House Hunters International - General Discussion

[ECM1231]

7 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Ecuador: Dude is still a dancer.

Puerto Vallarta: Taniel is another HHI real estate person I like. That place they picked was a shoebox. I bet those kids will get sick of sharing a bedroom.

Plus, I don't like the idea of boy and girl siblings sharing a room. I think it's fine up to a certain age but the oldest boy was a pre- teen so were the parents expecting all 3 kids to share a single bedroom indefinitely? 

[Koalagirl]

3 minutes ago, ECM1231 said:

Plus, I don't like the idea of boy and girl siblings sharing a room. I think it's fine up to a certain age but the oldest boy was a pre- teen so were the parents expecting all 3 kids to share a single bedroom indefinitely? 

This is the first time I didn’t mind seeing young children on the show.  Their banter really cracked me up.  I have a feeling the family may only stay in the two bedroom for a year or two and then move.  I feel sorry for the two boys because I definitely think the girl will be in charge of that bedroom!

[ECM1231]

1 hour ago, Koalagirl said:

This is the first time I didn’t mind seeing young children on the show.  Their banter really cracked me up.  I have a feeling the family may only stay in the two bedroom for a year or two and then move.  I feel sorry for the two boys because I definitely think the girl will be in charge of that bedroom!

They WERE very cute! Both in banter and appearance!

[proserpina65]

On ‎05‎/‎06‎/‎2020 at 1:06 PM, scrb said:

Prague:  She went on and on about the ceilings, said it would be worth paying $200 more a month for decorative ceilings than for stainless steel appliances.

Well, I wouldn't pay extra for stainless steel appliances either.  I hate them.  But yeah, which is more important, decorative ceilings or money for things like travel.  I'd choose money for travel.

[amarante]

There is money to be made because advertising is for very specific target group. Who would be reading these blogs for the most part except those who are thinking about traveling.

They would also get comped travel and leisure stuff in exchange for mentioning it in the blog. 

They don't need to make a huge amount of money but it seems to be an income stream even for those with relatively few followers.

Of course the whole social media income has been wiped out by the pandemic and not just for the obvious like travel blogs. 

[laredhead]

I haven't seen the Prague episode yet, but I did read her blog after it was mentioned.  OMG - I was exhausted at the end of the post about their trip home.  From the initial indecisiveness, to the final decision, to the uncertainty of getting into France, and then home, it was pretty grueling.  They were also traveling with a dog!  I'm too old for that type of adventuring.

[TVForever]

On 5/7/2020 at 11:58 AM, sempervivum said:

Manta, Ecuador- I must have missed an explanation of how she went from dancer to anesthesiologist (?) Did they reveal what he does? Still a dancer?

His oh-so-special interior decorating ended up looking just like every other beach front condo: mostly white with grey and black. So what? 

It was never explained; I just figured that (like many dancers) her dance career never quite took off,  or just plain stalled, she "aged out", or "injured out".  The husband managed to find a way to continue his dance career by teaching (it wasn't clear if he was still performing). I wondered if he was going to be able to earn a full time living as a dancer in Ecuador. I certainly hope he's not thinking of going into interior decorating. For all of his talk about the wonderful things he would do to make the space their own, let's just say I was underwhelmed by the end results we saw.

On 5/8/2020 at 8:28 AM, Koalagirl said:

This is the first time I didn’t mind seeing young children on the show.  Their banter really cracked me up.  I have a feeling the family may only stay in the two bedroom for a year or two and then move.  I feel sorry for the two boys because I definitely think the girl will be in charge of that bedroom!

That cute little 5 year-old already rules the roost!  Frankly, I'm thinking that they're not truly moving there full-time. I would have no problem putting those three in the same bedroom if that was our vacation condo, but as a full-time residence? Makes no sense for so many reasons.

Edited May 9, 2020 by TVForever

[LittleIggy]

Maldives: Very nice couple, but, seriously, 4 adults, a toddler, and soon a newborn in that little flat? Why do her parents have to live with them? Sorry if I come across as culturally insensitive...

[buttersister]

Slovakia, west of Ukraine. Bored 30-something nags her boss until she gets transferred here. Anyway, good thing she picked the place she did--she'd have been miserable in a nice place with two! balconies, but grandma furniture. Right.

The realtor was a doll. Tight faded jeans and all. 

