DotLoop Is Coming To New Orleans!

DotLoop is excited to announce that that we'll be getting our Creole on in New Orleans for the Keller Williams Family Reunion February 20th-24th! As an approved vendor, we will be showcasing our latest site build, including exciting new features created to make real estate agents' lives even easier!

Let us know if you'll be a part of the festivities and be sure to stop by our booth!

dotloop.com

Cupcakes and Corner Benches

I’m not sure why, but cupcake shops are starting to become all the rage now. Even Cincinnati is getting in on the mix.

Not that I’m complaining, mind you. It’s a pretty delicious trend. My first foray into this frosted fad found me at Butter Lane in the Chelsea neighborhood of NYC this past summer chomping down on what had to be the most delicious cupcake I’d ever eaten.

My friends and I had just finished a nice dinner and had some time to kill before meeting up with another group. We walked down the street and our stomachs guided us to the cupcake shop.

But here’s what’s kind of odd: after getting our first cupcake (yeah, we had to go back for seconds), we couldn’t find a place to enjoy it. There was one small bench outside of the shop that could seat two people comfortably and three elbows-in.

So, my friend and I stood while we let our girlfriends sit on the bench (yes, your humble blogger is a gentleman). We had a good time, despite half of us standing, and it wasn’t for lack of trying that Ryan and I ended up with crumbs running down our shirt. We looked down the block and saw literally no other bench within view. Across the street, there was a small playground, but it was fenced off because it belonged to the apartment complex it was near.

To put it simply: there was no public space within two blocks of where we were.

Compared to Boston, where there were benches on nearly every street and parks galore, New York City appeared to be nothing more than one giant conveyor belt, designed to move people along rather than allow them to congregate.

Public Space = Interaction

Public space has always been a very important function of any city or town, its ultimate goal encourages neighbors to get to know each other as people and not just an "amalgamation of strangers residing in proximity to each other".

Making market streets car-free is one way to foster interaction, but cobblestone walkways alone won't ensure interaction. Benches, statues, and other places to sit need to be a part of the equation, too.

After all, as Aristole once said, "Frequent meetings, encounters and exchanges of ideas among citizens – these qualities of the public realm are a fundamental requirement for citizens' well-being."

Public spaces not only allow for better knowledge of who your neighbors actually are, it helps make you a better citizen in your own neighborhood.

Now that's having your (cup)cake and eating it, too.

dotloop.com

Traffic and Trains

This evening, after the State of the Union Address, President Obama will outline his high-speed rail plan for America.

For those not too familiar, by definition, high-speed rail allows for trains to travel up to 125mph. Currently, most commuter trains in America are not quite up to that speed (see chart below, courtesy of progressivefix.com).

America's Clogged Arteries

As mentioned in yesterday's post, we're getting a bit too congested here in America. And, I don't mean stuffy noses. Gridlock on our nation's highways and roadways continues to worsen, even after expanding lanes and bailing out the Federal Highway Fund in 2008. The gas tax of 18.4 cents a gallon hasn't been raised since 1993.

There are some who dismiss the need for more rail service in America, even as gas prices continue to rise. To be sure, economically, we are in a very rough patch, but we were in similar situations in the early 1980s when Europe first began building its first high-speed rail lines. But the benefits of rail transportation far outweigh the continued expansion of highway lanes:

• Cost - Rail is very expensive--up front. The economic benefits, however, improve dramatically over the course of the decades when compared with highways. And not just with the rail lines themselves. Traffic costs the US billions a year in lost productivity.
  
• Convenience - A lot of that lost productivity could be recouped with rail. With rail, you can work on that presentation while commuting to work. You can have a relaxed, safe ride to work, as opposed to the stressful gridlock most people go through each morning.
  
• Conservation - A lack of cheap oil is just one component. Lost businesses due to highway expansion, lost tax revenue due to destroyed buildings, contaminated water due to run-off from asphalt parking lots. Rail makes sense not only economically, but ecologically, too.
  

Rail and Real Estate

Okay, you're no doubt saying. I get it: rail can be beneficial. But just what does this have to do with housing?

The answer: nearly everything. If you think of where people call a home, you automatically have to think about where people live their lives. Where they go to work, go to shop, where their children go to school.

Why are so many of our cities near waterways? Because most cities were founded hundreds, if not thousands of years ago and trade, defense, and transportation all occurred near the waterways. Transportation vastly affects how cities are planned and built.

