House Hunters: Buying in the USA

[chessiegal]

Wow - talk about a weird coincidence. I went to the funeral of a former colleague, mentor, and dear friend at Arlington National Cemetery this afternoon. After the service in the chapel, I realized the wife of one of our former colleagues was there. Talking to her after the graveside service, it turns out she recently took a job working at the new DC forensic lab. After a long day, I turn on HH to see Randy, who took a job working at the same lab! I'll send her an email and see if I can find out if she knows how their renovations are going.

 

Another weird coincidence, her husband took a management position at what is now the military combined forensic labs outside Atlanta. Soon after he moved there was a woman who worked in his lab on HH. I said something to him about it, and he said he vaguely remembered that someone had asked permission to be on the show and say where she worked.

 

[peggy06]

What was up with the woman in the Baltimore episode who had to have things uniform? Did she actually mean symmetrical? I couldn't really grasp what she was getting at, it seemed so weird. If this is the storyline she was given by the producers, even weirder. The guy was fixated on having a house that would impress people. If I recall correctly, their budget was pretty modest, so not sure what he was expecting to find. I liked the older house best but readily admit the bathroom was tight and the layout wasn't ideal. The other two houses were just blah. Have to give credit where credit's due, though - they bought a place with an old fashioned kitchen, and nary a peep about gutting it.

[ShuFace88]

I absolutely loved last night's couple that bought the fixer-upper in Washington D.C.  They had very specific tastes but were willing to spend the money and put in the work to really get what they wanted.  I hope they follow up with them and show us how the house turned out.  They also were snarky in the best way.  When touring the fixer-upper, the realtor said they could get over a million dollars for the house if done in a "tastefull and appropriate" way.  One of the buyers responded "that's all we do" in such a way that my husband and I laughed for 5 minutes. 

[Ohwell]

The DC guys were delightful.  I used to live in DC and live in the 'burbs now, but I still go there frequently.  I'm familiar with the Brookland area, but the Wakefield area threw me for a loop because I have no idea where that is.  I know they've taken to giving trendy names to some of the areas in DC, so that must be one of the newer ones. 

[laredhead]

I really enjoyed the Washington, DC episode.  The buyers were interesting and not demanding with their desires in a house.  I really appreciated their humor, especially the story about the dog's name.  The realtor was great.  She explained a lot of things and pointed out the good, the bad and the ugly in an appropriate manner instead of just walking through the house and saying "this is the living" or "this is the kitchen".  I hope this house redo is featured in a future episode of House Hunters Renovation.  I'm sure it will be a tasteful and appropriation renovation. 

[QuinnM]

I do hope the DC buyers end up on HH Renovations. I thought the bit at the beginning where one described what he wanted and the other described what they would buy was very cute. If other HHs are trying for this kind of banter they should watch this episode. This is what it looks like when it is done with humor and love.

. I really appreciated their humor, especially the story about the dog's name.

What? I missed this. Was it in the last minute that TiVo hates?

[laredhead]

No, it wasn't in the last minute.  It was one of those short bits before they introduce the next house.  One of them said they thought they were naming the dog after something in Gaelic, but then someone told them the dog's name in Yiddish meant "hernia".  Yes, this was an episode that all HH's should try to emulate as far as behavior on national TV.  

[KimKam]

I live in DC and generally have a love/hate relationship with the DC episodes, since most of the time people seem to be looking in the burbs. But, I loved last nights couple.  I think they made the right choice, as was said in the episode many times that area is up and coming and they will probably see a nice return on their investment.  I also had never heard of Wakefield, but assumed it was in the upper NW part of the city.  

 

Did anyone catch the couple in Southern California looking for a place with room for a RV they didn't even own yet?  They both got on my nerves, but the husband's need to base their house purchase around something then didn't even own yet was really annoying. 

[Bastet]

Did anyone catch the couple in Southern California looking for a place with room for a RV they didn't even own yet?  They both got on my nerves, but the husband's need to base their house purchase around something then didn't even own yet was really annoying.