Edited May 15, 2020 by buttersister

[scrb]

13 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Maldives: Very nice couple, but, seriously, 4 adults, a toddler, and soon a newborn in that little flat? Why do her parents have to live with them? Sorry if I come across as culturally insensitive...

I understand wanting to be closer to his father but a 45-minute flight is still like 3-4 hours airport to airport.

Not sure how far UAE to Sri Lanka flights are, but maybe a couple of hours more?  But it sounds like he was earning more there and they had a higher standard of living.

Guess he would need to be sure of getting time off from work for traveling as much as he anticipates?

The ocean looked beautiful but the crowded city not so much.

I guess the rich people who go to resorts don't have to deal with the crowded, run-down city.

 

 

[laredhead]

Re the Maldives episode - was the man's father still living in Sri Lanka?  They kept talking about how much larger their apartment was in UAE, and that the husband made more $$ there.  I wondered why they didn't move the man's parents to the UAE.

I just did a crash course on Wikipedia about the Maldives, and it was enlightening.  The entire chain of islands is threatened by rising sea levels due to global warming, and predictions are many parts will be underwater in the not too distant future. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

59 minutes ago, laredhead said:

I just did a crash course on Wikipedia about the Maldives, and it was enlightening.  The entire chain of islands is threatened by rising sea levels due to global warming, and predictions are many parts will be underwater in the not too distant future. 

I knew about the Maldives from a documentary from about 10 years ago called The Island President.  It follows his efforts to bring the world's attention to the existential threat to the Maldives.  You really root for the guy.  And the photography is amazing.

[doodlebug]

On ‎5‎/‎15‎/‎2020 at 12:50 AM, LittleIggy said:

Maldives: Very nice couple, but, seriously, 4 adults, a toddler, and soon a newborn in that little flat? Why do her parents have to live with them? Sorry if I come across as culturally insensitive...

I agree, especially since it seemed that they had a lot more space in UAE than in Maldives.  Even if it was the cultural norm for parents to live with their adult children's families; they were not only moving to a new country, there was a new baby on the way. How were they all going to cope in that tiny place?  Presumably, her parents were retired and would be there all day long with her and the 2 kids, I would be going nuts in a week living like that.  I didn't understand their thinking at all.

I also found it odd that they were moving to Maldives instead of Sri Lanka if the goal was to be able to visit his father.  Sri Lanka is 650 or so miles from Maldives while it is more than 2000 from UAE.  A flight from UAE to Sri Lanka is almost 5 hours, so they were gaining some time; but still, not that much.

To me, it seemed like the real story behind the move was not being told, that there was some important information that wasn't included in the show.  To take a pay cut and move into a place less than half the size of their previous place with a new baby imminent made no sense at all; especially when they were still hours away from Sri Lanka if his father needed him.  And they'd have less money to spend on travel there, to boot.

[laredhead]

Re the Maldives episode, yesterday I read an article about people who live on their boats, and make around the world journeys full time.  One of the places that many of them have on their route is the Maldives; however, people trying to enter the area now are quarantined on their boats because the Maldives (and the capital city) have the COVID 19.  If people are confined to their houses and apartments, then that living situation with the family is going to get even tighter.   

[LittleIggy]

Bali: Boy, she towered over him! To me they looked like mother and son. She gave up her own salon in NO to go off with him? And she is the only one working? Hope she meets a nice guy in Bangkok. 😏

[Kiddvideo]

Denmark, PhD student: Why do I get a Dan Broderick feel from him? Like it's all about him and what he wants -- even his offer to possibly get a live-in nanny so "they" could have more flexibility (to get what he wants.) And what a patronizing asshole. He's been an international traveler and is sophisticated enough to know the US sucks, she fell for him because he's superior (my interpretation.)

Had these two discussed their future at all before the wedding and the kid? How do you not mention one of your life goals is having constant adventures? Did he model his life after Patrick Swayze in Point Break?

I see him throwing her away for someone younger who idolizes him, makes no demands, and has no expectation to be respected. None of what his wife is doing matters. As long as he's not too inconvenienced. Life's a competition to him. Obstacles and opponents must be crushed even if they are your wife and mother of your child

[Ohwell]

Bali couple:  I thought they both were kinda weird and they creeped me out.  Her eyebrows alone would scare the hell out of me.

