House Hunters International - General Discussion

[jelley]

South Africa to Rotterdam - Wow.  Was that woman one of the most unpleasant house hunters ever?  She was so dismissive of her husband, and mentioned at every turn that she was the one bringing home the bacon.  I don't disagree with their selection, but did she have to be such an asshole?

[magemaud]

I couldn't tell, did that woman have a typical South African accent or a weird speech defect? 

[debraran]

I didn't like the Rotterdam one, she ruined it. He seemed like a nice guy but the chemistry was off.  They should try to change the script a little to make it more enjoyable.  They all say the same things.

I hope "it's kind of growing on me" keeps growing for the husband. It was the longest "after shot" they have done in a while which was nice. Usually you see them with 50 friends they just met or chopping peppers for their dinner and a minute update. ; )

[Ohwell]

The Paris episode was a snooze and I got tired of the dancer mentioning that grandma left her the inheritance.  We get it.

[Lawgiver]

It's always interesting to see Paris apartments. I'd totally have gone for the market apartment under budget. I think even AL was tired of the dancer. I know I was.

[Bronx Babe]

I was wondering how much the grandmother left her. 

I'd have taken the Montmartre apt. in a heartbeat.

[Mondrianyone]

5 hours ago, Lawgiver said:

 I think even AL was tired of the dancer. I know I was.

Adrian, who is unfailingly kind to the HHs, no matter how annoying they get, definitely had an "I want to punch her in the face" look by the end of the dancer episode.  We get it, you have long legs.  Enough.

They kept showing the Moulin Rouge exterior.  I've been there, though not since the '90s. Back then it turned out to be a really dreary, depressing naked-dancing venue, with most of the dancers barely (pun intended) able to stay awake through their routines.  I hope that's not Cara's dream job.  Unless it's come up a lot since then, it's nothing for Grandma to be proud of.

[Ohwell]

50 minutes ago, Mondrianyone said:

Adrian, who is unfailingly kind to the HHs, no matter how annoying they get, definitely had an "I want to punch her in the face" look by the end of the dancer episode.  We get it, you have long legs.  Enough.

Yes, I think Adrian wanted to kneecap her.  I got tired of her showing how flexible she was, which is what she should be anyway as a dancer.       

[debraran]

The Paris episode had some nice places, but it did seem like there was a skip in the video with reminding us about the money and the leg comments...she isn't the only tall woman or dancer. I guess the producers thought it was cute but it was overkill.

The last over budget apartment was nicer (to  my memory) of any Paris apartment she has shown anyone. Nicer in the sense of room size and American-like  kitchens. She seemed rude in her reactions but she already knew she wasn't taking it.

I agree, I can't picture her grandma nodding her head over all her decisions. You don't know what she left her but hopefully she left her enough to have some left over for savings and she does well.

I would have taken the first one but loved the third one.

Edited September 1, 2017 by debraran

[Irlandesa]

8 hours ago, Bronx Baby said:

I was wondering how much the grandmother left her. 

Me too.  When I saw the description about a "generous inheritance," I was expecting to see her to have all this money to buy a home in Paris but nope.  Just 1500 a month to rent.  Those were pretty nice apartments for that amount of money and for the location.  I'm almost a little suspicious.  I would have taken the market apartment because of its location but for her, I think the Montmartre apartment would have been more practical.  The one she took is spacious and gorgeous but a long commute to the center (although probably not bad if she works in the Montmartre area) and no view.  The neighborhood and apartment had Parisian character but not the view.

2 hours ago, Ohwell said:

I got tired of her showing how flexible she was, which is what she should be anyway as a dancer.

That was kind of annoying but what really annoyed me was her insistence that, in Paris, dancing involved more sequins...etc.  Paris isn't Vegas.  Yes, maybe in the Quartier Pigalle or some of the other tourist cabarets--and the pictures she kept showing certainly indicate she's a cabaret dancer--but Paris overall?  No.  As they even said in the show, it has one of the premiere ballet companies.  I don't know if she wanted to make her dear dead grandmother believe she's only following the trend but no need to disparage and misrepresent the status of dance in the city of lights.  There's nothing wrong about being a cabaret dancer.  It's a living.

Edited September 2, 2017 by Irlandesa

[ByaNose]

Lake Como is beautiful. I would love to go there. A young & beautiful couple with a child moved there so he could attend design school. The wife was so pretty and belonged in a toothpaste commercial. They picked a small place  that wasn't anything fancy but they seemed happy enough because they were living in beautiful Lake Como. I wonder if they have run into George Clooney yet?! LOL!!!

