House Hunters: Buying in the USA

[Ohwell]

12 hours ago, ByaNose said:

Boston. Matt boyfriend of Natalia.....Yowza!!!!! And, he’s a contractor, too. Nuff said. Also, she has horrible choices in paint color but a great choice in Matt. LOL!!!!

She'd better be careful that one of her roommates doesn't snatch him up, lol.   I haaated the paint color in the living room.  It actually hurt my eyes.

[aguabella]

17 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Medford! The first house was actually in my sister’s neighborhood, you can see my brother-in-laws flag pole though he will probably be pissed because you could really only make out the American flag and he flies both the American and Canadian flag because he and my niece have dual citizenship. The house finally sold, it’s the smallest/cheapest in the neighborhood, after several months on the market when others sold within a week of being listed even those listed on the winter.

It was obvious that they would be going with the one “undergoing renovations” but given her budget it’s the one that made sense.

Cool!  Sounds like your sister deserves at least the $500 stipend, right?

Given their market, why'd the decoy require an extended marketing period?  Was it overpriced, considering its condition?  Get the "problem house" reputation for that reason and sit on the market?  Just curious ...

It's not unusual, in my experience for fixers to receive multiple offers in good markets.  In fact, b/c of their lower initial offering price, they often receive more offers than move-in ready homes!

[biakbiak]

9 minutes ago, aguabella said:

Given their market, why'd the decoy require an extended marketing period?  Was it overpriced, considering its condition?  Get the "problem house" reputation for that reason and sit on the market?  Just curious ...

No idea but it ended up selling for 20k ($485k) more than the price they showed on the show so multiple offers is likely, they filmed in late April/early May and the house sold in June. 

Edited December 19, 2018 by biakbiak

[aguabella]

7 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

No idea but it ended up selling for 20k ($485k) more than the price they showed on the show so multiple offers is likely, they filmed in late April/early May and the house sold in June. 

Thx.  Yes, it's best to expect an extended marketing period with a fixer.  Or, even better, have no expectations!  Have seen so many sellers make assumptions in that type of market, overprice and then ... crickets.

And, they had the typical 6 month plus HH post-production period.

[aguabella]

21 hours ago, ByaNose said:

Boston. Matt boyfriend of Natalia.....Yowza!!!!! And, he’s a contractor, too. Nuff said. Also, she has horrible choices in paint color but a great choice in Matt. LOL!!!!

Good-looking but not so sure about his RE cred.  Yeah, the pinkish / salmon walls?  I assume she doesn't plan on selling soon but hope he's around to repaint!   Sure, buyers can repaint but it's really true (in general) that they make their decision in a few minutes either consciously or subconsciously.  Why give many of them an immediate turn-off?   

[ByaNose]

25 minutes ago, aguabella said:

Good-looking but not so sure about his RE cred.  Yeah, the pinkish / salmon walls?  I assume she doesn't plan on selling soon but hope he's around to repaint!   Sure, buyers can repaint but it's really true (in general) that they make their decision in a few minutes either consciously or subconsciously.  Why give many of them an immediate turn-off?   

I was so torn if it was pink or salmon. Both were equally ugly for a living room color. 

[aguabella]

On 12/12/2018 at 5:14 PM, kirklandia said:

Catching up on the DVR, just saw Nashville Christmas proposal and my inner grinch must speak.

"We have been going out for almost 3 years now".  They want to move from "our current home",   Are looking for "our first home", where we will have "our first Christmas" and "where we will start our lives together".

You have been together for 3 years.  You live together, in a home.  You are having a baby.  I think your lives together started already.  I guess it doesn't count without a ring and a mortgage.

 

That's HH drama!  They alter backstories to conform to their episode's designated storyline.  So, for the Nashville episode, they were playing first-time buyers in a new relationship.

Edited December 19, 2018 by aguabella

[aguabella]

On 11/28/2018 at 6:49 AM, ByaNose said:

I would like HGTV to decorate my house for Christmas. All the houses (3 episodes) last night looked like they were from a Hallmark movie. They guys with the twins. I kept cracking up when the one guy kept on crying about his kids while the other one just looked at him like, "Hold it together, dude!". LOL!!!!

Yes, production must have increased the budget for local decorators this year.  They've all looked good!

You wouldn't mind having Christmas in July, when they filmed?

[answerphone]

"First time Buyer in Boston".

