VICTORIANS FILM HOUSING REALITY FOR TV
Victoria film company rolls cameras amid record-low listings, bidding wars
With the local real estate market still sizzling, it’s no wonder a reality TV show called Seller’s Market is in the works.
The 13-part series produced by Victoria’s Cedarwood Productions and Kelowna-based Visland Media will follow five top Okanagan real estate agents battling it out to win coveted listings.
“Instead of looking at it from the point of view of the buyers, this one’s looking at it from the sellers,” said executive producer Karen Davies, who owns Cedarwood Productions with her husband, Dai Davies.
She was comparing the new series with Realty Reality, which Cedarwood launched two years ago. CHEK is currently airing the first and second seasons of the series that showcases homes around B.C. and features several agents, including Victoria’s Mark Rice, providing househunters with insight on resale values, market trends and pitfalls.
With the Victoria Real Estate Board having just reported another record-breaking month despite a typical seasonal slowdown, the timing couldn’t be better, said Davies.
According to VREB figures, 972 properties were sold in Greater Victoria this July, an increase of 22 per cent over the same period last year.
Inventory levels remain lower than last year, with 2,139 active listings as of Aug. 22, creating a more competitive market for real estate professionals.
In what Victoria agent Rick Couvelier said was likely an attempt to discourage solicitors, one Esquimalt homeowner went so far as to put a “Not For Sale House” sign on the front lawn.
“I would surmise that in this market, Realtors are [more aggressively] seeking listings since supply is low and demand is high,” said Couvelier.
It is currently difficult for an agent to keep a listing for long unless a property is overpriced, he added.
“Generally, price overcomes all evils, like a poor location or inferior conditions, unless a property was toxic,” Couvelier said.
Whether or not the market is as hot as it is in Victoria, Vancouver and Toronto, Seller’s Market is about doing what it takes to get top dollar for your home, said Davies. “It’s about how you maximize that opportunity. How do you present your home to get an edge on the competition?”
Each week five agents will compete for a listing. The series will then observe strategies, including bringing in a staging specialist, to reveal helpful hints on how to sell your home, following up a few weeks later to see if the property has sold.
Lindsay Nielsen, who produced and directed Realty Reality, will direct Seller’s Market, which was originated by Visland Media CEO Alex Miller, 35, after hearing a pitch from a friend, Kelowna agent Darryl Reuter.
“He said: ‘Do you think you can make that happen? Let’s put our heads together. I know just the right people,’” recalled Miller, whose goal was to ensure the series respectfully showcased a diverse group of agents.
“Realtors aren’t one-size-fitsall, but we don’t want to try and embarrass anyone. We want to show the importance of the relationship between Realtors and their clients.”
Reuter, who Miller describes as “a pillar of the community, a very social, casual guy,” is involved in many charities and dresses “like he’s about to go golfing with his college buddies,” he said.
Luke Menkes is “the very welldressed professional guy with his own brokerage,” and Dean Desrosiers is a family man who moved to Kelowna eight years ago to be closer to his father.
“He’s like an older version of Darryl, with a biotech marketing background. He got into real estate on a whim, and here he is eight years later.”
The two female agents are also very different, Miller said.
Marika Wolf is a “very professional,” mother-of-two whose specialty is the family market, and then there’s “the pit bull,” as he affectionately describes Amanda Westrheim.
“She’s very Type A, extraordinarily driven,” he said. “She’s a bodybuilder of some kind and she has the biggest arms on the show. She’d win an arm wrestle with any of these guys.”
Despite their differences, they are all extremely competitive, said Miller, who moved forward after hearing how little inventory was available in his own town.
“Anything that doesn’t need major renovations is gone in a week or less,” he said.
Meanwhile, the show’s title continues to reflect market conditions in Victoria, said Couvelier.
“Sellers have more control now about when they’re going to allow possession and completion,” he said, noting sellers have been able to negotiate better deals.
His advice “if you can afford it financially” is to buy your new home before putting yours on the market.
“Some [sellers] will say: ‘I’m happy with the price, and I don’t want to give you the keys in 45 days’ or ‘I’d like an extra $10,000 and to be able to stay in the property for six more months rent-free.’ ”