General

There aren’t a whole lot of leaves in a city. There are some, brown ones and red ones and yellow ones that fall from planted trees and onto stained sidewalks. … Read more

There’s a little real estate secret that you should be aware of. Most in real estate will tell you that once a property is closed they will breathe a deep … Read more

In February of 2011 a sturdy brick ranch on quiet street near the lake hit the market. There was very little fanfare. I noticed, because I notice everything, and I’d … Read more

If you spend most of your time watching a boat at sea it is remarkably easy to forget what it’s like to actually be on that boat on that sea. … Read more

There was a lakefront closing last week. A pretty house on 103′ of North Shore frontage closed for $2,725,000. If that were the end of the story, the story would … Read more

I think I’m too young now to know what I’ll remember when I’m old. It would be foolish to suggest that at 34 I somehow know what memories I’ll cherish … Read more

If my memory serves, and it usually does, I have never been in cahoots. Ever. Not in cahoots when I was young and not in cahoots now that I’m older-ish. … Read more

If we remove the lakefront homes that look like lakefront homes but are not really lakefront homes, like those in the South Shore Club, and then we remove those lakefront … Read more

In Miami, or somewhere like Miami, some guy decided to list his house. I think he listed it for $24MM. Then, after some time of not selling, he decided to … Read more

I don’t think I’d like living next to train tracks. I know in the suburbs that’s a big thing- easy access to trains. And if we’re fly fishing somewhere in … Read more

It’s cold this morning. I had forgotten how it felt to pull up my cold office chair and type on this cold keyboard with my cold fingers. I’m not a … Read more

I am mostly German, some Norwegian, and some more Irish. Lake Geneva doesn’t care that I’m Norwegian, as they have no Norwegian Fest. They might have some sort of Irish … Read more

To speak about death all the time is to be morbid more than necessary. If you go through life saying “death this” and “death that”, this isn’t good. But if … Read more

When you park your car in Fontana to the north of the beach but not as far north as Gordy’s or Chuck’s, you can walk to the shore path but … Read more

Ah, October. I’m not intentionally ignoring the last few days of September, but I am looking forward to October. There’s a peace that comes with realizing I’ve officially and completely … Read more

Pop Quiz: If Jim has three slips on his pier, and one slip has a big fiberglass boat, and another slip has a smaller fiberglass boat, what does Jim need … Read more

Riding a bike is not difficult. It’s easy, really. You sit on the seat, you pedal, it’s really not a big deal. I’m not so sure what every 5 year … Read more

It should be noted, if unnecessarily, that No Country For Old Men is not the best movie to watch when you’re with your wife on a midweek getaway to a … Read more

I have a nasty tendency to hate volume that isn’t created in some part by me. It’s only natural, really. So when I scan the market on a week like … Read more

Year To Date figures are sort of fun, particularly in March. Or April. In those early months, the figures can either bring a huge dose of excitement for what might … Read more

When the air gets cold it’s only natural to assume that the water has gotten cold right along with it. The mornings are chilled, the evenings too, and when the … Read more

It shouldn’t surprise us when a lakefront home on Geneva is foreclosed on. It shouldn’t be a surprise when that home cycles through the bank and then returns to the … Read more

Sellers, like job seekers, can become so listless that they drop out of the market all together. If a person is unemployed and they decide, after a lengthy and tiresome … Read more

When you buy a sailboat, it’s only natural that the wind refuses to blow. There isn’t really any reason for it to. You have your sail, you have your boat, … Read more

In the world of lakes, there are large ones and there are small ones. Some are so large they are considered great, others ponds so small they don’t ever achieve … Read more

There isn’t any one secret formula that will produce a product on Geneva Lake that buyers will gravitate towards. I mean, there is, but the base formula for high end … Read more

I don’t like people who work too much. It’s not that they’re necessarily doing it on purpose, but some do not need to be urged to work harder. Some do … Read more

Matt Damon thinks that somehow he’s some sort of big deal because he bought a zoo. You don’t see me spouting off and making movies about how I bought a … Read more

I imagine it to be difficult to be an artist. Or at least to be a fledgling artist. To be one is to draw beautifully, to be convinced of your … Read more

I have no knowledge of horse racing. Or of horses in general. I know they are pleasing to look at from a distance. When they are inside white fences on … Read more

No seller in the history of the world has ever given anything away. The act of giving something away defines the person who gave the gift as the giver, and … Read more

I don’t remember what day my summer started, but I’m pretty sure that it started before yours did. I can’t say what day that was this year, but it was … Read more

When real estate is bad and sales are few, comparing real estate activity to a prior quarter, or a prior year is fun. Case Schiller loves doing this. When sales … Read more