Wow, the realtor could easily pass as Erik Menendez (looks, not personality!)

[aguabella]

On 12/5/2018 at 12:25 PM, Babalooie said:

My thoughts exactly.  Being suspicious of producer hijinks, I imagined this episode being filmed just after the royal engagement was announced and producers finding actors who resembled them.  The future groom was pale and a had a little reddish tint in his hair to go along with the Megan lookalike.  The house was a good choice.

These episodes would have been filmed / wrapped around July, i.e. after the royal wedding.

Good guess but they typically don't pay actors (other than the $500 stipend) on the U.S. HH version.  Didn't notice the Nashville guy but did notice the woman's MM resemblance.  

Anybody think the same of the FL beach house fiance?  And, what about her Panama hat, worn during the beach scene?

If HH staged it that way for 1 episode, they'd have duplicated it at least one time and probably more!  The film crews share ideas and information.  That's why these storylines appear in waves, e.g. craft room demands, "ocd" house hunters, etc.

[aguabella]

On 11/27/2018 at 6:02 PM, CruiseDiva said:

It would be and HGTV probably already has it ready to air.

I felt kind of bad for the wife because that newbuild house was perfect for her until they talked about wanting to rent out a carriage house when family wasn't staying there. Can you say Air B&B? I found that to be something of a turn-off.

Good idea but HHR hasn't done that since (probably) their first season.  Instead, they use their own casting team, working in only 3-4 metro areas per season.  This past season included LA, Denver and Boston / NE, IIRC.

For the HH U.S. version, if the couple intends to renovate, they typically designate the final scene as WATN and feature the couple's initial renovation work.  They usually film over a 2 week period and aren't allowed to alter the home prior to filming so it's tough to finish large projects.

[aguabella]

On 11/29/2018 at 1:37 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

A big issue with HOA fees happens when there are a number of homeowners who stop paying HOA fees, either because they're going to foreclosure, or they just don't think anyone will catch up to them.    When the number of paying HOA members drops significantly, the HOA fees will go up, and also many times the reserve funds for the HOA go down to.    

I lived in New Mexico for 10 years, and never saw a snake, but I did live in the middle of town.    However, I'm sure if you live out in the new areas, and have a property that was desert, you might have a good chance of running into snakes, or other former residents. 

Snakes, and other pests are a reason I prefer to rent before buying unless I'm very familiar with the area.      

Agree, big issue for HOA's.  They're subject to state regulations but in general, HOA's use typical collection procedures and may foreclose.

Technically, fees shouldn't increase under normal economic conditions.  Why?  Well, like any other well-run business, an HOA should include an allowance for uncollectible debts as  a portion  of their monthly dues.  So, if/when a give homeowner defaults, they access that their reserve and monthly dues shouldn't increase.

Sure, if another economic / market collapse occurs, that reserve may not be sufficient.  Florida after 2008 is an unfortunate, recent example.  And, if new HOA management just added or increased the reserve to cover defaults, it might be temporarily insufficient.

This is one of the reasons I always suggest buyers review the HOA's books and records.  Always important during that review to verify the % of rental units in any given complex / pud.  Why?  In general, they're more likely to default.

[LittleIggy]

Dayton: Refreshing to see HHs who decide the big kitchen remodel can wait so they paint the cabinets and put in a new stove. I hate it when people say a place isn’t “move in ready” because they don’t like the kitchen countertops or the cabinets. That fold out bed in the basement wall was creepy! 😨

[edie3]

but the Dayton couple covered up the orginial hardwood floors!!!  Maybe they were not able to be refinished and not because of his noise issues.

[laredhead]

I liked the Dayton couple, but the house they chose was so small.  At least it has a basement that adds some square footage, and at $99,000 they can always add a room or two or three later.  Don't know anything about the neighborhood and surrounding house values though, so maybe they are doing minimal work and plan to sell in 3-4 years and move to something larger. 

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, edie3 said:

but the Dayton couple covered up the orginial hardwood floors!!!  Maybe they were not able to be refinished and not because of his noise issues.

Yeah, maybe they just didn't have the money to put in new floors in the areas that didn't have them. The new flooring they installed looked like laminate, not real hardwood, so it would be a lot less expensive.  I am no expert, but was told by a floor refinishing guy that hardwood floors, especially old ones, can almost always be repaired/refinished.  They can even get rid of the squeaks.  They were a nice couple with very realistic expectations and sensible in their approach although I do agree with the poster upthread, it wasn't just that the house itself was small overall, the rooms themselves were very small.

