Well, in my head he did. Through his music. (Full disclosure: I emailed Live Nation last week to get an interview with Paul, never heard back. Told them we could talk “flats”.) But I think he liked Dallas, our energy, and our insistence at last night’s concert that he give three encores, which he ever so graciously did. But if Paul McCartney ever decided to move to Dallas, I think  Braden Power’s sexy home at 3816 Turtle Creek Drive would be the one. The two kitchens would be quite helpful for partying and late night, post-concert snacks, he’d think about Linda in the spa off the sweet master suite, write songs on the piano in the library, lyrics inspired by the black swans on Turtle Creek, and that gigunda master closet would hold all the guitars and the ukulele George Harrison gave him. But best of all, that pool in the foyer would sure keep Heather Mills out of his house and might even deter requests for increased alimony. Oh by the way, 3816 Turtle Creek is listed this week with Dave Perry-Miller at $7,900,000.

D Sale this week is a lease deal so good I just had to spill the beans. The home is a trumped and tricked unit at The Vendome on Turtle Creek Blvd., just under 2,000 square feet, on the 15th floor with glorious views of the city overlooking Lee Park. The two bedroom, three and a half bath sky home is currently being leased by uber radio personality Ron Chapman and beautiful wife, Nance. (No, you don’t get to move in with the Chapmans.) The Chapmans have purchased a home in Dallas, have one year left on their lease and want to sublease this unit. And here’s the great deal: they are willing to take a major hit on their lease, offering this baby up for $4500 per month for a year. That includes all HOA dues and tips — the Vendome has a no-tipping policy for it’s beyond superb valet and delivery services. You cannot get a better address on Turtle Creek. You get quite simply everything — even, for those who need them, “mistress elevators” or so urban legend claims.

Now about that 50-yard bonus. The Chapmans own seats at the new Cowboys Stadium on the 50 yard line. They are offering two tickets to one Cowboys game to the realtor or agent who brings them a qualified tenant who fulfills the terms of the lease. Other stipulations also apply. Like the exclusion of the Cowboys season opener with the New York Giants — the Chapman already have plans to attend that game.

There you have it — would have been criminal to hold this in. Someone out there must need a chi chi home for a year and for $4,500 a month — well, the deal itself is so good it’s almost criminal. Your contact is Mike Kelly in Judy Pittman’s office at: 214.871.1110.

A.H. Belo Corporation, publisher of The Dallas Morning News, is investing in Sawbuck Realty, an online real estate broker that will bring its services this year into A.H. Belo’s territories in Southern California, Rhode Island and North Texas.

Sawbuck is expected to announce today that A.H. Belo has joined Sawbuck’s two co-founders, Guy Wolcott and Steve Barnes, in a $2 million round of investment in the young company. The individual contributions were not disclosed.

I’m in a conference call with A.H. Belo and Sawbuck Realty right now. As soon as it’s done we’ll get you audio from that call. Until then, jump for the interesting part of the DMN story:

As a real estate broker, Sawbuck will be able to list all Multiple Listing Service properties, [Chewy] Redding said. At present, visitors who go to dallasnews.com may see only 70 to 80 percent of the listings, he said.

He described the reaction from Dallas-Fort Worth area brokers briefed on the new arrangements as mixed.

Sawbuck refers any sales leads to agents or brokers locally in exchange for a 30 percent share of the commission. The Dallas Morning News will not share directly in that commission, although it would benefit indirectly from its investment in Sawbuck, Redding said.

The News will continue to sell advertising to local brokers and agents who want to enhance their listings with logos and contact information. In those cases, customers would contact that agent or broker directly, and Sawbuck would be bypassed.

“Our advertisers won’t see a lot of change when Sawbuck is on our site,” Redding said.

David R. Ellett, A.H. Belo senior vice president and president and general manager of Belo Interactive Media, said A.H. Belo’s investment is not huge, “but I think it is a strong signal that we believe that this is an enhancement to the real estate solution we bring to the market.”

In addition to search and referral, Sawbuck also touts lower mortgage rates and closing fees as part of its package of services.

