Blog Archives

#MicroHousingLab 4/17-26: Are “Spinsters” leading the DIY co-living movement?

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Commenting on WBUR / OnPointRadio program today on Spinsters: At some point researchers say aging boomers, presumably both sexes, give up on finding a soulmate and look for / co-create a micro-tribe of their own. That may explain why woman…

Posted in Affordable housing, Co-Living, Creative class, Crowdfunding, Crowdsourcing, Downsizing, Group buying, Group housing, Intentional Communities

Bidding War Cluster Bomb is homebuyer’s new Killer App

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Tired of losing bidding wars, innovative DIY homebuyers in Cambridge, Massachusetts, one of the few cities in the world to have it’s own Peace Commission, are using the Social Enterprise Conference at Harvard Business School today to leak information about…

Posted in ASAP: AIDS Shelter Alliance Partners, Bidding wars, Creative class, Crowd financing, Crowdfunding, Idea Bar, Real estate philanthropy, Social funding, Test kitchen

Tech-Hub Housing: Tech invasion or labs for innovation, corrective collaboration?

Posted on February 7, 2014 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

“In Trulia’s hometown of San Francisco, tensions are high over the lack of affordable housing and the growing wealth of technology companies and their workers.” — 5 Truths of Tech-Hub Housing Costs, Trulia blog Techies driving up housing costs? is a question…

Posted in Affordable housing, Bidding wars, Co-Living, Creative class, Dual Agency Detective, Extreme Househunting, Pocket Listings, RECALL: Real Estate Consumer Alliance, Unconference, Whisper listings

10 trends pointing to Group Housing, Intentional Communities too?

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

“It’s definitely a case of going back to the future,” one of the advocates Co-Living told NPR, but there’s a lot more than technology that brought them together. Here’s a top of the head list of 10 MEGA-trends pointing to…

Posted in "We" companies, Co-Living, Creative class, Crowdfunding, Group housing, Homebuyer Clubs, Idea Bar, Intentional Communities, Market trends, Spiritual Home

What would Geico do: REthink Council vs reThink Commissions?

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Can Warren Buffett’s entry into real estate do for consumers what Geico – a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway – did for insurance? So far, there’s no evidence Berkshire Hathaway Homes Services (BHHS) is launching a witty marketing campaign or offering a value…

Posted in "We" companies, Commission Reform, Creative class, DIY Homebuyers, Do-it-yourself, Fee-for-service, reVRM, Savings & Rebates, VRM

Priced-out vs Blissed-out? Where should we house hunt?

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Space starved in Greater Boston? You’re not alone. Today’s blog post on Boston.com recognizes that Boston buyers are not just space-starved, but that the “overcrowded and overpriced” region has left people house-poor, time-starved and stressed out. Is there is a…

Posted in Best of Breed, Creative class, DIY Homebuyers, Extreme Househunting, Idea Bar, Mapping, Price trends, Proactive househunting, reVRM, VRM

Discouraged house hunters: Time to Persevere or go Proactive?

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

The Real Estate Cafe turns eighteen this year, and as the highlights below demonstrate, we’re coming of age. But while perseverance may be the key to successful entrepreneurs, it may be costly for prudent homebuyers who sat out the last…

Posted in Buyer agent, Creative class, Crowdfunding, Fee-for-service, Proactive househunting, Real Estate Bubble, RECALL: Real Estate Consumer Alliance, reVRM, Social funding, Timing the market, VRM

Experimenting with Real-Time Twitter feed on Boston.com real estate ad

Posted on June 16, 2011 by admin — No Comments ↓

The image above is a static screen grab, but you’ll find The Real Estate Cafe’s new, experimental LIVE Twitter feed on our Boston.com ad. If you’d like to know more about how Twitter and other “real-time” tools are “revolutionizing the…

Posted in Creative class, DIY Homebuyers, Extreme Househunting, Idea Bar, Inside The Real Estate Cafe, Real Estate Blogs: Best Practices, Real-time real etate, Savings & Rebates, Tech Trends, Twitter

Learn how to use QR codes to find Sweet Deals

Posted on February 11, 2011 by admin — No Comments ↓

To celebrate it’s 16th birthday, The Real Estate Cafe is looking for 16 tech savvy homebuyers eager to experiment with new money-saving tools and approaches to home buying. Looking for Sweet Deals? Our newly redesigned MLS interface allows you to…

Posted in Creative class, DIY Homebuyers, Extreme Househunting, Fee-for-service, Listing buyers, Million Dollar Markdowns, Price reductions, reVRM, Savings & Rebates, Social Networking, Sweetest Deals, Tech Trends, Tipping Policy, Valentine's Day

Digital Playgroup eager to welcome iPad, newest member of Apple’s iFamily

Posted on January 27, 2010 by admin — No Comments ↓

Seems everyone is choo-ing over Apple’s new iPad, including my grandson. At four months, wonder how soon this “precocious” little guy will begin interacting with the iPad? Haven’t read enough about how the device actually works to know what’s possible,…

Tagged with: iPad
Posted in "We" companies, Client Feedback, Creative class, Digital Playgroup, DIY Homebuyers, Do-it-yourself, Idea Bar, Tech Trends, Valentine's Day