 

Liked the Washington to Virginia military couple, too.  Very practical, got along well and had reasonable desires for their price range.  They just seemed like really nice people.  I also liked the home they chose, though it wasn't my favorite.

Edited December 19, 2018 by doodlebug

[wovenloaf]

1 hour ago, edie3 said:

but the Dayton couple covered up the orginial hardwood floors!!!  Maybe they were not able to be refinished and not because of his noise issues.

That was terrible.  They didn't look in bad shape, at least from the tv.  And that laminate they put down was drab colored and cheap looking (not all laminate is, but the one they picked was).  She had been commenting earlier in the episode about how could anybody possibly prefer carpet over hardwoods.  So then she gets hardwoods but immediately covers them up with bad laminate?!  Ugh. 

I think in that second house (the newer one), she was trying to play up the dramatics on purpose or something.  Because she was doing the classic House Hunters act about the house being near-uninhabitable unless the entire kitchen is torn out.  But she wasn't nearly as haughty about the other houses. 

[Ohwell]

5 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Liked the Washington to Virginia military couple, too.  Very practical, got along well and had reasonable desires for their price range.  They just seemed like really nice people.  I also liked the home they chose, though it wasn't my favorite.

I liked them, too.   They were very reasonable. 

[Dewey Decimate]

I'm not one for teary theatrics but do have to admit that it got a little dusty in the room at the end with the military family. I thought the dad was legitimately moved by the idea of not having to watch his family on a webcam for Christmas, and without knowing the story details, the family's adoption of the dad's younger brother seems really terrific. The Christmas decos (assuming staged by HGTV?) were OTT but looked good.

As opposed to the cancer-mom's tree. Not personally a fan of jamming all kinds of giant store-bought shit onto an artificial tree. Good for her for reaching the cancer-free mark, but I'd like to hear more to that story. Did they say who the Hilton-lite princess daughters belonged to (biologically)? The horrid, jaded, asshole person in me wondered if the father, right after attaining his trophy wife, thought "D'OH! Cancer, already?!" {going to hell}

[LittleIggy]

Lake St. Louis: I was so distracted by the wife’s dried out, stringy, over-processed hair, I don’t remember which house they picked except it wasn’t the pool house obviously. She could be a pole dancer with that hair! She annoyed me complaining about the windows when the room was as bright and sunny as can be. The little girls were cute.

Edited December 20, 2018 by LittleIggy

[KLovestoShop]

LittleIggy, I so agree with you on the Lake St Louis wife.  Not only did her hair give the pole dancer vibe, but her first two outfits barely covered her behind.  And she really likes the off the shoulder tops. 

The third house looked like a double wide from the outside, but the interior was very nice.  But what was her problem with not enough light and windows?  All three houses looked very bright on the inside.  And did you catch her comment about the second house's kids bedrooms were in the front, and she said it wasn't good because of robbers?  Seriously?  

[doodlebug]

6 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

LittleIggy, I so agree with you on the Lake St Louis wife.  Not only did her hair give the pole dancer vibe, but her first two outfits barely covered her behind.  And she really likes the off the shoulder tops. 

The third house looked like a double wide from the outside, but the interior was very nice.  But what was her problem with not enough light and windows?  All three houses looked very bright on the inside.  And did you catch her comment about the second house's kids bedrooms were in the front, and she said it wasn't good because of robbers?  Seriously?  

I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought she was strange.  It made no sense when she complained about the lack of light in the living rooms.   Both had at least a couple of windows and one had patio doors! The only thing I can think of is that she wanted a big picture window in the living room and was too inarticulate to make that clear.  I thought the third house actually was a double wide.

Her concerns that ‘robbers’ would break into the kids’ rooms if they were in the front of the house was also nonsensical.  I think she was maybe not too bright and had trouble expressing herself.

Her hair/extensions looked awful. If I was going to be on TV, I’d go out and get mine done professionally first.

[Spunkygal]

8 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Lake St. Louis: I was so distracted by the wife’s dried out, stringy, over-processed hair, I don’t remember which house the picked except it wasn’t the pool house obviously. She could be a pole dancer with that hair! She annoyed me complaining about the windows when the room was as bright and sunny as can be. The little girls were cute.

