Candy Evans on becoming the premier voice on Dallas real estate.

City: Dallas, Texas
Hometown: Chicago metro area

In 2010 you founded Candy’s Dirt, an award-winning real estate blog covering Dallas…how did you get started?
I had been a practicing journalist for several years before, during and after I raised my children. While working for D Magazine in Dallas, we were taught to blog as a way of keeping up with the changes in mass media. I soon saw the writing on the wall, and believe that online platforms are replacing print. In 2010 D decided not to carry DallasDirt, so I started my own blog, CandysDirt.

What keeps you motivated to create content on all things Dallas real estate?
I am obsessed with real estate, have been so all my life.

How do you think real estate in Dallas has changed in the time you’ve been covering it?
Agents and sellers now see how vital the internet is to gaining full coverage. Our market is too hot for print. Use print for branding, but smart agents and sellers focus their marketing dollars on websites and on-line marketing.

What are you most interested in covering?
Celebrity real estate, celebrity homes and mansions. I toured the Hicks Crespi estate yesterday!

Anything you’re less interested in covering?
I love our Tuesday $200,000 homes to our multi-million dollar properties. There is a home for everyone.

When starting your own venture, what was the best business advice you received?
To decide early on if I was going to make money off the site or just make it a hobby. I had savings for one year, this was not going to be a hobby.

Would you give the same advice to a person who is starting a new venture?
Have some money in the bank, talk to as many experts in the field as you can for advice. Watch the budget! On days when you think you may have been whacko to do this, take a deep breath and look at how far you have come from your very first day or deposit!

What city would you love to report on if you had the time to expand beyond Dallas/Fort Worth? Why?
We’ve just launched CandysDirt.com Midland Odessa, and Austin is next. Those are cities with hot real estate markets with great population growth.

Any special news or exciting projects you’re working on? Perhaps a reality show in the works?
Oral Fixation Monday night March 16, and then yes I am working on a reality show concept with an LA-based company called Tinopolis.

Read more about Candy's favorite spots in Dallas on the Towne & Market blog.

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