This week’s winner nearly didn’t make it because I think I may already have a few out-of-focus slide shows in my collection of worst youtube real estate videos. This luxury home in Hollywood hills is listed at $17.5 million. Watch the video, then see if you agree with my assessment:

Presumably, they are looking for movie-industry buyers. I wonder if a typical movie executive watches real estate videos on youtube. I will not be staying up nights worrying about it, because I am fairly sure I know the answer. So, the first question is - why bother?

This video has more cheeps than a box full of newly-hatched chickens. The real estate agent looks cheap, the property looks cheap, and the venue is extremely cheap. It is a seventeen million dollar property, yet this is a slide show taken from still photographs?

The only one involved who doesn’t end up looking cheap is the company that produced it, Avanti films. I imagine they tried their hardest to persuade the agent to let them do a decent job, but with a budget of about fifty bucks, this is not too bad, and some of their other work is excellent. Although, the only thing I like about this one is the background music. Very Hollywood epic

This week’s worst youtube real estate video is courtesy of The Sri Lankan Lion. Yet another horrible slide show purporting to sell luxury homes in Sri Lanka.

Quite apart from the horrible slide show, this one demonstrates an extremely poor choice of background music. Unless you are marketing an MTV “crib,” to would-be rap music moguls, I would have thought that using rap music as a backdrop for luxury real estate videos was a big no-no. The opening words,

All a n***** really need is a little bit, not a lot b*** girl, just a little bit

were enough to persuade me I had this week’s winner. Segway into a variety of poor quality Indian and American rap music throughout. * shudder * . But maybe it is just me? Comments welcome.

This week’s worst youtube real estate video is a luxury apartment in Singapore’s Orchard Residences. All in all, not the absolute worst real estate video we have featured. It is short, to the point and thank goodness - whoever shot it took my advice and bought themselves a tripod.

With a mechanical pan facility judging from the incredibly annoying tick, whirr, tick, click of the mechanism which is the only sound on this video. How hard can it be to find and add a suitable soundtrack?

At least it is not a slide show

Yet another slide show is this week’s featured worst youtube real estate video. A bad slide show. No editing whatsoever as far as I can tell. Just a quick jump from one out-of-focus photograph to another.

And just a few little details left out – such as where exactly this house is, how much it costs or who is selling it. The kind of details you might think were worth including on a “Treasure Lake Real Estate Homes For Sale,” video. No attempt has been made to do anything with this video. Not even a sound track added.
Which actually brings me to another question about real estate videos posted to youtube. I did find a few recently with what I consider to be good backing music. But then I had a thought – Who owns that music? Did the real estate agent go to the trouble of asking and paying for permission to use a piece of music by Sting, for instance? I wonder if Mr. Sting knows his music is being used to sell a million-dollar plus home? I wonder if he wants a cut? Knowing Sting, I suspect the answer is yes.

I also love these two guys – they are sooooo bad, they are funny. Does sex sell real estate? Silly question really.

Beethoven’s symphony No.#3 in E-Flat Major was not written to be a backdrop for a poorly produced real estate video. And would some one pleeeese tell me why so many of the horrible videos I find on YouTube are slideshows. Seriously, what is it with the slideshows? And if you are going to do a slideshow, at least have the slides of the property - I mean, who on earth is the woman in the fourth slide? Is that the realtor? If so, for goodness’ sake, go find a new photographer while you are out hiring a videographer. And advertising it as “NY $625,000 Price Drop,” kind of gives the impression the price has been dropped by that much. Which it hasn’t. Current count of YouTube videos tagged “real estate” - 31,000

This weeks worst real estate video is courtesy of Realty Times. Realty Times seems to exists solely to promote the idea that there is no such thing as a subprime crisis, and all the “negative press,” must be bad for your business. In fact, they will guarantee a “positive spin,” if you should choose to make a “newsletter,” with them.

Hmm. Then I take a look at one of their youtube videos. Seriously. This is a sixteen million dollar property.

And a sixteen dollar video. What is it with the slide shows? Did some marketing guru somewhere say, “What you really need to get the best from video is a thirty second, out-of-focus slide show. It really pulls in the best buyers. Everyone loves them.”?

If I was the realtor, I would be doing my level best to have this one expunged from the records and asking for my sixteen dollars back.

On the other hand, this one was posted to youtube more than a year ago and has had 1,600 views, so maybe he doesn’t need to worry as no one has watched it.

Current count of youtube videos tagged “real estate” - 31,300.

This weeks lucky recipient of the “Worst YouTube Real Estate Video,” award is a little different. He nearly didn’t make it because of a great choice of background music.

But, poor quality video editing will out, and I’m afraid the out-of-focus zoom-in of a poorly produced brochure and horrible fade-outs did it for me.

Why would anyone spend a million dollars with a real estate agent who is only capable of producing this sort of level of promotional video. A professional videographer next time perhaps?