And what a strange story about how she and hubby met. She invited herself along on a guys’ trip and it was “probably the best trip of my life.” Whaaaat? I guess maybe, maybe, this would make sense if she knew all the guys really well but she and hubby didn’t know each other at that time. 

[Empress1]

8 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Lake St. Louis: I was so distracted by the wife’s dried out, stringy, over-processed hair,

The realtor's too. And the wife wasn't as charming or funny as she thought she was. Cute kids though.

I, too, loved the Washington to VA military family. They just seemed like such kind people, and you could tell it really meant a lot to him to be in the same room as and hug his family. And it's very noble and kind of them to adopt the younger brother.

9 hours ago, Dewey Decimate said:

Did they say who the Hilton-lite princess daughters belonged to (biologically)?

They didn't, but I assumed they were the husband's kids from his first marriage. They'd been married less than 10 years and the husband looked to be older than the wife, although the wife did look old enough to have college-aged kids. 

[JennyMominFL]

Im playing catch up and just saw the RI episode and came here to see your comments.  I was born and raised in RI, lived there for a time in adulthood and now live in FL. There are a lot of Rhode Islander like that douple. We have a name for them that I wont say here. And yup, there is a chance of mob connections. The mafia IS alive and well in RI.  My husband once worked with a woman who had to go pick up her uncle Joey. He had just done 20 years in prison. Got out to a nice cushy job. He was a made man, who eent to prison for murdering 2 people and stuffing them in their car trunk. My Husband was VERY VERY polite to that guy.  RI is actually a very beautiful state with a lot to offer outside of real life sopranos.

[juliet73]

Lake St. Louis:  I don't know which was worse...the wife's annoying "look at me, I'm trying so hard to be funny and cute" or her awful hair extensions.  

3 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

And what a strange story about how she and hubby met. She invited herself along on a guys’ trip and it was “probably the best trip of my life.” Whaaaat? I guess maybe, maybe, this would make sense if she knew all the guys really well but she and hubby didn’t know each other at that time. 

Is she that hard up for attention that she needs to invite herself on a "guys only" trip?  I'm going to say yes, especially since she was adamant about living so close to neighbors.  She wanted them to be able to see her in the windows.  

Speaking of windows, I do understand wanting a lot of them.  The more natural light I'm exposed to, the better I feel.  However, the house they picked had a lot of windows and she had them all covered with the shades closed.   

[Ohwell]

19 minutes ago, juliet73 said:

Is she that hard up for attention that she needs to invite herself on a "guys only" trip?  I'm going to say yes, especially since she was adamant about living so close to neighbors.  She wanted them to be able to see her in the windows.   

I think she wants to be close to the neighbors because she wants to be known as the "hot" wife in the neighborhood. 

[topanga]

On 12/17/2018 at 11:20 PM, ByaNose said:

Boston. Matt boyfriend of Natalia.....Yowza!!!!! And, he’s a contractor, too. Nuff said. Also, she has horrible choices in paint color but a great choice in Matt. LOL!!!!

Yeah, the boyfriend was cute and seemed nice. And he was handy—definitely a keeper. But I’m glad they were honest about just reconnecting and not being ready to move in together yet. And I thought the salmon wall was one he hadn't had a chance to paint yet. 

My favorite Boston line of his: “Half a million dollars, and you gotta share a yawd?”

[Ohwell]

55 minutes ago, topanga said:

And I thought the salmon wall was one he hadn't had a chance to paint yet. 

I'll have to watch again, but I thought that was the color she chose.  Usually painting is one of the first things done. 

[biakbiak]

34 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

I'll have to watch again, but I thought that was the color she chose.  Usually painting is one of the first things done. 

It was definitely the color that she chose, when they toured there were a lot of patches.

[twinks]

Gilbert AZ: I usually don't comment during the show, but this is one time I have to! This woman is ridiculous! She doesn't like anything! She wants everything replaced/gutted.  She called a tiffany chandelier "very 80s" and said it had to go. UGH!

[chessiegal]

4 minutes ago, twinks said:

Gilbert AZ: I usually don't comment during the show, but this is one time I have to! This woman is ridiculous! She doesn't like anything! She wants everything replaced/gutted.  She called a tiffany chandelier "very 80s" and said it had to go. UGH!

What a bitch!

