# Sitcom Property Values **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 28, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906 "2009-09-28T22:07:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/41 "2009-09-30T00:24:41Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > And sexual favors. Mmmm hmmm. To whom - Higgins or Orson Welles? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/42 "2009-09-30T00:45:39Z")
Why pick one? ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/43 "2009-09-30T01:08:02Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > For example, [$439,000](http://www.homes.com/listing/92982419/REGO_PARK_NY_11374). > > If they did buy in 1989, it was during a downturn in the market > [http://furmancenter.org/files/Trends\_in\_NYC\_Housing\_Price\_Appreciation.pdf](http://furmancenter.org/files/Trends_in_NYC_Housing_Price_Appreciation.pdf) > > I would guess they paid $250,000 in 1989, less if it was in “fixer-upper” condition and they did the work themselves. I believe the mortgage payment on that (6.5% 30 year fixed rate, 10% down) is about ~$1450. It would be tight at first but doable on two ~$35,000 salaries. The Wife, working in a white shoe law firm environment, probably made more than that but I’m being conservative. Probably less. I live in a similar house, not far from Rego Park, and paid $150,000 in 1987. (Although the bedroom and kitchen on the show are too big for the style of house shown in the exterior shots) ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/44 "2009-09-30T12:34:08Z")
How much do you think it would cost to build the six million dollar man today? ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/45 "2009-09-30T12:37:14Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > The Adams Family Estate had to be several million… But Gomez was totally loaded from playing the market. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/46 "2009-09-30T12:53:05Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > How about the Banks’ mansion on _The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air_? [http://www.trulia.com/property/39048115-11610-Bellagio-Rd-Los-Angeles-CA-90049](http://www.trulia.com/property/39048115-11610-Bellagio-Rd-Los-Angeles-CA-90049) This looks pretty close to the Banks’ mansion and it’s selling for $4 million. I don’t what it would have been worth in the late 80s when they purchased it. ---
**Author:** ![Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uosdwis_R.Dewoh)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/47 "2009-10-01T00:22:34Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Yes, but no one pretends that Thomas Magnum could afford that place. It’s understood that he lives in the guest house of an estate owned by a mysterious millionaire, in exchange for providing security. Charlie switched to employing hairy mustached men after that angel business became too expensive because of the constant sexual harassment lawsuits. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/48 "2009-10-01T11:14:40Z")
> [@nivlac](#): > > I doubt that Monica and Rachel’s apartment is 3500 square feet. That’s an awful lot of space and it sure does not look that large on TV. Maybe half that. I vote for the Tanner home being more pricey in the current market. You’ve got to remember that TV show apartments are usually split in half and opened up like a Barbie House so that the cameras can film. The Friends apartment is a good example, the wall where the main door is and the wall where the bedroom doors are on look to be aligned at about a 45 degree angle from each other while in reality they are parallel and directly across from each other. So the square footage of the set and the square footage of the real life equivalent aren’t the same. Monica’s apartment would be uncommonly large for NYC but not absurd, I’d guess something like 1100 sq ft. Frasier’s apartment would face a similar perspective adjustment. His main door’s wall and the opposite kitchen door’s wall would be direct opposites, not opened at an angle. > [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > I always wondered about the going pay rate of an “average” call-in radio show psychiatrist, because the Taj Mahal-like condo that Fraiser owned must of cost him a pretty penny. (not to mention his other pricey expendatures-----a live in physical therapist, huge BMW, assorted world travels, art collection). > > Yes, I KNOW its a sit-com, but wow, did he live like a king on what had to be a somewhat limited income… I’m not sure why you think Fraiser was living like a king, his apartment is completely reasonable. It’s a very nice urban 3 bedroom condo, but nothing about it is outlandish. Frasier made a pretty fine living from his private practice I imagine, certainly well into the six figures. On that salary alone he’d have little trouble affording a Seattle condo like that with plenty of extra coin for his absurd fancy expenditures. His condo probably ran somewhere around $750k which is very doable for a professional like him. As far as a radio host, I think that pays pretty damned good. First off, he left his private practice for it so one would speculate that it was for a decent raise. I’m an Adam Carolla fan and before he got dumped from his radio show in LA he was making some serious coin and living a much more lavish lifestyle than Fraiser was. His radio show was good and he was a “star” but the program wasn’t exactly blowing up the ratings. It’s little doubt that he’s well into the 7 figures annually, and while Fraiser’s program is in a smaller market with a less mainstream subject you could trust that a mid 6 figure income is realistic. Presumably Daphne was paid for by Martin’s pension as his injury was suffered on the job. Fraiser probably spent a little money feeding her and whatnot but it’s not like he had to cover her entire salary, though I wager he could have without too much strain. In the world of Sit-Coms that show was probably the most realistic. ---
