msmarjoribanks

Totally agree with this as well. I find it more interesting when they have constraints and have to make tradeoffs or do a fixer-upper, and I also agree that it's better when it's not all about having 4000 sq ft or the most trendy finishes and style elements. I like it when they are happy and excited about even imperfect places. This is especially true for younger people -- I can't imagine having assumed I needed the most expensive-looking place or refusing to make tradeoffs when I bought my first place. I was just excited to have an in-unit washer and dryer.

Here's a 2-story Eichler: https://www.dwell.com/article/this-rare-two-story-eichler-has-just-been-listed-for-dollar1.35m-ca334861

I remembered that one, but when I saw it was back decided to skim through it again and found the houses for fun. I didn't mind the husband, although the bathtub thing was annoying (and probably show driven). Wife was annoying. I think the wife said something about moving to the burbs in a couple of years, and if I'm remembering correctly, it's a poor financial decision to buy for such a short time -- I don't think that place is likely to appreciate a huge amount (the high-end market here is kind of flat right now) and transaction costs are a killer. Comments on the places: First place was listed for $699K plus $25K per parking space, they said they got it for $720K (I think) including two spaces, so that's better. Place is in the area where Cabrini Green used to be. (It's fine now, although I don't care for the street they are on.) Second place was not a realistic suburban option. It was in Kenilworth, which is one of the most expensive burbs, which is why they got such a small lot for their money (and the husband wanted big lot -- there are closer options with bigger lots for less money). Also not that close to the lake, which is what is desirable in the north shore (in addition to the school), although can be super pricey. The place was also on the market for a while, was pulled off to be rehabbed (which seemed to be going on at the time of the showing), and eventually sold for a much lower price than the $799K they were quoted ($694K). Again, not a real reflection of what suburban prices are in many other areas. Third place was not too far from one where I used to live, but on a busy street I would not want to live on (odd they did not bother commenting on that). They quoted it at $695K, it actually sold for $660K (although parking is quoted at $15K, so that likely means $675K). Seems overpriced to me knowing the area. Of the places they looked at I liked the first one best. I've heard it's a nice area for small kids (school used to be problematic but has been merged with a much better elem school now, but they are clearly planning to leave before the kids are in school). There are parks around and they are both easy commutes if the couple works downtown (the wife seemed to be the main breadmaker).

I know! I think the Home Alone thing had to be a shtick. I knew they'd pick the third one at the top of the budget over the first, though, because it was so much bigger and fancier. I find the ones where people have a big enough budget to get basically everything they might want in their chosen location bore me. I find the ones where they have more constraints more interesting. Wife was being ridiculously demanding about all the necessary cosmetic changes, although at least they decided to wait on many of them. Heh -- I had the same thought about the restaining. It amused me that the word where I live anyway is that dark floors (exactly how they stained them) are going out. I mean, I like them, that's the color my floors are (prior owner did them in '06) and I don't care about fashion or being up to date if I like something, but you just know they do!

Yeah, that was ridiculous, but it was made better by the fact that they showed the baby having no issues.

I thought the same thing about the third vs. the first. The third was barely over budget and they seemed to want to do a bunch of work on the first that would have made the total cost more overall. At the end it seemed like the wife's dissatisfaction with everything was more for the show, and that they were just going to do a few things initially (a lot of DIY), like the hardwood floors on the first floor and perhaps painting the cabinets (getting to the rest of the kitchen later -- although I can't recall for sure if they were going to wait on the appliances, really should if they want to be frugal as it seemed the husband really did).

Orlando episode -- in addition to what everyone has said already, I thought the "it's over budget!" with the first place ($259K) and the third ($253K) was really weird. If you can afford $250K, you can afford those, especially since prices are negotiable AND the first had HOA of $59 and the second (which she considered well under budget) of $225. Monthly payments on the first would be less, in reality. Also, what's with asking if the furniture in the first place comes with the house? People do that all the time on HHers (agents always say it's negotiable), but in real life no one thinks the furniture in a house they look at is for sale -- either someone still lives there or it's staged. I guess maybe with the new construction it's different, since the developer may own it, but beyond that why would you want someone else's choices vs. your own? Seems odd. The excitement over the touch screen on the stove was also odd. If she just had to remove the trees, it's good she could donate them.

