Admit it – you’ve watched Million Dollar Listing.  You may have even watched House Hunters.  And there’s a good chance you’ve seen another real estate TV show, and another after that.

But how much of these reality TV shows do you actually think are real?

Let’s look at a recent article in the Wall Street Journal that discusses the topic, and then, we’ll divulge our guilty pleasures…

I’ll admit it: I watch Million Dollar Listing New York.

And I love it.

I never liked real estate TV shows as I hated to come home after a long day of selling real estate…..and watch people on TV, sell real estate.

And although I’ve never watched “Love It Or List It,” “House Hunters,” “Property Virgins,” “For Rent,” or “Property Brothers,” I can admit, right here, right now, that I absolutely LOVE Million Dollar Listing New York.

There’s something about Fredrik that I admire and respect.  I think it’s his confidence, his poise, and the way that he carries himself – like nobody can touch him.  It’s not a great set of character traits for the average man, but for a Realtor selling luxury real estate – there can be no other way.

So how much of what we watch on these “reality” television shows is actually real?

The Wall Street Journal ran an article last week about Million Dollar Listing New York, and I’ve pulled a few selected paragraphs below.  You can click on the link for the entire article

“A REAL ESTATE STAR IS BORN”
By: Candace Jackson
The Wall Street Journal

Some of the biggest reality-TV stars are real-estate agents. Shows like “Million Dollar Listing” and “Selling New York” that were created to give average Americans a glimpse of luxurious homes have transformed a handful of agents into bona fide celebrities. And while most of these agents say the publicity is good for business, some say the exposure isn’t always flattering, and can deter potential clients looking for privacy. Critics say the shows present a skewed version of reality that isn’t good for the industry overall.

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Several of the bigger real-estate agencies—including Corcoran, Brown Harris Stevens and New York’s Town Residential—bar or discourage their brokers from appearing on many reality programs and other TV shows. Pamela Liebman, the CEO of Corcoran, says such shows, like the ones on Bravo that focus heavily on agents’ personalities, are bad for the industry overall, giving a false impression of how real estate transactions work, with negotiations often taking place in attractive or unusual locations. (“Million Dollar Listing” recently featured an $8 million condo sale negotiated backstage at a fashion show.)

“My brokers are appalled by what happens on these shows,” she says. “It’s way exaggerated.” Ms. Liebman adds that agents who go on such shows also risk overshadowing a company’s brand.

Mary Rutherfurd, a broker with Brown Harris Stevens who handled the high-profile Manhattan listings of the reclusive late heiress Huguette Clark, over $50 million in total, says she would never appear on such a show, as it might harm her reputation for discretion. “I have bent over backward to make sure whatever publicity I have gotten has not been for the sellers, but for the properties,” she says.

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As with most programs of this kind, the reality presented on these real-estate shows has often undergone some tweaking. Scenes on some shows may be reshot if they aren’t captured on camera the first time around. Deals and negotiations that drag on for weeks, and mostly take place via email and phone, are often left out. “As you can imagine, most of it happens via email, which is not good TV content,” says Kathleen Finch, senior vice president and general manager for HGTV. Occasionally, particularly camera-shy sellers have a representative handle their part of negotiation on camera. Some New York City co-op boards won’t allow film crews to shoot there, omitting a big part of the Manhattan real estate market from certain shows.

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Celebrity agents and network executives point out that the shows strive to show real deals and listings, which is why shooting often spans longer than the typical two-to-three month reality show schedule. Producers on “Million Dollar Listing,” which has a nine-month shooting schedule, vet all deals portrayed on the show through public records. Bravo says producers shoot as many parts of a real estate transaction as possible, regardless of entertainment value, and that all deals presented on the show are real.

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The public’s appetite for reality real estate doesn’t appear to be slackening. Bravo now has five real-estate-themed shows, up from three in 2011. “There’s a voyeuristic aspect to it,” says Shari Levine, Bravo Media’s senior vice president of current programming and production. “Real estate is big money, it’s exciting, dramatic and it’s highly relatable.” “Million Dollar Listing LA” averaged 1.28 million viewers per episode in its fifth season, up 10% from the previous season. Ms. Levine says production managers look for successful agents who are “big, bold, unapologetic,” and willing to open up their personal lives to viewers.

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Mr. Serhant admits that his TV persona, often depicted through his on-camera dates, has some downsides, including awkward conversations with his parents. A recent episode featured him taking off his shirt and jumping into an indoor pool at a competing agent’s open house. In another, “I was buck-naked in the shower,” says the former soap-opera actor and hand model. “It took my dad a week to get over it.”   Another challenge for brokers: dealing with newfound fame while making themselves, their listings and their contact information highly visible to potential clients. Mr. Altman, who lists his cellphone number on his website, says he has fielded about 10 prank calls a day, including callers who pretend to be potential clients and “people who just want to hang out with me and look at mansions.” Madison Hildebrand, who has starred in “Million Dollar Listing LA” for six seasons, says a receptionist now answers all his calls.

The first time I ever watched “Milliion Dollar Listing Los Angeles,” I thought the show was pure fiction.  I was sitting in an open house at 18 Stafford Street, and it was so slow that I turned on the TV and started channel-surfing.  I found myself watching what looked like a soap opera, or a mocumentary, about a bunch of young punks who roll around in Mercedes and BMW’s and “negotiate” on the phone for ten seconds before pulling the trigger on $8 Million properties.

I watched the entire episode, and then Googled the show to find out if it was real or not.

It was “real” in theory, but how REAL could these situations actually be?

There’s been a lot of debate in my industry about appearing on these shows. Like the article above details, many Realtors are weary of how they’d be portrayed, or just the general idea of exploiting their clients for personal gain.

Then again, many of the clients themselves would jump at the chance for 15 minutes of fame! Everybody and their mother want to be on television, right?

I have to respect the attitude of Mary Rutherford, described in the article above, who strives to protect the anonymity of her sellers, and ensure that all her efforts go toward selling the property, and NOT promoting her own interests and furthering her career.

I watch Million Dollar Listing New York as if it were part travel brochure, part movie, and part reality.  But that “part reality” is probably the smallest reason why I watch it.  The characters on the show – because make no mistake – they are characters, are intriguing and interesting, but not as real people.  They’re interesting like Forest Gump was interesting, or like Dexter is interesting.

I’ve never thought that “reality television” was even remotely real, from the original Survivor in 1999, to all that Hills and Laguna Beach crap that our girlfriends watched through the 2000’s.

So do we really have any reason whatsoever to believe that reality real estate shows are any different?

In any event, my PVR is set for tomorrow night at 9pm!

What will Fredrik do this time?!?!?! 🙂