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Cleaning up in a down market

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, September 23, 2008.

I've been sick. It's not the "I couldn't get out of bed to meet the Queen" kind of sick, nor have I been compromised to the point where if the world ceased to exist at noon today I might not catch on until, say, November. I just feel yucky. And for me, yucky can be much worse than incapacitated. This is because it gives me too much time to think. more...

The truth about junk mail

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, September 16, 2008.

I now subscribe to Rolling Stone magazine. I know this because Robert Downey Jr.'s face is staring at me from the breakfast bar this morning, right above the mailing label with my name on it.

The curious thing is that I am pretty sure I didn't sign up for this. more...

Real estate and the long run

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, September 9, 2008.

I went for a run yesterday. This is not big news, but it is news nonetheless, and it has inspired this latest installment in my Big Giant Metaphor series. You see, in days of yore (yore being last spring), I made a practice of going for a run several times a week. more...

Real estate quakes and aftershocks

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, September 2, 2008.

This week my office had a little shakeup. We received the news that we would be merging with another office. Based on the aftershocks from those outside of the office, and even from some within who are relatively new to real estate, you would have thought that the end of the world was imminent. more...

Rules, creepers and one-way streets

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, August 26, 2008.

Rules. We have buckets of rules for our social behavior, and the rules can be confusing. Many of these rules we learn over time. We know that a graduation announcement is not really an invitation to the event, but just an invitation to send money. more...

Real estate and 'the little things'

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, August 19, 2008.

It's the little things. It's always the little things. They chip away at our sanity, they undermine our focus, and if we aren't careful, they cloud our vision and generally make a mess of our lives.

Yesterday, I sat paralyzed at my desk. Those little things were having a big ol' party, and they had accumulated to the point that I could no longer see the fire exit. more...

'Big head,' print ads survive in the mountains

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, August 12, 2008.

My youngest daughter recently asked me, "Do you love your job?"

"Well, if I have to work, I suppose I do," I answered honestly. "What would you do if you didn't have to work?" she replied.

Probably this. The truth hurts.

Our family took a little vacation last week. Now, for the kiddies preparing for their fall SATs, I will remind you that vacation is to real estate agents as disco music is to a Latin dance master. In either case, one enjoying the other is not only criminal but effectively impossible. more...

Lenders, it's time to clean house

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, August 5, 2008.

In what is being applauded as the most decisive response yet by federal officials to end the housing crisis, President Bush signed yet another mortgage relief measure today to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. This one, which according to an undisclosed source "should pretty much nail it," authorizes a few more billion dollars in government-backed relief.

Specifically, it reads: "Make check payable to Merry Maids." more...

Mixing business with 'friends'

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, July 29, 2008.

I am now accepting friends.

It became a little running joke at the Inman Real Estate Connect conference last week. For reasons known only to the sloppy vendor responsible for my brain's faulty wiring, I felt compelled during a panel discussion to publicly announce that I was, more or less, friendless. "I have 12 Facebook friends!" I blurted, and I was actually bragging when I said it. Having started the morning with a high "five" on my Facebook tally board (median age 16.8), I was feeling somewhat empowered. more...

TGIF, whatever that means

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, July 22, 2008.

I was in the grocery store on Friday when I overheard the man chatting on his cell phone: "Boy, am I glad it's Friday." Stopping just short of whacking him upside the head with my 10-pound bag of kitty litter, I instead chose to silently loathe him. Friday. I wish I could get me one of those things.

Everything about my chosen profession is just so difficult these days. First, there are the longer market times. Time is money, and not only is my overburdened Decade at a Glance threatening to file bankruptcy, but never have I had to throw my checkbook in so many directions for such prolonged periods as I do these days. more...

Indiana Jones and the Google ranking

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, July 15, 2008.

I accidentally used a keyword yesterday. I'm pretty sure I didn't accidentally use a meta tag, because I don't know what that is. But if I did, I'm sorry. I promise to clean it up. If I am not careful, I might find myself Googleable, and everyone will want to list their home with me! Or so, I'm told, they should.

My local paper runs a weekly column on real estate written by a local broker. It is a different broker each week and is usually the office manager, president or owner of one of the big boys. This week the article was devoted to blogging and the author chose to go with the Indiana Jones theme. more...

Dialing the Rotary Lady

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, July 8, 2008.

I think I am going to join my local Rotary Club. I made the mistake of suggesting as much to my youngest daughter recently, who dutifully returned from an event bearing the business card of the Rotary Lady. "She's expecting your call," she said. Oops. What have I gone and done now?

This sudden interest in becoming a Rotarian came to me through their sponsorship of my daughters' high school Interact Club. I have been touched and impressed by the role the Rotary has played in instilling a sense of community and global involvement among young people. And, I might get to wear a funny hat. Wait -- I think that's the Shriners. Whatever. I also am realizing that I need to get out more. more...

Playing nice in a 'culture of disrespect'

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, July 1, 2008.

This morning I feel like I am unknowingly wearing a "kick me" sign on my Realtor backside. The jeers are coming from all corners of my professional playground. Would someone please steal my lunch money and put me out of my misery?

As parents, we take great care to teach our children the social graces. Say please and thank you. Kiss your grandmother. Don't chew on that power cord with your mouth open. Then, in the blink of an eye, they grow up to be buyers and sellers and agents. more...

We are all the same ... and that's the problem

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, June 24, 2008.

Yesterday, there was this guy in the grocery store. He was in the frozen foods aisle (near the fish sticks, to be exact). He was wearing a kilt.

If my brain was wired to code, I wouldn't be sitting here 24 hours later thinking about the oddly dressed man. "He was wearing a kilt!" I announced. "So?" said my daughter. Moving on to what I thought might be a more receptive audience, I shared this bit of intelligence with my husband. "A kilt. That's what it was!" I announced, to which he replied in his best "placate Kris" voice, "He has huevos." more...

Please stop innovating!

By Kris Berg, Tuesday, June 17, 2008.

Now, where did I put my social network?

Yesterday I showed the state of California. In all fairness, it wasn't the entire state, but just several of the larger Assembly districts. The buyer, who contacted me because he found my blog online, narrowed down his area of interest to seven ZIP codes. "Why these areas?" I asked. "I researched the demographics on ZIPskinny," he replied.

What I said: "Oh, of course!" What I thought: "Huh?" more...

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