Europe began ratcheting up its initial (non high-speed) rail system in the 1970s, the same decade that America began expanding its highway system. Housing in both countries now differs vastly. Transportation affects housing, which ultimately affects lifestyle.

Public demand for car-free transportation is growing. How cities are planned are affected by whether the city chooses rail or highway. As a real estate agent, you probably understand that people want convenience in their housing. This trend will only continue to grow.

On The Right Track?



Whatever your politics, sound transportation policy can benefit everyone, allowing for those who want a less stressful life to actually live it. The US population will reach approximately 390 million people within the next forty years. Adding 90 million more cars to our highways probably won't help the situation. A more sensible alternative is needed, before we're all railroaded.

dotloop.com

Stuck In The Middle with You

It snowed this morning in Cincinnati. Unfortunately, despite only getting an average annual snowfall of less than two feet, in our city, if just one flake is on the road, all the drivers turn into flakes.

Traffic completely stalls, so much so that you'd think every Cincinnatian was from a tropical locale and came to a stop to watch this mysterious white stuff flowing from the clouds.

Needless to say, I was a few minutes late to work. Begrudgingly, I will attempt to go home the same way I came. Here's hoping for dry roads.

Let's put it bluntly: traffic stinks. It's been around forever, too, so it earns its place alongside all of those other things humans have not been able to advance their way out of: dust, weeds, Hawaiian shirts.

I Can't Drive 55 (Or Even 2)

In fact, when aggregated, Americans waste four billion hours stuck in traffic. As a real estate agent, I'm sure most of you can attest to the illogical naming of the phrase 'rush hour', after staying still in one place for longer than sixty minutes.

The most frustrating thing about traffic,of course, is that you are stuck. You can't use that time for much else. A phone call, maybe. Some eating, if you've planned ahead, maybe. And yes, smartphones are great, but how much actual focused work can you do?

So, here's the challenge: what's your most cringe-worthy traffic story? Ever lost a deal due to traffic? How do you avoid traffic?

Time...Is On My Side (Yes It Is!)

Oh, and one more thing...check out DotLoop and see how much time you could save by getting your contracts signed online, anytime. Sure, it's a shameless plug, but anything is better than more brake lights, right?

dotloop.com

Local Yokels

Last week, I touched upon localism when discussing preservation. As any REALTOR knows, and as their tagline asserts, every market is different. Indeed, perhaps more than anyone, real estate agents know first hand why keeping it local is so important. And, as trends continue, the old adage of think global, shop local is becoming more and more prevalent.

Local Lettuce

Almost every Sunday from May to October, I hit up the local farmers markets here in Cincinnati. Findlay Market, one of the nation's oldest continuously operated farmers market is a mecca for fresh poultry and home-grown tomatoes. Local eating has taken off, thanks to a renewed interest in healthy foods. In fact, 'locavores' have made such an impact, even national retailer giants like Wal-Mart are using local produce in some of its stores.

A rising interest in locally grown food not only cuts down on food transportation, but helps keep your hard-earned cash in your local economy, helping both your local farmer and your school district, as the tax base grows. It's a win-win for both you and the community, plus you know exactly where your food is coming from.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

The American love affair with the car is coming to an end. Sure, gas prices are going up (they're up nationally about 87 cents over the same time last year), but even at "low" price of $2.72 a gallon, gas is just one component of the entire cost of operating a vehicle. By the time you add maintenance and insurance costs, the average mile costs you 55 cents to travel (find out how much it costs you to drive here). Couple this with the "free"way system (which was bailed out to the tune of $8 billion in 15 months ago) that costs millions per mile, and the costs really add up.

Such trends not only affect the way people travel, but ultimately, how and where they live.

Walk This Way

With the loss of romance for the car, more and more people are looking for walkable communities. In fact, a recent study has shown that walkability has a high affect on home values. The site WalkScore.com tells prospective home buyers just how often they'll need to turn the key to get a gallon of milk. The higher the Walk Score, the better. Homes that had a higher Walk Score in Charlotte, NC, for example, sold for almost $30,000 more than their counterparts that requires more octane.

Lucky And Local

So, just what does this mean for the agent? As a local expert, by being able to tell your clients about the local restaurant that uses locally grown produce and is only two blocks away from a sale may be the selling point they need to hear. Your knowledge of the little treasures that make a neighborhood desirable--aside from the usual good school district or low crime--can help you become a reliable asset for your clients.

dotloop.com

What We Have Here Is...A Failure To Let It Sink In?