[Pickles]

I was distracted by the Arizona woman’s pigeon toed way of walking. Surely, they aren’t going to put grass in that big backyard. I didn’t really like any of the houses.

[laredhead]

There is a reason many yards don't have grass in Arizona.  The climate is a desert and it costs a lot of $$ to water grass, not to mention the environmental impact of using water for that purpose.  I guess they've never heard the old saying "When in Rome. . .".   Hmm, she did mention that she didn't want Tuscan style, and if she wanted that she would live in Italy.  You're not going to find Georgia farmhouse style in Arizona, just like you aren't going to find Pueblo style houses in Georgia.  The producers could do us a favor and let some people tour houses silently and we could just look at the houses and listen to the realtor.

[Kohola3]

54 minutes ago, laredhead said:

The climate is a desert and it costs a lot of $$ to water grass, not to mention the environmental impact of using water for that purpose. 

Exactly.  Every time they start to talk about diverting water from the Great Lakes to the "parched" southwest, I my blood pressure skyrockets. I have flown to many areas in the SW and the number of golf courses using water is insane  not to mention yards with grass and swimming pools that evaporate in the dry heat at a rapid rate.  If you live in the desert, xeriscape and be a responsible citizen. 

I have a cousin in Tucson who has one 4 foot by 4 foot patch of grass to satisfy her needs (she grew up in Michigan) but she won't go any larger because it's irresponsible to use water for vain reasons.

[juliet73]

Gilbert AZ:  Ugh with this couple!! "Where is my green grass?"  Almost everywhere, but the desert!!! "Where are my fruit trees?"  In Florida!  In California!  "I don't want Spanish style, where is my farmhouse?"  In flippin' Iowa!!  I wanted to punch them both in the throat - her more than him.  She grew up there, she should know better and her constant complaining was grating!  Finding a home with a lawn in an area like Phoenix is not the norm...you know because it's the DESERT! Also, over the years, some desert cities have paid homeowners to remove their grass and install xeriscape so finding a home with grass is going to be few and far between. Since the backyard is oversized, I think a mix of artificial turf and desert landscaping would be their best option.  

Considering they closed on the house 6 weeks ago, I'm surprised they haven't had a pool fence installed yet.  I would be way more concerned about that then when the furniture was arriving.

[LittleIggy]

Seriously! Don’t move to AZ if you want a big green yard. Idiots! 🙄

[CrazyInAlabama]

I hated the Gilbert AZ woman, and pity her neighbors.   I'm sure she's the type that whines about everything in the neighborhood too.     

The artificial turf isn't cheap, but the types they sell now are great, and would require zero maintenance, if it's installed correctly.     

 She might want to consider what people will think of her for being so negative about everything she looked at.   Gutting everything was ridiculous.

Edited December 22, 2018 by CrazyInAlabama

[Ohwell]

4 hours ago, juliet73 said:

Considering they closed on the house 6 weeks ago, I'm surprised they haven't had a pool fence installed yet.  I would be way more concerned about that then when the furniture was arriving.

I was shocked when I saw those kids playing in the pool without a fence around it.  Both the husband and wife seemed to be oblivious to the danger. If I were a neighbor I'd call child services on them. 

[Empress1]

3 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Seriously! Don’t move to AZ if you want a big green yard. Idiots! 🙄

Y'all know this is my pet peeve! I cannot stand when people want stuff that isn't local to the area. "We're looking for a place in Boston so I'd like a Spanish-style home." No! And for Gilbert, AZ woman: ma'am, you live in the DESERT. What are you whining about grass for? Couldn't stand her.

[KLovestoShop]

It also drives me nuts when people move to another part of the country and expect a kind of house that doesn’t exist in that area. Bitch, you’re in Arizona and the only farms in the Gilbert area are citrus. You’re not going to find a farmhouse in Arizona.  

We lived Az for over 10 years and lawns are not worth it. The watering alone is expensive and imho, irresponsible.  Not only that, but if you want to maintain a lawn in Az and have it look good, you have to thatch and reseed twice a year.  And believe me, you do not want to run barefoot in the grass because of the scorpions.  

What about house three says farmhouse?  Nothing about the house said farm. And if she said “this has to go” one more time, I wanted to slap her. She just came off as sounding like a terrible human. 

FYI, there are a lot of fruit trees in Arizona. We had orange, lemon and grapefruit trees in our yard, and the Gilbert area has some pretty big orange farms.  You should go there when the orange trees are in bloom.  The scent is intoxicating.  

