Oct. 8, 1999 was a very big day for zipRealty.com, our online real estate startup. On that Friday, we brokered our first home purchase and earned our first revenue. As Martha Stewart would say, "It's a good thing." Note to all Internet entrepreneurs: No matter what people say about Net businesses these days, the goal is to make money -- as soon as you can. The moment was all the sweeter because so many people told my partner, Juan, and me that no one would ever buy a home over the Internet. It can be done. It has been done. Here's how it works:

First, the nuts and bolts. We handle property in the San Francisco Bay area, but in November, we expand to Southern California. Next year, we'll be national. After home buyers register with our site, an online agent calls to welcome the customer to zipRealty.com and explain our 10-step process. Buyers search the Multiple Listing Service for homes, make offers, schedule visits to the property, etc. -- all online. A big selling point is that we rebate to our clients part of the commissions we receive as the seller's agent. It's not chump change, either. The amounts range from $2,000 to $10,000, depending on the sale price.

We screen clients to make sure our service is right for them. Clients handle aspects of the transaction that agents usually do, which is why we give them the rebates. Most of the communication with the agent happens on the phone or via e-mail. If buyers want an agent to handle everything, they need a full-service broker. If everything checks out, we send them an information and sign-up package. Once we get a signed disclosure form back, the buyer becomes our client.

So much for generalities. Here's how our first sale happened... Drum roll, please: On Sept. 14, a Mr. Ed Caropepe logged on to the zipRealty.com site. Over 100 people had registered with us in the first two weeks since our Aug. 29 launch. Over 30 were serious home buyers who had signed agency disclosures. None had made an offer, though. Of course, we had only been up and running for two weeks -- and the typical home buyer takes two to three months to find a house. Still, we were dying to close a sale.

Everyday, I'd amble over to the operations department and ask the brokers if anyone was getting close to Step 5 (making an online offer). You never know if the fish will bite until you see that line jerk, and I was still staring at a slack line.

Little did I know that Mr. Caropepe was about to change all that. Five days after he signed on as a client, Mr. Caropepe found the house he wanted in San Jose. On Friday, Sept. 18, he made an offer using our site. Suddenly, Ken Koenen, Mr. Caropepe's broker, jumped up from his desk and shouted, "We have someone completing Step 5!" Everyone in the office stopped what they were doing and rushed over to Ken's desk.

Everything went smoothly. Ken took the information and prepared a formal offer for the seller. What a way to start the weekend! The entire team was elated. We had a happy hour planned that night in the office, and we sure had something to celebrate. Mr. Caropepe signed the contract. Then we faxed it to the seller's agent. After two days of dickering, buyer and seller came to terms. ZipRealty.com had just brokered a $350,000 sale.

A week later, Mr. Caropepe completed the final steps -- inspections, title search, final loan arrangements, etc. -- all on the Web site, and the close was scheduled for Oct. 8, 1999. The following Tuesday, a group of us drove over to the Caropepes' new house. We all wanted to meet our very first home buyer. There he was, with his wife and two daughters. They were busy redoing the house. (That's right, $350,000 gets you a fixer-upper in San Jose.) We brought balloons, a gift certificate for a nice dinner in town, and a commission rebate check for $5,000. Everyone talked for a while, then we left them to enjoy their new home. Mr. Caropepe had done something that was only an idea nine months ago. It's not every day you meet someone who turns your dream into reality.

Scott Kucirek is president and co-founder of zipRealty.com, an online real estate brokerage. The company's Internet site and online real estate agents let people complete the entire purchase or sale of a house via the Web. The company's Web site is www.zipRealty.com, and you can E-mail Scott at Scott@zipRealty.com.