Jeanne Wailes, left, owner, and Nella Papadin, managing broker, at their Sonoma office. (Courtesy of Pedal to Properties)

A bike, a neighborhood and a few homes with “For sale” signs in the front yard.
Put them together and you get “Pedal to Properties,” a new real estate office that opened in May in Sonoma.
The operation is a franchise of a four-year-old company based in Boulder, Colo.
The idea is for people to get out of their car and onto a bicycle so they can take a closer look at a neighborhood where they might want to live.
“You get to see it and feel it,” said owner Jeanne Wailes. “It’s a great experience, and it’s a lot of fun.”
No, you don’t have to get on a bike to work with or buy a home from a “Pedal to Properties” agent. But Sonoma is a small town, and it’s relatively easy for even-occasional cyclists to tour the neighborhoods there on a bike, said Wailes, who previously led people on winery bike tours.
To scoffers, she points out the positive feedback she gets from folks who see her riding around town.
“We get tons of great comments, which I never got as a car Realtor,” she said. That includes “people who think it’s a cool idea because it’s green.”
Has she yet sold a home to someone who took a bike tour? “We haven’t,” she said. “It’s still pretty new.”
Along with Sonoma, Pedal to Properties has a franchise in Northampton, Mass.
The Sonoma franchise at 645 First Street West, Suite A, is a full-service agency with all the traditional real estate services, Wailes said.
Wailes is joined in the operation by managing broker Nella Papadin. They hope to add more agents soon and to open an office in San Rafael.
For those who want to cycle in another Sonoma County city, Wailes said she is willing to bring the bikes for a neighborhood tour. And those who buy a home from the company will receive a bike of their own.
Visit Pedal to Properties online.
— Robert Digitale

Courtesy of Pedal to Properties