One of the finest compliments I have received this year was given to me by a buyer who came to me because of this blog. When we were discussing the market and my writings, he said, “you know, you probably offend some people.” And I’m OK with that.

Copyblogger has an outstanding post

You need the courage to alienate the wrong people in order to resonate with the right people. You need to stick to your convictions when people tell you you’re wrong simply because your knowledge doesn’t mesh with their opinions. Blogging by consensus is a recipe for failure. Your success will be determined by the execution of your vision. Think about — if your audience is more qualified to write your blog than you are, why should they read what you say?
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The fact is, if no one hates you, you’re doing something wrong. Trying to please everyone is the goal of mass media. That’s why it sucks. We’re supposed to be smarter, right?

Well, hate is a pretty strong word …

Everyone has opinions

Those who try to cater to everybody do a disservice to themselves and those whom they seek to represent.

When I discuss the market in Charlottesville, I do it from the perspective of one who is an expert in the market, but also from that of one who has a vested interest in the quality of life of my family, friends and the community as a whole. Real estate expertise comes not from having a login to the MLS – it comes from market knowledge and interpretation. There is no hard and fast, definitive answer to the question of “what’s my home worth?” – it depends, and that answer is colored by opinions.

When I write about growth, I do so through the eyes of my wife, who was born here, through my window of the past twenty years and my crystal ball through which I want Charlottesville to be great in thirty years for my grand kids.

These issues inherently create conflict – those who want to keep the market data close to their chests and restrict access only to other Realtors (if we don’t someone else surely will). Growth and politics – there will always be conflict and disagreements – but without intelligent debate outside of the respective echo chambers, very little positive progress would be made. When we debate, we all learn – so long as we’re listening as well.

A fellow real estate blogger recently caught some flak from some Board members who felt that her blog was “too controversial” – read: too honest. My advice to her was – tell them to comment or start their own blogs, then we all win.