Twitter is AMAZING August 16, 2008
Over this past week, I’ve had the misfortune dealing with cable (Comcast) being down and just today, my email being out (an issue with Network Solutions). Both times, I vented with 140 characters (or less) on Twitter. Of course, I had to use my Treo to whine about Comcast. But what happened in both cases really surprises me. Apparently these big corporations have their own “David G’s” out there with their own Twitter profiles and alerts set up to address issues brought up on the internet.
Here’s my Tweet:
pulling out my hair…network solutions email seems to be down…argh! No emails for me.
netsolcares @mortgageporter Hi this is Gerry from Network Solutions. I’m sorry your having issues. If you’d like to contact me I’ll see what we can do
I just got off the phone (after holding for over 11 minutes) with Gerry @ Network Solutions and they narrowed down what my issue was (too technical for me to explain) and the good news is, everything is back up and working. And it’s the weekend. I’m amazed.
The Comcast response and issue was very similar. A “tweet” from me saying Comcast is out…no email or internet and this reply from “Comcast Scott” within moments
comcastscott @mortgageporter how often has this been happening? Can we help
Along with this one
comcastcares @mortgageporter Keep us updated
and
comcastscott @mortgageporter glad to help! Keep those tweets coming
By the way, if you have Twitter and you find your Comcast or Network Solutions services not working, you can always tweet these fella’s…they react quickly. I am impressed and would have never pictured large corporations utilizing social networking this way.
So for all of you who are not utilizing Twitter because you think it’s a fad, I encourage you to check it out. It is what ever you make it. I’ve found it to be real useful for communicating what I doing during the day, like providing live rate quotes, in a consultation, writing a blog post, etc. And I’ll post something “non-business” every once in a while like what I’m cooking up for dinner.
If you do sign up (it’s free and easy to do) please “follow me” or at very least, send me a tweet!
Mr Monk Buys a House July 16, 2008
Mr. Monk returns to TV with a premiere episode this Friday, July 18th. This one will be near a dear to our hearts. He’s going to buy a house! That’s right. Here is your most OCD client in a life-imitates-art drama.
When his new neighbor plays his music too loud, Monk decides it’s time to move. He makes the big leap and buys a house that turns into a money pit, reminiscent of the 1986 movie that we agents like to give to first-time buyers who think they are ready for a fixer-upper. Things continue to challenge Adrian when he hires the handyman from hell who is determined to rip up the entire house. Brad Garrett form Everybody Loves Raymond guest stars.
Goodbye and Good Luck, Sonics!!! July 2, 2008
I already feel the void…
Rain City Radio: A West Seattle Story June 24, 2008
I really enjoyed today’s conversation with Tracy Records of the West Seattle Blog. Tracy shared a ton of great stories with us and I learned a ton…
Click here to listen to the entire interview!
And below are some links to some of the things we discussed:
- Capital Hill Seattle
- MyBallard.com
- Exit 133.com in Tacoma
- Angelina’s Tottoria
- West 5: try the BLT
- Easy Street Records — come on a weekday morning to beat the crowds
- Bakery Nouveau
- Hotwire Coffee
- Hi-Yu
We covered a lot of great topics in the interview including her perspective on the elements of the media that has fundamentally changed. As someone with 25 years experience in the traditional media space AND a successful local blogger, her perspective was fascinating!
Click here to listen to the entire interview!
*Note: If you’re wondering why this post looks different then when it was originally published, I didn’t like the outline that I originally provided, so I changed it around a bunch.
Pocket Listings in Seattle? June 23, 2008
I was a meeting this weekend with an agent in Southern California where he showed me a website he says he visits a couple times a week. A competitor had built up a large repository of “pocket listings” for the Beverly Hills area and then stuck them behind a registration wall… of which he visited regularly.
Being a Rain City Guide kinda guy, I’m not keen to put things behind registration, but I am fascinated by the idea of putting together a page of pocket listings as a resource for Seattle area agents and consumers. If you’re an agent who serves any area supported by the NWMLS and you’d like to advertise a pocket listing on RCG, let me know in the comment below.
If I get 5 or more pocket listings in the comment section of this post in the near future, then I’ll assume there really is demand for such a tool in the Seattle area and I’ll start up a new page (right between “About RCG” and “Seattle Agent Recommendations”) for pocket listings.
Here’s the only information I need from you:
- Neighborhood
- One to two sentence description of the listing
- Contact information (name & phone)
For obvious reasons, I’m assuming that most agents won’t want to list the address of the pocket listing, but if you want to include that information as well, all the better. And just to be clear, this is a free service of RCG. Assuming it becomes a lot of work, I may charge a nominal fee to cover my time and/or automate the system, but I honestly don’t see that happening in the near future.
Are there rules for getting your pocket listing on RCG? Most definitely! But I don’t even know what they are yet. However, I will definitely figure out some rules if people start abusing the system. Some potential rules that come to mind: (1) Only allow agents to list their top 3 pocket listings, (2) must let me know if a pocket listing gets listed on the MLS and/or (3) must let me know if a pocket listing is no longer available. But even those rules aren’t hard-and-fast yet until I get some feedback from the community.
So, if you are an agent intersted in getting some additional exposure for your pocket listings, let me know!
Barclays North: “It’s a matter of cash flow” June 19, 2008
Snohomish County real estate land developer Barclays North is shutting down.
Back in April, CEO Patrick McCourt went public with their financial problems.
