Mentally disturbed woman in Oregon harassing a family building a home on 20 acres:

Homeowner of feared stalker: ‘She thinks she’s the lady of the house’

Whack-A-Kitty, Whack-A-Mole, you’ve seen them all. Now it’s time to play “Whack-An-Agent”.

Here’s an ad I ran across today on Craigslist entitled “Local Realtors Needed To Input Flat Fee Listing Into The MLS”

Hello, we are currently in need of a Realtor in your area to input flat fee listing into the MLS. You must be a licensed Realtor with access to the MLS. You must also obtain permission from your Broker In Charge to work w/flat fee listings. Pays $100 for basic listings and $200 per listing for very limited representation. Listings are for a 1 year term.

Please go to http://www.salebyownermls.net/realtor-join.htm

A regional recruiter will contact you afterwards.

How does this work? What does the contract the seller has with the brokerage say about agency? How can an agent who has never been to the house properly represent the Seller of the house?

What about liability? If something goes sideways, the agent who inputted the listing in that particular jurisdiction would be held responsible. Most Errors & Ommissions policies have a $5000 deductable. So for $100, they may have to make up this deductable amount out of their own pockets. How could this possibly be worth it for any agent or brokerage, unless they’re not in it for the long-haul and they don’t expect to be in business much longer.

This seems to me to be an abuse of the system on so many levels, not to mention, a pretty stupid thing for an agent or brokerage to consider doing.

Though real estate sales are down nation-wide, Condo Domain announced they’re expanding into several markets, Seattle included. Most real estate firms across the country are struggling. Zip Realty has yet to make a profit. Redfin hasn’t shown a profit either and has had to raise their prices, while quietly eliminating the listing agent contact info that they originally had on their site.

Another Seattle discount/rebate company Findwell has purchased a cute name, has a cute little logo’d car (think bankrupt real estate firm Foxton’s) and has both a static and a map search, but only made about 19 sales since they’ve started (Seattle Business Journal) and 10 sales total in 2009. The average sales price was around $400K and based on a 3% sales commission, they’ve netted about $60K so far in 2009. They have 6 agents and brokers listed on their roster, so that’s about $10K per agent for the first 5 months of 2009, and that’s before taxes and marketing expenses.

In the big wide world, there will always be desperation and individuals willing to undercut the competition, cross picket lines, become scab labor and participate in buy-downs, kickbacks and pay-outs, no matter what the business.

The Condo Domain expansion coincides with their announcement that their prior business plan of refunding all but $5000 of the commission wasn’t making any money, so they’re moving to an a la carte plan where you only get that if you don’t need to tour more than 3 properties. They’ve found that in their business the average buyer tours 14 condo’s before buying, so in that case, they’ll refund 20%, similar to Zip & Redfin. But again, none of those companies are making a profit. They are essentially giving away their profit to the buyer in order to capture the buyers business, and they’re betting they can capture enough market share before the money runs out.

Interestingly enough, Condo Domain seems to be expanding after making only 33 sales. (33 sales! Condo Domain White Paper) This reminds me of Buyside Realty, the discount firm that tried to launch an IPO with a million dollar loss. They have since gone out of business.

Perhaps that fabled “6%”, spread out over all of the sales, from $200K condo’s to $2M luxury homes, when that amount is averaged out, that percentage miraculously equals the amount of money it costs to run a real estate business. Maybe, just maybe, owners of brokerages have actually looked at the books, consulted with accountants, tabulated results, crunched some numbers, and came up with this simple formula that will allow them to stay in business. Could be. Just sayin’.

The Great Wish across America is to resume the life of comfort-and-convenience that seemed so nirvana-like just a few short years ago, when the very constellations of the heavens might have been renamed after heroic Atlanta realtors and Connecticut hedge fund warriors, and the boomer portfolios groaned with earnings, and millions of graying corporate salary mules dreamed of their approaching retirement to a satori of golf and Viagra, and the interior decorators grew so rich installing granite countertops that they could buy their own houses in the East Hampton, and every microcephalic parking valet in Las Vegas qualified for a bucket full of Ninja mortgages, and Lloyd Blankfein could dream of divorcing his wife to marry his cappuccino machine.