**Author:** ![Slade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@Slade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slade)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/49 "2009-10-01T16:42:46Z")
I remember someone involved in Frasier once hinted that the Doc had lucked into buying some Microsoft shares in the company’s very early days when these were cheap. It’s not like his show’s in national syndication, so an apartment like that in a prestigious door-manned building in a desirable part of Seattle with those views might well be beyond his means otherwise. As far as New York apartments are concerned, I’d guess Seinfeld’s cramped accommodation would probably be the most realistic in sitcom-land. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/50 "2009-10-01T17:25:46Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Fraiser was a psychiatrist that means he was an MD (or DO) and a specialist at that. That is a very well paid field. On the sitcom _Cheers_ he appeared to have not only a private practice, but was on staff at a research university and various clincs. > > At least on _Cheers_ he would’ve been well paid. His clients were probably Boston’s Back Bay elite. > > Now I don’t know on his own program if he still had a private practice or not. He didn’t. One episode revolved around him trying to go back into private practice in partnership with Niles. Hilarity (if that’s how you view excessively neurotic-borderline-psychotic sibling rivalry) ensued. It’s worth noting, however, that Frasier’s agent Bebe (one of my favourite recurring characters) was by all accounts the offspring of a barracuda and a wolverine, so whatever money could be forcibly extracted from a call-in radio gig, you can bet Frasier got every penny (less 10%). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/51 "2009-10-01T17:26:01Z")
> [@Slade](#): > > As far as New York apartments are concerned, I’d guess Seinfeld’s cramped accommodation would probably be the most realistic in sitcom-land. But Kramer’s apartment was like a ski lodge. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/52 "2009-10-01T17:53:54Z")
How much would [1164 Morning Glory Circle](http://www.1164.com/) go for in today’s market? And would it hurt/help the property values that it has a strange history of supernatural occurrances? ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/53 "2009-10-01T18:03:43Z")
> [@](#): > > I would guess they paid $250,000 in 1989, less if it was in “fixer-upper” condition and they did the work themselves. I believe the mortgage payment on that (6.5% 30 year fixed rate, 10% down) is about ~$1450. It would be tight at first but doable on two ~$35,000 salaries. The Wife, working in a white shoe law firm environment, probably made more than that but I’m being conservative. You’re underestimating his income. Out here in the rural midwest UPS delivery driver is one of the golden blue collar jobs, paying just under $20/hr to start. In NY where salaries are higher and adding in the fact that what’s his name has had the job for many years, it’s not inconceivable to estimate his income at much closer to $50,000. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/54 "2009-10-01T18:10:59Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > But Kramer’s apartment was like a ski lodge. Only when he wasn’t restaging The Mike Douglas Show. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/55 "2009-10-01T18:14:24Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > But Kramer’s apartment was like a ski lodge. It just looked that way because of the wood paneling. You never got a good wide shot view of his place, like with Jerry’s apartment, but the few times they actually did show the inside, it looked pretty small. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/56 "2009-10-01T18:58:42Z")
Here’s an old _old_ thread about this subject: **[How much would an apt. like Monica and Rachels actually cost in NYC?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=139471)**. One that y’all have overlooked so far: Will’s apartment on **Will & Grace** , in a Manhattan high-rise with a view of the park. Estimated value in 2002: $800,000. And the monthly rent for Joey’s apartment on **Friends** was estimated at $4000 back then, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/57 "2009-10-01T20:12:01Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > It just looked that way because of the wood paneling. You never got a good wide shot view of his place, like with Jerry’s apartment, but the few times they actually did show the inside, it looked pretty small. Now that I think about it, didn’t Kramer once have Japanese businessmen lodging in a chest of drawers? ---
**Author:** ![Translucent\_Daydream](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/translucent_daydream/32/16170_2.png) [@Translucent\_Daydream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Translucent_Daydream)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/58 "2009-10-01T21:15:07Z")
I can’t believe that NOBODY is mentioning Al and Peggy Bundy’s house? Chicago? ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/59 "2009-10-02T18:52:05Z")
I believe they lived in Aurora? Wait, that was Wayne’s World. Looks like the actual house used for Exterior shots is in [Deerfield](http://www.gearthhacks.com/downloads/map.php?file=19752). ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2009, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906/60 "2009-10-02T19:35:39Z")
> [@Translucent\_Daydream](#): > > I can’t believe that NOBODY is mentioning Al and Peggy Bundy’s house? Chicago? But it was built on top of an ancient Indian shoe burial ground. That had to hurt the property values. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sitcom-property-values/511906.md?page=4)