Pet Peeves: The Holy Trinity and Beyond

[Bastet]

I go back and forth on that one; in theory, it annoys me, but with how willing so many of these HHs are to toss their alleged budget out the window when they get distracted by granite and stainless steel, I let it slide.  Especially if it seems a scenario where there's a good chance the asking price can be negotiated down substantially.

[OSM Mom]

True. And knowing it's all a done deal anyhow helps some too.

[QuinnM]

Here is a lovely 4 bedroom home, 1000 sq ft for only 150K.

They go inside and surprise, surprise, surprise - the bedrooms are small.  Really?  How big did you think they would be in a 1000 sq ft home?  Do you understand that this is not a magical tent at the Quidditch finals?

[Jynnan tonnix]

Having spent the past 30 years as a military wife, I've had my share of moving around and making homes of various sizes and styles work. In our case, the "entertainment" and "guest" spaces are a must, as we do have family members visit for a week or two at a time, and frequently host formal dinners for 8-10 people as well as more informal functions for upward of 40. And I love to cook, so it would be really nice to eventually have a professional stove, but that hasn't happened yet, and likely will not. At least not until after we are retired and no longer need it as much. Ah, well...

 

When we buy a house (as opposed to renting or living on base), we generally look for something which is priced under market and needs a bunch of cosmetics and elbow grease which will enable us to hopefully come out ahead, or at least not to lose money on the deal, and shows like this can be pretty useful for keeping up with trends. I guess the annoying part is that so many of the trends seem to be manufactured. When people whine about things in a 10 year old house being too dated to endure, I suspect much of that is scripted to allow a faster turn-over of styles, ensuring that the new home-owner will want to rip out whatever tile/carpet/fixtures/cabinetry is considered unretrieveably passe and redo everything rather than living with it.

[peggy06]

My pet peeve is "You can see the neighbors' house from the windows." Get some curtains and get over it! Unless you're willing to ante up for acreage, there's going to be someone whose house is in your sight lines, and vice versa. I grew up in neighborhoods - nice, middle-class neighborhoods - where there was a narrow gangway between the houses. You actually could hear the neighbors' radio or TV (or conversations) if the windows were open and they were loud enough. And we survived. I just don't get where this complaint comes from. Any subdivision or city or suburban neighborhood is going to have houses within sight of each other. Where did all these people grow up?

 

Re granite, soon people are going to shun it because it's so commonplace. It's going to be just your typical countertop, and therefore the cachet will be diminished. I just want a countertop that's easy to keep clean.

 

I have a stainless steel kitchen sink that almost never looks good, so I'm not eager to add stainless steel appliances.

[Rhondinella]

Finally saw an episode where the wife (an interior decorator by trade) called out granite countertops as all being "same-y" looking, and also looking like they had "spilled coffee grinds on them."  I hated you for pretty much everything else you said, but THANK YOU for that, lady!!

 

I don't understand why everyone gets so het up over that type of granite that has specks in it, usually some variation of browns.  I don't think it's attractive at all.  Is there granite without those specks?  Is this just the cheapest type so that's why you see it everywhere?  I don't really get it.

[izabella]

Granite has some sort of specks or swirls or pattern since the rock isn't uniform in color and composition.  There is quartz and feldspar in granite. 

 

I'm sure some types are cheaper than others depending on its abundance and ease of acquisition.  Some granite is also cheaper based on how it's made - thickness, type of edging, etc.  I assume most builders would pick a cheaper option, and homeowners would need to upgrade to get a different version.

 

I have granite counters in my place, and I love them.  I used to have granite in an apartment that was the brown flecked kind - I didn't love it, but it's a neutral color in most homes that are builder's beige to start with on the walls.  Plus, the brown flecked granite won't clash with most wood cabinets and hardwood floors, whereas if you got an unusual granite color, it could get really busy and unattractive with varying shades of wood cabinets and floors.  You'd almost have to get white or very dark to black cabinets if you get a wild colored granite.

