Austin Texas Real Estate Blog (and other stuff)

Last night, I listed a great house for a very nice couple in Leander. I expect it to sell quickly, and they're looking to buy a home roughly twice as expensive nearby. Two days ago, the seller called me when I was on my way to the office. He mentioned that he works for a friend of mine (one of my...

The Austin metro area grew by 3.9% from 2010 to 2011, according to a story cited in the Austin American-Statesman today. I feel blessed to be selling homes in such a vibrant city. I was a little surprised to realize that we are nearing the 2 million mark on population here, frankly (1.78 million ...

Dear Home Seller, I've been helping some friends look for a home this past month. We managed to find a great place for them, and we even got multiple offers on their home, which sold in less than two weeks, thankfully. We looked at a cross-section of neighborhoods in Round Rock, and we saw a numb...

If you don't mind, I'd love to hear some input and perspective from you. I have a number of decisions on my mind with our company, and I would welcome any helpful advice/direction. Please note that I said "helpful". :) I'm editing this opening paragraph now that I've finished writing the rest of ...

It seems as though I hear more and more these days about the notion of "influence", both from sites like Klout and from various industry lists (Most Influential, etc.). My intent with this post is not to discount or disavow any such influence, but to provide some food for thought. There are plent...

Recently, I helped an older lady sell her north Austin home so that she could move closer to her family elsewhere in Texas. She was referred to me by an agent in San Angelo. He mentioned that she was recently widowed. I had a little trouble connecting with her initially, which was my own mistake....

I've been selling homes full-time in Austin since 1997. I've trained dozens of local agents, and coached many others around the country. As a broker and owner of my own independent real estate firm, I've helped with hundreds of transactions. Through my online networking efforts and "in person" co...

When you’re trying to sell your home, there are things that you simply can’t change. If you bought in an awkward location, there’s not much you can do about that now. If the plan isn’t as functional/modern as most buyers would prefer, this is something that may cost too much to remedy. You also c...

When dealing with real estate clients, one of the more difficult objections to overcome in the real estate industry is the fact that we are often perceived as predatory and unprofessional. If I had a nickel for every time I heard this phrase, "I haven't had very good experiences with REALTORS®", ...

I started a small marketing company in 1996, leaving behind the fascinating and glamorous world of retail and restaurant management. I was 25 years old, and I was tired of working for someone else. Much of our focus for my fledgling venture was on selling marketing and printing services to real e...