It seems that folks born prior to 1968 — the year of the Democratic convention in Chicago — have brain wiring programmed to think that everything you want to sell must be advertised in the newspaper. (I think this is the result of subliminal advertising.) People under age 40, however, have been wired differently. The fact that the dividing line seems to be those born during or after 1968 strikes me as ironic. Social networking such as Facebook, Linked In, Plaxo and Twitter are quickly becoming the marketing vehicles for younger agents and buyers. So, how to write a real estate ad for this hip generation and not ignore those who still read newspapers? Consider first the AGE of your buyers: Over 50, toss a few bucks on a Sunday classified. Under 50, you’d better have a presence on CraigsList, the web and Facebook.

Write with your customer in mind.Let’s say that you’re a lover of history, and you bought a historic house on Swiss Avenue. Who is your customer? Someone who also likes the grace and character of older homes. Keep that in mind when you write your ad copy — what does your historic home have that the run-of-the-mill McMansions don’t have, things like “original maple hand-bordered floors” or “Victorian tile fireplace surround”. Picture your buyer as you write, and think about what would appeal to them.

Describe the property, not the customer. Be careful not to run afoul of Fair Housing laws – phrases like “family-friendly” and “exclusive gated community” sound tantalizing but may discourage potential shoppers. Better to stick to absolute descriptions of your real estate like “four bedrooms”, “mature”, and “quiet ‘hood.” Never, never mention a target buyer’s race, color, or religion – that’s clearly against the law!

Name drop brand names and materials.Two of the top five real estate word/phrases words are “granite” and “Corian”? (Others: “state of the art”, “gourmet”, and a nod to our love of nature, “Maple” as in wood, not sirup.) Those words describe specific materials, and that says something valuable to the customer. Of course, you have to know what shoppers in your price point want and expect. If the preference at your price point is for a “Viking” range, you might not want to highlight your dependable “Sears” low-end stove. Descriptive words like “oak flooring,” “soapstone counter tops,” or “Miele dishwasher” – buzz them like the nuggets of a society column.

Look at the competition’s ads. Sounds simple, but you’d be amazed how many FSBOs never do this. Look for repeated phrases that might be evidence of what customers are interested in. Also look to see what differentiates your house. If the competition is a sea of typical North Dallas 1950’s ranches you have a mid-century modern, you might want to emphasize your “open floor plan” or “entertainment flow”.  Show you’ve got that extra pizzazz.

Be careful with code words. There are lots of real estate euphemisms – “fixer-upper” equals shack, ”cozy” equals  “small” – but customers sometimes over-correct for them as they go in and out of fashion.  “Motivated seller”  seems to be the catch-phrase of the day, don’t use it if you don’t plan to slice and dice your price. “Starter home” is another term that’s useful today to attract buyers pepped up with the $8000 first time home buyer credit.

Get ready to rewrite. Rewriting classifieds is one of the big agent secrets; if an ad doesn’t pull right, agents tweak and start over. It’s a good idea to tweak ads weekly and keep careful notes of what works best.

Last night’s fete was to pump up top agents to bring in the buyers. Hillwood brought in father-son team David and Britt Fair of Hexter-Fair Title Company — David L. Fair closed the Alliance deal for Ross Jr. — for a little state of the LOCAL real estate economy report.  June is when the fat lady sings in the real estate calendar. MLS dollar volume in June, 2007, the greatest year in history for Dallas real estate sales, topped $1.9 billion. June, 2008 topped $1.5 billion. Debbie Downer: April 2009 was about $950,000,000. There is no doubt buyers are seeking the very best purchase prices out there, and the biggest anchors keeping us from taking flight are consumer fears of job loss or loss of home value, and in-migrants who want to buy in North Texas but haven’t sold elsewhere.

And, of course, the banks. 

Mr. Perot stepped up to tell us that 14% of the folks moving out of California are moving to Texas. In the Lone Star State, we just don’t understand how bad it is elsewhere — companies love our low taxes, business-friendly ‘tudes, and lower costs of living. Texas is the 11th largest economy in the world. Perot spoke with Governor Rick Perry recently who told him 18 major companies want to relocate to Texas. North texas is where it’s happening. Overheard: one major company is currently circling us, the CEO hunting for a mega million dollar pad –at least $40m.

