What the F*** is a “Zestimate,” Anyway?

What the F*** is a “Zestimate,” Anyway?

October 19, 2021Posted inReal Estate
(Update: this whole post is now moot, glad I took the time) Folks in my business tend to see Zillow and other techy real estate companies as anywhere from benign presence to the Anti-Christ. I land somewhere in the middle, as I have a healthy distrust of any giant company but can see how when they offer real value, it's best to figure out how to work with them or they'll eat your lunch. I have seen firsthand what kind of…
What the Hell Are You Talking About

What the Hell Are You Talking About

October 5, 2021Posted inReal Estate
There's an old saying in marketing that half of all marketing works, but nobody knows which half. That's likely an outdated metric, what with the new army of data scientists and algorithms that didn't used to exist, but there are still plenty of places where art is called for more than science. Take for example movie advertising, my old bailiwick. When deciding what tagline to put on a poster, or which review quotes to include in an ad, it's mostly hunch.…
There’s No Baseball in Portland, Which Sucks

There’s No Baseball in Portland, Which Sucks

September 21, 2021Posted inMoving to Portland
With apologies (not really) to the barely-in-the-minors Hillsboro Hops, there's no baseball in Portland. I'm sure one of these days I'll take in a game at Ron Tonkin Field to see the Hops take on the Tri-City Dust Devils or the Everett AquaSox, and I might even enjoy myself, but it isn't the real thing. Once you've flown first class it's tough going back to coach. So how did we get here, with Portland- the 25th-largest metropolitan area in the US-…