[jnymph]

In addition to the holy trinity, why do  the majority of HH's need the overused and overblown  "open concept?"   I hate the reasoning:

"In order "talk" to my guests while I'm cooking"  Huh? Really ?  First of all, don't you have the majority of the "cooking" done prior to your guests coming, and you simply need to possibly reheat things?   What happened to "Excuse me while I am in the kitchen for a few moments"?     Are these people afraid of guests stealing things from their living rooms?   Afraid they will simply die of boredom without your presence ?     

[OSM Mom]

They think they have to be in constant eye contact with everyone in the house at all times. It's stupid.

Oh and I hate people who paint wood white. Ugh. You have a house with beautiful wood doors and door/window frames and they paint them... Ugh.

[Rhondinella]

We bought our current "open concept" house several years ago after having a more segmented house for years.  I thought I would like it better, and there certainly are some advantages.  But I think my next house will go back to having more separation between the kitchen, living room and dining room.  Mainly because I'm a horrible housekeeper and so if the kitchen is a mess you can see it from the living room and the dining room.  At least in my other house the mess of the kitchen was hidden behind a wall so you had to turn a corner to see it.

[chessiegal]

I've been living in open concept houses for the last 25 years. When we bought our "forever" house after we retired 4 years ago, we weren't ruling out homes that were not open concept, but soon realized the homes we preferred were open concept. I am not a good housekeeper either. I cook dinner at home almost every day, so the kitchen tends to get dirty and sometimes messy. If I know people are coming over, I tidy up the house. If someone arrives unannounced and is offended by my housekeeping, that is their problem, not mine. I'm too old to care about something like that.

[Bastet]

I'm a neat freak, so I can't properly enjoy my meal if I'm sitting there looking at the detritus of its preparation; I love that my kitchen and dining room are separate.  And while having the kitchen open to the living room wouldn't be a big deal for me since I live alone, I think I'd find it disruptive if I had others in the house.

 

Even though I don't want it for myself, I don't automatically hate the look of open floorplans.  I just get very, very tired of seeing them on this show.  And get extremely irritated by people who complain about the presence of walls between the kitchen, dining room and living room in older homes, when they damn well ought to know "open concept" wasn't a trend back then.

[cotterpin]

 I'm with you all on the granite and stainless, but I have to have hardwood or solid surface flooring because of severe allergies to my own cats.  Personally, I can't wait to buy so that I can redo a kitchen and add soapstone counters.

 

I'm over "open concept" too.  I like the separation, but to a point.  A floorplan still has to have some flow. We lived in a house where the rooms were so chopped up and there was no flow at all, it was just a miserable living space. Our last and current place both have separated kitchens (aka not adjoining the living room) and I so prefer it, even with two small children.  We have an eat in kitchen which is just fine. But my living room is separate. Which is wonderful. I don't have to look at or see the kitchen when I'm snarking on the HH'ers who can't figure out that a coat of paint is an easy fix

 

[Taylorh2]

I love the 'open concept rooms'  I like the freeflowing of it. What I don't understand is HH's looking at 'starter homes'

 

Why buy a house that you may grow out of in 2-3 yrs ?  When we were HH (9.3 yrs ago), my only son was 8 (still an only child) and we bought a 2,300 sg ft-4 bdrm house. I didn't want a 'starter house'

 

My 'starter house' will be when we downsize after my son moved out on his own.  lol

[OSM Mom]

Probably affordability. Bigger houses are expensive.

[DFWGina]

I love the 'open concept rooms'  I like the freeflowing of it. What I don't understand is HH's looking at 'starter homes'

 

Why buy a house that you may grow out of in 2-3 yrs ?  When we were HH (9.3 yrs ago), my only son was 8 (still an only child) and we bought a 2,300 sg ft-4 bdrm house. I didn't want a 'starter house'

 

My 'starter house' will be when we downsize after my son moved out on his own.  lol

Maybe its all they can afford?

