Flipping Across America - General Discussion

[LittleIggy]

Is this a pandemic spawned series? In any case, I watched the first epi and will keep watching. Alison was okay hosting. I loved the house in Boise. I have never watched “Boise Boys” but thought they did a great job. The outside looked gorgeous with the natural wood tones. Finding the pocket doors was awesome. I don’t think they overstaged.

The CA house: I didn’t like the black and gold exterior. Not crazy about the green fireplace tile. At least they didn’t overstage either.

Edited July 5, 2020 by LittleIggy

[suebee1212]

I was getting ready to add this show, so thank you @LittleIggy! I had seen both of these shows when they originally aired but it was fun to watch again. I liked some of what was done with the CA house but thought the dark colors on the outside was too much!(In case no one had watched it before, the baby was born soon after....another boy!)

I like almost everything that the Boise Boys do and this was one of their best! I loved the way that Luke decorated. Just enough furnishings....the Good Bones team should watch to see how to do it! The way they finished off the porch area was perfect....loved the colors they used.

I could do without Allison Victoria but I can close my eyes for a little bit! The less I see of her, the better!

I can't wait to see some of the other designers again, especially Paige and DeRon of Flip or Flop Nashville and could be happy without Flip or Flop Las Vegas....

[ByaNose]

I watched the show and it was just okay. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before though. I’ll give it another episode or two before deciding to proceed or not. My question though is about Allison. Why does HGTV keep hiring her? Hasn’t she been sued a million times for faulty work & flips? Just curious.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Allison Victoria has not only been sued by several home owners, but the city of Chicago shut down almost all of their remodel job sites, and there are many articles about the issues with the neighbors, and failure to pull permits to do additions, and finish houses up to code.    I don't know why HGTV and the producers keep hiring her, and I find her voice and snotty attitude very irritating.    I actually kept my finger on the mute button through the entire episode.     I don't know why they call it a competition, because it isn't. 

I loved the Boise house, and I know that those homeowners will love that spectacular house.   I bet the neighbors were thrilled at the improvements too. 

I couldn't stand the California house.    I hated the outside paint scheme, and didn't like a lot of the interior work either.    I didn't like the green tile on the fire place either.    (I'm rather cranky today, apparently).     I've never found the California group remodels to be all that authentically 'Vintage".      They seem like nice people but I don't like their taste at all.   Not that I could ever afford to move to California, and buy one of their houses anyway.    

If I had the money, I would have bought the Boise house.    

My guess is that this show is just a way to use the people from the flipping shows, but who can't do 16 or however many homes make a full season.     It takes a lot of coordination, and timing, and filming time to do an entire season.   So now they can just do a couple of flips a year, and have more variety in the flips.  

[LittleIggy]

I think it’s a pandemic filler series. That’s okay. It’s something to watch. 
Maybe Alison has incriminating video of some exec at HGTV! 😏

[irisheyes]

6 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I couldn't stand the California house.    I hated the outside paint scheme, and didn't like a lot of the interior work either.    I didn't like the green tile on the fire place either. 

I completely agree about the outside paint job. That was hideous. Maybe light blue with white trim. The green and black was terrible. 
The fireplace tile just didn’t go with the colors they chose. If they were going to do the bright green, then they needed to choose a wall color that was very soft. 
 

Loved the Boise house. Unfortunately, I don’t have a million dollars to buy it. That sun room (without the 9653 plants Luke put in) was gorgeous. I would buy the house just for that. 

[Tosia]

Boise Boys are the best!!!!!

Love them,  love their designs,  love their families.  

Vocal fry on wife doing California house is painful.  

Edited July 5, 2020 by Tosia

[LittleIggy]

The California house had gold paint on the outside, too. 😬 I didn’t like the wallpaper either. The consensus here is that the Boise Boys’ house won in the design category. 🏆 BTW, I was impressed that both houses had survived fires.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Tonight is (according to my cable guide, that often lies) is Indianapolis (Good Bones), and Palm Springs (Desert Flippers).     I can't wait for this one.   I'm hoping they stop with the "which flipper won" routine.   Location really matters, and comparing two houses, with different markets is not right.  

