Twitter is not ready for primetime..for Realtors anyway. Not large enough subgroups.
The way to work these networks by the way is to tap into groups that would broadly be interested in real estate. Divorce Groups, nature groups, etc. Tap in and lead the conversation.
Some comments on the subject called Social Distortion:
http://www.houseblogger.com/houseblogger/2008/07/social-distorti.html

I twitter and I am addicted. I first thought it was a complete waste of time. Now, I think the connections I have made with people from my area are priceless. I have met several of my fellow tweeters, who all have been helpful in growing my business. I even got a listing straight from my Twitter activity!

twitter, face book and myspace are great for personal activities but not really the place for business. Customers come to us for business reasons not to make friends. Our time is better spent in making real business connections and not trying to be everybodies friens.

Twitter is great for connecting with your local community. To follow or be followed by local twitterers gives you an instant communication and credibility on the local front. I know these folks now and they know me. It is called creating a relationship.

My feeling are Subgroups lacking for business networking, too time consuming to 'dig' into other groups. Besides, I don't have time and I usually forget to Twitter, too many other things to accomplish each day.

REALTOR Associations everywhere are finding it harder and herder to communicate with their members. Most Association e-mails, newsletters, general meetings, etc go unopened, unread or unattended by the vast majority of the members. Twitter has been added to the Local Board arsenal and we will see if this additional tool will result in reducing the number of Local Board members who leadership often characterizes as being unaware, uninformed and uncaring.

Doesn't anyone actually sell real estate any more? Of the many interesting ways to leverage the internet to build new relationships and sell real estate, it seems to me like Twitter is another "distraction" from the game. Reminds me of the guy who sits around all day in the office putting labels on postcards. Both seem equally ineffective - even with the "success stories" you hear from time to time. Pick up the phone or email or even IM a customer DIRECTLY; or a past client and get a referral. Don't be a twit. Be a sales person.

And yes, I'm a technology advocate!

It depends on your target market. I work with tech savvy high income folks from the Seattle area. Blogging and "micro-blogging" have done great things for my business. My clients expect me to be ahead of the curve. Great discussions on this in the usual places. RCG, MTO, RE Tomato etc.

Another choice: www.rejaw.com

Twitter is not recognized by most REALTORS as having any utility for business. But those real estate professionals that have been on for some time now are finding it a useful tool to drive traffic to their websites and blogs, building a loyal group of followers.

There are a large number of people in the Twitterverse that are developing strong relationships and business connections using this tool. Before selling it short as an inane web application (as I first did), spend some time watching and listening (lurking) to the Tweets that are posted. You'll see how succesful Twits are using it for something more than telling their friends what they're doing now.

I think it all depends on your clientele. For some, it can be very productive. For others whose clients are not communicating these ways, it won't be productive. One thing is for sure though, this type of networking and communication is only going to increase, so why not get on board, understand how it works so you can have intelligent conversations with all types of clients.

I think we should always be learning new parts of our trade. If you are not learning everyday in this business, you're not going to earning either.

Always cracks me up when agent use twitter to announce open houses or closings. There is a right way to use it and a wrong way. It has been an invaluable tool for me. I use it to meet people in my community and get to know them. I use it to keep up on news, and keep up on what my peers are doing or writing with it too.

I twitter about upcoming events in our area that I have posted on my blog and I spend some time looking at news and idea links from other real estate agents.

I also "met" a great group of people from our local university that have been a tremendous resource for me on twitter!

Oh Good! ANOTHER way to keep connected to the world. We need this like we need MS Vista.

I just sign up couple days ago, still learning what it is for? I still can't figure the real purpose of the site.

Twitter, if used correctly, is a great marketing tool. It's a great way to stay in touch with what's going in the community and keeping the community up to date with what your doing ... as long as you keep it interesting. If your posting a 5k price decrease on one of your listings ... don't waste your time ... nobody cares. I just started do video tours of my listing and have been tweeting the youtube link ... I've had a great response and people really like it. And when people like something they share it with other people ... virial! You have to love it.

Yes, I have a twitter, a MySpace, a Facbook, YouTube, FlickR, Twitter, a blog, etc., and these are fantastic ways to stay in touch with people and occasionally convey a witty message about what's happening in real estate, but this of course in no way replaces the need to call people, write them thank you notes and see people in person. Technology supplements your success. I'm 26 and have been using the internet daily since it was born. But, it has its limits....

I think Twitter will work simply because it's online presence has been given kudos by major industries (not unlike Google gained in the 90's). Will they continue to regulate well, to progress with adding online capabilities (i.e., link Twitter to Facebook, etc.), to be fun? Twitter is on the list of 8 Key Things For An Online Presence (a friend's recent teleseminar). It is considered a social networking site and a first step in an online presence; kind of like waving to a friend in the school hallways on your way to study hall or class. Then, you progress to the dynamic websites that will eventuallly provide "key words" for search engine optimization. Links can be placed on Twitter to your various other sites or interests. Post an article link, post a song, post a "good morning!", post a teleseminar invite. Yet, the initial start up of gaining your online friends will take work time. It's a warm handshake and, if used correctly, a benefit to probably more people than one knows.

How CAN we maximize Twitter for REALTORS' maximum benefit?