Anyone who doubts just how cutthroat slinging real estate deals can be need only to tune in to the new Netflix hit “Selling the OC.” This “Selling Sunset” spinoff follows Jason Oppenheim as he opens a new real estate brokerage in Orange County. As fans might expect, it is rife with dust-ups and catfights galore, all unfolding against a backdrop of the most gorgeous properties money can buy.

Half the fun is watching the agents, most in skintight dresses and teetering on stilettos, bicker, brag, and bargain their way to a multimillion-dollar deal. But surprisingly enough, amid all the fireworks, they also throw out some really juicy tips on how to successfully buy or sell real estate today.

Even if you’re not dealing with glamorous mansions on the beach like they are, you’ll learn some smart ideas that’ll help you achieve your own home goals right now, whatever they may be. Here are a few choice tidbits to give you a taste of the valuable lessons within.

Agent Gio Helou is talking to owner Sy Zahedi about the best list price for the client’s gorgeous five-bedroom, eight-bath, 8,300-square-foot modern home right on the beach in Corona Del Mar.

It has an outrageous living wall, two kitchens, and a primary suite with two baths.

“That’s the secret to a happy marriage,” quips Helou. “Separate bathrooms.”

Zahedi is selling the remarkable place because he and his wife don’t spend much time there. While chatting about the potential list price, Helou suggests $27 million, but Zahedi says he has $28 million in mind.

Helou doesn’t think that an extra million will make much of a difference, because it’s the biggest and newest house in the neighborhood, but he does toss out a caveat.

“The market will speak,” he says.

That means that if they’ve priced the mansion too high, no one will make an offer and it will sit on the market. If it’s the right price, they will receive several offers. Thus, the market will have spoken.

In Zahedi’s house, there is a spectacular living wall—it’s tall and textured and adds a Zen vibe to the room.

“It’s cool,” says agent Tyler Stanaland. “Because you see a lot of these walls that are faux succulents, but these are real.”

Zahedi reveals that an automatic watering system takes all the hassle and guesswork out of maintenance. But what’s abundantly clear is that artificial plants may do in a pinch when a pop of greenery is needed for staging, but if you really want to blow buyers away, living plants are the way to go.

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Meanwhile, agent Brandi Marshall is showing retired NBA player Darren a beautifully remodeled home in Laguna Nigel, CA. It has four bedrooms and four baths in 2,800 square feet of living space. It sits on a huge lot with a pool, playhouse, vast lawns, and mature foliage.

Even with all that, says Darren, “the first thing I noticed was the countertops.” They are covered in impressive marble.

“The kitchen is very important to me,” says Darren, who’s also focused on the great stove.

For all the home’s virtues, the gorgeous kitchen is what clinches the sale of this house.

Marshall’s listing is reasonably priced for the area, at $3.2 million.

“I know that they’ve already got a cash offer,” Marshell tells Darren. “So if we’re going to come in seriously on this house, we’ve got to write our offer up, like, immediately.”

That’s a fairly motivational speech for an agent to make, and Marshall admits to being motivated. But it also conveys to Darren that time is of the essence in this market, particularly when it comes to beating an all-cash offer.

Remember Sundays, when shopping for a home was more like an endless parade of parties where homebuyers glided from one posh property to the next, nibbling on canapes, listening to smooth jazz, and checking out closet space? Open houses all but disappeared during COVID-19, but for a while now, they’ve been back with a vengeance!

Of course, the agents on “Selling the OC” step it up, with fancy brokers open houses with sushi chefs serving up the most up-to-the-minute delicacies and generous pours of sake and wine (white only—stains, you know).

Helou throws quite the open house for brokers—and notes that open houses are happening for homes in lower price ranges as well. Hey, even cans of LaCroix and a veggie tray are all money well spent when marketing a house.

Lisa Johnson Mandell is an award-winning writer who covers lifestyle, entertainment, real estate, design, and travel. Find her on ReallyRather.com