Yesterday, your illustrious (and humble, apparently) DotLoop blog writer pontificated on how technology has made our environments (all types) better places overall.

I felt good about how technology has improved our everyday lives--making everything from paying bills to communicating with your friend halfway across the world easier and more convenient. Indeed, DotLoop was founded on the principles of helping people get more done so that they have more time for themselves.

Kids Will Be...Kids?

But then today, I found this article in my newspaper, and I got to thinking about the darker side of technology. Not the sci-fi Skynet world of post-apocalyptic man vs. machine warfare, but the real, somewhat crippling effects of the here and now brought on by too much tech.

Now, I myself am not a parent, and I'll leave it to the comments discussion to wrangle out an answer to whether or not kids are too dependent on their tweets, but it does make me question whether this idea of constant connection has done some (or even more?) harm than good. Parenting is (seemingly) hard enough in any age, but it seems there's a whole new onslaught of concerns no one ever imagined even a decade ago.

Empathize or Desensitized?

I think I'll keep this post a bit short, if only to let the discussion be the focus. But the question has to be asked: is too much technology a bad thing? And not just for teens, but for all of us?

If the recent earthquake in Haiti has taught us anything, it shows how powerful constant connection is and how, like any tool, the Internet can be used for good. Donation buttons are available on almost every site (but be careful who you donate to), which obviously is a good thing. Technology has allowed us to open our hearts in a way never before possible.

But a part of me worries about how our collective gnat-like attention span will aid Haiti in the long run. By March, will people care, or will they be so saturated with non-stop news that yet another news story about Haiti will illicit nothing more than a "meh" reaction?

Not too long ago, the big story was about a tsunami that struck Asia the day after Christmas. And when's the last time you donated to that cause? 2005? In the Age of the Internet, 2005 was a lifetime ago. Is our constant attention deficit causing us to forget tragedy too soon?

I've made it a point not to look at pictures of the Haitian earthquake for the same reason I've never watched Schindler's List. A part of it is because I don't have a high threshold for gore. But mostly, it's because I never want to get so desensitized at seeing such devastation that my reaction is "meh".

Maybe the only way we can truly stay connected is by disconnecting ourselves and let it seep in.

dotloop.com

Environ Mental?

Here at DotLoop, we talk a lot about the environment. We pride ourselves on being a company that values not only sound business policy, but sound responsibility, too. Ridding the real estate industry of millions of wasted sheets of paper not only makes sense, it helps our planet, too.

But environment can mean more than just green trees and blue manatees. Indeed, the word "environment" comes from the French word environs meaning "compass or circuit", or "around". So, environment means what's around you. It really wasn't until 1956 that it was used in a strictly ecological sense.

The Chain Gang

So, think about environment in broader sense: think of your physical environment, your social environment, even your work environment and think about how they are all interrelated.

• Physical Environment
  
  When people think of their environment, the most common thing that comes to mind is where they are physically. Someone who has a home in the city has a much different environment than someone who has a home in the country (Town Mouse, Country Mouse, anyone?). Depending on what you enjoy more (sidewalk cafes vs. fishing on Tuesdays), you can choose the concrete jungle or the prairie dog jungle.
  

• Social Environment
  
  So, you know where you want to live. Now, how does that affect who you interact with? Well, depending on what kind of "mouse" you are, you'll most likely interact with very different people. It’s as doubtful that city slicker's friends would know the best way to fix a tractor as a country native’s friends would know the best spot to grab an organic cappuccino.
  

• Work Environment
  
  So, you have your country house and you’re best friend is Will, the owner of the local John Deere tractor shop down the road. But your dream job is to design custom manhole covers and crosswalk signs? Where you work also affects who you have in your social circle, so you may want to avoid a job at a steak house if you only want to associate with vegetarians. And, if you do want to work in the city, a country home may not be feasible, unless you enjoy two hour commutes.

Un-LinkedIn

So, obviously, physical, social, and work environments are all inter-related. Who you interact with, where you live, and where you work with are all linked together in a pretty stringent relationship.

But throw in a new technology, and everything gets twisted up. The advent of the Internet has drastically changed our everyday lives and has completely shaken up how we view where we live, how we work, and who we share our lives with. The Internet has broken the chains that bounded us to our environments.

• Physical Environment
  
  The Internet has broken so many barriers that some could argue that physical space itself has become obsolete. E-mail has forced the US Postal Service to scale back its offices and e-commerce has helped make Black Friday less important than Cyber Monday. So, when you can talk to someone across the world in real time without paying long distance or even send them a PDF in a second, what exactly does long distance mean anymore?
  

