Updated almost 10 years ago on .
How I Sell - NY/Long Island
Hey Guys,
Steve Dispensa here, I'm a Realtor with Spec International Realty in NY. I just thought I'd share with you something that I've found has really helped me to find both buyers and tenants for properties I've listed for sale and rent.
A little background: I worked for years as a filmmaker before getting into Real Estate. I owned my own production company and specialized in creating commercials and branding videos for small to medium sized businesses. One of my clients happened to be a Real Estate Agent working in Ireland, and so every summer I would go over and film houses he was listing. I created narrated video tours along with high end photos for his listings and it was really helping him to sell.
I wound up getting approached by a real estate company here in NY to do the same thing for them. And through a series of fortunate events got my license as well. Now for all my listings I create these films. You can check out one here:
It really helps to sell the house for a number of reasons. The combination of the music and camera work are designed to elicit an emotional response from the viewer, giving them a connection to the home before they even set foot inside. The narration is designed to highlight the important features of the home the same as I would do if I was showing the house in person.
What's great about this is it helps to keep the house fresh in people's minds. While hosting an open house, I collect emails from everyone that comes through. That night they get an email from me with the video embedded in it, reminding them of the incredible home they just saw. It's also great because sometimes you have one half of a couple out to see a house. They then need to set up a separate showing for their spouse to see it. Having the video ready allows their spouse to see it instantaneously, while they're still excited about it.
I've found it's even a great tool for leasing properties. I had a landlord trying to rent out a luxury apartment that was priced rather high for the area. It hit the market in February, in a beach community. Needless to say he had no action on the apartment. My video not only helped find a tenant for the apartment, I was able to use it to rent out the identical unit next door 3 months before it hit the market.
Anyway, if anyone has any questions about how this works, please feel free to give me a ring. I'd also love to help any developers or landlords in the NY area looking for a Realtor who can help get their properties out to the widest possible audience. I also have a separate company where I offer these media services to other Realtors and Homeowners.
Feel free to contact me anytime.
Steve Dispensa
Spec International Realty
Virtual Vision Media
516-343-0052