People on the Show: Househunters and Realtors - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

[ChelseaNH]

In the holiday spirit, I thought I'd encourage a little positivity, and give us a chance to celebrate those rare but delightful creatures:  the house hunters and realtors we like seeing on our screens.  For example:

 

Adrian Leeds, realtor, Paris (or possibly all of France)

As sensible as she is knowledgeable.  Which is to say, very.

[CruiseDiva]

I can't believe no one has mentioned the husband and wife who DIDN'T want two sinks in the master bathroom because they "enjoyed" brushing their teeth together at the same sink. That just struck me as gross. Drinking wine together is quality time. Teeth brushing together? Just no.

Edited December 25, 2014 by CruiseDiva

[Bastet]

The young couple in Prague looking for their first place, so happy just to be moving into a space of their own they didn't bat an eye at things the average HH would faint over.

[Bellalisa]

This is a really short thread..........

[Ohwell]

Yeah.........

[BradandJanet]

I recognize Adrian Leeds, but most of the people on this show don't stick in my mind when they're not on the screen.

[Servalan]

I liked the Mickey Mouse law student in New Orleans even though Mickey Mouse gives me the creeps. This is an old one, maybe in the 2005-2006 range? She was fun, quirky, and didn't complain about losing out on her first choice (which I would have prefered as well.) I'd like to see where she is now.

Love Adrian Leeds and Toby (Brown?) who does a lot of London ones. Both of them are realistic and bring the snark without ever being mean. I also liked Claudia in Germany but she only did a couple of shows, iirc.

Edited January 1, 2015 by Servalan

[Bastet]

I'd like to see where she is now.

 

Mickey Mouse Law School Lady is probably buried under a pile of Disney memorabilia in her house, trapped for days because people are too afraid to go in there.

 

While she's on my infamous list, it's solely for her obsession (the endless repetition of "law school" came far more from the VO than from her) -- as a buyer, she was refreshingly easy-going and realistic.

 

This is a really short thread..........

 

The ones I enjoy, I generally do so for what they don't do in contrast to the usual parade of stereotypes, and thus the specifics of their episode are harder to describe in a way that others would recognize.

 

I liked the man with a young son looking for a place in the Czech Republic (he was featured on a "Where Are They Now Update" that re-ran recently) and especially liked his real estate agent's combination of no-nonsense demeanor and laughing nod to the absurdity when telling him things like "the toilet is outside" or "to get hot water, you bring this hose in here, fill up a big pot, and boil the water."

Edited January 1, 2015 by Bastet

[Honey]

I just watched the show again yesterday with the husband that I adore.  Of course I can't remember their names or location.  He was very deadpan and extremely funny.  He wanted an unusual home.  I believe he said he wanted a moat.  He said a fireplace in one home "tickled his fancy" and about a bush in back of the house he said "I could do things like...sit under it" (the bush was a bout 2 feet tall).  Hee.  Does anyone know who I'm talking about?

 

Eta: It was Jeff from Denver.

Edited January 1, 2015 by Honey

[Dejana]

There was a young couple in the South somewhere buying their first house. The wife was the daughter of a brick mason who'd recently been diagnosed with ALS, I think, so he couldn't build them their first house as planned, but she still wanted a brick exterior. The husband made jewelry and the wife needed a room for gift wrapping, but they seemed pretty relaxed and reasonable in the overall house hunt. He kept teasing her about wanting "All brick everything!" but they realized they couldn't afford it yet and their attitude about it seemed to be, maybe for the next house.

[WhitneyWhit]

There was an episode in, I believe 2011, that featured a family moving back to Colorado. They, by their own admission, had gotten in over their heads in terms of finances and that included buying a home they really couldn't afford. They had been living in a relative's business and were buying another home after getting back on their feet. Well, they ended up doing the exact same thing that got them in that basement in the first place; they bought a house that was almost $100,000 over their budget.

[PRgal]

I saw the Frat Boy episode last night (I think it's from 2012).  Those guys must be pushing 30, yet they're behaving like they're still in school.  OK, so you want to save costs and have a group of five guys living together in a big house, but to talk about how it's like a "frat house" and that they play beer pong, etc, etc??  GROW UP!!!  What happens when one of them meets the right person and marries?  Are they still going to behave like that when they're 40?  WOW!!!

[dga28]

BTW, i hate the term "Open Concept" with a passion.   I cringe overtime i hear it.  That must be some Canadian originated term.  Its an Open Floor plan!!! 

[Dejana]

Two back-to-back princesses today, one in Ohio who wanted four closets, one for each season (their budget was 260K) and another in Vegas who wanted at least 4,000 square feet of Rapunzel-inspired splendor complete with balconies, for 400K. In her old house, she had an entire dressing room, so she needed at least a vanity in the master bath, preferably with a wall separating her stuff from his. The husband wanted a medieval meets modern vibe, whatever that means, and they both hoped for a pool and a lawn (in Vegas). The husband complained that what his wife seemed to be getting her way with the real estate agent and what she wanted seemed to matter more. They first met at 16 and he's just noticing this?

Edited December 12, 2015 by Dejana

[Blergh]

Had to laugh at that Hunter with all those dogs who'd bought this large house in Phoenix with not one but TWO swimming pools- but then tried to sound 'conscientious' by saying he'd opted to NOT grow grass in his yard to avoid using water. Yeah, like those pools would use literal drops in the bucket compared to  the exorbitant drain on the aquifer/ Colorado a lawn sprinkler would have used. <sarcasm icon needed>

[izabella]

Dr. Mary in Fargo, one of my all time favorites, just did an update on her fabulous restoration on a recent Where are They Now? episode.  She needs to be on this (still short) list.