• Social Environment
  
  And what about talking with someone across the world? With the Internet, it's now possible for someone living in the middle of nowhere to have a relationship with anyone in the world. Online dating has created millions of marriages and the dissolving of distance has afforded everything from more peaceful dialogue and to the rise of microcapital. The Internet has truly fostered a global community.
  

• Work Environment
  
  Any newspaper editor can attest to the changes brought on by the Internet. Not only has traditional media been given a run for its money, the traditional workspace has drastically changed now. The rise of social media has created jobs out of Tweeting and, with the advent of the Great Recession, more and more cubicles are being torn down, allowing employees to work from home in their pajamas.

One Big Happy - Putting It All Together

Shameless plug time now: DotLoop understands not only the inter-connectivity of our lives, but how the Internet has made our ability to live, communicate, and work so much more seamless and easy. Our ultimate goal is to make the lives of agents and clients alike easier and to help navigate in this modern world. We've decided that the future is in online collaboration, not chicken-scratched, over-faxed forms initialed on the trunk of a car.

The rise of the Internet has not only revolutionized the way we live, work, and communicate, but has made us take a closer look at our environment--and made us question not only its limitations, but its very definition.

So, next time you think about what's around you--take a closer look. There may be a lot more than meets the eye.

dotloop.com

No Preservatives Added

Here at DotLoop, we take seriously our charge to change the real estate industry in a positive direction (while having fun too, of course). In fact, one of our pioneering pillars is to lessen the amount of paper needed for a transaction. Sure, this makes sense environmentally, but it also makes sense financially--after all, the less paper used, the lower the costs.

And that's the beauty of real progress--not only can you enhance your pocketbook, but in many ways, you can enhance your environment, too.

Progress in Preservation

In fact, communities across the country (and world) are understanding that progress does not always mean brand new, but oftentimes means rehabilitating what's already there. This is especially true when it comes to the preservation and rehabilitation of historic buildings.

Just this past weekend in fact, DotLoop's hometown newspaper--the Cincinnati Enquirer--ran a three-page story about the efforts local businesses and community members have taken to preserve Over-The-Rhine, the nation's largest collection of Italianate architecture. The neighborhood has been in a spiraling decline over the last few decades for many reasons (suburban sprawl, new highway construction, lack of parking) but has seen a revitalization within the past five years spear-headed by the OTR Foundation and 3CDC.

The architecture found in such historic areas is unrivaled. While Dubai's latest skyscraper is impressive in its technological prowess and its shear size, seeing historic buildings with their detailed gargoyles carved by hand and intricate stained glass windows soldered one pane at a time gives communities a real sense of history. They don't make 'em like that anymore...

Blended to Perfection

Or do they?

If the city of Bruges in Belgium is any indication, they do. The city's market square looks as it did when it was around in the 1300s. Indeed, even the newer buildings look like they were built when lamb chops were eaten in between bouts with dragons. Bruges knew its history and heritage were worth preserving, blending the new with the old flawlessly. Bruges has benefitted economically by being one of the most visited places in Europe.

But you don't have to go halfway around the world to see the benefits in preserving historic buildings. From Charleston, South Carolina to New Orleans to Chicago, cities have all learned that preservation--and not razing--not only keeps a community's character in place, it also helps the local economy (a discussion I'll dive into in a future post). In fact, many preserved neighborhoods are thriving today because they attract the young urbanites who want to live in such places. The presence of young urbanites translates into more tax revenue for a city, and more discretionary spending for the individual, helping both the tax base and local businesses flourish.

Preserve or Parish

Photo (c) Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

We oftentimes confuse progress with new. Everyone loves their new flat-screen TVs, but what of their old tubes? Are they worth preserving? What happens when their "new" TV becomes obsolete with the latest rendition?

We've seen the lasting effects of preservation and the economic benefits of keeping historic buildings around. Still, historic buildings around the country, like the St. John's School in Garden City, NY (shown above) are still endangered. Historic buildings offer more than just a pretty facade, though. Many were built before the single-use zoning laws that took off after WWII and offer walkable, multi-functional communities that people gravitate to.

Besides, do we really need more strip malls?

dotloop.com

What Would Thoreau Build?

Keen readers may be noticing a running theme throughout the last few posts. Smaller houses, less consumption of resources, heck, even enjoying your home as its value plummets.

