When I met Bob Bruss

When I heard the news yesterday about Bob, I found myself thinking back to when I first met him.

I was a young reporter, just starting out, writing freelance stories for the Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, and a bunch of the Crain's trade publications. Most of my stories were for the Chicago Tribune's real estate sections which, back in the late 1980s, were fat with ads and had editors scrambling for copy.

One of my colleagues there suggested I might want to join the National Association of Real Estate Editors, more commonly referred to as "NAREE," because it would help me meet other real estate writers (there weren't all that many of us back then), network with prospective sources, and learn about the business in general.

I can't remember where the first meeting was, or exactly when (sometime in the late 1980s), but I remember walking into a media room and meeting Bob Bruss. He was wearing a jacket with an open shirt, trousers and dressier shoes, which was standard dress for him. 

He was a perfect gentleman then, and every time I saw him after that.

As my first book, 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask, was being published in 1994, Brad Inman invited me to join Bob on the stage at the Los Angeles Times Home Buyer and Seller Fair, and a similar one held in San Francisco.

Watching Bob on a stage in front of thousands of first-time home buyers was riveting. He was courteous to everyone, answered many questions and clearly had legions of fans. I learned so much from him at events like those, and NAREE events over the years. He was kind in his reviews of my books (I even got a 12 out of 10 on one or two titles), and my work in general.

And in turn, I continued to marvel that he could produce 7 solid columns each week, no matter what.

I last saw Bob at a cocktail party at the Palace Hotel at the most recent Inman Connect. Although he was walking slowly, recovering from a recent surgery, he insisted he was fine and would see me in New York.

Family was important to Bob and he frequently mentioned his family back home, particularly his niece and nephew. But to many real estate writers, Bob was part of a family of long-time real estate writers, a true leader of the pack. He brought warmth and familiarity to a trade organization, believed in being polite to everyone, helped countless home buyers, sellers, owners and investors, and was a gentleman to the end.

He will be sorely missed.

--  Ilyce Glink, ThinkGlink.com

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