Just watched this one -- rerun from August. Nice episode. The couple was almost too laid back for the show, but that was a nice change of pace. I was psyched out as they were looking in the West End of Atlanta, saw two places there (first one in the more ideal section, but weird with no back door, and 1300 sq ft), second seemed the "just right" house as it was not quite in the right bit of the West End (close to a train), but still there, very cute, 1900 sq ft (they didn't want something too big). Third was in the SW area of town, portrayed as not what they wanted, much bigger (2200 sq ft?), really cool stone house that was a converted church, tons of light, and the husband's coveted gas stove (other two were electric). Normally when they are looking in a particular area and toss in one that's great but in a less expensive area it's a decoy, but this turned out to be the house. For once it seemed like a realistic search as I can see looking in an area, realizing how much more you can get in a slightly different area, and so deciding to buy that instead. I was shocked at how much they got for $265K in Atlanta. The other houses in the SW area looked a lot smaller and maybe less reno'd than the ones around them in the West End -- anyone know the area? (As a converted church the place they got wasn't really typical of that around them.)

I thought the place the San Fernando Valley couple picked had great potential, but indeed, a LOT of work, and the costs are going to mount. Seems like they are going to do it slowly over time, but I think financially one of the other ones would have been cheaper -- I don't think they realize how much they are going to end up spending, and I hope they checked out the non cosmetic stuff (plumbing, electrical, etc.). I do get the pick, though -- fun place to make their own if they can handle the reno. Maybe they can make a bit of money by Air BnBing the inlaw suite.

I wasn't sure about the location/distance from where they wanted to be, but guessed they'd pick the second one, as it seemed the best option for them and the third was SO over budget. Interesting information about the third one -- since they didn't really focus on the negatives like the busy road and seemed to have a small yard (which they wanted), I was wondering why they'd only shown a 2400 sq ft house in State College and if one a bit smaller or with an unfinished basement might have been cheaper. Guess not. The husband's desire to relive his college fraternity days was something I expected to bug me, but they were pleasant enough, reasonably cheery, not too picky. Wife's voice was annoying, though.

Good to know -- I assumed otherwise and was going to skip it since the beach format bugs me for some reason.

Yeah, I guess rose gold is a trend. Do not want. Discussion of some trends here: https://www.bobvila.com/slideshow/7-house-trends-that-are-on-the-way-out-in-2018-51778#bv-us

It comes out of the Arts and Crafts movement. I have a couple of books about craftsman architecture, but sometimes it gets used oddly on HHers. I will admit that I was really prejudiced against MCM and mid century through 70s architecture in general (partly because I lived in not particularly good 70s houses influenced by the style when growing up and it just felt dated to me). Having seen what it is supposed to look like on HHers (some episodes) and Restored, and then looking at some local examples, I appreciate it now, and even think good examples can be really beautiful, although my preference is still for older styles (and houses). Whenever they do a city I know even slightly and don't mention the neighborhoods it drives me crazy.

Just watched a new one with a couple moving back to Birmingham, AL. No major conflicts but an exaggerated style one. Two houses in their desired location, one under budget but needing some work, with great potential, one really cute but tiny yard and over budget. Third one not really in their desired area. Alleged conflict between wife's style (craftsman) and husband's style (MCM), and likely real issue with the wife not liking the first place because it looked like a "Brady Bunch place." Kitchen supposedly needed gut, but they didn't really show why, the oven was old but the other appliances were SS so I wondered if they really were that old, and the cabinets were the all so popular white. Anyway, it was enough under budget that they could do the work they wanted, and they basically redid it. I thought they made a good choice and the new exterior paint made a big difference on how attractive the first place was (it was nice inside, albeit with some needed changes), and it had a great lot compared to the second, which is something you cannot fix.

I remember that one. I really liked the HHer.

If there was discussion of it, I missed it, but recent (week or so ago) episode with the young couple from Mahopac. NY. He was a teacher, she did some marketing thing in (I think, not stated) NYC, they met at Penn State but her family was in the area. They saw a fine place that needed a bit of fixing up, no garage, in their budget, and then two (IMO) really cute places, one 30 minutes farther away (the wife already had a 90 min commute), and one way over budget. Shockingly (not), they went with the practical first one (which was totally fine). I felt bad about the wife's commute, but thinking about it, I bet if they went closer to NYC (assuming that's where she worked), prices would go from apparently reasonably affordable to crazy very quickly, and given the proximity of her family they seemed to be thinking about a future and kids. Anyway, I thought they were a pleasant couple. They tried to make up a style conflict (cape cod vs craftsman), but you could see it was not serious.