[LittleIggy]

OMG, I remember Karen’s hideous chemistry set thing! 🙄 I was impressed with what that Desert Flippers couple did with that fire-damaged house. Good work. How many bedrooms did it have? I didn’t notice. I think that back patio could use a pergola for shade though.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The Indy house was from at least season two.     Mina was pregnant during part of it.    Also, that's the street where they bought three in a row on the same street.   The house next door with the 2 story addition, and the blue tarp, was another of their houses, and the redone one on the right side of the screen looking from the street was also one of theirs.       At least this Indy house actually had a dining table.   I don't know how they even put up siding on the houses that are so close together.   

I love the Desert Flippers house, and I didn't remember that remodel.   I liked what they did except for a couple of features, the bathroom tile didn't appeal to me, and the carpet insert in the middle of the family room tile didn't appeal to me at all.   For the family room, just put a darker tile inset, and not carpet.      I think they also put carpet in the bedrooms, and I don't like that.    I'm guessing they didn't put up a Pergola, because they're leaving it for the home buyers to decide if they want a Pergola, a hard cover, or maybe want to put in a pool, and some kind of patio cover after.   

Edited July 10, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[iMonrey]

Thanks for the info CrazyInAlabama. I wondered what the deal was with that ramshackle eyesore next to the Indianapolis house. 

So are these basically just repurposed episodes from their own shows, stitched together to make it look like two sets of flippers are "competing?" 

[CruiseDiva]

3 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

So are these basically just repurposed episodes from their own shows, stitched together to make it look like two sets of flippers are "competing?" 

Bingo! They are just sucking us in with the "new" status on recycled shows. This trend is getting tiresome.

[LittleIggy]

55 minutes ago, CruiseDiva said:

Bingo! They are just sucking us in with the "new" status on recycled shows. This trend is getting tiresome.

Blame the pandemic shutdown. Since, except for Good Bones, I haven’t watched many flipping shows, the content is new to me so it gives me something to watch besides sageuks.

Desert Flippers segment: The carpet insert didn’t look bad, IMO, it just didn’t seem practical. I don’t know why they didn’t get a thinner tile to go there since the tile they wanted to use was too thick.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I hate the carpet inserts, especially in somewhere like Palm Springs, with the endless amounts of sand coming in the house.    If I bought that house, I would have ripped the carpet insert out, and put a darker, similar size tile for an insert, and changed any other carpet to tile.  

I didn't remember the Desert Flippers house, but they don't rerun it as often as Good Bones.   I really remember that one, I think from Season 2 or 3, with the chemistry set macrame thing (that would have been gone so fast if I owned it).      And that was when Mina was pregnant with Jack who is about two now.     I'm guessing the Desert one was a rerun too, but I'm not positive.  

I didn't watch very much of the Nashville shows before, and about half of the Vegas ones, but I'm guessing they were reruns too.    The Nashville house would have been easier to bulldoze, but probably there are restrictions on changing the footprint, or the outside, and not have to get a permit as a new build.     I think I saw the Vegas house before, and it looked disgusting.    I don't care how much air freshener additive you put in the paint in the Vegas house, I bet you'll still get the occasional whiff of something whenever you do any work with drywall in the future.   

I absolutely hate the blue outside/red or orange door on the Nashville house.    If I was looking at houses, I wouldn't even go through the front door.        The bling mosaic on the Vegas house would stop me from even looking at it too.    Unnecessary decoration, that I think I would get tired of quickly.    I hate their staging too, it's too trendy, and over the top.  

Edited July 17, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[LittleIggy]

Vegas: Would someone take the blush brush away from that chica? She looks as if someone slapped her in the face! 🙄 I couldn’t stand her glam and bling style. I was glad to hear those two women expressing reservations about it. Like them I especially couldn’t stand that bathroom sink bowl.

