Local agents star in TV show

WHEN long-time Australian presenter Catriona Rowntree was spotted in Pomona recently, it didn’t take long for word to get around.

But why she was in Pomona was the question everyone was asking – except for one local couple who knew the answer.

George Real Estate owners Brian and Carlene George were asked by a producer of Channel 9’s lifestyle shows to “work with them” on the TV show Country House Hunters Carlene said they were honoured to be asked.

“As a new real estate agency, we were honoured Rebecca – a producer of Australia’s main TV network – contacted us, George Real Estate, to work with.

“Country House Hunters is a TV show where a couple looking to buy a home are shown three properties and they choose one to buy. The presenter is Catriona Rowntree.

“Rebecca contacted me a few months ago to ask if I had anyone who would be willing to star in Country House Hunters

“They were wanting to cast a couple who had bought a property in Eumundi or Doonan in the past year.

“Two people who did buy from us in Eumundi came to mind straight away; however they ended up not being able to go ahead.

“I did have another couple, Pia and Jamie, who I thought would be fantastic for the show; however they did not quite fit the brief as they bought in Pomona.

“While it was not exactly the location the producer and production team were wanting, with a bit of persuading and with me stating it wasn’t too far from Eumundi, I was able to get them cast.”

Carlene said the producer then asked if they had two other properties they could use on the show, ideally in Eumundi, along the same price point as Pia and Jamie’s property.

“A few properties did come to mind but I couldn’t secure them. However, I did have two backup options and once again they were not quite the brief and I had some persuading to do to get the producers to use these properties as they were in Pomona and Cooroy.

“So the show originally was to be set in Eumundi but we managed to angle it more to the overall hinterland,” Carlene said.

Then less than two weeks before the shoot, Carlene said Rebecca called again saying they needed two more buyers and two more properties for the Doonan episode of the show.

“I was able to think of one person, Tahlia, a friend I knew who would love to do it. So before 5 pm on that Friday, I was able to organise another two properties and cast members for the second episode of the show.”

Carlene said filming was a lot of fun.

“For the intro of the ‘Hinterland’ episode I took them to our beautiful Cooroora dog park. I filled Catriona in on a bit of background of the area, what we are becoming famous for – of course, one being the trail networks – natural beauty, the Distillery, breweries, cafes and boutiques, close proximity to the beaches, and how I really feel this is an up-and-coming destination to live in and to visit.

“The crew were fantastic, and I am extremely thankful to Pia and Jamie, Tahlia and her friend Kellie, and our vendors for being willing to have their properties

Solutions

used for this show.”

“Two years ago I was nominated as a rising star sales agent for the REIQ awards and today, Brian and I have our own agency and we’re being asked to feature on a TV show.”

Carlene said the producer said they were chosen for the show because they were impressed by their business.

“She said she saw our properties listed online and viewed our website and was really impressed about everything she saw about us and therefore wanted us to be a part of their show.

“Usually, they have different agencies’ properties featured in one episode, so having one episode featuring only George Real Estate’s properties was not the norm and is definitely great branding for us.

“Brian and I truly love what we do and are proud of the work we do for our clients and buyers, and with George Real Estate, I cannot wait to see what is in store for the future.

“We are all about looking after people, giving the best service and making sure the work we do, we do well.”

Sudoku

Sudoku is an 81 square number grid with nine blocks each containing nine cells. To solve the puzzle, all the blank cells must be filled in using numbers from 1 to 9. Each number can only appear once in each row, column and in the nine 3x3 blocks.

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