But what about lending? We all know rich people have the funds to jet in and buy castles, and the Obama Stim Plan has helped first-time home buyers jump into the market, those being the two major areas of activity currently. What about the bread and butter buyers from $500,000 to $2 million? The folks who have handsome equity but need a mortgage? What about the non-recourse loans coming down the pike that threaten to do in the commercial market? Here’s what Mr. Perot said: “If I had a long-time, good customer who paid his loans on time, I’d take him to lunch, slap him on the back and say see ya’ next year.” That’s not currently happening in the banking world, he says. Banks are wasting huge amounts of time, burning manpower, trying to get re-margins. What that shows me, he said, is that the regulators are calling the shots. Bankers have told him the FDIC is understaffed and loaded with young, inexperienced regulators who are making them jump through ridiculous hoops which are actually costing taxpayers billions of dollars, almost a re-play of the 1980’s when hyper-aggressive, over-regulating banking regulators wiped out Texas banks.

There will be some pain, he said, especially in commercial, until the regulators loosen up so sensible lending can grease the wheels. Meantime buyers will have to pony up more equity. Residential looks a lot brighter than commercial, which means these are the days when folks in business have to really work with their customers and take care of their clients.

$40,000 luxury car with purchase of this home.

The roadster will be a Mercedes or other vintage auto valued at $40,000, your pick of the fleet from Benny Black’s Platinum Motorcars.

I tell you, the agents are getting mighty creative out there trying to get buyers off the fence.  As one buyer told me, the houses north of LBJ and in the boonies are practically free, south of LBJ they all but buy you a diamond ring. I can hardly wait!

I have to say, we told you so back in February. Dave Perry-Miller gave me the low-down on the Portuguese Water Dog, since he has one, and we knew that pup would be perfect for the First Family. Now comes word that this is the official First Dog and the First Daughters have a precious new Portuguese Water puppy named Bo,  bred by Art and Martha Stern, long-time PWD breeders who live near Dallas and call their kennel Amigo Portuguese Water Dogs. The pup is six months old.  I can’t help but wonder if Dave PM had advance knowledge on this deal: apparently Bo is a gift to the First Family from Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy, who owns Bo’s litter-mate and is fond of the PWD. I know Dave is rather fond of New England, and spends time in Nantucket when he’s not selling Dallas mega mansions. Could there be a connection? (That’s Edith Wharton, right, and Henry James, Dave’s PWD — white dog on the left.)

But DallasDirt has done some serious digging and hears the buyers may be Roger and Sue Linquist, formerly of 6508 Turtle Creek Blvd. Mr. Linquist is the CEO, Chairman of the Board, Director Founder and President of MetroPCS Communications, Inc. I hear that the price wasn’t all that negotiable — Elm Hollow sold for about $500,000 under asking price, give or take some change. Fabulous deal. I believe this is the second sale in The Creeks, and I bet the champagne corks are popping right now at Hillwood, not to mention Briggs Freeman and Allie Beth Allman — the closing was on Allie Beth’s birthday. Great gift!

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“It’s exhilarating to be back in sales,” says Missy. “I’m not a check collector.”

Since KW has offices across the country and even in Canada, Missy plans to have a referral part for Vail/Beaver Creek second home sales as well as her Dallas listings.

Is it just me being paranoid, but are we seeing a lot of folks returning to the mothership(s)?   

Ms. Tatum was previously with Briggs Freeman, which you probably already knew. Bet you didn’t know that Betty Tatum was the first woman to graduate with an MBA from what is now the SMU Cox School of Business. Then she went on to develop appraisals for apartment complexes and office buildings as well as performing market analyses for banks on trust portfolio properties. At the time, she was the youngest member of the North Dallas Realtors Group.

Ms. Tatum is married to commercial broker John Tatum; the couple has three daughters. Avidly dedicated to the community, she had chaired fund-raising events and volunteered for Southern Methodist University, TACA, The 500, Inc., Girl Scouts of America, The Episcopal School of Dallas, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League and The Park Cities Historic and Preservation Society.