[LizBug]

Young couple from Utah going to Lake Como so he could take classes in Miilan.  Fell asleep before they picked the final apartment but ...

• Neither one speaks Italian.  How is he going to understand what's going on in his classes.
• Milan is at leas 30 minute train ride from Lake Como.  Why not look for some place in Milan?
• What is she going to do all day in Lake Como with an infant?
• None of the apartments looked "baby proof"
• Plenty of good design schools in the U.S.  Why not go there and wait until the kid is older and take a vacation to Italy?

[Ohwell]

20 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

The wife was so pretty and belonged in a toothpaste commercial.

She really was pretty, and while my teeth aren't bad, I coveted those teeth of hers!  

I didn't catch how long he would be in Milan, but I think I'd have fun learning Italian and just experiencing Lake Como (hello George and Amal!) and traveling to Milan and other parts of Italy.  I think she mentioned something about going to Rome at some point.  Also, there's no reason why they can't go back to Italy once the kid gets older. 

[doodlebug]

33 minutes ago, DallasGypsy said:

Young couple from Utah going to Lake Como so he could take classes in Miilan.  Fell asleep before they picked the final apartment but ...

• Neither one speaks Italian.  How is he going to understand what's going on in his classes.
• Milan is at leas 30 minute train ride from Lake Como.  Why not look for some place in Milan?
• What is she going to do all day in Lake Como with an infant?
• None of the apartments looked "baby proof"
• Plenty of good design schools in the U.S.  Why not go there and wait until the kid is older and take a vacation to Italy?

He seemed to have someone with him for translation in the 'class' they filmed.  I suppose, if they get enough international students paying a lot of tuition, the school might be able to provide translation services.  However, I agree, since they claimed to have saved diligently to afford to live there without working while attending school, you'd think they would've invested in some intensive language classes.  Milan is a big city and Lake Como is pretty touristy, but, if they're expecting a lot of English speakers around to bail them out, they'll be disappointed.  The wife, in particular, home alone with a young child, is going to get pretty lonely if she cannot speak even rudimentary Italian.  Going shopping for groceries, getting basic repair services and even playing with the kid at the local playground would be a lot more fun and simple if she spoke some Italian.

I agree, the two hour daily commute (he said the train ride was 50 minutes each way), is going to get old. Maybe he can do some homework on the train, but I imagine there are projects in design school that cannot be done during the commute.  And, since that's under ideal conditions, there are going to be plenty of times where the weather, bad timing or rail breakdowns are going to make it much longer.  I get why they love Lake Como, it's gorgeous; but why not live in Milan and plan to visit on weekends?

I also presume the car they were driving was a rental and they weren't going to have a car in Como; but, it kinda bugged when he talked about the 30 minute walk to the train station from the suburban train station to that apartment and no mention was made of her possibly driving him there and picking him up to cut down on the amount of time it took.

'Baby proof' is sort of an American idea.  Amazingly enough, millions and millions of European babies manage not to kill themselves every year despite sharp edges on furniture and space heaters.  So did a lot of us oldsters.  If she was going to be home all day in a small apartment with the baby, there's no reason to think he cannot be taught not to touch a heater just like he can be taught not to touch a stove. And she can certainly shove the table out of the way when he's playing and keep him out of the fireplace.

And....once again, we're subjected to people objecting to design elements in a rental.  So what?  The mustard sofa was fugly, but put a throw on it people!  I noticed that that is exactly what they did in the followup.  At least they weren't groaning because they didn't find white cabinets and granite countertops in all the apartments.

Edited September 2, 2017 by doodlebug

[biakbiak]

Lake Cuomo gets boring after a week. I would much rather live in Milan and occasionally go to Lake Cuomo for a weekend.

[Bronx Babe]

Did some research on dancer Cara Chapman, who has an interesting resume, to say the least.   Talk about a work ethic.  I wonder if she'll even get the chance to enjoy her new Paris apartment.

Might someone upload a link to the Lake Como episode?  Lake Como is one of my dream destinations.  TIA!

Edited September 2, 2017 by Bronx Baby

[debraran]

3 hours ago, Bronx Baby said:

Did some research on dancer Cara Chapman, who has an interesting resume, to say the least.   Talk about a work ethic.  I wonder if she'll even get the chance to enjoy her new Paris apartment.

Might someone upload a link to the Lake Como episode?  Lake Como is one of my dream destinations.  TIA!

I didn't see that, but twitter had some nice pics  https://twitter.com/cara_chapman96/

I haven't seen Lake Como either, have to check my on demand channels and youtube

[Bronx Babe]

Thanks, @debraran  Cara is one busy girl!

