After 110 comments and too many correspondences from reformed, newly-sainted commenters (read: people fearful of damaging their own reputations) pleading to remove certain things they’d written from our public thread, we finally  shut down comments on the Hammer Communications story. 

That was a few weeks ago. Since the story came out, I’ve heard little rumors about Jack Shoptaw spottings here and there. But finally he has re-emerged in the most public place of all—the internet. 

Read More “Jack Shoptaw Tweets Now…” »

If you were selling McMansions in the heat of the ’00s bubble, you probably came across Hammer Communications, a Georgetown real-estate advertising firm. The company had squadrons of creative talent who specialized in designing brochures and advertisements to make sure your overvalued properties fetched every last dollar. Hammer’s people would get good placements in the New Homes Guide, the Washington Times’ Friday Home Guide, the Washington Post’s real-estate section, and other pricey publications.

They worked with top regional builders including Basheer & Edgemoore, Pulte Homes, and Brookfield Homes.

But even those builders didn’t wow Hammer account executives the way K. Hovnanian Homes did. One of the country’s largest homebuilders, with revenues totaling more than $3 billion and 10,577 homes built in the last fiscal year, K. Hovnanian has colonized large patches of dirt all around the Washington region with its sprawling brick four-bedrooms and other attractive models.

Read More “The Fall of Hammer Communications: How a Georgetown Ad Agency Built on McMansions Ended up in a Pile of Debt” »