Clusterfuck Nation by Jim Kunstler

James Howard Kunstler has written for the Atlantic Monthly, Rolling Stone and the New York Times.

Complementing their existing video program, Coldwell Banker recently launched their video channel on YouTube. Since 77% of total U.S. Internet users watch video online and, after watching a video over half move closer to a purchase, they figured that video could be an effective online marketing tool.

So far, all of the videos online are either property videos (of active listings) and Agent videos created through their video program, plus a scattering of “location” videos. For instance, if you search using the map and go to “Seattle”, you’ll find information videos not only about Seattle homes for sale, but of the Pike Place Market and different neighborhoods around the city.

Advanced Access down again.

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Chuck Marunde, a real estate broker and ex-real estate attorney in Sequim, Washington, has started his own online newspaper the Sequim Port Angeles Newspaper Online.

It seems to be a home-grown mix of local, regional and national news, politics, events of interest and local photos, and welcomes input and submissions from area residents. It does have ads and classifieds but, oddly enough, the only real estate brokerage advertised is Marunde’s own brokerage, Sequim and Port Angeles Real Estate.

The site it beautifully done and will no doubt bring him attention and success if he can keep it fresh and updated and relevant to the people in the area. He’s turned the idea of a neighborhood blog on it’s ear by making the new media “blog” into something more like an old-fashioned newspaper, so the format is accessible and readily understandable to everyone. Great idea for anyone trying to stay in touch with their constituents and present and future clients.

N.B. Chuck has been a writer with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s Real Estate Professionals column for the past few years and he said he hatched the idea prior to the Seattle PI’s closure. At the time, he wasn’t sure if the PI was going to try to stay an online newspaper, so his move was a reaction to that. The fact that it has stayed online hasn’t disuaded him, and I hope he will continue to write for both.

Reprinted from a past post, for your reading pleasure

Redfin’s San Francisco blog had a wonderful post “Palo Alto: In Praise of Garages”, enumerating several noteworthy garages in the Bay Area. They noted both the garages of young Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard and another noteworthy garage, the place where Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs started their “Homebrew Computer Club.” This enterprise later became Apple.

I couldn’t think of any famous garages here in Seattle, unless you counted
Kurt Cobain’s, whose life ended in his garage.

HappyDeathInc.

Nirvana was arguably Seattle’s greatest garage band, though
not its only famous one.

Today, February 20th, would have been Kurt’s 40th birthday. He was born in 1967 in Aberdeen, WA.

The garage was torn down by Courtney, shortly after his death, perhaps because she couldn’t stand looking at it or maybe to avoid it becoming a shrine.

Courtney sold the house in 1997 for $2,895,000. The listing agent had a brokers Open House, and the curious were able to wander about for clues to the previous owners existence. The garage had been torn down by then, a fence put up around the property and a bench erected in Viretta Park, that has had to substitute for a shrine. Courtney had contacted Lake View Cemetery (where Bruce Lee is buried) and Greenwood Memorial Park in Renton (where Jimi is buried) but both cemetery owners were concerned about security. Cobain was cremated; the cremains are kept in an undisclosed private location. His family has yet to approve of any official memorial site.

Zillow has the home listed
with a ZESTIMATE of $5,861,884.00. Which is probably about right.

www.Flickr.com

This Saturday, February 24th, would have been Kurt and Courtney’s wedding anniversary. They were married 2/24/92 in Hawaii.

Angelo Bruscas in his PI blog,
Seattle@Nite writes of the 12th anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death in an entry entitled “Nirvana at Nite”. The 13th anniversary is coming up April 8th.

The home where Nirvana played its first gig was on the auction block for sale last year.

This is not the first Cobain home lost .……Courtney Love lost both her New York home and a historic home in Olympia she bought for Kurt’s sister Kim.

Cobain listing on Ebay

The other members of Nirvana were Dave Grohl, who went on to front Foo Fighters and lives on the East Coast.