I actually found the entire Paris episode on YouTube because I only caught the last five minutes or so when I turned on HGTV and saw the #3 apartment.  (naturally I wanted to know what her first two "choices" were, lol)

Hopefully we can get lucky with the Lake Como one on YouTube.

Edited September 2, 2017 by Bronx Baby

[scrb]

Lake Como is nice but if you have hay fever, it's brutal.

I had the worst experience there.  Many of the villas had plants imported from all over the world so the mid lake is like a heavy pollen zone.

[Pine]

I need to find one of the early Adrian in Paris episodes.  A retiring couple from Portland, Oregon.  The flat they ended up with was perfect.  

I believe the first flat Adrian showed the dancer, and even the 3rd flat belong to Adrian, if I recall she has a bunch of Paris rentals that any of us could rent.

[Spunkygal]

20 minutes ago, Pine said:

I need to find one of the early Adrian in Paris episodes.  A retiring couple from Portland, Oregon.  The flat they ended up with was perfect.  

I believe the first flat Adrian showed the dancer, and even the 3rd flat belong to Adrian, if I recall she has a bunch of Paris rentals that any of us could rent.

I love Adrian. She and Richard Blanco in London have always been my favorites. I would rent one of Adrian's flats in a heartbeat and will do so when I win the lottery! Then I could invite Richard to Chunnel over and have a picnic with me in the Luxembourg Gardens!

[doodlebug]

24 minutes ago, Pine said:

I need to find one of the early Adrian in Paris episodes.  A retiring couple from Portland, Oregon.  The flat they ended up with was perfect.  

I believe the first flat Adrian showed the dancer, and even the 3rd flat belong to Adrian, if I recall she has a bunch of Paris rentals that any of us could rent.

Adrian seems like she would be a great landlady and I bet she'd have plenty of recommendations for interesting places to visit.   And her enthusiasm for living near the local market street was spot on.

[debraran]

53 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

Adrian seems like she would be a great landlady and I bet she'd have plenty of recommendations for interesting places to visit.   And her enthusiasm for living near the local market street was spot on.

nice short interview 

Edited September 2, 2017 by debraran

[debraran]

https://episodecalendar.com/en/show/house-hunters-international/season/3

 

If someone has hours, this has every episode and synopsis.

[chocolatine]

I thought it was a huge mistake to settle in Lake Como with the husband studying in Milan. He loses at least two hours each day on the commute and she's stuck in a boring residential area all day with the baby. She'd be able to meet a lot more young expats in Milan, and possibly even find a daycare for the baby so that she can take some classes or get a part time job. The small town seems so isolating. They probably wouldn't be able to get a two-bedroom for $600/month in Milan, but the improved social life would be worth the higher rent. 

Also, no excuse for not having learned at least some basic Italian before moving to Italy. You can do it for free with apps like Duolingo - it doesn't get any easier than that. I think I did more prep for a three-day trip to Rome last year than those two did for their move.

[Ohwell]

I don't know about her, but I think he was lying about not knowing any Italian.  After all, how did he even apply for the position?  I can't imagine the translator did everything for him.  I suspect he knows some basic Italian from just interacting with the translator. These people lie so much on HHI until I'm just skeptical.   

[chocolatine]

6 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

I don't know about her, but I think he was lying about not knowing any Italian.  After all, how did he even apply for the position?  I can't imagine the translator did everything for him.  I suspect he knows some basic Italian from just interacting with the translator. These people lie so much on HHI until I'm just skeptical.   

The way he asked the passers-by whether they spoke English sounded very shaky to me. With the design school, it may very well be an international program that took applications in English - Milan is a global design hub. The workshop he was taking with the Italian-speaking teacher and translator was obviously a "field" type of thing; the actual lectures are probably in English, and the written parts of his thesis/projects will be in English as well.

[Ohwell]

I get all that, but my point is that I think he knows some Italian. 

[laredhead]

Townsville, Australia again with the wife from Great Britain moving to Australia with her Australian husband.  I'm going to have to look up the climate for Townsville because he kept mentioning the need for A/C, or "air con" as he called it.  The first house, a Queenslander, was rather odd in it's layout, especially the ground floor.  It looked more like a basement at ground level.  I have seen other episodes featuring houses in the Queenslander style, and I think they are pretty.  They remind me a bit of the older houses in Hawaii.  One would think that after watching hundreds of HHI episodes I would know what an "induction hub" is.  I had to think a minute and then realized she was talking about the cook top.     

[biakbiak]

51 minutes ago, laredhead said:

I'm going to have to look up the climate for Townsville because he kept mentioning the need for A/C, or "air con" as he called it.  The

It definitely gets hot enough there that air conditioning would be on my must have list.