[auntjess]

I can certainly see "starter" homes, but I have a problem for people wanting their particular starter home, on a starter home budget, to have all the bells and whistles and granite, that their parents worked years to afford.
On overlooking neighbors, I spent a lot of years in a suburban house close to neighbors too.  Only one side of the house had windows.  Your bedroom windows looked out on neighbor's garage or blank wall, and so on.

 

[Pickles Aplenty]

I can't stand it when HH's complain about not having a great view, like that's the be-all and end-all of purchasing a house.  It's nice to have a great view, but would you really pass on an amazing house because the view is nothing special?  How much time do you spend just staring out the window?

 

Another thing that bugs me is "curb appeal".  I haven't heard this one as much as "granite countertops" or "man-cave", but every time I hear it it just makes my skin crawl.  I understand not wanting the outside to be butt-ugly, but if the inside is livable, who cares if the outside is not exactly to your taste?  You can always change it.  It's not a deal-breaker.

 

One final pet peeve: The husband is always the positive one who can see possibilities, and the wife is always the nag.  I've seen maybe two or three episodes where it was reversed, but that really pisses me off.  Let's hear it for re-enforcing stereotypes.

Edited May 4, 2014 by Billina

[Jynnan tonnix]

I have grown to like some of the prevailing styles. I like the stainless steel appliances despite the fact that they are a bit of a pain to keep clean (which is not as much of a problem now that the kids are all grown).

The last house we were in (we move frequently with the military) had granite countertops which I hated because they were so speckled that it was impossible to see whether they were clean or not, and I put down sheets of paper and other things on top of messy/greasy spots way too often. Plus, especially if I wasn't wearing my glasses, which I don't often do unless I'm watching TV or driving, I couldn't find small  things I had put down without looking at the whole thing in detail.

Open concept is a nice look, but I do like some separation to define areas, partly because I'm not a natural-born decorator, and having no definition is way too much of a blank canvas for me. Our previous house, again, had more of an open concept, and another minor, but telling thing was how often either my husband, or kids when they were visiting, would complain if I was using a mixer or blender or something in the kitchen while they were watching TV in what amounted to the same space.

I do have to say that a view IS an important thing for me...I've lived in places with lovely, serene vistas outside, and places where all I could see was the houses on all four sides, and it's honestly a pretty claustrophobic feeling for me not to have something outside the windows that I can enjoy.

[DownTheShore]

I've lived in small apartments for most of my life so I am totally over "open concept".  I want well defined rooms.  If I'm cooking, I'm not putting on a show for my guests.  If they want to talk to me, they can come in the kitchen with me.

 

As far as I'm concerned, stainless steel appliances are only good if you're living in the tropics, otherwise they are a pain to keep clean.  I'm not picky at all about countertops, as long as they aren't cracked Formica or small tiles with grout.  I like tile floors but I would never want them in the kitchen; they're too hard to stand on for extended periods of time, and anything dropped on it is guaranteed to crack.  Give me vinyl sheet flooring or linoleum anyday for a kitchen.

 

I grew up in a four-room apartment containing five people and one bathroom which didn't have running hot water.  I learned early to share in all things, so I have no patience with couples who have, for example, four children and have to have a separate bedroom AND bathroom for each of them.  I have no patience with people who walk into a perfectly good kitchen and say "we're going to have to gut this" just because they don't like the counter surface or the wood color of the cabinets.  Don't get me started on double sinks in the master bathrooms, or master bedrooms that can fit a king-size bed yet which are "too small".

 

Or people who move into new developments and ask how long the construction noise next door is going to last.  I ususally wind up shouting at the TV, "Construction noise is a finite thing, you idiots.  It's not going to go on for years and years!".  Or the ones who buy a vacation property with an ocean view and an empty lot between them and the beach, and ask if anything is going to be built there.  Well, let me see...more and more people want ocean front property, more and more ocean front property is being built up so there's less land available for building.  Why yes, the odds are good that something will be built there within your lifetime!

 

Another pet peeve.  Single people moving into one bedroom apartments who are upset because the bedroom either has one of those sliding barn-style doors or no door at all.  What the heck does it matter if there is a door or not?  Who is going to walk in on you?  Who is going to be noisy in the living room and keep you awake?