There were three Lake Geneva vacation home sales this week, so that’s something. The lake access market is humming along, doing quite nicely, but seemingly content to just be okay. … Read more

I am extremely skilled in the fine art of destroying jeans. In fact, the ability to ruin a pair of expensive jeans might be my superpower, in case they decide … Read more

Through the words that I write here and the words that I speak there, I have positioned myself as a value guy. This is a blessing to clients who discover … Read more

I moderately enjoy traveling. The effort is not so fun- the TSA, the early flights, or the late ones too, and the feeling that something has been forgotten that will … Read more

The twenty-first day of May was a long time ago. I wasn’t as tired then as I am now, which isn’t to suggest that I’m somehow extra tired now but … Read more

In character, swimming pools, and footings, depth is important. Shallow footings lend an advantage to structural problems, shallow pools keep neurosurgeons in business, and with shallow character we’d all steal … Read more

By Sunday, the mood has changed. It doesn’t have to change, this mood, but it does. We have many more hours to spend at the lake, time when we don’t … Read more

To notice a nuanced trend is to notice what most people do not care to see. Nuanced, subtle trends are difficult to see, to articulate, to explain. But front line … Read more

While standing in the middle of the blast furnace that is our hot and dry summer of 2012, the view towards winter doesn’t look so bad. Snow looks sort of … Read more

I have a tendency to steer clients towards homes that I like. That word, “steer”, is a very evil real estate term. I read something about it once in some … Read more

I wasn’t looking for any sort of advice on how to default on a mortgage, I was just looking for some appropriate strength contact lenses. And I’m sure the woman … Read more

If only we were writers of lyrics, the sort that flood through our radios and our iPhones, then things would be easier. If I were to write the following sentence, … Read more

When this year was young, the South Shore Club was gilded both in copper and slate and stone, but also shrouded in a fairly heavy cloak of uncertainty. In January, … Read more

The key to most good, hard work is to keep your head down while doing it. If we’re mowing lawns, we’re keeping our head down. Distractions will only serve to … Read more

As the fitting sequel to yesterday, today we must discuss those other lakefront homes, and the other lake access ones too. Those other homes are the ones not receiving the … Read more

When does a market shift? Does it shift when the news tells us so? Does it shift when the buyers outnumber the sellers? Does it shift when market times shrink … Read more

Whenever 154′ of level Geneva lakefront hits the open market, there is reason to hurry. Brokers call, I email, others whisper to their friends or closest clients. This is a … Read more

To be the King, you generally must have already won something. In the times before ours, Kings were only Kings for as long as they could defend their kingdom. If … Read more

I don’t know about you, but I’m thoroughly and completely exhausted. I feel better today than I did yesterday, and I felt better yesterday than I did on Saturday, and … Read more

This isn’t the fourth of July. It’s not a date, it’s a statement. It’s independence, a state of being made possible only through the ultimate sacrifice of others. It’s an … Read more

I am moving. The word moving is interesting. It is a word and movement and a motion at once. To say I am moving is to present motion, and though … Read more

The lakefront market in late June of 2012 feels very much like it did in late June of 2011. We have sales pending today, plenty of them, but we also … Read more

The general idea behind the sale of a foreclosed on, or REO, property, is that once the borrower defaults and the bank or other investor becomes the owner of record, … Read more

If Geneva Lake were a great big donut, we could be excused for clinging to its edges. If there were glazed waves that pushed the outer limits of the circle, … Read more

I can feel it now just as I felt it last night, late, and as I felt it this morning, early. I feel it then as I feel it now … Read more

You know what smart people are doing right now? They aren’t buying real estate. They aren’t looking around with some broad aim, approaching real estate all willy nilly like. They … Read more

Lakefront home sales are generally one of two things. They are either quick and seemingly easy, or they are slow and drawn out- miserable affairs that can span months and … Read more

If we’re buyers today, the best thing we can hope for is seller competition. If one seller wants $200k and another wants $200k, does this mean the market is $200k? … Read more

Early morning appointments dictate an improvised post today. Instead of my boring writing, consider Part Two to a video that I featured here a couple of years ago. It’s an … Read more

When a person asks me how the market is doing, what they are really asking for is validation of their own burgeoning opinion that the market is getting better. These … Read more

I am supremely skilled in spending other people’s money. I get enjoyment out of this exercise, and as the skill plays well into my day job of actually getting other … Read more

I doubt that anyone will, at any time in my life, consider me to be a swarthy sort. My skin will wrinkle prematurely, a condition owed to a life spent … Read more

When a market is sluggish, even a short burst of activity doesn’t do much to change the perception that the market remains slow. When a particular segment struggles for years … Read more

Boats are, invariably, like children. The relationship between parent and child, owner and boat, they are quite similar. There are moments of pure happiness, of mutual respect and possible adoration. … Read more

