Stan39

But that seemed fake, too. Lol. David seemed uninterested in the whole thing from the start. You’d think for someone claiming to care about cooking that he would have put in more effort.

You gotta love Tracy’s salesmanship on the upgrades and staging. “Do you think it’s worth it?” “Oh yeah. I’ve never lost money on these fixups.” How do you prove that? ”Was it worth it?” ”oh yeah, before the remodeling I would have listed it for this number I just made up in my head. But now I can list it for this higher number I just made up in my head.” So dumb. As we were touring Altman’s new listing I kept trying to figure out who’s going to buy that very specific house that seems practically impossible to remodel. Then it sadly hit me. I bet some company buys it for a reality show or to host a bunch of influencers for content. I hear people are doing that it LA now. It’s just sickening to think a bunch of bratty 20-year-olds (who have no discernible skills) are going to live in and not appreciate that house, while they show people how to comb their hair or film 15 second poorly choreographed dancing 😔

There was an episode years ago where the buyer was trying to work out a deal and her “solution” was for the agents to not take their commissions. It was pretty shocking how casually she just threw it out there as an option and the agent was taken aback. I guess there are people who think you should always ask for what you want in case you might get it, but I’m always of the opinion that how much I want something depends on how much I’m willing to pay for it and I don’t expect other people to sacrifice on my behalf. Then again, I’m a horribly negotiator. Lol.

They need to bring back Tracey’s hot assistant, Erika. 1. She’s hot. 2. She balanced out Tracey, and the two of them could be fun and goofy. It was much more entertaining than this version of Tracey being self righteous with her bratty kids. Alas, Erika is mostly selling real estate in Arizona now. And she’s dating a super rich guy so I doubt she cares about being on this silly show anymore.

I think the same thing. Even more likely, tech gets outdated almost as soon as it’s purchased, so what are the odds the next super rich buyer is going to want the same tech from (to him) five years ago? You build a custom TV stand that pushes a 55” tv from a custom built lift in the bamboo floors, but the next buyer wants a 75” tv? But I’m lazy. I also feel this way when houses have giant custom beds and things because I keep thinking, “where do you find sheets?”

There was a brief moment (I believe last season) where one of the twins explained their new concierge service to clients to basically take on all the minor fix-ups/renovations/misc services to prepare a house for market in exchange for some money when the house sold. I’d be much more interested in seeing shows about how that business model is/is not working and anything else business related vs cat fighting. Though, I think most realtors like to keep their business trade secrets so that others don’t copy/go somewhere else with the info. Sigh, every time I bring up Netflix Season 4 is just sitting there like a bright, shiny present, but I just can’t bring myself to watch it given all the comments from this message board. I want a show about pretty people selling pretty houses, but that’s not what this show is 😢

I’m just going to fast forward the Tracey scenes because she’s become insufferable. I’ve never seen a parent pull her children aside to give a monologue about how proud she is… of herself. And if she felt so bad about Flagg losing his commission on Somers’ house maybe she could give him some of the commission he earned on her house sale that he gave up? Altman was almost human when he was discussing real estate with that Laguna agent. He’s much better without the extra schtick and over the top persona. Still confusing as to him “buying” his parents that house in part because it’s in between him and his brother but then talk about moving his family to Laguna and his parents visiting.

It’s funny you bring up MDLA, because that show is also on right now and those message boards are debating some of the “deals” on the show. People are looking up properties from the show and they’re either still listed or sold for a different price than what’s quoted or listed by an agency that the cast don’t work for. So who knows how “real” any of these people are. It actually makes more sense if they’re all mostly just celebrities at this point. Real estate is Southern California was insane while these shows were filming so the fact that they can’t show more stories about buying and selling properties tells you a lot. If they were all really agents they’d be raking in commissions and getting insane offers.