Nashville: Don’t people (even flippers) have houses inspected before buying? The red, white and blue theme exterior was a bit much, but I pretty much liked what they did inside, except there was no bathtub in either bathroom. What did they do with that claw foot tub? 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I think if they're buying a foreclosure, or a tax seizure property, that it may be purchased sight unseen.   Where I used to live, tax seizure property was auctioned once or twice a year, on the courthouse steps, and you could only look from the outside, and I don't think the bidders were allowed on the property to look in the windows.     

Edited July 18, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[iMonrey]

Quote

🙄 I couldn’t stand her glam and bling style. I was glad to hear those two women expressing reservations about it. Like them I especially couldn’t stand that bathroom sink bowl.

Aubrey's designs are always gaudy and too busy. Your eye just doesn't know where to look because there's so much going on. In this one it seemed like every single room had a different color scheme. It was like a psychedelic house. On one extreme we've got Christina's white and grey through the whole house and on the other end of the spectrum we've got Aubrey throwing up a bag of Skittles all over the place. There has to be a happy medium. And just because people live in Vegas doesn't mean they want their house to look like Caesar's Palace. I suppose they are trying to fit in a "theme" since they're in Vegas but wow, way to go overboard on that.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Why don't they just say they're showing two different flips, in two different cities, and stop calling it a competition?    It would be just as interesting as a flip show, but not a competition, since it's comparing two different places, with two different markets, and even separate years in some cases.  

I'm watching tonight's episode, with the Corsini's from Atlanta, and a couple in Houston I don't even remember.   I liked the Corsini's flip, but it was a big fail to not figure out the septic tank would have to be redone to accommodate a bigger number of bedrooms, and more appliances.   I'm surprised anyone paid that much for a very nicely redone two bedroom.   THe Houston house was great planning to transform the giant master bedroom into several rooms.   

Alison said "I always have my contractor walk the building before we start remodeling to avoid expensive mistakes".    Then why did they get nailed on so many violations, and get shut down by the city of Chicago?  And have several lawsuits from buyers?    And have to redo so much on the houses?  

Edited July 24, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[LittleIggy]

I really loved that solid wood countertop on that pass-through in the Houston house. That wood was gorgeous.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The Houston couple did a great job on the kitchen, and wooden counter top pass through.   I really liked what they did everywhere in that house.     

There was one thing I didn't like in the Houston house, the carpet color was a big no for me.   I would use a Luxury Vinyl Plank in a medium or lighter wood color.   It's water proof, durable, and is nicer to walk on than hard surface.  It would have been a much better choice than the lighter carpet.  

Edited July 24, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[pasdetrois]

I love the Boise boys' work. The design guy has great taste, and that house was fabulous.

[iMonrey]

Aww, I really miss Ken and Anita. They were by far my favorite Flip or Flop couple. Out of all of them, it felt like they were the most "real" in terms of actually being in that business instead of just hosting a TV show. Anita didn't show up for work in designer outfits and more makeup than RuPaul normally wears, and Ken really knew his construction stuff. Unfortunately, they chose their biggest flop for this episode, for some reason.

I can't believe we still have Tarek and Christina while Ken and Anita were cancelled.

[NJMom]

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Aww, I really miss Ken and Anita. They were by far my favorite Flip or Flop couple. Out of all of them, it felt like they were the most "real" in terms of actually being in that business instead of just hosting a TV show. Anita didn't show up for work in designer outfits and more makeup than RuPaul normally wears, and Ken really knew his construction stuff. Unfortunately, they chose their biggest flop for this episode, for some reason.

I can't believe we still have Tarek and Christina while Ken and Anita were cancelled.

I am pretty sure I read that they chose not to continue with the show. Running out but i will see if I can find something announcing this.

