House listings: the final frontier? Meet the 'Gold Broker'
Luxury realtor says real stars of not-quite reality TV show are multi-million dollar homes
There's absolutely no tension. A typical plot point might involve the drawing up of a sales contract. And the star of each show is a house.
Little wonder then that luxury realtor Christopher Lee's new TV 'series' already has all the makings of a hit in real-estate crazy Vancouver.
The show's name roughly translates from Chinese to 'Gold Broker'.
It may never rival Breaking Bad, Mad Men, or even Here Comes Honey Boo Boo for critical acclaim, but Lee's looking for sales, not Emmys.
"The name of the game for realtors is advertisement," says Lee.
"I'm trying to create a video platform for sellers to put their listings with us because it's an ongoing show. And this platform I'm creating is my way of selling houses."
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Last month, the production company Lee hired to produce his show posted a 90-second preview on YouTube. That sparked a flurry of speculation that 'Gold Broker' might qualify as Reality TV.
Lee says that might be overstating things.
"There's no drama in the show," he says.
"It's more focused on the procedure of buying a house or selling a house."
Lee currently has a roster of homes listed for as much as $23 million. The 34-year-old says he has been a realtor for three years.
His website features a picture of him standing with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
But 'Gold Broker' viewers hoping for a Trudeau guest appearance are likely in for a disappointment.
Lee describes his show as the natural evolution of static video house listings.
"I just started creating this idea in my mind to do more interesting storylines with some characters," he says.
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Each 'episode' will be five or six minutes long. Lee is planning to produce four seasons with 10 episodes each. The show will feature actors as well as real live real estate agents.
They'll do the things Realtors do, like stage open houses, walk customers through listings and sign documents.
But that's about as racy as things are likely to get.
The main attraction will be the listings themselves. With Vancouver's natural beauty playing a supporting role.
The Chinese-language Phoenix TV channel has agreed to broadcast 'Gold Broker'. The show will also air on YouTube.
Lee's fame has previously been limited to bus shelters and internet advertising.
He says the small screen is a natural next step: "I'm ready for it."