I love this show (on HGTV). It allows me to look at other people’s houses without being arrested.
But holy moly, I’m going to watch with the Mute button pressed. Or make it a drinking game, and every time a realtor or buyer mentions on of these things I’ll throw back a shot. I’d be drunk by the time they got to the second house.
[ul]
[li]granite countertops [/li][li]crown molding [/li][li]stainless steel appliances [/li][li]windows letting in “natural” light [/li][li]outdated or needs updating [/li][li]perfect for entertaining [/li][/ul]
The show could be done without any talking at all. Realtors say “Look at the hardwood floors!” Yeah, I’m standing on them, they’re kinda hard to miss.
The International shows don’t have this problem, unless the buyers are American and then there they go again, expecting the house in Costa Rica or Italy to have the same (granite/stainless/hardwood) features as the McMansion in San Diego.
I love the International shows. One last week showed apartments in Malmo, Sweden, and they were gorgeous. I really think that unless you have a large family or are a gourmet cook, kitchens in most houses are too big. (Bathrooms too.) The European kitchens I’ve seen seem more practical and leave more space for other activities.
But the Swedish people didn’t really like the Swedish apartments! I’d have taken Apartment #1 and said end of discussion! Those two women didn’t like the fireplaces, didn’t like the bathrooms (the bathrooms did need work) but they didn’t like anything! I’m surprised they didn’t end up in a cardboard box because it would be the only thing they could agree on.
It’s more of a gambling game for the wife and me. Betting on which one they choose.
My personal favorite was the Czech couple with their amusing grasp of English (“yes I hope to be there soon for washing”) trying to find a shitty apartment away from Mom. And the one they looked at that had no wall, so the previous owner covered it up with a map.
I love Suzanne Whang. At least I think that’s her name, I can never remember until she introduces herself again after every commercial break.
That drinking game sounds great, we’ve noticed certain house hunters say the same thing time and time and TIME again.
My mother-in-law got us hooked on this show, though we watched it a lot more before we finally bought our place last month. Its especially fun to watch it at the in-laws house when the show features a same-sex couple just to see my F-I-L squirm (he’s just a weeeeeee bit conservative). I personally get a kick out of the couples where one partner is clearly the decision-maker, the other just kinda mumbles cursory agreements with whatever statement the dominant partner makes.
And the equally sexist comment from the wife about space for the husband’s “toys”.
Sigmagirl, the Swedish women scared me a little bit.
I was tickled pink awhile back when they were hunting in Iowa. I’d love to see a Prairie 4-Square on the show. They’re everywhere, the exteriors all look alike but the interiors are unique. But no, they went to a development in Ankeny (near Des Moines, sort of a suburb) and looked at boring new construction.
“So, do you want to see the rest of the house?”
“No. I will just stand here in the living room and squint.”
“Here is your bathroom.”
“Wow, and I thought it was the garage! No wonder there is a toilet in here.”
“Will your bed will fit in here?”
“Gee. Hard to tell - will probably have to move their bed out first.”
“Honey, do you think our poodle, Muffin, will like this backyard?”
“Muffin would be equally happy with a cardboard box in the basement, but yeah - that is why we are spending $200,000 more for this house so Muffin has a huge place to crap out back.”
“Look honey! A fireplace!”
“Wow! I never would have spotted it if you hadn’t pointed that out to me!”
“Oh wow, we can sit out here and have our morning coffee!”
“Yeah, like you are going to go downstairs, make the coffee and then schlep it up here to me on the second floor balcony in January before work.”
"Gee, I like everything about this $1.6 million home, but I really don’t like the paint color in the guest closet. "
“Well, that will be something you will have to think about because, lordknows, a can of paint costs a lot today and that could put you over your budget.”
Did you catch the one (Las Vegas) where the 2000 sq. foot 3 BR 2.5 bath house was deemed too small for the family – of three? Splort!
The hunters can be so frustrating – sometimes I wish the show would follow up a few years later and see how things worked out. Especially when the move means a longer commute to work, or they move closer to grandma, or they end up with neighbors from hell.
What I really, really want to see happen is someone getting outbid, picking none of them, or the financing falling through.
Did you guys see the one on the Costa Del Sol? My favorite one was the house they were moving out of! It had several floors with one room each on each floor and lots of Spanish tiled stairs, and had awesome views and this killer rooftop dining table and was in this awesome little village.
I saw one – years ago – where the guy simply changed his mind about moving.
If they didn’t rehash everything after the commercial breaks, we’d be able to see more than three houses. I do like that I can skip to the last few minutes and see all the houses.
I haven’t seen the show, and don’t know anything about it…but how much did they show outside the apartments? I’ve been through Malmo a couple of times, and not been impressed. Maybe they were trying to find something besides the location to justify their dislike of the places?
Thanks.
Yes, I think I have seen most of the Vegas shows - a recent one had a young guy from Idaho (24 years old) stupidly buying a condo here for about $350,000! What an idiot…for that money, he could have bought a new, or relatively new, spacious three bedroom house, with pool, in a great neighborhood with a view of the Strip!
I read somewhere (here on the SDMB?) awhile back that actually this show is kinda rigged. Most of the people have already closed escrow when they start filming the show, and they simply pick two additional homes for them to look at and pretend are in the running, when in actuality, the selection and paperwork has already been done. This would explain why they stupidly pick the lesser of the homes, as they have already bought it by the time they are pretending to look at the other homes. Makes me wonder how many think, “Damn…I should have waited and looked around a bit more!”
I didn’t get what they did for a living, but they had quite an elaborate home office so it seemed to me they were business partners as well as life partners, so it didn’t appear they were looking for something close to work.
They did seem – or at least the one making all the decisions seemed – interested in a good view and a big bathroom. The house they eventually chose had been converted into a 2-family, so they converted it back and made the second kitchen into a huge bathroom. They had gorgeous old ceramic fireplaces that they didn’t seem interested in at all.