Most of the intrigued homebuyers knew little about the Detroit neighborhood containing a 1938 mansion for sale but they were still willing to move there. Agent Mark Reling of MVPS Realtors felt like he fielded inquiries from every part of the country.
Calls came from California, Florida and New York. “I had more area codes in my phone that two weeks than I’ve had combined in 37 years,” he said in an interview.
A video tour of the 6,800-square-foot house racked up 1.7 million views on an Instagram account with 2 million followers dedicated to highlighting interesting homes for sale. It was later picked up by For the Love of Old Houses, with 4 million Facebook followers, then dozens of other accounts. Viewers commented on the original woodwork, nine bedrooms and the possibility of ghosts residing there. But arguably the most eye-catching feature was the price at just under $260,000.
The home went certifiably viral on social media, gaining more than 1 million views and thousands of interactions on multiple platforms. That sparked two weeks of intense curiosity, with 200 people attending the open house and another “probably 200 showings,” said Reling, who also noted several potential buyers flew in. The mansion sold in February at $303,000 to a local investor after six offers.
What makes a home go viral can vary — it could be the price tag, architectural style, or unusual features, such as a hidden recording studio in a converted bank or a bright pink monochromatic interior. Although increased visibility can be a winning way to sell a home quickly, it’s not always the case, say agents. A property that’s become internet famous still experiences the impact of its market, and desirability is still heavily influenced by location and price.
"People who are followers on those profiles are all over the country. ... It doesn't necessarily help sell a property which is outside of their markets, but the algorithms likely add some boost locally," said agent Michael Selbst of Gibson Sotheby's International Realty.
Whenever Selbst has a unique home, neighbors often stop him on the street. When a home is picked up by a Facebook group or Instagram page pushing it to millions of views, he gets even more attention.
Selbst submits his listings to the sites, as was the case for 23 Buffam St., an 1860s home in Salem, Massachusetts. Agents note that most accounts request their approval before posting a house.
“One of the things that I focus on is PR for houses, and social media engagement is a big part of that, obviously. So this is one of those situations where I thought we would have a lot of engagement, and we really did,” he said.
While 23 Buffam sold quickly after 15 offers, it came down to the market conditions and the home's features, such as a vintage mansard roof, charming yellow siding and modern upgrades, Selbst said. Whether or not the home reached millions, it still would have been in high demand because of Salem's hot housing market.
Ad agency approach
Two of Compass agent Kristin McFeely’s listings have reached internet fame, and both remain for sale. The agent said price and finding the right buyer are still a challenge, as they are with selling any home.
The Philadelphia converted bank with a full recording studio at 4900 Longshore Ave. is priced at $1.07 million, and the Art Deco-inspired home with an architect Frank Weiss-designed glass atrium on 26th Street is priced at $2.5 million. Both are designed for a niche buyer.
And though no takers have been found, even with social media’s wide net, McFeely said there are other positives to going viral, even if it doesn't result in a quick sale.
“It’s good for personal branding in a way. Our job is to market every home,” McFeely said. “I look at each property as if I were at an ad agency, like each property is an account and my job is to figure out how to get it out to as many people and hopefully one of them bites.”
Internet accounts showing off houses push content to people across the globe, not necessarily to those looking to buy in a specific market. Some homes in locales unfamiliar to the general public typically offer lower price points, such as Reling's Detroit mansion, or a Tudor-style home in Waterloo, Iowa, listed at $149,900.
Agent Lynette Sorenson of ReMax Concepts Cedar Falls began receiving unusual calls for the charming brick 1,143-square-foot home with green window trim and matching gutters.
“I started getting phone calls from people across the U.S., not necessarily just in our area, asking about the house, asking about our Cedar Falls-Waterloo area, and even agents calling that they had people interested in the house,” Sorenson said.
The property's original post on Cheap Old Houses received more than 30,000 Instagram likes. Sorenson recalls the response as “crazy” and attributes the buzz to social media.
Buyers were willing to relocate for the two-bedroom home and even offered exorbitantly high offers, Sorenson said. Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity had rehabbed the home, though, and the buyer was required to have an income below the area median level and reside in it for 10 years. The stipulations garnered just one offer, and the house sold after 28 days.
While Reling was excited at first about his listing going viral, he soon had second thoughts.
“It kind of made my life hell because you spend a lot of time on the phone with people you won’t have a future relationship with,” said the agent, who still receives a daily call or text for the home he sold.
Your home for millions to see
For homeowners, the experience of going viral means their personal address, along with their curated collection of furniture and decorations, is put on display. It can be a surreal, sometimes invasive, experience.
Designer and illustrator Kate Gabrielle is familiar with sharing her life online. She’s amassed more than 130,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok and sells purses, pins, and accessories through her channels. Her followers have seen the bright pink walls and decor in the background of her videos. When strangers began sharing specific details of her Trenton, New Jersey, home she listed for sale, that comfort shifted.
“I can’t even describe how weird it was to see TikTok posts with people zooming in on different things in my home and talking about them like the house existed on its own and there wasn’t a person — me — who had decorated and designed everything,” said Gabrielle.
On the outside of Gabrielle’s home, only pink window shutters hinted at the retro-style wonderland indoors; the rest of the exterior remained modest. She wasn’t used to the increase in people driving by, slowing down to get a glance at the home they’d seen on Instagram and TikTok.
For agent Amanda Rupley of Compass, a client selling 7707 Mason Dells Drive in Dallas often experienced those drive-by sightings. It’s what came with the territory of an architecturally striking home.
“There are people that drive by all the time,” she said. “At one point, I had to take the sign out of the yard.”
Most in the area knew of the home, a double triangle-shaped midcentury modern by architect Jack Morgan. It didn’t completely surprise Rupley that the home went viral with more than 50,000 likes and was later featured on several local news shows. The owner had often received calls and unsolicited front door visits about selling before the home was listed.
Gabrielle moved out of her “Barbie house” — as agent Desiree Daniels of ReMax Tri County described it — before it sold. The newfound level of fame became a concern.
“Staying in a house when millions of people know my address just felt very scary,” said Gabrielle, who lives in a new home as pinkified as before.
The 1970s inspiration and eclectic style didn’t help the home sell — it became more of a public piece of art that people were entranced by, according to Daniels. Agents wanted to show the home, but Daniels knew it wasn’t for interested buyers; it was for its novelty.
“It didn’t go viral because it had this million-dollar kitchen. It went viral and it was made fun,” said Daniels.
To sell the house, Gabrielle and Daniels decided to neutralize the home, painting over the pink and swapping floral wallpaper for solid white. Only then did the home receive real action.
The pink ceilings, tiles, and carpet did remain, though, but the buyer didn’t mind, Daniels said.