Adolescent Bravery, Then & Now Contrary to popular legend, an adolescent George Washington never confessed to cutting down his father’s cherry tree (it’s a famous myth, posthumously fabricated by one of Washington’s biographers). But, a certain Kaplan offspring did confess to something roughly equivalent this morning: the reason our extra car (and his ride to/from school)...Read More
Proven Vote-Getter From a Midwestern Swing State [Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway (“Berkshire”), or any other entity referenced. Edina Realty is a subsidiary of Berkshire.] I’m not endorsing anyone — at least not yet — for President in 2020. But,...Read More
Retail vs. Wholesale Open Houses One of the best, early omens for a new listing is when agents leaving the Broker Open casually toss off compliments like “nice listing,” “good job!,” or simply “congratulations.” What’s another? When several newer, less experienced agents contact you, asking if they can hold a weekend open house at your...Read More
Facebook Gets Serious About Users’ Privacy. Not. I’m gonna guess that I’m not the first one to receive the Facebook notification, “you have a new friend suggestion,” and think it came from the prospective new friend. And because I’m a nice guy, and didn’t want to offend a genuine, real-life acquaintance, clicked on the button to...Read More
“Retail Winter” vs. “Meteorological Winter” Scarcely one week after local wind chills of minus 50°(!) below — and with overnight temps of minus 17° below forecast this Friday night — you might think it a tad, umm . . . premature to herald the end of Winter in the Twin Cities. But, it’s most certainly...Read More
Technology Roadkill: Stock Brokers, Travel Agents, & Realtors FSBO’s “God is dead.” –Nietzsche. “Nietzsche is dead.” –God. Experts have been predicting the demise of Realtors longer than I can remember. Like stock brokers and travel agents a generation ago, advancing technology — and the democratization of information — were supposed to render Realtors obsolete. Instead,...Read More