[cyberfruit]

Cara in Paris -- I didn't mind this episode. Knowing the editors, I'm sure they spliced together scenes that spoke only of her grandmother and her dancing. There was even a scene where the same shot was repeated, twice. The market apartment would have been something I'd happily jump on as a grad student or when I was working two jobs to stay afloat (so the apt was for sleeping, only). But as someone who's moved up the ladder an inch, natural light (lol) is very important, so I would have also made the fiscally sound decision of going with the Paris on the Edge apartment. Construction ends, eventually, and I sleep like the dead. Plus, she does have that inheritance, so why would she need to be under budget in a tiny, dark apartment?

Townsville -- Honestly, I couldn't get past how annoying the husband was. 

I think TPTB are against me because the South Africa to Rotterdam episode still isn't available on Demand. They always cut out episodes 3-7 each season, without fail. I still haven't seen a single episode in Groningen because of it. 

[Irlandesa]

On 9/2/2017 at 9:38 AM, DallasGypsy said:

Plenty of good design schools in the U.S.  Why not go there and wait until the kid is older and take a vacation to Italy?

There are so many more advantages to living in a place rather than just visiting it on vacation, especially if the goal is to really experience a place and learn a language.  That's hard to do on a one or two week vacation.  He's a student, at a school that looks to be a top-ten rated design school in the world. Being a student brings with it some discounts, especially if they're younger than 26.  (I LinkedIn stalked Sarah and she got her BA in 2013 so she may be 26 or younger.)  It's also easier to get a long stay Visa if someone is attending school. 

If they want to live abroad, this is a really good time for them to do it. 

There's also a lot of talk about what Sarah will do with a baby all day* but she may prefer a smaller town. There's a lot to do in Milan but it's also pretty big.  And a lot of stay-at-home moms manage to do that in some pretty dull places in the US.  I'm sure Como has parks, beaches, playgrounds....etc.

*Even though they said they wouldn't be working, her LinkedIn actually lists her as working as a project manager for this which is based in Como.

 

On 9/2/2017 at 10:11 AM, doodlebug said:

I also presume the car they were driving was a rental and they weren't going to have a car in Como; but, it kinda bugged when he talked about the 30 minute walk to the train station from the suburban train station to that apartment and no mention was made of her possibly driving him there and picking him up to cut down on the amount of time it took.

I think they might have been referring to a car or bus, not a walk. I believe he said that it was located in Nesso which is 8 miles NE of Como.  Walking that in 8 miles would be a fast walk.

[debraran]

On 9/2/2017 at 7:34 PM, Ohwell said:

I get all that, but my point is that I think he knows some Italian. 

I saw this older episode on youtube and I wondered how the husband could want to live in a town where most spoke Italian and he didn't.  So remote. I must say, having relatives from S. Italy myself, it was charming but I felt I'd be so far out of my comfort zone.

[SmithW6079]

Catching up on some recent episodes...

Yorkshire to Townsville newlyweds: 10 minutes to drive to the beach is not "too far," mate, nor is a 15-minute drive to the city center being on the road forever. I live where a 15-minute commute would be heavenly. That said, I liked the third house the best, both for its location and the house itself.

Lake Como couple: Is it written that the wives in all episodes of HHI must be shrews? Her attitude of "I don't really care how long your commute is; I want a lake view" really put me off. And what was the baby's name? I thought it was "Sullivan," but it sounded like she kept pronouncing it "Soliman."

Hated the South Africa to Rotterdam couple because the wife was such a nasty, controlling bitch.

Is it also an HHI dictate that gay men on this show must be bitchy divas? The New York to Berlin dude was seriously irritating. If I recall, didn't he take the most expensive apartment? I actually laughed at how mean the realtor was to them. 

The Paris dancer was OK, but I didn't think that first apartment was terrible.

The Isle of Wight couple: It didn't seem as though the wife was going to be a full-time caregiver to her mom, so why were they living off savings? I assume she was still a British subject, so why couldn't she get a job? The husband was as annoying as any spouse we've seen.

[Lawgiver]

Lake Como: I thought the wife looked like a mixture of Kate McKinnon and Sofia Vergara. And note to HH who have kids: you don't need a tub to bathe kids. Mine survived just fine in a house with no tubs. They just got showered instead.

[crazycatlady58]

Lawgiver, honest question  how do  you shower a 2 year  old? I have no children  but have bathed  many a toddler . How do you manage  to shower  a toddler ,  do you take  them in the shower  with you? I am not being snarky I just have trouble  seeing  how you would  manage the child.