Is your humble DotLoop blogger taking crazy pills? After all, we're in America, the land of the 15 pound burger, of the Big Gulp, of McMansions. And of course, the all-American transportation device: the SUV. Bigger is better. Bloated is beautiful. From sea to shining sea.

And even though everyone is hitching a ride on the Green Revolution bandwagon, if we want to go green, well, there's an app for that. It's okay to have a four-car garage as long as that garage is filled with hybrid Explorers, right?

Indeed, in America, it seems the answer to our environmental issues is the same answer to most problems: buy something.

Thoroughly Thoreau

But what if we took a different approach? What if we boiled it all down to what we really needed, not what the latest ads on TV compel us to think we need? What if we valued our time more than our stuff? How would that change us?

What if we took a nod from that crazy nut from 19th Century Massachusetts, Henry David Thoreau? Thoreau famously abdicated himself from society for two years, two months, and two days and spent his time on Walden Pond. He simplified his life to the bare bones, and only had to work six weeks a year to sustain his food and energy resources. The rest of the time he spent on any activity he wished.

The $826 Home

In comparison with the average 2500 sq foot home of today, Thoreau built himself a cabin that was a mere 10' by 15'. Below is a list of materials Thoreau used, from Walden:

Board's: $8.03 1/2, mostly shanty boards

Refuse shingles for roof and sides: $4.00

Laths: $1.25

Two second-hand windows with glass: $2.43

One thousand old brick: $4.00

Two casts of lime: $2.40. That was high.

Hair: $0.31. More than I needed

Mantle-tree iron: $0.15

Nails: $3.90

Hinges and screws: $0.14

Latch: $0.10

Chalk: $0.01

Transportation: $1.40. I carried a good part on my back.

In all: $28.12 1/2

In 2008 dollars, that would equal $826.26. When's the last time you built a house (on a wooded lot, to boot!) for under $1000.00?

The Cost of a Thing

Think about all of the stuff you bought within the last decade that you only used a few times. Think about all the wasted items that did nothing more than collect dust, or take up more space. Maybe you even expanded your home's size just so you could store the latest trinkets from Bed, Bath and Beyond. Maybe you even bought an extra storage space within the last decade. Ironic, of course, considering the rise of the storage industry's expansion from 289 million square feet in 1984 to nearly 2.2 billion square feet by the end of 2007 coincided with the rise of McMansions.

Maybe in light of this burst housing bubble, we should reevaluate what makes a home a home, and see value in the intangibles. Maybe bigger is better, as in, a bigger life, and not necessarily a bigger house.

Maybe we should do a cost analysis the way Thoreau did: "The cost of a thing is the amount of what I call life which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run."

Maybe it all comes down to three simple words, spoken by the world's most famous tax dodger and transcendentalist: "Simplify! Simplify! Simplify!"

Is 2010 the Year a House Once Again Becomes a Home?

They keep bringing little chocolates into the office.

This can’t be a good thing.

Every time I get up from my desk to get something I print off, I come back not only with a few sheets of paper, but a few miniature Krackels and Mr. Goodbars, too.

They’re delicious, but the holidays are over. I need to get back to the swing of things and start eating right again. I've had my months of gluttony—now it’s time to focus, to get back to the basics.

Likewise, the housing market needs to do the same thing. It had its years of gluttony, of record-breaking ROI, but the housing bubble--just like Christmas--is over. It's 2010, not only a new year, but a new decade. Let's get back to basics, starting with rule #1: a house should be a home first, not an investment.

Down the Drain?

Over the last few days, I’ve read many posts about people who purchased a home or a condo only to have lost a third or more of their equity. Obviously, losing equity in a home can be a hard pill to swallow, but unless you're selling it tomorrow, you really haven't "lost" anything.

Now, this is not in reference to the families who've lost their home, either through foreclosure due to job-loss or illness, but rather, folks who "lost" some imaginary notion of wealth based on the market value of their home.

After all, they still have a roof over their head, right? And if they're lucky, their mortgage payment hasn't changed.

The miniature Hershey bars are delicious. But if you told me that the "value" of Hershey miniatures went up to $400 an ounce, would they taste any better? Probably not. Likewise, if your house's value goes up, it may make you feel better, but the house itself hasn't changed.

More Than a Piggy Bank

Let's get one thing straight: I don't own my house. The bank owns my house; I'm just paying them off over the course of 30 years. I'm renting to own.