Sadly, “realtor” is one of those job titles you can proclaim with very little bona fides. Not a lot of formal education required, possibly make your own hours, and the commission-based approach means there’s very little to dissuade someone from becoming an “agent” or for the industry itself to push back and make it harder to get your license. Don’t get me wrong, to be a GREAT agent you need to work your butt off, know your stuff, network constantly, and really be there for your clients. It’s just a shame a lot of markets are flooded with directionless wannabes who want to seem important and successful but don’t want to put in the work. It’s often very difficult to know if a junior agent with less than five years of experience is any good or just bored with life and trying something out until a better opportunity comes along. Case in point, I found an agent online and set up a meeting in her office to discuss what I was looking for. First appointment she cancelled for work reasons. Second meeting she cancelled because “an open house just came on the market she needed to look at.” About an hour later I saw her posting on Instagram from a stand up paddle board. The next day I asked my friends for agents, got one with 20 years of experience in the market. She knew everything about the codes, zoning laws, inspections, appraisals, negotiations (I live in Austin which is a crazy market). For someone with anxiety who gets stressed out about stuff, especially something foreign to me, I never worried and the whole experience was seamless and easy. But you can’t get suckered in by the flash and ritz of the real estate world. (As for the other “agent”, she married a rich guy and moved to Dallas. She still considers herself a realtor though based on IG she mostly just occasionally posts generic listings and maybe once a year helps a friend buy/sell their house).

Yup. All financed with debt they get at a much better rate than individual home owners because the more money you have/want the better the terms. If you think rates are good for 300-400K loans just imagine what they’re like when you’re borrowing tens of millions.

Keep in mind most of the people buying and selling these homes never live there, and when they are there they have entire staffs to do everything for them. Go watch Queen of Versailles and watch how disgusting a family’s mansion becomes once they let go most of their staff. Pet droppings and dead pets everywhere just because spoiled rich kids can’t be bothered to feed and fill water bowls. There’s another documentary on the rich where a realtor says she sold a country estate in England that has a staff clean everyday, open it up every day, put out freshly cut flowers every day, and the owner has never spent one day there. It reminds me of the god awful trend of touchscreens in cars. Articles have been written about how dangerous it is to have so much information placed on screens without tactile response (they basically demand you take your eyes off the road to work them) but automakers moved to them because they LOOK so appealing and shiny in showrooms. All these houses are built to look “cool” and “sexy” (a term I find disturbing to consider for your home), but not for function. Or there is function, but then there’s all this over-the-top crap for a wow factor for impulse buying. It’s what happens when real estate turns into asset classes that private equity firms and oversee investors dominate rather than small families.

I haven’t watched this latest season yet, but it’s been my experience that no one on this show is self aware or possesses humility. Well, there was that one guy who hired Mayra just to keep hitting on her.

This reminds me of the time the Real Housewives first met pretentious David Foster who of course wanted to talk about himself, and the housewives wanted to kiss his butt, so they all started singing and playing When the Saints Go Marching In because they were too cheap to secure the rights to something you might actually listen to. And everyone pretended it was great.

I thought it was a beautiful building, it just didn’t seem like a home. Like I said, I think it would be a great day spa but not really a home or vacation home for a family. That main floor layout seemed more like a lobby with a juice bar than a living room where the family can hangout. Lol.

I was just on Peacock for another show, saw episode 2 up with a little feather by it. It’s premium?!?! They expect people to PAY to watch more of this show?? She’s far-fetched.