[Lawgiver]

You can take them in with you or just stick them in and watch them. They can walk at that age, so it's easy. I had a detachable shower head which made it easier, plus my kids wore goggles because they didn't like water in their eyes. Also, I subscribe to the Hygiene Hypothesis, so I wasn't that concerned with scrubbing them too much. As long as the dirt isn't too visible, everything's fine! 

Edited September 4, 2017 by Lawgiver

[debraran]

Casa in Cabo...Gretchen and Rob buying a home in Mexico for rental and themselves.  Pretty scenery but kind of blah, budget, budget, budget...lol.  I FF a little because I wouldn't miss much in the script.

They both had beautiful blue eyes but kind of one dimensional  in how they were portrayed.  All the places were nice, they obviously had money, I would have wanted the condo because of upkeep and it was pretty with balcony. If one more person worries about guests!! Geez. How many are you having and how often?  Of course, they didn't get the condo which she wanted, which was kind of obvious when they only showed one.

Edited September 4, 2017 by debraran

[CherryAmes]

11 hours ago, Lawgiver said:

And note to HH who have kids: you don't need a tub to bathe kids. Mine survived just fine in a house with no tubs.

I want bath tubs for me!  IF the house were absolutely perfect in every other respect I might give in on that but every house with a tub we looked at would have had to really suck in order for me to settle for a tubless house!

[crazycatlady58]

Lawgiver ,  thank you for your reply .  That makes sense , I was just thinking  that I would  need to be on their level , and at 60 if I get get down  on the floor  it is not easy to get up again. In the shower  it would be worse.

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, CherryAmes said:

I want bath tubs for me!  IF the house were absolutely perfect in every other respect I might give in on that but every house with a tub we looked at would have had to really suck in order for me to settle for a tubless house!

I love my jetted tub, use it all the time. I don't have kids, but I was one once and remember bath time being lots of fun with toys and bubbles and a sibling or two in the tub.  Kids would miss out on that in a shower-only house.

Edited September 4, 2017 by doodlebug

[Kohola3]

Tubs = sitting in butt water. Yuck.

[CherryAmes]

4 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Tubs = sitting in butt water. Yuck.

No real difference between a tub and a swimming pool except in a tub you're usually going solo so the only butt involved is your own!

[BlossomCulp]

5 minutes ago, CherryAmes said:

No real difference between a tub and a swimming pool except in a tub you're usually going solo so the only butt involved is your own!

LOL.  And at least in a bath tub you're not worrying about anyone peeing, pooping, bleeding or vomiting in the water!  Seriously, my daughter worked as a lifeguard at our local pool for a few years and the stories she told about what went into the water made me rethink ever going swimming in a public pool again!

Edited September 4, 2017 by BlossomCulp

[Kohola3]

Well, if a swimming pool is chlorinated, there is a big difference. Plus a pool has a thousand times more water. 

[doodlebug]

11 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Well, if a swimming pool is chlorinated, there is a big difference. Plus a pool has a thousand times more water. 

Yeah, but there's nothing stopping anyone from giving the tub a good scrub prior to bathing.

[BlossomCulp]

4 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

Yeah, but there's nothing stopping anyone from giving the tub a good scrub prior to bathing.

For that matter if anything gross goes into a public pool it's everyone out of the water while they clean it.  Just having chlorine in it doesn't mean they leave the poop for the filters to filter! Pee, well there's probably a lot of pee that ends up swirling around in the water.  Apologies for the gross hijack :).

[Diane M]

2 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Tubs = sitting in butt water. Yuck.

And sitting in dirty water.  I don't like tubs for that reason.  I would have to have a telephone shower attached to the faucet to rinse off the soap and dirt.

[debraran]

2 hours ago, Diane M said:

And sitting in dirty water.  I don't like tubs for that reason.  I would have to have a telephone shower attached to the faucet to rinse off the soap and dirt.

We had that, my kids would be filthy and then say the water was dirty and it was kind of sensible. So we had a hand shower with attachment to get the dirtier water off or soap and that transitioned to regular showers. I never could relax in a tub, not my thing, but a fancy shower like I've seen in some of these shows, I'd love that. ; )

Edited September 4, 2017 by debraran

[Gam2]

We had a jetted tub in the house we bought 3 years ago. I did a lot of research on those. There something called biofilm in the pipes underneath the tub that most people think can be killed by running bleach/water through the jets. Not true. I consulted our plumber about this and he said "Remove that nasty thing. You'll never be able to sanitize it completely". So we did that and had a large shower built and just love it. Just our experience with it but I wouldn't bathe in one of those if my life depended on it.