Catalog remains in continuous publication through 80 years

In 1928, the United Farm Agency came up with the first-ever real estate catalog, showcasing rural properties for city dwellers seeking a new home in the country. Many changes have taken place since then, with many following suit, using such publications to reach out to a variety of markets and a name change to United Country Real Estate, but the company's publication has remained in continuous publication since then.

In fact, Kathy Roehrick, who with husband Dennis co-owns Nevada's United Country Frontier Realty, LLC, noted that a copy of that original publication is in the Smithsonian Institute.

The company recreated that first issue, in honor of its 80th anniversary, and even in 1928, hot properties were listed in the Nevada area.

"It's really interesting. Then, they talked about productivity ratios, things like that," Roehrick said, and seeing the prices, the phrases used to describe property, and even the phone numbers for reaching the agent tell part of the tale of the area's history.

Here's how the 1928 catalog described the Nevada area: "Nevada, on the Missouri Pacific and Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroads, three national highways pass through the city. Numbers 54, 71 and Atlantic and Pacific; the county seat of Vernon County, is a city of about 8,000 population, less than a hundred miles south of Kansas City. A growing season of 170 days and an average rainfall of over 40 inches."

The catalog goes on to praise the area as a center of transportation and trade, having a strong school system, and boasting Cottey College, a "health resort," a "restful sanatorium" and Radio Springs Park.

Dairy was a growing industry in the area, with 13,000 dairy cattle in the county, and a strong showing of hogs, poultry and other livestock.

Listings that would easily sell for a six-digit sum today brought far less -- the top listing in the Nevada area was priced at $5,600. That was for 145 acres, 120 tillable, fruit trees, timber, outbuildings and more. Several properties listed included not only the home, land and outbuildings, but the livestock and much of the farm's equipment as well. Properties were shown by T.C. Martin, whose officers were in the Bowker building, on the northeast corner of the Square. The telephone number was 14.

Today, the local franchise still has listing in the United Country catalogs -- at times, almost all of them!

Now there is a general catalog, a publication just for historic properties, a publication just for upscale properties, one just for waterfront properties, one for mountain properties.

Roehrick explained that some properties they list go in the historical specialty publication -- including her own home, which sold very quickly, she added. A property on Stockton Lake, for example, might go in the waterfront publication, but, she laughed, there don't seem to be a lot of mountain properties in this area, so it's rare the local group has a listing in the publication for mountain areas.

Beyond the publications, marketing for United Country is moving to the Web as well. Roehrick said it's a great tool for them and has literally netted them calls about area properties from around the world. One recent call, in fact, was from a person on ship in a Middle Eastern sea.

"We were a little surprised by that one. But you never know where someone will be calling from," Kathy Roehrick said.

Through the use of the Web site, publications and other forms of marketing (including the good, old-fashioned face-to-face kind) United Country Frontier Realty, LLC, earned the company's Master Salesman Award in 2008. Dennis Roehrick also is an auctioneer, so the company can now also offer real estate auction services. "United Country has come a long way since then," Roehrick said, pointing at the 1928 reprinted volume.