The following is a guest-post by my husband and in-house marketing nerd, Clayton Snodgrass.

Remember those insane Slim Jim commercials that featured pro-wrestler “Macho-Man” Randy Savage?  Whether or not Slim Jims are your favorite brand of encased meat, you have to admit that those spots were memorable.  After watching just one commercial, you knew exactly where Slim Jims stood in the snack sausage spectrum – they were extreme and crazy!  Slim Jim’s choice of product spokesperson was no accident.  By choosing someone who embodied their brand’s image, they helped audiences associate their product with “extreme snacking” (which, apparently, there is a market for).

How does the concept of product spokesperson relate to real estate and the choice of a realtor?  For one, most every “For Sale” flyer I have ever seen contains the contact info and a photo of the home’s listing agent. The listing agent may be the first person an interested buyer may speak with about your home.  What kind of image does your realtor project?  Will your target market identify with your agent? Does your realtor’s image mesh well with your home’s image? Does your agent’s persona accurately represent your home and your neighborhood? When choosing an agent, I think it’s an important thing to keep in mind.

I will be holding this house open on Sunday from 1-4. It is located on a great street in the Brookside area within walking distance to schools, shops, grocery, and the Trolley Track Trail (exercise trail winding through scenic Brookside). It has authentic Craftsman style architecture which is evident in the low-pitched roof lines, overhanging eaves, the stucco, the decorative timbers at the top just below the eaves, and the porch with the strong vertical (lime)stone support columns. I toured this home on Tuesday, and my favorite feature is a toss-up between the porch probably because I am longing for porch weather, and the foyer. It has a great welcoming feeling as you step inside and into this stylish home.

Readers, let’s hear it in the comments: What do you think of the paint on the living room and dining room ceilings? It is an unusual choice, and I like that they took a chance and did something different. I think it looks cool and bold. I am not sure what the current trend is with ceiling paint, but I know designers usually go with a lighter shade than the walls to give it an illusion of height and openness. What are your thoughts?

Front of Craftsman Home

Living Room

Dining Room

The whitewashed futuristic bathroom featured on Design Milk. Pitchfork has some background and a video. Below is a photo by Joseph Mills from the architecture firm, Fitzsimmons Architects, who handled the project. I love this place – what beautiful use of light and materials. It’s far-out, but in a tasteful and modern way. Plus, I love that Wayne is investing the love, time and money into a blighted area of urban Oklahoma City. We should all take a cue from him instead of wasting precious resources pushing the boundaries of our cities ever farther.

Take Mission Cliffs for example. Mission Cliffs is a brand new housing neighborhood just west of Rainbow off of 39th Street. It has beautiful homes, reasonable prices, and some of the only new home construction close to the metro area. My clients just moved into a gorgeous new home there on the cliff with an amazing western view. It has Craftsman style architecture, three bedrooms, two baths, a large yard, and an attached garage. This home would go for much more if were across the state line into Johnson County. It’s great that we have this affordable option, but it just seems like such a secret and I hope that people keep buying there and that property values appreciate at a normal level over time. I think this new development will really be a benefit to residents of the Rosedale area if it happens.

It was pretty good; not the best I’ve ever had (that would be McLain’s), but good enough that I will definitely stop in again. Before heading back to work, I took a picture of my favorite sign. I LOVE this retro sign. I think it should get some sort of historic designation – it is that cool.

p.s. This was my busiest open house ever. Probably due to the tax credit, the buyers are out in droves and they all said they wish there were more homes for sale. Unfortunately, inventory is down, but I think we will see a spike in listings pretty soon.

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