New Haven Independent

CT Homes, a real estate development company run by Yale alums Than Merrill (pictured right) and Paul Esajian, is a regular focus of the A&E reality show Flip This House. According to associate producer Jessika McCool, Tuesday’s block party and the newly renovated Newhallville home will be featured in an episode scheduled to air on Friday, Sept. 14th.

The block party drew a crowd of curious residents who came to tour the two-family dwelling that CT Homes gutted and renovated in just seven weeks. With all new appliances, new floors and carpets, a fresh coat of paint, and a new landscape, the house drew almost universal admiration.

Many neighbors stayed to sample neighbor Maurice Little’s famous barbecue. According to Little, the house-flippers enlisted his help after they saw him throw several successful cook-outs this summer on his three enormous grills next door.

Aside from recruiting Little for his expertise, the CT Homes team secured a permit to block traffic and set up tables in the street. They lured in local families with fliers and offered face painting and balloon animals for the kids.

As any regular viewer of the genre might guess, reality TV subjects seem to be chosen for their willingness to simulate reality, often repeatedly. Merrill, who played for two seasons in the NFL before being sidelined with an injury, was clearly aware of the value of publicity for his four year-old enterprise. He explained, “The show is good for the business.” Recent additions to CT Homes, including Jeremy Black, a former Abercrombie & Fitch model, were equally ready for prime time.

The occasionally contrived performances were always good-humored and endearingly self-deprecating. After uttering an obvious explanation of the event directed to no one in particular (except the camera), one CT Homes partner winked and explained, “That’s what we call a soliloquy.”

The denizens of Newhallville weren’t always quite so comfortable in front of the cameras. Between signing releases and staying out of the path of the cameras, some seemed downright nervous. As one crew member noted, “The neighbors seem a little shy.”

Still, most viewed the house-flipping phenomenon in a positive light. Several residents expressed an interest in purchasing the home at the $275,000 asking price. One neighborhood teenager shouted, “Come flip my house!” as she raced past with friends.