Interview with Todd Carpenter of Lendorama December 23, 2005
When I started blogging, Todd Carpenter of Lenderama was the first real estate blogger I got to know. Looking to spread the word about rain city guide, I signed up on his list of real estate and mortgage blogs, which led to some interesting conversations that moved from email to a message board after he opened up this interesting forum for all things mortgage related. He seems to quickly pick up on real estate and mortgage technology trends, making his blog a great read.
As a Mortgage Technology Specialist in Colorado, Todd has been at the forefront of mortgage technology as both a user and a speaker for over a decade.
What inspired you to start blogging?
I read a book from Hugh Hewitt called Blog. I realised that I had no real interest to talk politics, but that a blog covering my industry would make me a bit of a Pioneer. The first time I Googled “Mortgage Blog” back in January, there were about 100,000 results. Now there are over 6,000,000
Are there any special topics or issues that you enjoy covering?
I like finding stories about other mortgage brokers in non-industry related situations. Like the broker who went to the Texas Hold um championships.
What have you done to personalize your blog?
I have a personal blog called the Pagan Capitalist. Otherwise, I keep Lenderama pretty much business focused. When I post about a story, I generally like to share my opinion of it, or possibly joke about it.
Do you have any favorite posts?
Not really
What are some of your favorite blogs (real estate or otherwise)?
http://growabrain.typepad.com/growabrain/ because it’s funny
http://bendegrow.com/ a local libertarian
http://www.freakonomics.com/blog/ it makes you think
http://www.lileks.com/ because it’s funny AND it makes you think
What tools/websites do you find most helpful in putting together your blog?
Blogging and web publishing in general are a lot easier if you know some HTML. I learned everything I know about it at http://htmlgoodies.com/ .
How does blogging fit into the overall marketing of your business?
Besides personal sales calls, Blogging is my only form of Marketing. By blogging to other mortgage professionals, instead of direct to consumers, I have gained some what of a reputation for being an industry expert.
What plans do you have to improve your blog over this next year?
What are you talking about? My blog is perfect!
What is the one tool or feature that you wish your site had?
A search engine that was specific to the real estate/mortgage industry . One that I could personally edit to keep only relevant links in the data base. Sort of like a searchable version of my Big List http://blog.mariah.com/dir.html
What do you think real estate blogging will look like 3 years from now?
Bigger, much bigger. There’s no reason why EVERY agent shouldn’t be blogging. It’s simply an online version of the same “keep in touch your client” marketing plan that every Realtor is already using.
(Read more interviews with some of real estate’s top bloggers under the Real Estate Q&A category)
Check out these related posts:
- Interview with Fran of The Real Estate Blog
- Interview with Manhattan’s Property Grunt
- Interview with Fraser Beach of Toronto at Home
Article Tags>> advice | blogging | interview | real-estate-q-a
- Posted in : General Real Estate
- Author : Dustin
Comments»
[...] Rather than let Lenderama slow down in its old age, it is pretty obvious that Todd Carpenter is going to make sure Lenderama is always on the cutting edge! Just before announcing his one year birthday, Todd released a dynamic bookmark tool that mashes-up the Firefox browser, RSS feeds and del.icio.us. [...]
[...] Todd Carpenter of Lenderama [...]
[...] Todd Carpenter of Lenderama [...]
[...] Todd Carpenter of Lenderama [...]
[...] Todd Carpenter of Lenderama [...]
[...] Todd Carpenter of Lenderama [...]
[...] #1 Consumer Real Estate Blog July 30, 2007 I recently did an interview for Todd Carpenter of Lenderama and noted Seattle Bubble as my favorite local real estate blog to read. “…I’d have to say my favorite blog to read is Seattle Bubble, …I want to learn what the consumer’s perception is, so I can address everything at that level. Seattle Bubble has some riff-raff, but there’s more info in the comments there, than anyplace else in the Blogosphere for me.” [...]
[...] I bet at least a few of you thought I was going to interview myself. I’m not that vain. However, Dustin Luther of Rain City interviewed me way back in December of 2005. I thought it would be fun to share as his questions as ther’re what gave me the idea for the interview series here. [...]