Barbara Godson

This question was posed to us by a man with a camera and a boom mic, a director for HGTV's Selling New York. We we were sweltering on the roof of 221 West 13th street, a $11.5 million townhouse in the West Village, currently being brokered by Charles Homet and Barbara Godson of Halstead Properties.

We looked around at the models swimming in the small koi-pond off to our right, the fully-stocked bar, the heavy-hitters exchanging business cards --Lisa Simonsen, Senior VP and group head of The Simonsen Group at Douglas Elliman shmoozed alongside Social Life Magazine's editor-in-chief Devorah Rose, Sharon Bush, and SNR Denton partner Jonathan Goldberg-- and tried to answer honestly.

"If it works for the fashion world, the print industry, and any other brand markets, why shouldn't there be a launch party for recently listed properties?" asked the director.

"Do you think it creates 'Buzz?'" You could hear the capital-B in his phrasing.

And hell, why not? Not just the parties, which are relatively new expansions of the traditional Open Houses, but all those shows dedicated to high-stakes game of real estate: Flip This House (formerly of A&E), Flip That House (TLC), Sell This House and Sell This House: Extreme (A&E),  Millionaire Dollar Listing (Bravo), Designed to Sell (HGTV), and House Hunters...and that's just to name a few.

With the housing market no longer what it once was, the number of reality shows dedicated to brokers, interior designers, and high-maintance homeowners may seem counter-intuitive to the reality facing New Yorkers, but then again, "real" has never been the emphasis in either television or estate.

So why not a party? Why not a reality show? Why not pretend that this is how homes are really sold on today's market? Hell, maybe if we pretend hard enough, it will actually come true.

dgrant@observer.com