairs team chief with the mission to “improve the governance, economics, and essential services” for my district of Baghdad. As unqualified as I felt to accomplish this mission, I found myself and other captains in this position who, like me, were called to active service from the civilian world were relatively qualified compared to our professional soldier-peers. I could write more about the daily tasks and challenges, but it would take me far off-topic. The bottom line is … Read More »

In 2005, I was a Colorado Springs real estate broker who had just sold a Keller Williams franchise five months before and opened a new private brokerage with the first 18 agents. I was having the best year of my career brokering real estate – mainly working for California real estate investors buying newly-constructed single family homes as rental properties. It was October 12, 2005 that I noticed that Western Union letter on my dining room table with the rest of the mail. I knew … Read More »