Chic villas, large gardens and here and there even a private wellness area or swimming pool. The past week of House hunters was one to daydream about. During the ‘Million Week’, the agents were allowed to work with budgets of up to four million euros, in the case of Love Island winner Jotti. And one of those brokers was from Ghent: Marie de Winne, who has been working in Deinze for two years at the Infinimo office. This week, more than 150,000 viewers saw her at work.
“It all happened very quickly,” says Marie. “Suddenly we received a call from production at the office asking if we wanted to participate. My colleagues quickly looked at me, but I had to think about it myself. I was a bit unsure about it, especially because the bar is a bit higher during the Millions Week. There are not many properties that meet all the criteria, and moreover, many owners want utmost discretion: not everyone wants their house on TV.” (Read more below the photo)
Marie (middle) quickly developed a good relationship with the two other real estate agents. — © IF
Long day
Yet Marie took up the challenge, and the whole of Flanders could see how she approaches her home visits. “That took some getting used to: especially in the beginning, I always forgot that I was not allowed to look into the camera. But I quickly got used to it and felt in good hands with the crew. You quickly forget that there are so many people watching.”
At the end of the week, Marie even emerged as the winner: all in all, she received the highest number of points among the prospective buyers. “That’s a nice bonus,” says Marie. “The trophy also got a nice place at home. But honestly, I didn’t think the win was the most important thing. I was really in it for the experience, and I didn’t see the other two agents as competitors. On the contrary, today I still have a lot of contact with Lucien and Fien. We experienced six long, intense shooting days together, and that immediately created a bond.” (Read more below the photo)
More than 150,000 people watched as Marie made a home visit. — © Play4
Debut on the big screen
Although Marie herself remains modest, Infinimo colleagues did not let her TV debut pass by. As a surprise, they had arranged a watch party in Kinepolis Ghent, which was also attended by her friends and family. The real estate agent did not just make her TV debut at home on the couch, but on the silver screen.
“Great to experience, of course! And when it turned out that I won, the whole room applauded. But actually I found it even stranger to see myself on TV on Monday, realizing that thousands of people could see me in action in the meantime. That suddenly made it ‘real’. Since then I have received a lot of nice messages, even from people with whom I once made a house visit. You are the same on TV as you are in real life, they say. Happy. (laughs)”
Not bad, especially for a real estate agent with only over two years of experience. Marie seems to have found her dream job. “It’s very varied, and that’s what I like about it. You keep meeting new people with their own stories. If you can also help them find a new home, that is of course great.”
The episodes of Huizenjagers can be (re)watched via GoPlay.
READ ALSO. Influencer Jotti Verbruggen responds to the broadcast of ‘Huizenjagers’ with a record budget: “What happened was traumatic”
