HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #512, which first aired on June 28, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In the latest episode of “Selling New York,” CORE’s Tom Postilio is given a duplex penthouse listing at 211 East 51st Street by CORE’s CEO himself, Shaun Osher. With all the responsibilities that come from being the boss, Shaun’s extremely busy schedule doesn’t allow him all the time he needs when given an exclusive penthouse listing by developer Henry Justin, who specifically wants him to sell it. In order to make sure that the penthouse is put on the market in the best possible light, Shaun enlists the help of Tom, a founding CORE agent and now a Managing Director at the firm.

With the penthouse just a few weeks away from going on the market, Tom has the difficult task of pulling a launch event together and making sure that Shaun crosses all of his to-dos off of the pre-event checklist. After some minor hiccups, including construction and staging delays, Tom and Shaun host a successful launch event in a fully furnished (and finished) property. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information on what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of Selling New York and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #509, which first aired on March 22, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In “Strategic Marketing,” CORE Managing Director Vickey Barron was faced with the challenge of listing a Fifth Avenue penthouse that two brokers had previously failed to sell. With her seller stressing the importance of getting the $6.995 million penthouse into contract quickly to facilitate his move to Florida, and with a fairly strict building policy of no public or broker open houses, Vickey had to get her creative juices flowing. In order to come up with new ideas on how to market and sell her new listing at The Brevoort in Greenwich Village, Vickey decided to enlist the help of her fellow CORE brokers by hosting a friendly marketing competition. The two teams of two toured the penthouse and partnered up with architects and designers to create a new marketing strategy.

After a few weeks, both teams regrouped and presented their marketing strategies to a group of colleagues, potential buyers and the competition’s judges – Vickey, CORE CEO Shaun Osher and The Brevoort’s board President, Diane Nardone. Each team presented a variety of marketing strategies that ranged from architectural renderings of possible renovations to historic information on the building and surrounding neighborhood. After much debate the judges picked a winning team, and just three weeks later, Vickey had an accepted offer on the penthouse and a very happy seller. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #508, which first aired on March 15, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In this week’s episode of “Selling New York,” titled “Deal or No Deal,” CORE Managing Director Tom Postilio had to breathe new life into a listing at the Chelsea House, a condominium development at 130 West 19th Street in Manhattan, in order to entice potential buyers to visit. When Tom originally put his listing on the market he thought it would be an easy sell because of its great Chelsea location and the building’s great amenities. However, after multiple showings, Tom realized that visitors found the apartment to be dark and cluttered, not to mention the brick wall views.

Luckily, Tom had a plan and convinced his seller to take out everything and stage the apartment. After a quick meeting with Susan Goldstein from Studio D, they agreed to use furnishings and lighting that would brighten up the space. The staging was successful and the apartment immediately got interest. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #507, which first aired on March 8, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In “Creative Tactics,” CORE Managing Director Emily Beare was forced to think outside the box to market a unique waterfront listing at 220 Riverside Boulevard, aka Trump Place. Naturally, Emily’s first instinct was to plan a fabulous open house for her fellow brokers, but the seller, Rebecca Clemente, informed Emily that Trump Place has a “no open houses” policy. Emily had to come up with another plan to get people in the door and decided to act fast.

To create a buzz around this 2,962-square foot beauty, Emily enlisted the help of event planner to the stars, Colin Cowie. After a quick trip to Colin’s office, they decided to throw an invite-only cocktail party to show off the apartment’s perfect entertaining layout. Emily knew that getting people to visit 220 Riverside wouldn’t be a problem if a signature Colin Cowie party was being held there. Colin and his team put together a one-of-a-kind event, perfectly tailored to the luxurious property. The party, complete with an electric rock violinist, was flawless, and had brokers pulling Emily in all directions to tour the apartment. After a successful party, it was no surprise that potential buyers were interested and that an offer was soon on the horizon.

Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #505, which first aired on February 23, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

L-R: Michael Feinstein, David Hyde Pierce, Tom Postilio, Christine Ebersole, and Cheyenne Jackson at Tom's opening night at Feinstein’s

This week’s episode of “Selling New York”, titled “High Expectations,” featured CORE’s Tom Postilio scouring the Manhattan market for his friend and fellow musician, Michael Feinstein. With a massive budget of up to $50 million, Mr. Great American Songbook and his partner, Terrence Flannery, knew exactly what they wanted, and they weren’t going to settle for less. In fact, they weren’t going to put their own $20+ million house on the market (a stunning 8 bedroom, 9 bathroom, 9,000-square-foot behemoth on the Upper East Side) until finding the perfect place to move. Tom was up for the challenge, but he knew there was a lot at stake: a huge commission, his longtime friendship with Michael and ultimately his reputation in NYC’s tight-knit real estate community.

Tom showed Michael and Terrence several stunning properties that caught their attention, from the $3.5 million historic Steinway Mansion in Queens, to a $39 million multi-penthouse combination at the I.M. Pei-designed Centurion building in Midtown, but in the end Michael’s hectic touring schedule got in the way, and the couple was forced to put off finding their dream house for a bit longer. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #504, which first aired on February 16, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In “NYC Newbies,” CORE agent Kirk Rundhaug races against the clock to find his clients — Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin and his wife, Kelley — their downtown dream home. After trying to find a home through another NYC broker after selling their Flatiron District apartment, Melvin and his wife decide that their previous unpleasant experience isn’t going to derail their search. Kelley finds her broker match with Kirk and explains that time is of the essence since she’s currently staying with her daughter while trying to find a place prior to the end of baseball season. Always up for a challenge, Kirk agrees to be the Melvins’ broker and takes Kelley to a variety of downtown properties.