 

I didn't see that one, so I can only imagine how obnoxious they were in expressing it, but if they were planning to buy an RV then space for an RV pad would be appropriately-placed on their "must have" list of wants.  Yes, some people store them elsewhere, but generally find it a royal pain -- one has to go get it, hope to find a legal place to park it while loading it up, and repeat the process upon coming home.  It's far more convenient to have it on site; the rigmarole of off-site storage has led people I know to decide weekend jaunts weren't worth it, and in some cases even led to either moving or selling the RV.

[roughing it]

I thought the SoCal woman was the annoying one.  Anything the guy said he wanted, she immediately countered with the exact opposite.  I'm really surprised they chose the house style that he preferred. 

[Patrizio]

Loved the DC episode with the gay guys. ALL the househunters should be as cool as them.  Hope, hope, hope, to see a follow up renovation show on them, I think whatever they do will be fabulous!

[laredhead]

The southern California woman's voice was incredibly annoying and she was the typical HH who wants granite, no room for anything the husband wants, granite, the perfect kitchen, granite, move in ready with no projects, oh and did I mention granite?  When I saw the shed, I figured that would be house they would buy.  She complained about the ceiling fans being ugly, yet when the reveal was shown all of the fans were still there.  That's a quick, inexpensive fix to change those.  I guess she wasn't as upset about them as she pretended to be.   

[NYGirl]

So that woman near Boston who's afraid of ghosts was a joke right?.....right???

[Tunia]

So that woman near Boston who's afraid of ghosts was a joke right?.....right???

 

I was a realtor in the Boston area for a number of years, and you'd be amazed how often that comes up, especially when looking at older homes.

[DownTheShore]

I just caught the tail end of one tonight where the wife was going through the rooms of the house they chose, waving a burning bunch of sage and trying to lay any ghosts that were there.

[Lawgiver]

... trying to lay any ghosts that were there.

She's into some pretty freaky stuff there... :)

[DownTheShore]

What's with all these women afraid of ghosts and the men afraid of zombies?

[OSM Mom]

Too many movies? Too stupid?

[buttersister]

Oy, damaged Devon and wow-factor Cheyenne, the 24-year-olds in Florida. The producers must have been happy dancing when Devon started in on wanting a log cabin home because it made him feel safe (sad back story about being homeless and staying at somebody's log cabin). The realtor that shook his head in disbelief at them at least got a shout out from Devon for finding them their place--in spite of their obvious efforts to drive him nuts. Cheyenne was the big compromiser agreeing on the log cabin style place because she saw the look in his eye when they found it. Sweet. Also an improvement on the regular crazy eye he kept giving the camera.

 

Hope they're happy--and hope she lives long enough to see him paint any of that wood.

Edited June 28, 2014 by buttersister

[Patrizio]

Just saw the Chicago one, with the husband who came to this country from Poland when he was about three. They were looking for an older home, like a bungalow but I can't remember the name/type exactly. They were another couple who I hope to see again when the reno is complete. Just a nice, cool couple who did'nt sell their souls to create drama for a TV show. The husband's Dad is a contractor so it's bound to be nice. I'm beginning to wonder about these California people and their need for space for nonexistent RVs. Two in the last month. Is that a big thing there? I know there's nothing I'd like better than to look out and see my neighbor's big RV sitting in the driveway! Oh, forgot about the fool in Durham, NC too-so that makes three. All with long suffering wives!

[BearCat49]

You haven't heard to avoid any home called a "contractor's special" when househunting, Patrizio?  No offense to any contractors on the boards but they have a reputation for leaving a plethora of unfinished projects.  It's like the hairdresser with the bad hair, etc.  They were searching for a Chicago bungalow - not sure what you meant by "type".

 

By Durham guy, did you mean the guy talking about parking a schoolbus in the yard?  I thought that was a producers' joke, seriously.  Haven't ever heard anything about CA and a desire for RV's.  (BTW, I've watched all the new episodes and only remember 1.)  And, if HH filmed them in multiples, it's more likely, IMHO, that they scored a few show participants from the RV club or set it up as a new standard plot line, e.g. 1 spouse city - the other country or 1 spouse move-in ready - the other fixer ... and so on. 