I think it was on an episode of MTV True Life that they followed a young girl who wanted a boob job or something. The doctor removed her gown, marked up where the implants would go, and then immediately starting marking other parts of her body that “needed fixing”. She told him thanks but she could just run a few miles on the treadmill to tighten things up, at which point you could see him literally roll his eyes. I’m sure there are some good ones out there (never seen it, but I imagine the doctors from Botched are pretty moral after seeing all the horrible stuff). But plastic surgery is a cash business and a lot of surgeons don’t see patients as human beings anyway (normal surgeons can have god complexes and maybe just technically want to solve the medical problem. Plastic surgeons tend to think they can fix everyone’s “flaws”). There are also countless stories of malpractice, fraud, and taking advantage of people. I’ve had a couple women tell me stories about agreeing to everything prior to surgery, then once they were under anesthesia the doctor convinced them to change the size of the implants they wanted. And it’s not just the doctors. Keep in mind a lot of the “Botox parties” are nurses just organizing a small social event between friends. Maybe they’re experienced injectors or maybe it’s their first time practicing since they graduated. There are so many (small) muscles in the face that do different/counter things that messing up any of them cause you to look wonky. having said that, there are skilled professionals out there. My point is that it’s not too hard for bad apples to get in and screw stuff up for a lot of people.

Didn’t really like David and James’s listing. It was nice but felt more like a day spa than a home. I guess if you’re on vacation that’s ok just didn’t seem warm and cozy. Carley acted like a spoiled child who’s never been told, “No.” If you really want/need something then pay what is reasonable. The seller doesn’t care what your husband’s budget is, or what you think is reasonable profit for what he paid for it. I highly doubt she’ll be willing to sell her house at a discount. The Russian seemed stupid. Refusing to negotiate isn’t a sign of strength, it’s a sign you’re foolish and don’t understand how markets work. People will just move on to the next property. Flagg’s dinner party… wow. There are certain people for whom a little plastic surgery isn’t bad, then there are people who look better if they just age naturally. Plastic surgeons will never decline business, but there should be some limits on letting people pay for plastic surgery because you’re not going to look better.

Is it actually prestigious or is it just popular? My meaning is, I don’t know anything about these neighborhoods, except the realtors always talk up the bird streets and there seems to be a lot of construction there. My assumption was that realtors like the bird streets because there’s actually inventory there. Seems like most other areas only have one house pop up from time to time (that needs renovation).

Haven’t seen any ratings for this, but the lack of reviews and discussion leads me to believe it isn’t very popular. How funny would it be if Paris married this weirdo just for the TV show and the TV show bombed? Lol.

I watched the first season but it wasn’t enough to hook me. They kept forcing all those Rachel dating storylines I didn’t care about. And I thought a lot of it was subtlety just about how rich they are (which is a lot of reality TV so I guess that shouldn’t bother me).

They yada-yada’d the entire Amado plot. Keep in mind, S2 of Mexico was all about Felix out maneuvering the Columbians to try and get them to pay in cocaine so he can wholesale. Amado achieved that in one two minute scene, basically asking for the exact same thing, with the explanation that it was different for Amado “because they like him.” Just lame.

I posted above that I thought both the living space and office space were impractical for either. Anytime something like this comes up and someone actually foots the bill I assume “tax dodge”. Lol. Though you can only deduct the value of the office space, maybe if you also lease out the living space you can also declare depreciation on the living space to make it seem like you don’t have income? I don’t know. I don’t understand the stuff as well as rich people do. Seems like most never end up paying for the stuff they buy.

Exactly. It’s particularly eye rolling when people claim they “just want to live a normal life” while introducing us to their reality show. I’d be more interested in an expose about why Paris is doing this show at this time. She’s been off the screen for years, but now has the documentary and this low rent reality show on Peacock. She could have done any project she wanted so I wonder why she chose this? Then again, maybe it’s as simple as how Kristin Cavalieri got her lame show, she just wanted back on TV but is too lazy and dull to come up with something original so she just went along with whatever the network suggested. Though, again from the documentary, Paris seems somewhat more hardworking and brand conscious than Kristen ever was.

They said they paid $400K for the furniture and $5.9M all in for everything. But maybe that was all staged and they backed out.

I just thought it was funny how Altman used “you won’t have people walking through your house” as a reason why the sellers should sell for $1M below asking price. I think I’d be willing to let a few hundred people walk through my house if it meant an extra $1M lol. The No commission was a much bigger point. The fact that the sellers didn’t even balk at $5.5 suggests it was way overpriced and everyone knew it.