First stop is a TriBeCa loft at 68 Thomas Street (which has since sold) with a great outdoor deck priced just under $2 million. Kelley prefers the neighborhoods to the north — Greenwich Village and SoHo — so it’s on to a beautiful open 2BR/2BA loft with exposed brick walls on West Broadway in SoHo. It’s love at first sight for Kelley and her daughter Alexi, but Kelley can’t commit since Bob is in California. Kirk decides to show Kelley another property, this time in the classic Chelsea Mercantile building (another apartment that has since sold), to show her a different neighborhood. After touring the Chelsea property, Kelley quickly realizes that she must have the SoHo loft.

Kelley and Kirk hop on Skype with Bob to discuss making an offer on the loft. Following Kirk’s suggestion, the Melvins agree to make a competitive offer at $2.3 million, and they successfully become the new owners of a classic SoHo loft. The episode ends with Kirk and the Melvins sitting down to dinner in the Melvins’ new home. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #503, which first aired on February 9, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In “The Best Laid Plans,” CORE Managing Director Vickey Barron was thrown a curve ball: Her client found the perfect Manhattan apartment, but it just so happened to be Vickey’s. The episode began with Vickey meeting her client, Irasema Alonso, for a showing at 280 Park Avenue South, where Vickey was listing a stunning 861-square foot apartment that had been renovated from top to bottom. Vickey explained to Irasema that purchasing a move-in ready home was her best bet since renovating after the fact takes time, effort, money and a whole lot of patience. Irasea wasn’t convinced, so to prove her point Vickey offered to bring Irasema to her own apartment nearby, which was in the middle of a $250,000 renovation.

To Vickey’s surprise, instead of recognizing the value of a completed renovation, Irasema made an interesting proposition. She made an offer of $1.215 million for the home at 280 Park Ave. South, and an offer of $1.3 million for Vickey’s apartment. In the end, Irasema’s offer for the Park Avenue home wasn’t high enough and the sellers chose to go with another buyer. As far as Vickey’s apartment went, although flattered, Vickey’s priority was finding a buyer for 280 Park Avenue. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #502, which first aired on February 2, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In “Old Listings Get Some New Life,” CORE Managing Director Tom Postilio was under the gun to sell one of his most unique listings. After six months on the market at $3.495 million, the eclectic triplex penthouse at 135 West 58th Street in Midtown wasn’t generating much interest from buyers. Apparently, purple couches and flamboyant décor just aren’t for everyone. In an attempt to breathe new life into the listing, Tom proposed a radical million-dollar price drop and a furniture swap to attract a larger pool of New York City brokers and buyers, and sure enough, that’s just what happened. The end of the episode ended with an offer on the apartment, and it has since sold for $2.4 million in cash!

Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #413, which first aired on January 26, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

CORE's Parul Brahmbhatt (center), flanked by Steampunk devotees.

In “Press Worthy Properties,” CORE agent Parul Brahmbhatt faced an unusual challenge in this week’s episode: How to market a New York City property with bizarre elements such as a green submarine door and a 32-foot model zeppelin suspended over the kitchen? Yep, we’re talking about the Steampunk-inspired loft at 120 West 29th Street. With a homeowner determined to sell the quirky apartment “as-is,” Parul’s goal was to find a buyer that would preserve the property’s unique character. The episode began with Parul and CEO Shaun Osher discussing a pricing strategy. While the owner expected over $2 million as a listing price, Parul and Shaun knew that wasn’t feasibile with such a buyer-specific property. It was essential to price slightly lower and generate interest from a larger pool of property hunters. After a conversation with the homeowner, a listing price of $1.75 million seemed ideal.

Next came finding the right strategy to market the property. After extensive research and a visit with Steampunk expert Joey Marsocci, Parul concluded that the best way to bring the property to market was to throw a Steampunk-style open house. In the end, Parul’s creative marketing approach and out-of-the-box thinking paid off, resulting in an overwhelmingly positive response from fellow brokers, potential buyers and the press. Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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HGTV’s “Selling New York” follows CORE agents as they navigate the country’s most competitive—and compelling—real estate market. Here’s our behind-the-scenes look at Episode #412, which first aired on January 12, 2012. For more SNY recaps, click here.

In CORE’s first “SNY” episode of 2012, called “Satisfaction Guaranteed,” agent Kirk Rundhaug devoted his time to finding the next one-of-a-kind investment property for his big-fish client, Gloria Naftali. With the clock ticking on finding the perfect apartment, Gloria enlisted the help of her personal friend and real estate broker, Julie, to tour several properties with Kirk.

The search began in Brooklyn, where Kirk showed Julie a massive 5,100-square-foot penthouse listed by fellow CORE agent Michael Graves. Despite its floor-to-ceiling windows, double spiral staircase and nine terraces, Kirk and Julie knew that Gloria had her heart set on downtown Manhattan. The next stop was a a penthouse in CORE’s The Cammeyer at 650 Sixth Avenue in the Flatiron District, but the property wasn’t Gloria’s perfect match, either. Next up was another penthouse with “wow” factor, in The Excelsior on 57th Street in Midtown. Gloria was not disappointed — who would be with stunning views, a 4,800-square-foot wraparound terrace and a private indoor swimming pool? — but in the end it was too much penthouse for one woman to handle.

Keep on reading for some exclusive behind-the-scenes information about what didn’t make it into last night’s episode of “Selling New York” and what happened after the cameras stopped rolling!

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