[iMonrey]

No, they were cancelled. 😥

[CrazyInAlabama]

HGTV has rules for keeping a show.   You have to do a certain number of filmed flips a year, and several participants have said it's too much financially, and time filming to be doable.    The Home Town people, and I'm sure Good Bones have a person on staff that coordinate the filming schedule, and the construction schedule.   I'm sure filming delays construction, and makes for much longer days for the cast and crew.    I remember Anita saying the HGTV requirements were bad for business.   I bet that's why most of the city flipping shows aren't around any longer.   Maybe they should have a flipping show, that shows a few episodes a year for the various flippers, instead of making each one do a ridiculous number of episodes.      I really liked seeing Ken and Anita again, even though I know that was a rerun.     The Houston flippers I don't remember at all, so they were really fun to watch, and I loved their design choice (except one).   

This week, 8 pm Central, and 9 pm Eastern is a house by Flip or Flop, and Boise Boys.   I can't wait for Boise again.  

Then at 10 pm Eastern/9 Central is another new episode, with Atlanta/Ken and Anita, and the Nashville flippers.    

Edited July 25, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[pasdetrois]

Mina's and Karen's show on this series was simply a repeat of an episode from their own series. I recognized the lavender siding, conversations, pulling down the old add-on, etc. So Flipping Across America is nothing more than recycled, or never shown, episodes, with an obnoxious TV personality as host.

I loved the Houston flipped house and neighborhood. Very charming.

Edited July 25, 2020 by pasdetrois

[LittleIggy]

Flipping Across America is obviously spawned by the pandemic. Since I haven’t watched any of the shows except Good Bones, it’s new content to me.

[iMonrey]

Quote

  I remember Anita saying the HGTV requirements were bad for business. 

Well she claimed in their intro they flipped over 100 houses a year, so that particular requirement shouldn't have been an issue for them. However, the script HGTV makes them follow is definitely bad for any flipper's brand. Every single episode they have to find some "unexpected" problem halfway into the remodel, insert their obligatory "Oh noes!" and cut to commercial. No respectable contractor would even buy a house without foreknowledge of basic issues like new wiring, new plumbing and new roofing. Finding that out after the fact - week after week - just makes them look like incompetent idiots. (And the fact that they still manage to make a profit even with all these "unexpected" overages makes them look damn lucky, and it makes flipping look deceptively easy.)

[LittleIggy]

Los Angeles: A 900 sq. foot house selling for almost half a million bucks. 🤦‍♀️
Boise: Second time seeing these guys, and another great job. Technically not a “flip” though! 😏

Edited July 31, 2020 by LittleIggy

[CrazyInAlabama]

The LA-Flip or Flop house was several years old, so $500k plus is a bargain by today's prices there.     I loved the Boise house, and agree that the original needed to go, and the new build was fantastic.

The next episode with two ranch houses, almost the same starting price with Nashville and Atlanta was good, but I recognized both episodes.    I remember the Atlanta water in the crawl space flood.    I find it amazing that either house made such a profit, because they were both awful to begin with.  

I recall Anita also said the schedule of filming made for very long days, and HGTV/producers wanted flips at a schedule that made filming, and selling an issue.     They also barely had their kids on the show, and HGTV doesn't like that.

Edited August 1, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[LittleIggy]

Nashville: Her name is Page Turner! 😆

[iMonrey]

Quote

Boise: Second time seeing these guys, and another great job. Technically not a “flip” though! 😏

I'd never seen the Boise flippers before. I agree about the house but I didn't find them particularly compelling. Nothing here made me want to watch their show.

[LittleIggy]

Las Vegas: I liked the finishes. The staging was way too cluttered, and I hated the pictures in the living room. That artist was very talented. The portrait of his daughter was gorgeous. The mural was stunning, but I wouldn’t want it in my bedroom.

Houston: Mostly liked the reno except for the fireplace tile.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I don't like that the network pitches this as a competition.    The flips are from different years, different markets, and if they were filming today, the prices would be vastly different.    Stop comparing the profit, and just show the flips.   

