| Several years ago, while writing a
series on alternative living spaces, I stumbled upon a visiting college professor who
lived in his Volkswagen bus. He was absolutely a holdover hippie who predictably trailed
the Grateful Dead for as many weeks the year as possible. |
| What made the professor's story so
interesting was not that he simply spent his nights in the van - many people do – |
|
|
but how wonder fully organized and
intricate were the cabinets and contents. Everything absolutely had its place and the
light cherry counters and drawers were so brilliant that they seemed out of place given
the van's rundown exterior.
I thought about the "Rolling
Prof"' the other day when I peaked inside the mobile office of Mary Ryan, a very
independent South Seattle Realtor who not only is a huge fan of the World Wide Web, but
also displays her online site on the four sides of her customized van.
I'll be driving down the freeway
and people will call my cell phone and say they just saw my van," Ryan said. "It
is definitely something people remember - and that's what you want when they go to buy or
sell a home." Ryan said she saw a mobile office four years ago at the National
Association of Realtors annual convention "and absolutely had to have one. |
Now
I have all the information about the mobile office vehicles on my
Web site because so many people have asked what is available." Ryan, who says she
prefers to host customers in her "real office" near Renton, has made the most of
the customized interior of the mobile unit.
Sliding wood closet fronts hid
her laptop computer, fax, photocopier, printer and cellular phone connections for voice
and data. With her setup, she can park in front of a home for sale, tour the home with her
clients, and then return to the van to view comparable properties on the computer.
"The van makes on-site
negotiating much easier," Ryan said. "If customers don't have time to go back to
the office, or want to submit an offer immediately to a seller, we can just go out to the
street, get in the van and write it up. We can also access more property information about
the home on the Internet or, call and request more information on a specific home be faxed
to us immediately."
Ryan has majored in collecting,
and placing, information on the Internet. She thrives in posting every new niche
that could enable a potential customer to buy or sell a home and she contends zoning codes
should never be out of reach.
She began building computer
databases from property tax records years ago so that every property question did not mean
another trip to the courthouse or title company
In fact, Thurston County should
hire her as its public relations director. Ryan has been suggesting to her fellow agents
to check Thurston County's Web-based real estate property records and maps to see
what could be possible for other counties. |
The
Thurston County GeoData Center http://www.geodata.org
provides real property information on the Web, including ownership,
lot size,
topographic maps, aerial maps and utility district overlays. She labels the site an
"unbelievable help" because she firmly believes that knowing how to get
public records, maps, and other data is critical to properly serving clients –
especially if she accesses the information from the cozy confines of her van.
Users can retrieve a list of
assessor information as well as a list of special data, such as whether the parcel is
located in flood zone or on a steep slope. "It is so useful and functional,"
Ryan said. "People can zoom in to see the lot dimensions, and they can measure
the boundary lines. They can even create their own map of the their property."
Ryan said that having zoning
codes on the Internet is probably not critical to an agent who sells strictly
single-family homes. However, an agent listing even one vacant lot a year using municipal
land use codes on the Internet is an incredible time saver for buyers and buyers' agents.
"If you have information,
why not put it on your Web site," Ryan said. "There's really no limit to what
you could include. "You would not believe all of the stuff I've got on there. I've
even started collecting information for old lady snowboarders and have about 25 of us now
checking in." The snowboard is in the van not far from the fax machine." I heard
they got four inches of new snow last night at Stevens Pass but not much at Snoqualmie.
Home Front appears Thursdays.
Mail questions and comments to Tom Kelly, P.O. Box 4719, Rolling Bay, WA 98061. Tom Kelly
also hosts "Real Estate Today," which can be heard from 8-9 a.m. Sundays on
KIRO-AM. |
