I really enjoyed this post by Mike West and really identify with his amazement at the poor quality listing pictures on the MLS. Here's the link to Mike's post:

http://activerain.com/blogsview/287586/NOT-THE-BEST-MLS

I came across this picture in a MLS listing for a Single Family Residence.

 

This is the actual house, not an outbuilding. I think I might have listed this as vacant land or made the primary picture one of the view from the home.

Features of this fine home include:

New roof (made entirely of blue tarp).

Air conditioning (though the holes in the plywood walls and removable windows and door).

Low maintenance yard of primarily native growth.

Indoor/outdoor charcoal fueled stove (better than gas or electric) doubles as furnace.

Handicapped accessible with optional plywood board ramp.

Deluxe outdoor sitting area doubles as a driveway.

 

We've all seen bad listing pics. Care to share any?

Very close to the Brio Realty office in Bellevue WA, there's an interesting business sign outside a realty office. Ardell DellaLoggia first pointed it out to me. It struck me as humorous. Now I've seen symbiotic relationships in business before, like the personal trainer who also does massage. Pretty smart, huh? Does this pairing imply that you will need treatment if you use this real estate company, or that simply buying and selling homes takes it's toll on you?

As Gerhard Ade alluded to, nothing is constant except for change. I think we can agree that not all change is good, but all things being equal, I'd rather have change than feel stagnant. Brio is one of those smaller RE companies that embody and embrace innovation. That directly stems from it's founder, broker and industry visionary Jonathan Washburn. He didn't invent real estate by any stretch, but his mastery of search engine optimization applied to real estate marketing was way a ahead of the curve. The lure of free client leads was just one of the benefits of working for a small, technologically savvy company. Besides no desk fee, I enjoyed the management, administration and the other agents as well.

I got a very different vibe than at my previous company, where I was treated with relative anonymity. I couldn't get an audience with either of the two brokers who own the company (that's a hint to the location). I've always felt at home at Brio. In fact, I've surely gotten more than my fair share of "special" treatment, because I usually work at the office at least half-time and have had a good relationship with each successive broker.  TIP #1 for all you reading this: Brokers will help you if you come into the office often or communicate with your broker frequently!

And then there was the Pat Flynn era at Brio.  After Jon stepped down to develop Activerain, Pat put his considerable skills to work. I really enjoyed how accessible he made himself. Great guy. Once again, I think Gerhard mentioned having the right people in the right place at the right time. As good as Pat is, management just felt a better fit if they could persuade Ardell DellaLoggia to become our broker. Now you can find him doing great things at Keller Williams in North Seattle. I think that shortened your commute up a bit, eh buddy?

Fast forward to today. Ardell is the supercharged engine that drives Brio Realty. Those who weren't initially put off by her straight forward Philly demeanor have benefited from her knowledge, caring and passion for this industry. She's a cult of personality, wrapped in a sweet Italian motherly package.  Her push for transparent real estate and a re-emphasis on the consumer have given this company a new direction and focus. She embraces and demonstrates both high tech methods and old school methodology, giving her agent's the best chance for success in an uncertain market. I feel couldn't feel more confident in the leadership at Brio, between Jon and Ardell. Thank you both, and thanks to the Brio agents who have made the last few years more enjoyable.

Yes, change can be good, but maybe that's enough for now. Time to get back to work.

Bulk mail. How exciting is that! Well not very, until you realize you can save 16 cents each time you mail a letter or post card in quantities of over 200 to the same area. That's a savings of over 1/3 on postage and allows one greater reach and/or frequency of marketing.

Recently, a group of agents from Brio realty attended a bulk mail training session at the South Seattle USPS HQ. These classes are a couple hours in length but can help clarify the rules for sending and saving the bulk mail way. Ardell has spearheaded this effort and arranged to pay the annual bulk mail fees for Brio. The bulk mail center for Bellevue is the main Bellevue Post Office on Bellevue Way. The manager's name is Sung.

Our plan is to use the bulk mail system for the listing campaign/team marketing effort Ardell is coordinating. We will use bulk mail stamps worth 10 cents each and pay the balance (15 cents/letter) by check at the post office. This is a learning process for us and will get smoother as we mail more. All the bulk mail data is online, but feel free to respond to this post with questions or comments, especially if you work for Brio. I've been selected as point man on the bulk mail process.

For me, in my short 3 year career, it came last summer when I listed a home in Tacoma, WA. Shortly after the inspection, I was walking to my car when I noticed I left a light on. I also noticed a kid in the cul-de-sac not far from my car. That seemed a bit odd, as it was a weekday so I asked a guy with his monster truck parked there if he knew which house the kid lived at. The guy, who was apparently new there, didn't know. I marched back up and turned off the light. After locking up, I returned to my car to leave but was confronted by this kid about 8 years old who reached out for me. Before you start thinking: Tacoma, youth, car, confrontation, let me say I wasn't in any danger.

