Manhattan Beach mystery: Who is “Deep Throat?”

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There, do I have your attention now?

Seriously, the headline comes from a quote in a fun profile today of one of my favorite mystery bloggers, Manhattan Beach Confidential, whose identity is cause for speculation in the South Bay: ‘I call him Deep Throat,’ said Greg Maffei of RE/MAX Execs. ‘I like how he’s no-holds-barred, says what he feels. But the thing that gave it validity is that I had clients asking me what I thought about the site.’

If you haven’t read the blog, its reporting is very specific -- down to individual listings, how long they’ve been languishing on the market, and how they compare in price and value to similar listings in Manhattan Beach. Great for readers, but a little bit too much information for some real estate pros: ‘People who do this kind of thing have nothing better to do,’ grumbles Jack Gillespie of South Bay Brokers. ‘To just prey on the real estate community, that’s fine, but have the guts to stick your name out there and your number. To me, it’s just a gutless act.’

What say you, MB Confidential? He (she?) tells the Daily Breeze: ‘I am trying to help potential buyers (as well as home sellers) see through the fog,’ he writes in an e-mail. ‘I’m trying to provide the sort of service I would have appreciated having in the past. All of that is not meant to feed some jihad against Realtors, but out of a desire to see a more fair marketplace.’

A sliver of news in the story: MB Confidential’s blog posts were being published in a local print paper, the Easy Reader, but the newspaper pulled the column after complaints about the writer’s anonymity.

Full Disclosure: MB Confidential has generated many, many items for this blog. I have no earthly idea who writes the blog, but I like it.

Your thoughts? Comments? Email story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com
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