Krist Novoselic’s ties are deeper in the Northwest, and he spends time in Seattle and in his home Southwest Washington he shares with his wife, local clothing designer Darbury Stendaru, who had a studio on 1st Avenue, but now only does trunk shows. They also celebrate their wedding anniversary this month (2/27).

In 1995, Novoselic founded JAMPAC (Joint Artists and Music Promotions Political Action Committee), an organization that advocated on behalf of Washington state’s music community. Novoselic’s work with JAMPAC helped Seattle club owners find ways to host all-ages shows, and was instrumental in helping to overturn the (anti-)Teen Dance Ordinance. And sometimes making music and making a statement go hand in hand, as when Novoselic, Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil, and drummer Gina Mainwal backed Jello Biafra as the “No W.T.O. Combo” at a show performed during the World Trade Organization conference held in Seattle in 1999.

There have been other musical endeavors since Nirvana, as well as new causes. Novoselic is a strong supporter of electoral reform, an issue he writes about extensively on his website Fix Our United States.

He’s also published several books, including
Of Grunge & Government: Let’s Fix This Broken Democracy!

Instant runoff voting: speaking to voter needs
By Krist Novoselic (Seattle Times)

IRV, a better way, by Krist Novoselic, The Nation

Guide to Pacific Northwest Bands, garage or otherwise

Photos of Kurt Cobain’s Seattle house on Flickr

A walking tour of Kurt Cobain’s Aberdeen

33 things you should know about Nirvana — Blender

Cobain unofficial memorial at Viretta Park

Sad reminder of Kurt Cobain’s legacy
- Cobain/Love house sold in foreclosure

Kurt Cobain: Seven Years Later –
a Reflection by Clark Humphrey on HistoryLink.org

Ichiro’s House in Lakemont - A very special open house this Sunday, April 5th, from 1:00pm - 4:00pm hosted by Shawn Filer.

Offered at $1,750,000 with fantastic Lake Sammamish views from every room. 4409 164th Ln SE, Issaquah, WA 98027.

Click here and you can take a virtual tour of Ichiro’s house for sale.

And this is news? I’m pretty sure anyone reading this blog is on Twitter and I’m also guessing that if you’re on Twitter and you sell real estate, you’re trying to sell houses. We may put links to our listings or being more subtle, offer links to interesting real estate-related stories, sharing information with our friends and followers.

Where is the story here? Jeez.

Wow. This is too good to be true. Win a 1 hour private “Personal Success Coaching” with Frank McKinney http://www.frank-mckinney.com/personal_coach.aspx …… a $2,500 value, according to Mr. McKinney.

Here is how you can enter to win:

1. Read 1 or all 3 of Frank McKinney’s latest books.

AND

2. Between today and May 1, 2009, go to the Amazon book page to post a review of the book or books you purchased (I assume you are to write a glowing review.)

Here are the books:

The Tap

Burst This! Frank McKinney’s Bubble-Proof Real Estate Strategies

Dead Fred, Flying Lunchboxes, and the Good Luck Circle

In a note from Mr. McKinney:

That is all you have to do to enter your name in a drawing to win a one hour “Personal Success Coaching” with Frank McKinney (worth $2,500.00.) By posting your review, you could also inspire others that are considering purchasing the books.

The Seattle PI’s last day as a printed newspaper is today, leaving Seattle a one-newspaper town. The PI will be moving totally online and will try to succeed with a limited staff of writers and advertising salespeople.

Not only were some seasoned writers asked to stay on board, but the citizen bloggers were also asked to continue writing, and though I’m sad to see the Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s printed version go, I’m happy to see it continue on in the virtual world.

I’ve moderated the Seattle Real Estate Professionals column for several years now, and am glad to stay on to write and moderate that blog. Some voices are louder than others there, but it’s always interesting.

A real estate executive with CB Richard Ellis Group, flung himself out of a window at the MetLife Building Tuesday, falling to his death as onlookers watched.

Death plunge in New York.