- Netflix'sSelling Sunset follows a group of luxury real estate agents in Los Angeles, amid their work drama and personal lives.
- The third season of Selling Sunset came out in August, leading to speculations about season 4.
- Is Selling Sunset real? Speaking to real estate agents and combing through receipts, we set forth to find out if the women are truly agents or actors.
Chrissy Teigen isn't convinced that the women of Selling Sunset, a Netflix series that follows a group of luxury real estate agents in L.A., are actually real estate agents. "I look at LA real estate a lot and have never seen any of these people," Teigen tweeted on August 18.
The Cravings cookbook author is far from the only one to doubt the "reality" of this Netflix reality TV show. Since the third season of Netflix's (possibly) unscripted show premiered in August, theories and blind items about the validity of the L.A.-set show have abounded.
Much like Teigen, working agents who watch Selling Sunset tell OprahMag.com that they're struck by the same thought: Is this...real? "I've never heard of them," Suzi Dailey, a luxury real estate agent based out of Orange County, says, by way of an answer.
With Netflix venturing into the luxury real estate scene once again with the Hamptons-set show Million Dollar Beach House, out August 26, the question is more pressing than ever. So, we set forth to find out. Behold, OprahMag.com's investigation into the authenticity of Selling Sunset.
Lindy Lin
Yep, Selling Sunset follows licensed real estate agents.
Spoiler: The Oppenheim Group itself definitely exists—in fact, there's an entire office ecosystem not depicted in the show. According to the brokerage's website, there are five agents not seen on the show (call us, Alice Kwan and Nicole Young, we want the tea!).
Further, Selling Sunset's stable of well-dressed agents are definitely accredited to do more than stir up office drama—even if Teigen hadn't previously heard of them. Per Licensee, all 10 of the Oppenheim Group's agents are licensed (though Amanza Smith is not listed). Jason and Brett Oppenheim, who own the brokerage, are the fifth generation in their family to practice L.A. real estate, according to Brett's website. Jason is even thinking of expanding the Oppenheim Group to another city.
Courtesy Netflix
Clearly confident in their careers, the cast of Selling Sunset responded to Teigen's comment gamely. "We all are very active real estate agents and we are very, very busy at the moment,” Heather Rae Young told Access Hollywood. Maya Vander told Us that she can find Teigen a house in Miami. Chrishell retweeted Teigen, offering her a $2 million listing in Studio City. Teigen stated dismay at having bought last week—and Jason Oppenheim complimented her on the purchase.
Assuming they are working agents, Dailey suspects Selling Sunset has benefitted their careers. "Because of the show, they've gotten notoriety and business," she says. "The show has been successful, in that respect."
Netflix
But the show is definitely staged and scripted, to a certain degree.
That said, Selling Sunset truthers—a.k.a people who harbor beliefs that the show is entirely scripted, and the cast are actors—could gather enough details to fuel their argument.
For proof, look no further than the show's creator: Adam DiVello, the mastermind behind The Hills, a popular MTV series that followed wealthy young women in L.A. between 2006 to 2010. Speaking to Refinery29 about The Hills, DiVello said he was "shackled to reality" of the characters' situations, but also open to re-shooting scenes and manufacturing moments.
Clearly, DiVello has a knack for turning real people into characters, and for making the state of California look glittering, appealing, and totally inaccessible. With reality TV pedigree like that, it's obvious that the "reality" in Selling Sunset's "reality TV" is meant to be taken with a grain of salt. The show is about real real estate agents, but it may not be real. Ya know?
Courtesy Netflix
Take a look at the show's structure. Selling Sunset presents a version of real estate in which the source of drama is low-grade feuds between co-workers, not the grind of contract negotiations or inspections. The agents' days are punctuated by the click of high heels and the sting of savage comments. In fact, the workplace dynamic ricocheting between the Oppenheim Group's low-lying tables is so toxic it's been parsed by an advice columnist.
