Monday, June 23, 2008

Real Estate showings by bike

I didn't expect to see this -- a Chicago area Realtor took some clients on a bike ride for property showings.
I’ve written quite a bit about ditching my car for my bicycle in my day to day duties as a Realtor. This weekend I really had the chance to flex my “Green street cred”. My clients and I set out for showings in East Lakeview on our bicycles rather than driving.

When looking at properties that are relatively close together, riding makes a lot of sense.
It's also a good way to demonstrate how bikeable a neighborhood is. Read more at Chicago Real Estate Local.
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5 comments:

  1. Eric RojasJune 23, 2008 at 7:15 PM

    Thanks for the shout. Because I may need to be in many different places in one day... doing a number of tasks... cycling can be hard for a Realtor. However, I found that I can ride to do showings at my listings (I ask my clients if this is acceptable) and ride with my buyer clients who are into it.

    Additionally, if I want to work in my office on a slow appointment day (rather than home because my kid is going nuts) the commute is easy.

    I could probably reduce my driving by 30% to 50%.

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  2. SiouxGeonzJune 24, 2008 at 7:26 AM

    I did a whole lot of house shopping via bike, even before the "bikability" was important on my radar.
    I think it's awesome to be setting an example that yes! bicycles work!

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  3. Yokota FritzJune 24, 2008 at 9:50 AM

    The last two places I've lived (including my current residence) I actually drove to determine bikability. How lame is that?

    @Eric, thanks for dropping by. Feel free to drop me a note if you have interesting bike stuff you want to call my attention to.

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  4. PatrickSeptember 10, 2008 at 1:06 PM

    This is great to read about. I have been doing some showings here in Chicago at my listings via bike since last year and I definitely have been thought of as crazy by some in our car-centric industry. I also have taken a client out on the back of a tandem for an open house Sunday tour and had some clients out last year on the tandem while I rode solo. Great fun and they bought a house....but we drove to that one :(
    I also was showing my places via scooter for the past 5 years and I think that confused fellow agents more than the bicycle...but not anymore.

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  5. Yokota FritzSeptember 10, 2008 at 1:15 PM

    Thanks for dropping by, Patrick. I posted some more news about bicycling real estate agents just yesterday.

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