He was dressed only in pajamas, not the kind with the feet, but one piece, and they were white with some kind of print. And he wore thick white socks with no shoes. I quickly realized that this youngster had a learning disability and some physical issues which slightly distorted his face and one arm. He said nothing, reached out his cold hand and took mine as he led me about 20 feet to the community mailboxes at the center of the cul-de-sac. He repeatedly motioned to the mailboxes as if he wanted to get his mail. They were the locking kind so I did my best to communicate verbally and with charades that we needed a key. He looked at me with a combination of urgency, neediness, trust, and complete innocence. After a while at the mailboxes, he finally gave up.  

I kept asking him where he lived, and pointed to various homes nearby, but he was unable to speak. He just looked at me in that vulnerable but trusting way and started leading me down the hill toward a main road. Well, I'm thinking I can't just leave this boy. I had to try to find his home or parents or ? So we started walking down the hill, and I think to myself; if we don't find his house or parents at, or near the bottom of this hill, we're turning around and going back up.

It's now been about 10 to 15 minutes with my new friend. As we pause at the bottom of the hill and I contemplate my options, I see a black Honda cube of a car racing down the hill. We stood fast as the little car came to a stop and the door swung open. A panicked and exasperated woman emerged and while corralling her son, explained that she had only been in the bathroom "for a few minutes", and wondered how he got out of the house.  I, on the other hand tried to explain, without seeming like a child molester, how her son and I came to be at the bottom of the hill. She thanked me, put her son in the car and drove back up the hill in haste. It did occur to me that if this boy had encountered an unsavory character, he would have been ill equiped to protect himself from any violent or perverted act.

What I'll always remember about this episode are his helpless, but trusting eyes and face as he enlisted me to help him.

Do you have a strange RE experience of your own? I like this one by Michael Creel

Has anybody ever heard of Soaring Eagle Park, in Sammamish? Until a few months ago neither had I, even though I'd enjoyed the park dozens of times. That's because I'd always called this park "The Beav" because it's near Beaver Lake.

Me and my mountain biking buddies have long appreciated the extensive trail system and the quick drive to the Park from Bellevue and other Eastside locations. It continues to be one of the best areas for mountain bike riding (and walking, running, equestrian activities, etc.) but that may soon be affected by development plans for the 628 acre park. The City of Sammamish plans to develop 30 acres of the park for conversion to sports fields, primarily soccer, as I understand it. 

Now I'm a huge soccer fan. I like to watch the sport and to play it, and I've long complained that we don't have enough good fields (grass or artificial turf). I just think that there are other ways to increase the number of quality soccer fields that should be explored before we irreversibly destroy thirty acres of virgin wilderness. Go to the Friends of Soaring Eagle Park website to see other options for the park. A case can be made quite convincingly that the highest and best use of that land is to leave it as a natural oasis in an increasingly developed region.

I don't want to sound melodramatic, but I see a parallel between this fight and the fight to save the Pike Place Market in the late 60's and early 70's. Many regard the Pike Place Market to be the seat of Seattle's "soul."  If Seattle voters had not been rallied, we would have lost an important landmark and tourist attraction and part of what makes the Seattle area great. Well, access to nature is a large reason people live in the Seattle area too. In an article in the Seattle times, Kevin Brown, director of King County Parks and Recreation contends the development would not change the character of the "lush natural landscape". 

I think it would noticeably degrade the enjoyment of the land for natural use. I don't like the idea of chipping away at a nature area because it's large and nobody will miss a mere 30 acres. And it doesn't cost taxpayers anything to leave it natural! I think more people should visit the park. There is an "Open Park" event later this month.

Soaring Eagle Open Park Event, Saturday, April 28:

• Join us mountain bikers, trail runners, and hikers as we partner with King County Parks for a day of active outdoor sports  --  all under a forest canopy.  For more info, call Barbara Bruell (425-868-9587).  Meet at the west entrance / parking lot on Main Street. 
• Directions: from NE 228th Ave in Sammamish  >  turn east on SE 8th  >  continue as it curves left and becomes 244th Ave  >  turn right on Main  >  continue to the end.  
• Dogs!  Yes, bring your favorite friend!  Just keep 'em on leash and bring poo bags.
• Mountain bike ride: starts at 9:00am sharp at main street entrance.
• Trail run: starts at 9:15 am sharp at Main Street entrance.
• Hike: starts at 9:30am at Main Street entrance.
• Trail restoration: starts at 10:00am at Main Street entrance.  (No dogs for this, please. 

I'd like to get your opinion on this debate.