With “transparency” a political mantra and the housing market an unqualified mess, one real-estate broker is seeking unfettered truth, the Los Angeles Times reports. Armed with a video camera, blogger Jim Klinge is chronicling California’s real-estate crash, sparing no broker’s feelings with scathing appraisals not just of homes but of the people who sold them.
“There's an inherent danger when you take transparency to that level,” one fellow broker said. “You're going to alienate people.” Undeterred, Klinge surveys properties, now at half their recent values, helping new buyers while passing unchecked judgment on previous brokers, throwing around terms like "clown" and "cherry-picking cheerleader." For Klinge, honesty pays; nearly half his clients come through his blog.
(More real estate stories.)