 

I need to stop, but one last thing.  Women who are afraid of going into perfectly dry, well-lit, perfectly non-creepy basements that don't even have a bulkhead door to the outside.  What on earth are they scared of?  God forbid that's where the laundry is located, because that means the house is going to have to be remodeled to relocate it.

Edited May 9, 2014 by DownTheShore

[jnymph]

DownTheShore said: (sorry my quotes aren't working!)

" Or people who move into new developments and ask how long the construction noise next door is going to last. I ususally wind up shouting at the TV, "Construction noise is a finite thing, you idiots. It's not going to go on for years and years!".

Thank you for that one DownTheShore! THat one makes me bang my head against the wall. What's crazy is these are the same people who are demanding NEWLY constructed homes and then they say that !?! Hello ??!?!??

Edited May 9, 2014 by jnymph

[DownTheShore]

Another pet peeve:  Tall men who step into the bathtub or the shower stall and complain that the shower head is too low.  Don't they know that there are bendable extensions that you can buy to add onto shower connections that allow you to increase the height?  That's one of the first things my brother-in-law put into his bathroom when they bought an old house.

What really gets me is when they complain about the view out of the master bedroom window.  I mean, other than sleeping, sex, reading, getting dressed, and watching TV, what else are you doing in the bedroom?  Unliess you are an invalid and bed-confined, how much time do you actually spend in your bedroom during the daytime, staring out the windows?  When kids are playing in their bedrooms, they're not usually looking out the windows either.

 

I can't stand it when HH's complain about not having a great view, like that's the be-all and end-all of purchasing a house.  It's nice to have a great view, but would you really pass on an amazing house because the view is nothing special?  How much time do you spend just staring out the window?

[Quof]

I hate that house hunters can't walk through a house without holding hands. Constantly.   You're wandering through an empty house.  Are you afraid one of you might get lost?

[Taylorh2]

Hahahahahaha. Damn that was funny.

[DownTheShore]

I find it interesting to watch who goes into explore a room first - does the man lead, or does he let the woman go in first?

 

One of the games I play with myself when watching the program is guessing with marriages/relationships are likely to survive, just based upon how they behave and interact with one another.

 

One question I have - is there some sort of unwritten rule that once a couple buys a house, they have to get a dog?  What is it, some sort of test to see if they can manage to keep a pet alive, then they can move on to the next step of having a baby?

[LazyToaster]

And.. Does that dog need their very own doggie door?

[jnymph]

Another pet peeve:

Idiots that comment on the low hanging dining room light & how everyone will hit their heads on it. Ummm it's called a dining room table people.

SMH.

[mojito]

What is it, some sort of test to see if they can manage to keep a pet alive, then they can move on to the next step of having a baby?

I think they should have the baby first to see if they're good enough to take care of a pet! 

 

 

Idiots that comment on the low hanging dining room light & how everyone will hit their heads on it. Ummm it's called a dining room table people.

 

Oh yes, that one.

 

How 'bout the people who have to stick their arms out in the bathroom and declare, "Look, I can touch both walls." I saw a show in which the wife said, "Why would you do that?"

[formerlyfreedom]

How 'bout the people who have to stick their arms out in the bathroom and declare, "Look, I can touch both walls." I saw a show in which the wife said, "Why would you do that?"

 

And HOW is it relevant to the use of this room as a bathroom? Sure, I LOVE big spacious bathrooms, but all you really need is a toilet, a sink, and some sort of place to wash your filth off (even you even need that - powder room, anyone?). I know the producers feed the HHs bits to play up, but sometimes, I'd love to see a bit more creativity. Stop talking about the dog you are pretending you are going to get, and the parties you are pretending you are going to throw, okay? /end rant

 

:)

[mojito]

And all the morning coffee you're going to drink in the morning on your patio/balcony. Unless it's a high rise in Europe, in which case, you're making a desperate grab to catch the child who just climbed the rail and fell over.

 

I'm not sure if anything irritates me more than the mention of SHOES and closet space.