Ha, ha! For some reason this discussion reminds me that I was reading some old posts on a local real estate blog and saw a discussion of a listing for this odd house not too far from me that is in the style of a barn, and advertised it as offering "urban barn living." The listing further described it (yes, in all caps) as "ARCHITECTURALLY UNIQUE AND STUNNING." In addition to other commentary (bonus, you will be able to say "yes, my kids were raised in a barn!"), it was noted that calling the architecture of a barn "unique" is a little bit strong -- we are in Illinois, after all.

I used to watch the Next Food Network Star and remembered from that (I checked, it was back in 2012), but as you say I guess she's some kind of current personality too (my HGTV obsession has supplanted my Food Network watching). I figured they'd go with the third one due to the coach house, but I don't get it. I'd much rather pay less and not have to deal with (or share my yard with) tenants or the stress of being a landlord. I mean I do get it, I know $1500/month (or whatever) less the $50K more mortgage is a lot less, but ugh. And that assumes you can find tenants who won't complain about the chickens and the drumming and the RVs supposedly there often.

Okay, I actually did have the KC butler's pantry one, I thought people were still talking about the Smithfield one. So dumb. The house they got was IMO ugly on the exterior, and it was weird how every bedroom had low hanging chandeliers (but I guess that was the model home?). The butler's pantry obsession was the dumbest bit because all the places had open concept kitchens if memory serves. Having just looked it up, a butler's pantry is between the kitchen and the dining room -- you store china and plate up there, the kitchen is not visible because in normal vintage houses (grand ones anyway) it wasn't. Having a hidden butlers pantry and open concept kitchen that you go to after the pantry makes NO SENSE. And messy cooking isn't the espresso maker or the oven, it's the stove and the sink. Sigh. And "oh, the neighbors are so close" in the first place made my eyes roll (of course, I live on a 30x125 Chicago lot). Also, I guess that was the neighbor's fence, but they said "no fence" when showing a fence. Modern farmhouse -- what does that mean? Modern and farmhouse are opposites in my mind. He loves indoor shiplap, shocking! I hated that two sided fireplace. I'm being extra critical because the butler's pantry/status-seeking thing annoyed me so.

Saw the DC one -- another one where location was the main reason for the pick (or maybe location + price). They didn't really see anything that the wife wanted (in theory, vintage, not a loft). The second converted school loft was interesting and fun but also ridiculous and impractical and I'm with the husband in not wanting to be in what's basically a garden apt, not for $689K. Place they got was boring, but as soon as I saw it I knew they'd pick it, it was the obvious choice for them. This X butts kitchen thing has been on a few episodes I've seen recently, hmm.

I just wanted a regular pantry, for storage, and had to look up what a butler's pantry even was. I wouldn't mind it if I came with a place I liked, but it seems like a waste of space otherwise. That said, I'm sorry I missed this episode, sounds like it might have been hilarious. I don't disagree, but an ongoing complaint I have is that location (which includes school district) is often glossed over or ignored, but it's usually obviously the driver of the choice. It's one reason I find the ones set in places I know extra interesting. I understand it's coming from the HHers script, but I'd rather have more geeky realism and discussion of neighborhoods and schools and realistic trade-offs and so on (but I get that that's not what they think sells, they like people to be "2005, ick, outdated" or to argue over housing styles, often in a way few people really do, or perhaps to freak out about seeing their neighbors or using an oven that has been used before.

Yes! and that's exactly what I did -- signed up on redfin to get notices for a place like mine, and then went to open houses.

She was also focused on total cost, which is what I thought was practical. Totally agree about schools/school district, but HHers never seems to talk about that -- either they think it's boring or too locally-specific or possibly politically charged in some ways. Re doing the work later, depends what it is. What irritates me is the idea that if a house isn't 100% remodeled and perfect they can't possibly have it. When I was growing up I recall moving into a place that we thought had some hideous style choices and redoing them (when my sister and I were young), and that's how I've approached it. Some issues are known and can be dealt with quickly, but IME in real life most people are willing to wait on lots of changes, especially if it's more budget conscious.

I did redo them right before I sold, and think it was worth it. Buyers here for higher-end condos are super picky. Places are above top of the bubble prices, but only if they seem new or updated. We don't have nearly the crazy market as in some places. Everything competitive has wood floors, they are super common here.

I don't care about islands, but I HATE galley kitchens (had one in my last place) because I'm a little claustrophobic and I really cannot stand being in such a kitchen with someone else. It was a source of conflict. I now have a kitchen with an island and its fine, but before the galley kitchen I had two other places with no island, but also not a galley style and I liked them too. I didn't realize the galley would bug me til I had it (and I had it for 15 years, but it really bothered me to cook with someone else in the kitchen).