Essentially, even if Selling Sunset is about nothing, it also somehow has plot—one of the quintessential hallmarks of a docu-soap. And who better to carry out that plot than actors? Ostensibly, Selling Sunset's cast could be comprised of actors who happen to have real estate licenses, and act out scenarios for the show. The IMDB pages are proof: Chrishell starred in soaps for years; Christine appeared in films.
"Honestly, I'd think you were lying to me if you told me that they weren't actors," Sophia Weeks, a real estate agent based out of New Hampshire, tells OprahMag.com. "Do I think that they're licensed? Yeah. Do I think that if they weren't on that show, they would have the success that they do? No."
However, the cast denies that the show is completely scripted. Chrishell said it's more like a gentle zhuzh toward drama. "They can sometimes nudge us to address things but what we say is all us. Beware anyone that says otherwise. Gotta own it," Chrishell wrote on her Instagram Stories.
Christine also said that certain storylines were "amped up," including how she met her husband, Christian Richard. “I actually met him through a girlfriend of mine, but Mary spun this story that he was a client. We were dating for three months and then we bought a house together, but television is fun," she said on Holly and Phil This Morning.
Finally, like other staged reality TV shows, Selling Sunset's narrative arc is stitched together through a mix of editing and "nudged" conversations. One redditor's immensely researched season 3 timeline points out the gaps and inconsistencies in filming—for example, news broke of Chrishell's divorce during the Botox & Burger's event. Another TikTok user pointed out a staged showing.
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Real estate agents say Selling Sunset couldn't be farther from the truth.
Most importantly, though, Selling Sunset depicts a version of real estate that's different than the lived experience for most agents. Far and away, Selling Sunset's emphasis is on interpersonal relationships, not the typical source of drama for agents: Selling houses.
"There's no inter-office drama like that whatsoever. Nobody has time to be talking about a boyfriend or spouse. You're too busy concentrating on your clients and having to deal with their issues," Dailey says.
Popular real estate shows like Selling Sunset and House Hunters also simplify agents' role in the home-buying process. "These TV shows don't give us enough credit for how much goes into each and every transaction. The behind-the-scenes, the negotiation," Weeks says. Selling Sunset fast-forwards past the ongoing compromises and conversations between buyers, sellers, inspectors, and creditors.
"One big misconception is that it's easy. It's not easy at all. It's very difficult," Dailey says, of the arduous journey to the closing table. Dailey's job is made complicated by her high net-worth clients' "strong personalities," as she puts it. "You're like a doctor. You can't choose the ethics of your patient. If they're not a kind person, if they're not a good person, you maybe don't find that out until you're a ways in—then you're having to deal with this person. That's difficult," she says.
It's this reason—the focus on the agents' personalities, not on the real estate process—that Jason expressed regret at joining Selling Sunset. "Had I known the show would be this focused on our personal lives I probably wouldn't have signed up for it," he told Hello! magazine. "I wanted it to be all about the nuances of real estate, but I now realize the show I envisioned wouldn't be that popular! I've come to accept the idea that I'm on more of a reality show than a real estate show."
Netflix
Weeks, who sells homes to middle-class families, thinks that her less glitzy, but still high-stakes, day-to-day life could make for a good TV show—one that could actually benefit prospective homeowners.
"If you have any power to get a show with normal realtors, following normal agents, I'd love that. I'd love for people in America to see what we really do, and why it's important to have a good agent on your side. There are fires we put out that they don't know about. And if they did, they probably wouldn't sleep that night," Weeks says.
Does it matter if Selling Sunset is real, anyway?
Like most reality TV shows, it appears that Selling Sunset is a blend of manufactured moments and real drama. Chrishell's raw reaction to her sudden divorce from Justin Hartley, for example, was too real to deny.
Ultimately, adherence to reality has never been the appeal of Selling Sunset—escape from reality is. Along with other shows set in the luxury real estate sphere, like Million Dollar Listing, Selling Sunset is a portal to another world. They may not be selling houses, but the agents of Selling Sunset are definitely selling audiences a fantasy: That one day, we might also walk through a $75 million dollar home, too.
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