Edited July 3, 2014 by BearCat49

[Kiddvideo]

Meredith and Sam Ross of Westerville, OH. She makes me hate these shows: someone so fixated on 1 element that she can't see the property for what it is. Like a fucking parrot: Old world charm, old world charm, old world charm, squawk! At one point she called a corner sink "quirky, part of that charm" (squawk!) she was looking for. A generic, Home Depot-type corner sink that was no where near an original fixture to the house. /faceplant

That green house should've been a total gut, but they paid $10k above list. AND they found out during inspection that it needed immediate repairs -- electrical included -- before they could move in. So now they have a money pit he didn't want plus he has to park outside because it has a 1 car garage. But, by god, she has a house that was built in 1910.

Even their fricking budgets were $70,000 apart. I see couples like this -- so far apart on major life decisions, 1 partner refusing to compromise and the other just sucking it up -- and wonder why they're married.

[sugarbaker design]

I don't mind watching the crazy relationships, as a singleton I get a certain evil glee observing these dysfunctional relationships up close and personal.  However what I do mind is someone looking for typical [insert region or city here] charm who winds up buying a quickly and shoddily built cookie cutter McMansion in a development in the middle of fucking nowhere.

[ShuFace88]

I was perplexed by the woman in Westerville also.  She insisted on being close to the center of town and complained that the house her husband liked was too far (it was 3 miles away).  I can see being close to the action if you live in New York, San Francisco or Chicago but this is Westerville, Ohio!  Is it really that hard to drive 3 miles for the exciting nightlife of Westerville, Ohio? 

 

She also complained that the house her husband liked had plain, boring rooms with no "charm".  Doesn't she realize that you can add "charm" with furniture and decorating choices?  Just because a house is old, that doesn't automatically mean it is charming.  Old electrical and damaged wood floors are not charming - they are headaches.  The house they bought is indeed a money pit.

[camom]

 

She also complained that the house her husband liked had plain, boring rooms with no "charm".  Doesn't she realize that you can add "charm" with furniture and decorating choices?  Just because a house is old, that doesn't automatically mean it is charming.  Old electrical and damaged wood floors are not charming - they are headaches.  The house they bought is indeed a money pit.

I thought the same thing.  Add the charm with the furniture and decor.  IMO, they bought the least practical house, and they'll be pouring $$ into it forever.

[NYGirl]

Re:  Westerville!  I yelled at the TV when he said "the green house" during the reveal.  I absolutely hated her throughout the episode.  I just knew she was going to win!

 

FYI my forever house was an old house that needed a lot of work just like that one.  I know what it's like.

 

The HHs today have no imagination.  They can't see past what the rooms are designated for.  In other words who says you can't make a room a bedroom or family room.  It's not written in stone.  It's your house dumbo..do what you want.  They can't see past paint colors.  The don't realize they can make a nice clean house like the one he liked into whatever she wanted. 

 

When they look at the camera and insist the husband is not getting his way it scares me a little.  LOL

[DownTheShore]

By Durham guy, did you mean the guy talking about parking a schoolbus in the yard?  I thought that was a producers' joke, seriously.  Haven't ever heard anything about CA and a desire for RV's.  (BTW, I've watched all the new episodes and only remember 1.)  And, if HH filmed them in multiples, it's more likely, IMHO, that they scored a few show participants from the RV club or set it up as a new standard plot line, e.g. 1 spouse city - the other country or 1 spouse move-in ready - the other fixer ... and so on. 

 

I missed the beginning of that show so I don't know why it was so important for him to have a yellow school bus, but as I was watching that show I was wondering what his neighbors are going to think of that yellow eyesore visible from their back windows, and also wondering if he's going to be bitten in the rear by any town ordinances that prevent commercial vehicles from being stored in residential areas.