The one I saw that was Flip or Flop was when C & T were still married, so it's old.   They don't need Alison Victoria commenting on flipping either.    Just get a narrator, and don't do comparisons of prices, and profit.  

Edited December 11, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[pasdetrois]

I really like the Houston decorator - can't remember her name. They did great work with that house. I am surprised they didn't realize lifting the foundation would probably affect the masonry fireplace.

Hated the Vegas condo, but I liked hearing why that couple prefers to flip condos, and they made some clever modifications.

[magenta]

The problem with the show it's that they are mixing apples and oranges

 

Aubrey and Bristol finish a condo in 10 days and sold it and made 25k. That's 2.5k a day

 

The Boise Boys took almost half a year on that house and made about $195k. 1k  a day

[MsTree]

For those of us who enjoy renovation/decor shows...with little to no new shows on HGTV, I'm happy to watch this show that they put together.

I honestly don't care if it's apples, oranges or strawberries, I'm just happy to see something "new" and somewhat different.

And actually something new did come out of it for me, since I've never seen the Boise Boys before.

[LittleIggy]

That antique stove was awesome. I’m glad they renovated it. I liked how both houses turned out. I did agree with the woman who said the Palm Springs place needed shade in the backyard.

[LittleIggy]

I’m with Page re: those roaches. I would have been out of the house faster than her. I loved how the house turned out.

That looting of the house in TX was reprehensible.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The roach issues in both of the Hidden Issues episodes made me want to scream, and call in a nuclear strike on the roaches.      I loved Mary's tile choices in their house.   The shower floor tile, and that lovely textured shower wall tile looked so spectacular.     

I hate that someone stole the copper out of the house, copper theft, and other thefts are a huge issue for remodels, and for vacant houses also.    

[LittleIggy]

I loved the Boise Boys’ house! That horse trough tub was ingenious (the farm store had a resident cat! Aw!). I’m surprised the list price was so low.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I think both houses were lovely when they finished them.    However, I do love the Boise Boys unique features in each house.  

[CrazyInAlabama]

Tonight is a new episode (at least according to my cable guide, which has been known to lie), with a Fort Worth episode, and a Houston episode. 

I don't know how I missed the Houston episodes when they were new, but I've only watched the duo on the Flip show, when they showed the original series.  

Edited February 26, 2021 by CrazyInAlabama

[LittleIggy]

I can’t believe the Houston house was on the market for four months. I loved those sliding doors in the master suite and those tiles in the shower. The house in Fort Worth was lovely, too. 
Alison’s eyelashes needed a reno. So spiky! Did she use Gorilla Glue for mascara? 

[CrazyInAlabama]

2 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Alison’s eyelashes needed a reno. So spiky! Did she use Gorilla Glue for mascara? 

I noticed that, and it looked very uncomfortable too.    If this was new, I'm wondering if she did her own makeup, and eyelashes for the show?   

I was surprised the Houston house was on the market for so long, and sold for so much under list.   Maybe they over improved for the neighborhood?    Even with a nice remodel on a house, you can't go a lot over the neighborhood comps.       I'm wondering if it was in a flood zone?   I wouldn't touch a house that had so much foundation work, and the slab chopped up and repaired the way it was.   The house was lovely after all of the work, but I think it was a bad idea to buy and flip it.    The bamboo sink looked nice, but I wouldn't want anything porous for my kitchen sink.   I know it looked like it was sealed, but do you have to redo it?    I love a metal undermount, or farm house sink.    

The Fort Worth house was lovely too.     

I'm sure both flips were filmed at least a few years ago, and the markets in both areas have really heated up, so today they would have sold much quicker, and for a lot more profit. 

Edited February 26, 2021 by CrazyInAlabama

[LittleIggy]

Both houses turned out great. I loved the floors in Page and Daron’s house.