Everett-based developer Barclays North has struggled since late last year to repay loans from nearly 100 banks and other lenders, according to court documents. Company officials said in court papers in January that Barclays North and its many affiliates were in default with at least 56 lenders, though most had agreed to hold off any action until the end of March…
“What got Pat into trouble,” said Britsch, was purchasing land in advance to supply “national contracts with very large builders,” who backed out after the housing downturn began in California and the Southwest in mid-2006.
Demand for undeveloped lots in Snohomish County “fell relatively hard and fast,” he said, “and when that happened the builders obviously didn’t need as many lots as anticipated. That left Pat and the banks holding this huge financial burden.”
Local state-chartered banks exposed to loan losses include Frontier Bank, Banner Bank, Shoreline Bank, Cascade Bank, and First Sound Bank.
and from the Everett Herald story:
“It’s fair to say all builders and developers are facing pressures in this market, although every company’s business model is different,” said Mike Pattison of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties
I wonder which title insurance companies are on the hook for any outstanding mechanics liens?
Join us for a Rain City conversation on Tuesday afternoon! June 16, 2008
I’ve been having such a blast with the 4realz Roundtable conversations, that I’m going to bring the conversation to Rain City Guide!
The idea: this Tuesday at 4pm, I’m going to host a conversation with the Rain City Guide community. There are many ways to join the conversation and all of them are easy. All the information you need is located at this website: http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/17904, but here is a summary:
- You can call in to the # provided (724-444-7444), Call ID: 17904, to listen to the conversation.
- You can join the chat by going to the website that TalkShoe provides for a Rain City conversation any time during the scheduled call (4pm to 5pm on Tuesday)
- Getting fancier: You can sign up for a (free) account with TalkShoe and then join the chat (step #2). This will allow me (as the “host” of the show, I’ll be able to know who you are and identify your chats!
- Fanciest: You can sign up for an account (step #3), join the chat (step #2) and call in (step #1).
If you opt for step #4, then I can have you join in the conversation during our podcast!
The way that I’ve been managing the conversations during the 4realz Roundtable is that I invite a few “guests” who are unmuted during the entire show. And then, just to make sure things don’t get too overwhelming, I closely monitor the live “chat” during the show and if someone has a question or wants to make a point, then I “unmute” them. For people simply listening to the show, it sounds like a live radio interview show, but to the people taking waiting to “come on air” they can actively chat with all the others waiting to come on air.
So, for the first episode of a Rain City conversation, I’ve invited EVERY Rain City Guide contributor to be live on the call… The first order of business will be to go around the “virtual” roundtable and let each contributor talk for two minutes about what brought them to Rain City Guide.
Then quickly, I want to open up the mic to your comments, questions, tips, etc.
- Are you moving to the Seattle area and want to ask about great neighborhoods?
- Do you have a specific question for a contributor?
- Want to share your experience with the Seattle real estate market?
My hope is that this first episode will be a lively and educational conversation, but it will only work if you join us! So, please consider taking an hour out of your Tuesday afternoon to take part in a Rain City conversation! I can’t wait to hear from you!
Best Pizza Delivery in Seattle February 9, 2008
Hands down…Pagliacci. Do you have another favorite? I’d love to hear it. My “standby” is the Brooklyn Bridge…however the “seasonals” are a treat…The pizza in the photo is the current seasonal: Salumi’s finocchiona salami, Mama Lil’s goathorn peppers, roasted fennel, mozzarella and ricotta cheese on an olive oil base.
Delish! Do you know of a better pizza delivered to your door in Seattle? Bring it!
Tweet tweet November 9, 2007
So far, we have Jeff, Joel, Jessica, Keith and Myself prepared to twitter the NAR 2007. Follow along, or better yet tweet with us, at Jeff’s summary site: NAR Updates.
And I’m voting for using “NAR2007″ (one word) as our tag on Flickr, YouTube, etc. Use it and you’ll make it easy for us to find your stuff! 
Famous Real Estate Agent Found Dead November 1, 2007
Linda Stein, a New York real estate known as “broker to the stars,” was found dead, apparently bludgeoned to death in her Manhattan apartment.
Her body was found on Tuesday by her daughter but the cause of death was not confirmed until an autopsy Wednesday. Linda lived by herself. The building featured heavy security and there was no sign of forced entry or robbery. Reports say that all people entering the building use the elevator and there is an elevator operator. Officials have not announced any motives or suspects in the case.
Linda was the ex-wife of Seymour Stein, former president of Sire Records, which was the launching pad for the Ramones, Talking Heads and Madonna.
Before real estate Stein was a pivotal figure in the early New York punk scene, co-managing the Ramones with Danny Fields, and was a friend to David Bowie, Talking Heads, The B-52s and Madonna as wife of Sire Records founder Seymour Stein.
Her career continued into the world of expensive real estate, as she brokered property deals for stars like Sting, Billy Joel, Harrison Ford, Rolling Stone editor Jann Wenner, LaToya Jackson, Sylvester Stallone and Andrew Lloyd Webber, amongst others.
For many local Seattle-area agents this brings up painful memories of Windermere agent Michael Emert who was murdered in January 2001 in a Woodinville home listed for sale. Mr. Emert was showing the home or previewing it for a buyer at the time of his murder. Mr. Emert’s body was found by the seller, who is represented by another real estate firm and was a stranger to Mr. Emert. Police believe that Mr. Emert’s late-model Cadillac SUV was taken by the perpetrator and later abandoned in Kirkland. As far as I know this murder was never solved. But it caused a major change in many agents behavior when meeting prospective clients and help inspire SKAR’s (Seattle-King County Association of Realtors) “Safety Week” campaign.
older posts »