[LazyToaster]

I hate when they decide to try out the bathtub, especially with their shoes on. Raised by wolves?

[chessiegal]

It's got "gold" finish fixtures. I don't care if it is over budget, I can't live with that, and it will have to be changed. Gah!

 

We bought a house built in 1998. It has yellow colored fixtures in the master and one half-bath. I don't like them, but they are all functional. I'll be damned if I'm going to spend money replacing them.

 

[Haleth]

Every time someone talks how they need space for entertaining I think of this.  Now, that is entertaining.

 

Another pet peeve (or cliche) is when the woman claims the ginormous walk in closet for her things and tells the man he can have a cubby hole for his stuff.

Edited May 26, 2014 by Haleth

[Taylorh2]

We were watching  a HH couple wanting a 'beachfront' property. I can't remember if I was watching the WA State  or NC show.

 

They wanted to be able to walk out the front door and right to the beach but they also insisted that the house have a swimming pool because they promised the kids one.

 

I didn't understand why they insisted on a pool if they were able to walk out the front door onto the beach ? 

[OSM Mom]

No sharks in the pool? I have nothing.

[DownTheShore]

I don't get the whole "pool at the beach" thing.  I go to the beach to go into the ocean, not a chlorinated pool.

 

Climbing into the bathtub is one of my pet peeves - also, jumping up and sitting on the kitchen counter in someone else's house.

 

Everytime I hear one of those couples enthuse about how it's going to be so lovely to drink coffee on their bedroom balcony, I wonder to myself how long that enthusiasm is going to last when they have to go all the way downstairs to the kitchen, make the coffee, and bring it all the way back upstairs just to sit on the balcony to drink it, and then bring the cups/mugs/whatever all the way back downstairs.  Perhaps I'm just as lazy as dirt, but it seems much simpler to just drink the coffee downstairs - lol.

 

Does anyone have a pool?  How much work is really involved in taking care of it, other than having to skim bugs and leaves out of it regularly?  I don't get why it's such a make or break deal for some homeowners.

 

One thing that always creeps me out is when a couple with no kids is looking at houses and they're shown one that has one of those huge useless two-story entry ways with a curved staircase up to the second floor, and the woman is already imagining her not-yet-in-existence daughter coming down it in her prom dress or her wedding gown.  I immediately think, "way too much Barbie-playing in that woman's childhood".

[Taylorh2]

What I don't understand is why women act like laminate floor are on the same level as floors made out of shit ? I've seem HH shows with brand new laminate floors/just installed by the homeowners and the wife will stay "OMG!!!!!!! those have to go"

Edited May 26, 2014 by Taylorh2

[formerlyfreedom]

What I don't understand is why women act like laminate floor are on the same level as floors made out of shit ?

 

Wait, you mean they AREN'T?? ;)

 

Yes, laminate floors and the same with counter tops. They can be perfectly lovely new countertops, but if they aren't granite or marble, oh, heavens, that's awful!!

[Lawgiver]

 

Does anyone have a pool?  How much work is really involved in taking care of it, other than having to skim bugs and leaves out of it regularly?  I don't get why it's such a make or break deal for some homeowners.

We have a pool as we live in Florida. It can be a fair amount of work - you have to make sure the chemicals are in balance fairly often because of frequent rainstorms and repairs can be costly. However, it's not rocket science. I love having a pool because I can toss my two boys outside to swim and that tires them out. BUT, we live in the middle of the state. We are not beachfront. If we were beachfront or in walking distance to the beach, you'd better believe we'd be there instead of a pool. (I would never let them swim in a pond or lake unless it is crystal clear because alligators and water moccasins are a true threat.)

Edited May 27, 2014 by Lawgiver

[Bastet]

Pools also eat up a lot of yard space, and can carry liability - and thus increased insurance - concerns.  I live in Los Angeles, where it's pool weather almost year-round, so they're a common point of discussion in house hunting, but whether one wants one or not, most people I know are pretty firm in their preference.  So I have to laugh when a HH has a casual "oh, well a pool might be nice" reaction upon touring one home out of the three that has one. 