In the meantime, however, I have free reign to paint the hallway with orange stripes or add a deck made of cereal boxes in the back if I so choose. I can decorate it as I please and make the house reflect who I am. I don't have to worry about noisy neighbors, jerky landlords, or weird smells emanating from someone else's kitchen. If I have kids some day, I can raise them in the house. It's my responsibility to keep it nice and not fall apart. It's a lot of work, but anything worth having usually is.

My house is a place for me to live in, not a piggy bank. I don't view my house as a source of income when I retire--that's what my 401(k) and IRAs are for. My house is simply my haven from the world--a space that I can make my own and come "home" to.

The more we attach our worth and value as people to the things we own, the more stressed out we'll be, and there's already enough stress in being a home "ower".

So, enjoy your house and make it a home. If it happens to go up in value, good for you; but if it happens to go down, don't sweat it. After all, you have a roof over your head. A house should be about making a home, not about increasing your net worth. When it all comes down to it, a house is just a building. A home is something different entirely.

So, no more miniature candies for me. And no more stressing out whether or not my house is "worth" it. Because it's worth it to me and, even if the world says it only has a value of $5.34, I can still walk into the front door and shut them out, in peace. Because I bought my house to live in, not as a barometer for success. The Joneses are more than welcome to pass me by if they like.

And hey, if it is only worth $5.34, think about how much money I'll save in property taxes!

Small Homes: Why Less Is More

Consider this: since 1973, the average family home has increased by 49%. In 1980, the average family home was 1595 square feet. By 2009, the size swelled to just under 2500 square feet.

The irony, of course, is that almost every appliance found within a home – from computers to washing machines—has shrunk in size. Even 54” big-screen TVs can be now placed on the wall, making the footprint they demand negligible.

Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with large houses—if they’re used. But how many people actually use their dining room? When’s the last time your “exercise room” was used to well, exercise?

In fact, the days of the McMansion with two-story entryways and its own closet for spice racks may be behind us. The trend seems to be shifting to smaller, more manageable homes. And you can thank the economy for this shift. According to a recent Better Homes & Garden magazine survey, nearly a third-32%-of new home buyers said that they expect their new home will be smaller than their current one. Many talked about unused space and the extra costs associated with it.

Behind every 7,000 square foot home are two air conditioners and a hefty electric bill. Indeed, two-story tall entryways and "open" family rooms may look grand and impressive when one first walks in, but considering how much money it takes to heat spaces like those--spaces that are not even liveable--most new homes are doing away with such ornate features.

Not So Big Not So New

Smaller homes have always been around (my house is 704 square feet and was built in 1926) and has been covered in such books as The Not So Big House and the 2006 book Small House on a Little Planet. But the recession has only heightened our cultural awareness of the shear amount of wasted space that has been mortgaged within the past ten or twenty years.

McMansion McMakeover

Despite the current trend towards smaller homes, the last decade has seen a plethora of smaller, homes razed for larger, more ornate (sometimes, even castle-like) McMansions, severely distorting old neighborhoods.

With the recession, however, such garish over-consumption may be a thing of the past, as more and more people are realizing that oftentimes, small is beautiful when it comes to a home.

DotLoop Gets Three Passes on FOX Business Happy Hour!

DotLoop passed with flying colors during last night's "So You Think You're An Entrepreneur?" segment on FOX Business Happy Hour!

Host Eric Bolling "loves the idea" and the guest host, who is in the home-buying process herself right now, said "if you can take out any paper, I'm all for it."

But it was Cody Willard who gave DotLoop CEO Austin Allison the highest praise coining the newest phrase last night of "Revolunomics" [sic], spelling errors aside.



Thanks, everyone for your support!

DotLoop to Make National Television Debut Tonight @ 5PM EST on FOX Business Happy Hour

Don't miss DotLoop CEO Austin Allison tonight on FOX Business Happy Hour on the FOX Business Channel between 5PM and 6PM (EST). Austin will appear in the "So You Think You're and Entrepreneur?" segment towards the end of the show (around 5:40PM).

Let us know what you think!

DotLoop on FOX Business Happy Hour

Happy 2010! DotLoop begins this year charging out the gate with two major debuts.

On Thursday, January 7th between 5PM and 6PM (EST), DotLoop will make its national television debut on FOX Business Happy Hour on the FOX Business Channel. DotLoop CEO Austin Allison will be featured in a segment called "So You Think You're and Entrepreneur?" Be sure to tune in and tell us what you think!

On a more local front, DotLoop has been featured in today's Cincinnati Enquirer where we announce our partnership with Huff Realty.

Keep tuned in to the DotLoop blog for more exciting announcements for 2010!