Before this last housing bubble burst, there was another time when the real estate market was flatter than an open bottle of two-year-old Pepsi. Naturally, that was the time I decided to put my co-op on the market. Not even a nibble. I couldn't even get realtors to look at it. I had a nice place, but back then, no one was buyin' nothin'. Not at any price.

I took matters into my own hands. I decided to cut out the middleman and pitch my best prospects directly. I went through the local phone book and compiled a list of people living in known rental buildings. Then I sent them all a very persuasive letter. It was my first piece of direct mail.

Out of the 135 letters I sent, I got 12 responses. Best of all, in the end, my co-op wasn't mine anymore.