[Empress1]

The Indian woman in Chicago who wanted a big home to host parties in. She bought a gorgeous older home. She seemed like such a happy, fun person.

[NYGirl]

Richard Blanco in London is my favorite!  He even did a HH Renovation on his own house.  He's got a great personality and is very cute!

[aguabella]

London Richard's a natural for HHI b/c he's a landlord (not a realtor) with a theater background, so he can easily handle the episodes and provide decoy homes plus potential participants / tenants.  I'm not surprised they signed him. 

 

Am curious why Adrian's contract (Paris) with HHI wasn't renewed.

[Sarahendipity]

New show, seems to be set in Canada, not sure if this is airing in the US.

Buyers looking for houses under $150,000.

First episode I saw was set in Charlottetown, PEI.

First, why the hell is this shot with a fisheye lens?

How much could their apartment downtown have been in rent that they needed to share with another couple? In a place where you could get a house 5 minutes from downtown for 150g, rent could not be that onerous. That had to be fake. That scene where they are all trying to cook at once? Ugh. Get the hell out of the kitchen.

[SmithW6079]

Another "House Hunters" iteration? Good grief.

[CherryAmes]

I actually liked the two episodes I saw.  Especially the PEI one but hey I'm from the Maritimes originally so any excuse to see PEI is an excuse I'll take!  I missed the beginning though and didn't get the "we can't keep sharing" as the excuse for the move.  I thought it was because they needed a place where they didn't share walls with their neighbours because the guy is a musician.  Based on that I was surprised they even showed them looking at the semi-detached house.  Of course if they are staying true to HH that should have meant that was the house they chose!

[hula-la]

I live in Vancouver, where the benchmark price for a single family home is over $1,000,000 so I watched the show and shed a little tear of envy. I love that he narrator stated " first world problems", when the couple complained they couldn't open the door and a cupboard at the same time.

[zivadanielle]

The Indian woman in Chicago who wanted a big home to host parties in. She bought a gorgeous older home. She seemed like such a happy, fun person.

Nabeela!  I remember we spoke about that episode at (relative) length in the main thread after it aired.  Everyone wanted to be friends with her!  I think we also expressed interest in seeing her on a follow up episode since she was going to do some renos. 

[Kohola3]

And now in the Hall of Shame...House Hunters.

 

http://channel955.iheart.com/onair/mojo-in-the-morning-53961/trending-reality-shows-busted-for-not-14592605/v/

[CherryAmes]

A day or two ago they had a mini marathon of this show and while I liked it I was getting ready to smack of few of these "humble" home buyers.  You are looking for houses in the $150,000 range but are still expecting stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors and ample (as in ridiculously huge) closet space?  Really?  One episode in particular though made me want to smack one of the participants for a different reason, the couple househunting in Halifax.  The guy was a total jerk.  Nasty doesn't even begin to cover the way he spoke to his fiancée.  They tried to spin it that they were both competitive but that's not the way it came off to me.  At all. 

[chessiegal]

We're in Paris, and whenever I look at the apartments above the 0 floor (ground floor), I think of Adrianne Leeds.

[jumper sage]

On 12/12/2015 at 5:42 PM, Dejana said:

Two back-to-back princesses today, one in Ohio who wanted four closets, one for each season (their budget was 260K) and another in Vegas who wanted at least 4,000 square feet of Rapunzel-inspired splendor complete with balconies, for 400K. In her old house, she had an entire dressing room, so she needed at least a vanity in the master bath, preferably with a wall separating her stuff from his. 

This reminds me of the time when I was a housesitter in college.  This one house had a master bath and I was washing my hands and thought the whole wall was a mirror.  Cool, I thought then I noticed I wasn't in the mirror and the image bathroom had a different color theme.  They called it a honeymoon bathroom and it was two full bathroom in the same room and was an exact mirror image.  Crazy!

[Homily]

I caught an episode of this show the other day, can't remember where they were looking now but it was a single gal who brought along a friend to give her support.  The friend looked like she was from Central Casting for "bitchy friend with attitude".  Wow.  She was rude and nasty about almost every house and every thing the friend was saying - to the point where the narrator kept commenting on it.  Which makes me wonder - do the participants of these shows get to see the finished product before it gets aired because Bitchy Friend did not come off well.

Edited July 23, 2016 by Homily

[CherryAmes]

I saw that episode.  The friend looked like she was sucking a lemon the whole time.  Really does make you wonder why they want to be on TV when they come off looking so cranky.

[deirdra]

They should have an entire show of past HGTV couples where we try to guess if they are still together or not.  90% of the couples seem to have at least one person who seems impossible to live with.

[topanga]

On 2/27/2019 at 8:22 PM, deirdra said:

They should have an entire show of past HGTV couples where we try to guess if they are still together or not.  90% of the couples seem to have at least one person who seems impossible to live with.

Yeah, I'll bet that success rate is very low. How often do I watch an episode thinking, "Why are those two even together?" 

I have a friend who was on a recent HH episode. Of course I grilled her about every detail, including asking her how much of the dialogue was producer-driven. She said that none of it was--the producers simply asked her and her friend to give their honest opinions about the houses they were viewing. They told them to say whatever came to mind about the houses and each other. 

--So these horrible couples are actually thinking of the horrible crap they say to their spouses and partners. No one is feeding them those lines.