Edited May 27, 2014 by Bastet

[jnymph]

Another pet peeve (or cliche) is when the woman claims the ginormous walk in closet for her things and tells the man he can have a cubby hole for his stuff.

 

Gah.  I'm so over that one too.  The woman always says it like she's the only woman on the planet that has made this claim, like she's so original & witty in that particular thought. 

 

I don't believe anybody's mentioned the HH's that want a charming older Tudor style home; and then they nearly have heart attacks when they see the small closets these homes have.   

[Taylorh2]

Today I saw on the News (not sure what State) this backyard that had a retractable yard part over the swimming pool, That way you don't lose yard space to a pool. I thought it was really cool.

 

 You couldn't tell that there was a pool underground.

Last weekend we toured a mansion  in Downtown Denver that was built in 1898. The rooms were really a nice size but the closets were really small. My son said "how can you get any clothers in there?"  I had to explain, that way back then, people didn't have a lot of clothers. You may have had  a few items but nothing like we do today.

Edited May 28, 2014 by Taylorh2

[auntjess]

I think back then, people kept their clothes in armoires, too.

 

I wouldn't want a pool without a fence around it, to hell with looks.  When we did have a house with a pool, the screen was the first thing we did.

There was a couple here who bought a house with a pool, moved in, and had the people coming the next day to put the screen around it.
During the night, their 2 young children got out and got in it and could'nt get out.
So sad and tragic.

 

[mojito]

Speaking of pools....Whenever I watch HHI and people speak of beach front property in the Caribbean, I wonder if they really love it once they get it. Living on a beach can be extremely boring after a while. And hot.  At least if you're near a harbor, you can watch boats come and go. But staring at a beach? Me, I'd rather get a home up in the hills overlooking the island and have a swimming pool up there. It's peaceful, you don't have to have people passing by your home at all hours, and you can enjoy some cooler air. I wish HHI would catch up with people who move to these beach spots to see what they think of "paradise" 5 years later.

[Taylorh2]

You think they would ever admit that it's not all it's cracked up to be ?  lol

[DownTheShore]

I vacationed in St. John  right on the beach a couple of times years ago, and I remember that about around 4pm the sand flies used to come out.  Their bites itched like mosquito bites.

 

Ah, another pet peeve - people who are shown houses in the tropics with those huge sliders that open up the living area to the outdoors. All I can think of are the bugs that are going to come marching in.  Or the ones in Latin America that seem to have open air kitchens. 

[OSM Mom]

I'm always surprised that those houses in tropical locations don't have ac. Ugh. Who can deal with 100* and 100% humidity all the time with no ac?

[mojito]

OSM Mom, in some islands, there is a breeze maybe 95% of the time. But that 5%... Where I lived, the month of January could be very still, and it was miserable counting on open louvers to circulate air.

 

DowntheShore, all that sliders open stuff is crap, at least where I lived. Most statesiders don't really care to have a house full of sandflies, palmetto bugs, and lizards. The worst thing about sandflies is that you can't even see them! At least mosquitoes give you the satisfaction of occasionally smashing one.

Edited May 29, 2014 by mojito

[laredhead]

OSM Mom, I grew up and live in south Louisiana and we did not have A/C in our house until 1962.  You are correct that dealing with temps in the 90's or higher and high humidity is not fun.  Unless the wind was always blowing, I would insist on A/C for comfort, and screens to keep out the unwanted pests.  A few days at a beach resort might be fun, but living it 365 days would get old fast - IMO.

[DownTheShore]

DowntheShore, all that sliders open stuff is crap, at least where I lived. Most statesiders don't really care to have a house full of sandflies, palmetto bugs, and lizards. The worst thing about sandflies is that you can't even see them! At least mosquitoes give you the satisfaction of occasionally smashing one.

 

I always figured that the first thing I would do would be to install screens.  That's like those shows set in Europe where the people fling open the windows.  Don't flies and bees and wasps fly in?