Realty social media stars: Meet the people using Instagram, Tiktok to shine a light on the housing industry

Generation Z and social-media savvy millennials are using everything from TikTok to Instagram to rattle the rungs of the property ladder. See how much some make per post.

Generation Z and social-media savvy millennials are using TikTok and Instagram to rattle the rungs of the property ladder.

With tens of thousands of followers on a variety of online platforms, a growing number of young real estate influencers are shining a spotlight on the luxury homes their peers’ wish they owned, or exposing dodgy builders and landlords.

Deakin University senior lecturer in commerce Dr Alvin Lee said with many millennials and Generation Z’s now at the prime age to buy a home, the influence of social media on Victoria’s $2.61 trillion real estate market could not be ignored.

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Private building inspector Nik Mladichek who founded his company Compliance Building Reports in 2020 has become particularly hard to ignore by bad builders.

Nik Mladichek is the founder of Compliance Building Reports.

With an audience of about 50,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok he’s educating young home buyers what they should be getting from their builder — and the dodgy and dangerous tricks some are using to short change them.

Jordan van den Berg has attracted an audience of nearly 250,000 followers across YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, exposing rental homes that don’t meet minimum standards.

Jordan van den Berg runs his social media account to expose dodgy rental homes across Melbourne.

Mr van den Berg said his efforts had led to sub-par rental listings being removed, real estate agents being fined and landlords dropping their agencies.

A growing number of real estate businesses are also turning to the style-savvy of millennials and Gen Zs, as young real estate gurus use social media to bring their take on home aesthetics to the world.

Sara Chamberlain co-founded The Real Estate Stylist in 2012, and has spent most of her evenings since then on social media building a fan base of about 66,000.

The Real Estate Stylist is a property styling company based in Melbourne. They use Instagram to promote their work. Jordy Mai and Elyce Cinerari hang a picture while Molly Tilbury-Leahy films for Instagram. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Ms Chamberlain is now using that reach to shine a spotlight on what she thinks works, with real estate agencies among those paying attention — and styling homes with her view in mind.

“We do really think about it; we invest in professional photographers to capture campaigns that we have been particularly excited by,” she said.

By putting themselves into their posts, many believe they are also cutting through to younger homebuyers and sellers in a way that the industry’s older guard don’t.

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