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We snuck out of town over the holidays and I got a chance to catch up on my airline reading. In United’s January Hemisphere Magazine, there’s an article entitled “Light on Its Footprint.” In this very short piece, the author discusses the increasing use of light rail in cities across the United States. He talks about areas that are developing new systems, others that are expanding their systems and even large employers who are moving their headquarters to be closer to public transportation. The subtitle, “Residents of U.S. cities are flocking to live and work along new rail lines” tells it all – and also acknowledges what D.C. area residents have practiced for years.

Our Metro Rail system is definitely a draw and has consistently driven up prices of…

I said “available” didn’t I? That sounds like something an Agent would have said during the second quarter of 2005. Properties on the market are pretty “available” these days in most parts of the country -- even in the “recession proof” Washington DC area. I also said “endangered species” didn’t I? I’ll get to that in just a moment :-)

Despite these trying economic times, there are a few micro-markets that have still fared quite well in areas in or around the Nation's Capitol – the downtown Bethesda townhome is one such niche.

From 1997-2000, when the downtown Bethesda corridor began it’s transformation from sleepy town to “it” destination, two small townhome developments sprouted up. “The Villages of Bethesda” and “The City Homes of Edgemoor” ---…

What a post Thanksgiving week. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone by the way. I hope all had their fair share of turkey, friends, and family (or any combination there-of).

In the spirit of holidays, typically times of reflection, I wanted to share some recent real estate and technology musings -- just some smart ideas, questions, and tools (none of mine of course!) So bear with me...

It’s only appropriate to start an REW post with REW-related chatter. Seems like the theme of the week has been the importance of making a seductive website :-) Get your minds out of the gutter and hear me out. I’m referring to the importance of designing a website you can “sell with senses”. The venerable Eric Blackwell hits on this topic in a recent EricOnSearch post…

Bethesda, Chevy Chase, & Washington DC Luxury Home Report

It’s been quite a while since I’ve looked at specific data dealing with the Washington DC luxury home market.  Many thanks to those of you who e-mailed to ask me for an update. It’s always interesting to see the trends in a far less predictable price-range, especially against the background of recent economic woes (or perhaps “Whoa!”). For this DC Metro area luxury home market analysis, I define the luxury niche as a property with a sales price of over $2.5M. This market report centers on data from zip codes 20016, 20015, 20008, the upper Northwest corridor of of Northwest Washington DC --west of Rock Creek Park. A few of the notable areas in this region include Kalorama, Cleveland Park, and…

SEO is dead as we know it?  Well, if you listen to Bruce Clay, he’d tell you “yes”. 

A recent WebProNews post, “SEO About to Get Turned On Its Ear?” summarizes a session at PubCon where Bruce Clay outlines the imminent changes in search engine behavior and its effects on SEO as we know it.  I encourage you to watch the interview (included in the article) where the principles of “SEO 2.0” are examined in greater depth.  But I couldn’t help touching on a couple of key "principles" as I understood them.

100 people in a room who search the same key phrase will all receive different SE results? 

This is kinda the next step in “Behavior Based Search” -- a principle that says SEs track your search behavior and render results based on your search history. …

I attended a seminar last week where Dr. Steven Fuller, of the Center for Regional Analysis, spoke about the current status of and the future projections for the DC area real estate market.  He began by stating that the national media’s economic reporting has caused a myriad of problems, and that this is especially true in local markets like Bethesda & Chevy Chase.  

Some Notable Points: 

• The 10 recessions weve experienced since World War II have not come with as much hype as we’re seeing today.
•  Although nationally we are clearly in a recession, the D.C. Metro area just isn’t seeing the same type of economic downturns (i.e., loss of jobs) as other areas of the country.

Where It Started: Any Guesses?!

Dr. Fuller believes that much of the…

A couple of confessions – my last tweet reads “Figuring out what I want to be for Halloween...any ideas?.”  Not a bad one, though any one of my “friends” (although per photo to right) it's exceedingly clear I chose not to accept any good advice. (unfortunately, I'm not the police officer -- and no, that is not a real police officer!) 

Still Twitter ComFounded

I’m still trying to figure out all the angles on Twitter.  I was cajoled into opening account by one of my good friends but,  like most of us, after logging in for the first time, I left it idle for a while (that initial visit was terrifying!)  I’m sure that many of you will associate with that first time, looking blankly at the screen and asking "what the hell am I doing".  I guess it’s sort of…

Guess what? It’s official -- Washington DC is becoming a beacon of “progression“. From its recent designation of "Widgetville USA", to an innovative "Urban Green" movement, you might as well call us the "Austin of the East.”

Urban Green?

Washington Post staff writer, Paul Schwartzman, covered this topic thoroughly in an interesting article on September 6th . Titled "In the Prettified City, Urban Grime Gives Rise to Green", he discussed the pros and "cons" of "concealing" unattractive urban sights -- sometimes using environmentally friendly materials.

Schwartzman highlighted 22 West, a DC luxury condominium in West End (just to the east of Georgetown), where some residents were to face "a weathered metal roof" that was the top of a local gas…