I ate dinner at the Abbey Springs Yacht Club last weekend. I had a salad, a selection dictated by my morbid obesity, a salad with chicken and corn and some … Read more

My mom and dad were both school teachers. Lifers. They taught from a young age to a fairly old age, and it was what they did best. My father taught … Read more

To prove a point to you, I was going to stand on the deck of this house and throw a ball, or a rock, or something small and round-ish towards … Read more

A car parked along the side of a road is a universal signal for one of two things. It is either broken down and unable to move, or it is … Read more

Well then, that was quite the weekend. While the general recipe was equal doses of wind and heat, mixed in with a giant scoop of humanity and a heavy handed … Read more

In musical chairs, the person left standing when the music stops is the person who loses the game. Fortunately, there is recovery after losing this game, especially if you can … Read more

There are no longer days between us and summer. These are not days, they are hours. In these hours, many of us will have things to do. There are towels … Read more

The incentives for a Realtor to sell your home are many. There’s the smile on your face when they sell your home. It’s so sincere. And then there’s the moment … Read more

Your back yard. It’s pretty neat. There’s some lawn, mowed nicely into disciplined stripes. There’s that left corner of the lawn, the one nearest the Johnson’s garden shed. The one … Read more

I waited in the Starbucks line last week while the fella in front of me had the barista pour buckets of steaming hot coffee into a great big thermos. I … Read more

Last spring was like this one. A bit cold. A touch rainy. Immensely clingy. But today, with a 70 something forecast and just two weeks until the biggest day of … Read more

I think the sheer volume of REO sales that banks currently engage in must somehow offset the frustration of individual properties not selling. If you’re Bank of America and you’re … Read more

I’ve been guilty of many things. The guilt hasn’t been leveled with a smack of a gavel and shouts of protest from family and friends, but still. I am guilty … Read more

In 1900, a single hole of golf was mowed into existence at the present day George Williams College. A few years later, James Naismith added six more. Yes, that peach-basket-loving-Naismith. … Read more

Waves are one of two things. They are either eternal, forever washing up and receding and washing up again, or they are the most temporary of movements. Either they last … Read more

Phew! I’m back. We had some internet troubles that my good hosting team has fixed, so we’re back live. I imagined scores of people weeping over the loss of this … Read more

When I was 15, I cast a perch Rapala with my black Zebco bullet over some cribs and hooked a largemouth bass. When I walked with that mighty fish onto … Read more

Whenever I write about the troubles of a particular segment of our vacation home market, I find myself in some degree of trouble. I get emails sometimes, comments other times, … Read more

I have worked with buyers who haven’t bought anything for years. And years. And sometimes, those buyers buy something. That’s nice when they do. Other times, they buy nothing, which … Read more

When Apple decided that an iPad should cost $499, with variations costing more and older models, rendered obsolete upon the announcement of a new one, should be less, many people … Read more

I don’t know why I bother with these foreclosure updates. Perhaps it’s because I’ve had to find a way to write over a thousand posts during the last four years, … Read more

Given the vast array of properties available in the Lake Geneva real estate market, it should come as no surprise that there are, at most times, dead segments. Most of … Read more

I suppose it’s time I accepted each Lake Geneva area sale and moved on. There’s no point arguing about it. If a buyer wants to buy something that I don’t … Read more

To sell real estate is to engage in a competition. There are battles within a great war, and unfortunately, casualties are taken and points are tallied. This is not a … Read more

I have some friends who, when I speak something irritating to them, or say something negative about them, respond by saying “I don’t receive that”. This is an interesting way … Read more

Rivers are sort of gross. Trout streams are cool. Western rivers that flow off of mountains and through low grassy valleys are too. But most rivers just flow with the … Read more

It shouldn’t surprise you that I dream about real estate. Often. Some dreams are wonderful, others are more accurately described as nightmares, but they are all dreams. I have always … Read more

Early appointments dictate a skipped post today. But here’s an old video to remind those unmotivated workaholics exactly what they’re 44 days away from missing out on. A Lake Geneva … Read more

It is difficult to explain, this obsession over a mushroom. Yesterday, after an indulgent lunch with family, I escaped to meet a friend. We parked one car at an undisclosed … Read more

It seems to me that the Friday that arrives 48 days from this Good Friday isn’t as important to others as it is to me. There’s no doubt that someone, … Read more

It would be easy for me to start thinking that the real estate market has been healed. This is a very, very common thought these days. I hear it from … Read more

If Mark Twain deemed golf to be a good walk spoiled, I can only imagine what he’d think about fly fishing. There are easy ways to fish. Really all you … Read more

During any one of the past four years, you would be more likely to find me in Abbey Springs than in Geneva National. On any given day, with any given … Read more