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The truth behind those 'Ugly' billboards . . .
 Imagine that you're at home on a Wednesday night watching your favorite sitcom when an investigative reporter from the evening news interrupts and says, "Get the truth behind those 'We Buy Ugly Houses' billboards tonight at 10" . . . . Suddenly as your stomach turns you sit straight up in your easy chair and shout, "What's THAT all about?"
In San Antonio, Texas, that was just their way of getting the attention of their audience during November sweeps week. It worked! Viewers might have expected an explosive story about HomeVestors, but instead they learned about the story of Terry and Cyndy Bartelli of Bartelli Properties and their satisfied customers.
"The story line was one I have not seen any reporter do before," said San Antonio franchisee Toni Lott of Lott's Alamo City Properties. "The reporter interviewed the people who sold their property to the Bartellis, who are model franchisees. They came to see the finished product after the Bartellis rehabbed it. They filmed the sellers' expressions and comments as they toured their old home. They were blown away by the improvements."
The reporter then told the story about the sellers--Amber Reilly and Richard Hunter, a young couple with a baby on the way. They had tried unsuccessfully to sell their house through a realtor for six months. Then they heard the jingle: "Please sell us your home" and they decided to call HomeVestors!
Of course, the phones started ringing in franchise offices shortly after the piece aired in San Antonio. "We have had a number of calls on our buy line and one on our local line as well," reports Cyndy. "Fortunately, we had just purchased a telephone company listing under 'We Buy Ugly Houses'. The local line caller contacted Information and asked for 'the ugly house people'. She was given our number. We have made an offer on one of the calls we've received so far."
The Lotts also received several calls and in fact had purchased one property as of the deadline for this issue of The Vestor's Voice.
More PR For HVA
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch interviewed franchisee Bob DeClue of RMD Investments for this article: HomeVestors cleans up by rehabbing ugly houses. Realtor Magazine, the official magazine of the National Association of Realtors, interviewed HVA Director Bob Rometo and franchisee Jodi Turbyfill of Home Solutions of South Florida for a feature to appear in January 2004. The San Antonio Express-News planned to include photos from a home rehabbed by Terry and Cyndy Bartelli in the newspaper's Home & Garden section during November.
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