[buttersister]

Tonight's "Safety or Style" Pensacola couple were like a greatest hits collection of nonsense. Safety: He's worried about living near the beach in case of a hurricane--dude, when the storm rolls in, doesn't it goes beyond the freakin' beach? She was horrified by the idea of her two daughters sharing a bedroom, much less a bathroom and was ready to remodel every bathroom in one house, as well as instantly replace a new-looking black oven with a stainless steel one. (So you know that's the house they bought.)

 

Not bad enough that these parents are reading from a bad script, the daughter gets dragged in, announcing that a bedroom seemed dark--there were two windows with shades closed tight--plus it looked to be dark out! But that meant someone could say it needed a French door--WTF? Then she calls bullshit on her mother's moaning about the sink being in the kitchen island--so annoying to "wash dishes and have to [turn around to] put them away in the cupboard"--and surprise, mom busts her for never cooking or cleaning. As if mom lives in a house without a dishwasher. Make that, stainless dishwasher.

 

I gotta quit this show.

Edited July 4, 2014 by buttersister

[laredhead]

Wasn't the house they bought the one that had the "joke" of a pool as the wife called it?  Nothing was said about that at the reveal.  I expected to see a backhoe and bulldozers in the back yard digging a huge pool.  That was an incredible final price they paid for that house.  The owner must have been desperate to get rid of it.

[Mrs. P.]

I couldn't believe the final price they paid. They'll have plenty of money to redo the dinky pool.

The wife was irritating. She was so hyper-critical and demanding. I was surprised that she wound up agreeing on the house they bought.

[BearCat49]

If I was a betting man, I'd pretty much bet anyone, anything that the Durham guy has no schoolbus parked by the home and won't ever have one.

 

That was more like, IMHO, he jokingly told a HH intern during the interview process that he'd thought about moving into a schoolbus during college to save $$$, or something along those lines.  Drama masters that they are, tptb would have jumped on that one and run with it for the episode.  IIRC, his wife was not going to let that happen.

 

WRT the Westerville couple, it was obvious that was their house from the beginning.  They didn't need to search for an entire year, living at the parents', if true, in order to find a tract home in the suburbs (haha), 3 miles from the bustling nightlife, lol. (No offense to anyone from OH or the Midwest or any small town, anywhere, BTW.)  

[DownTheShore]

I finally saw recently that episode with the woman who was fixated on having ceiling fans in her home.  That was really weird.  I thought she was going to have the big O whenever she saw one.

[twinks]

DC guys are on again!?

[Ohwell]

There have been a few DC guys on.  I hadn't seen these two before.

[sugarbaker design]

There was the middle aged couple who I'm hoping do HH:R, and there was a younger couple, one of whom had a fear of zombies.  Totally reasonable.

[Ohwell]

Then there were the guys who moved to a really shady part of Capitol Heights, MD, just outside of DC.  I wonder if they're still alive and if they're still living there.

[Dewey Decimate]

Liked the Brattleboro group. The buyer and his two friends seemed so sane and balanced in their assessments of the various houses. And getting to see old, old homes is so cool! I'm no contractor, and so would not take on a huge reno project myself, but things like the little pass-through window make me squee.

[suedehead]

+1

 

The Brattleboro episode made me think someone at HH understands the viewers need a normal, quirk-free episode featuring a cool older home every once in awhile.

Edited July 10, 2014 by suedehead

[sugarbaker design]

Every once in a blue moon HH throws a HH who doesn't base his choices on HGTV shows, has an interesting point of view in a town/city that I'm not that familiar with. 
 

but things like the little pass-through window make me squee.

 
I know!

[laredhead]

Enjoyed the episode last night about the young couple buying a house in the Philadelphia area.  She wanted vintage and he wanted new.  I had to agree with her that the new builds looked very cookie cutter and the vintage house they bought has the potential to be lovely with lots of money and time spent on it's restoration.  They got a lot of square footage for their money, and are willing to put the effort into making it a home and be content to live with a less than attractive kitchen for a while.  I love the front stairwell in that house and would also love to have a butler's pantry to store china, linens, etc.     