Edited December 22, 2018 by KLovestoShop

[CrazyInAlabama]

The ones I laugh at are people who want Mid Century Modern, with the flat very low angle roof, barely sloped at all, in heavy snow country.  

 

I am shocked at how few people fence the pools, or don't like the fence, and want to remove it.     Having a fence may ruin the view, but having some kid drown in it will ruin your life.  

Edited December 22, 2018 by CrazyInAlabama

[ByaNose]

Gilbert Arizona - Oddly enough, the couple didn’t bug me much. Granted she was a little picky about.........everything but in general they agreed about everything. She didn’t go on & on about a closet that was just for her. She agreed he needed an office and always presented ideas for the office. The kids looked perfectly normal, too. Considering she wasn’t into a house in Italy I was surprised they picked that house. The outside wasn’t my taste but it had so much outdoor space. Including, the awesome courtyard which he thought would be a great area for basketball. Personally, I was thinking an outdoor living room but with 5 kids they come first. I would like to see what they do with the kitchen and that huge backyard. It’s either gonna be grass (which is a lot) or stone (which he hated). 

[edie3]

we really need a name for the house hunters who have unrealistic have to haves/have nots.  All I can think of is Housezillas.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Durham, NC couple want to have a studio for the husband, and beehives.    They look at a small lot, and complain that they wish people weren't so afraid of bees, and would probably not like the beehives.   Maybe people who have bee sting allergies don't want to die either?      If you want a lot of land, and bees, buy in the country side.     

 The second house is going to be a new low mark for the "is it a craftsman"?   It's just tacky suburban mish-mash, and that's not craftsman.   Of course, that's the one they buy.     I wonder if the HOA allows beehives in that yard?  I hope not, because I loath both house hunters.  

The third one is cottage style.   I love his comment about Mid Century Modern, and it's nothing like that, but at least it's way back in the woods, so the neighbors don't have to run from his bees or whatever they really end up with.    The wife needs two spare bedrooms, one for an office, and one for a craft room, and my question is why can't they both be the same room?  

I'm over the 'where will she put her shoes' joke.  

Edited December 22, 2018 by CrazyInAlabama

[ByaNose]

Durham, NC couple. The couple & the house don’t match at all. I liked the outside of the house but the house needed major updates for me. I thought kitchen was very tiny. 

[LittleIggy]

AZ: What made the wife even more ridiculous was that she was from Arizona.

[doodlebug]

12 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

The ones I laugh at are people who want Mid Century Modern, with the flat very low angle roof, barely sloped at all, in heavy snow country.  

 

I am shocked at how few people fence the pools, or don't like the fence, and want to remove it.     Having a fence may ruin the view, but having some kid drown in it will ruin your life.  

As the aunt of a 5 year old who drowned in a swimming pool, I thank you for saying this.  It cannot be said often enough.  It is irresponsible for any pool owner not to take measures to prevent children from having unsupervised access.  Period.

The Gilbert, AZ couple got on my nerves big time for all the reasons noted above.  Not only is it ridiculous to find a farmhouse with a big lawn in AZ, it would look ridiculous in that setting.  If you move to Arizona, celebrate the place by finding a home that fits the setting.  

[Lisa418722]

Just watched the Gilbert, AZ couple.  Those kitchens were not THAT bad - OK, most of the granite I didn't like, but I don't mind darker cabinets, especially in a larger kitchen.  Then she was complaining about the tile floors. It's going to be hot, tile makes more sense than carpet.  The husband kept wanting grass.  A few years ago I spent some time in the southwest and I admit by the time I got home (the southeast), I was ready for some trees and some grass, but if I were living there, I know that is something I would have to do without because it is the desert.  He said his father does landscaping and I hope his father realizes there is a difference in landscaping in Georgia and landscaping in Arizona. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I think it's hysterical that everyone wants to gut perfectly good kitchens that are dark, but the cabinets are in the right configuration.   Refacing is a whole lot cheaper, they replace the doors, and drawer fronts with the style you want, and put a veneer on the boxes.    You totally change the look, and save a bundle, and no one will ever know you didn't gut a perfectly nice kitchen.  

The funniest part of the white kitchen fad is that it's just a trend too.    It's replacing the dark or cherry cabinets that were in a few years ago.   

Edited December 22, 2018 by CrazyInAlabama