Rental Ads Targeted to Desperate Postadolescent Males Really Work

The Post Bros. development and property management company is best known these days for a winning battle against the building trades union, which tried to keep it from finishing construction on the Goldtex apartment building. But even before the heated union battle, the company already had a bit of notoriety for its salacious rental listings with headlines like “Panty-dropping pad” and “This apt will get you laid.”

Now, with a new building to rent out, the company–headed by Matthew and Michael Pestronk–is at it again. New ads include retro gambits like “She’ll Want To Cook For You In This Italian Inspired Kitchen” and the too-much-information stunner “WET DREAM? Make it Come True With This Brand New Swanky Loft Apt.” It’s somewhat frightening to know that the same men who write those ads are responsible for your plumbing and electric, but here’s the thing: The ads work.

“People remember them, don’t they?” says Matthew Pestronk, via email. “The apartments speak for themselves but every developer says that. If one were to come see Goldtex vs. other new buildings in the city they would agree that there is no comparison. But, in a competitive marketplace we have to get people in the door.”

And that can be especially tough when the door, so to speak, is in a neighborhood that’s not necessarily known as a residential center. The building itself, says Pestronk, “is superior to anything in the city by a huge margin” but the need for catchy marketing is there.

“The people who rent from us, which is to say typically 25- to 35-year-old professionals of all types, are generally attracted to the marketing. If they are willing to live in a less sterile, more authentic neighborhood environment and value being ‘first in’, they generally like the copy.”

Meanwhile, Post Brothers recently brought a COO, Harlan Krichen, onboard, but we’ve been assured he won’t have to generate any ad copy.

“Our company has been growing aggressively for the last few years and is much smaller is size than other businesses in this space,” Matt Pestronk says of the hire. “We were somewhat spread thin and bringing in a new COO frees up the principals of the company to create more new projects.”