[Ohwell]

I was hoping that couple would choose the older house outside Philadelphia.  While I can understand why they wanted to update the kitchen and bathroom,  I personally loved things just the way they were.  And while I know the house went through inspection, they might want to save up money for repairs instead of doing renovations right away.

[sheetmoss]

RE: Chicago couple with a budget of $1mil from the other night.

 

I thought it odd that  the narrator, couple nor agent would utter the name of the first bldg they looked at...Lake Point Tower

Edited July 12, 2014 by sheetmoss

[buttersister]

They don't identify buildings by name (didn't name ours & we "won" in a previous Chicago episode) or address. I guess if they ever feature a unit in Trump tower, they'll shoot it without showing the ginormous, hideous Trump sign.

[sheetmoss]

 

They don't identify buildings by name (didn't name ours & we "won" in a previous Chicago episode) or address. I guess if they ever feature a unit in Trump tower, they'll shoot it without showing the ginormous, hideous Trump sign.

Tks, never took notice of  that before.

 

From the other night, they featured a Philly couple looking for a hse. The establishing  roll showed them walking and driving through older area of Philadelphia

passing some duplexs that  had  an exterior split down the middle that was a 180 in style  from its other side.

I've seen that done to some degree  on other duplexs before, but I've never seen it done with such  sxtremes in difference.

 

Is this a Philly area quirk to do that to duplexs?

[MsChicklet]

I liked Brattleboro guy and his friends. Here's a guy who admitted in the beginning that he never did what he planned to do with the house he already owned. So it was probably for the best he didn't buy the 1805 house that had been office space.

[Bellalisa]

The westerville couple when she said they could grow a family in that house and stay in it for the next 50 years - LOL LOL LOL! It was tiny. Not enough room for 2 kids and all their stuff. Typical naive young couples before they have kids. The house seems large but it is not. And the room with the stairway that she is making into her closet- a kid is going to be in that room with all his shit.  I see them moving when the first kid is 2 and she is pregnant with the second one. Suburbs here they come, it's just a matter of time.

I hate when these young people say "we love all the modern finishes like stainless" "we love stainless" as IF it makes them sophisticated people. As if they were saying "we love learning about 18th century painting" - that would impress me - but no "we love stainless" and we are supposed to be impressed with their taste?

[laredhead]

Stainless appliances and counter tops have been used in houses for over 50 years.  They can be considered "vintage" and that would really burst a few house hunters' bubbles.  I have a top of the line, all bells and whistles white range and white dishwasher that some uninformed house hunter would probably dismiss as out of date in favor of a basic appliance that has a stainless finish.  Stainless doesn't cook better or wash dishes better or keep food chilled better, but they will gush about a cheap stainless package of appliances as if it were the end all be all in a house.

Edited July 15, 2014 by laredhead

[OSM Mom]

They've been programmed to think that stainless steel = a quality appliance. OSM Dad and I just bought a new house a couple months ago, and deliberately chose the one with black appliances because we both hate stainless steel.

[Bellalisa]

I got a kick out of Miss Durham who hated ceiling fans. She was so mad there was a cieling fan on the screened in porch! Most people would pay extra for that because when you sit out on the hot humid Southern screen porch - well it's hot- the cieling fan is a great thing to have! is she going to get a floor fan instead? Because she is going to need a fan to sit out there with her mint julip.

[chessiegal]

I got a kick out of Miss Durham who hated ceiling fans. She was so mad there was a cieling fan on the screened in porch! Most people would pay extra for that because when you sit out on the hot humid Southern screen porch - well it's hot- the cieling fan is a great thing to have! is she going to get a floor fan instead? Because she is going to need a fan to sit out there with her mint julip.

 

 

Word. We've put 2 screened-in porches on houses, and even in MD, a ceiling fan makes sitting out on the porch possible when it's a little too warm to be comfortable without them. Hasn't she ever seen the Swiffer commercials?