[KLovestoShop]

How stupid are the Bali couple.  He was a lazy ass who thought his crap didn't stink, and she was just plain weird.  I couldn't believe the asshat jumped into the pool, even though the agent said not to.  And why did they move to Bali if she works in Thailand?  She couldn't get a job doing hair in Bali?  Hell, there are so many big, fancy resorts and spas in Bali, she could have gotten a job in one of those places?  The last time we went to Bali, just the Four Seasons alone had four hair stylists in their spa and salon, and there are so many, many four and five star resorts in Nusa Dua and Ubud alone.  Just another weird couple who I bet didn't stay there long.

[StatisticalOutlier]

4 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

I couldn't believe the asshat jumped into the pool, even though the agent said not to. 

I agree, although I can't say I blame him.  Did you see all the sweat on him and on the realtor?

I noticed that they didn't show a single bathroom in any of the houses.  And I didn't watch carefully because that woman gave me the creeps, but in the "after" part, I think they were shown only on the balcony thing, which makes me wonder if they even use that porch outdoor living room.

And I agree with @LittleIggy--she looked a LOT older than him, and I can't quite figure out why.

[Koalagirl]

I think she looked a lot older than him because of the height difference and her grayish hair tone.  He was a man-child.  Apparently he wasn’t going to be contributing to the monthly expenses so I think her preferences should have been the priority. If my significant other would have jumped into a pool after being told not to by not only his gf but the realtor I would have been on the next plane home. The realtor probably had his hands full, judging by his comment that he only had to put up with the guy for one day but she has to put up with him every day.  What we saw was probably just a snapshot of his lack of impulse control.

[scrb]

4 hours ago, KLovestoShop said:

How stupid are the Bali couple.  He was a lazy ass who thought his crap didn't stink, and she was just plain weird.  I couldn't believe the asshat jumped into the pool, even though the agent said not to.  And why did they move to Bali if she works in Thailand?  She couldn't get a job doing hair in Bali?  Hell, there are so many big, fancy resorts and spas in Bali, she could have gotten a job in one of those places?  The last time we went to Bali, just the Four Seasons alone had four hair stylists in their spa and salon, and there are so many, many four and five star resorts in Nusa Dua and Ubud alone.  Just another weird couple who I bet didn't stay there long.

They must have encouraged him.  Cameras were set up to perfectly capture him doing it as he jumped in and as he swum a bit and the other two went up to him by the side of the pool.

Only been to Bali once but Ubud is quite a distance from the airport.  Traffic is bad so it might be at least an hour to get to the Bali airport.  There may be direct flights to Bangkok though and the flight is probably not too long.

Yeah I'm not down with the insects.  Those buildings with tall roofs look nice but not sure it's best for dealing with pests.  Because the weather is mild, you want that indoor/outdoor living which sounds good.  But it means doors and windows may not be sealed.

One place I stayed in had fences and a gate and it's own pool.  The kitchen was outside and they'd bring food and drinks and leave it out there or in the fridge.  They would bring you dinner if you ate there.  But I didn't want to leave dirty dishes outside.

At night, they'd come and spray around the villa and burn some incense or something.  I don't recall if there was a big bug tent but in any event I got some kind of bite on my belly which produced a welt an inch-wide.  4 years afterwards, the area where the bite was is still discolored.  Never gave me problems other than cosmetic though who knows what kind of virus mosquitoes there may carry.

Even the modern options didn't look sealed enough for my taste.  If I visit again, it's going to be in a proper modern hotel.

 

[seacliffsal]

The Bali story didn't make sense to me.  They had no idea how much the type of home they wanted really cost (and the wife got snippy with the realtor when he tried to explain that in their price range they couldn't get everything).  And then it ends up she gets a job in a completely different country and has to fly there.  And they were worried about housing costs-what about transportation costs?  Jumping into a pool fully clothed?  Just no.  Of course, I feel the same way whenever the house hunters put their shoes/feet on furniture.  Just stop.  It doesn't belong to you-be respectful.

[ArtFossil]

10 hours ago, Ohwell said:

Bali couple:  I thought they both were kinda weird and they creeped me out.  Her eyebrows alone would scare the hell out of me.

Her (painted on) eyebrows kept me from watching past the first few minutes. Will have to watch Escape to the Country to detox.

Edited May 23, 2020 by ArtFossil

[KLovestoShop]

Flying time from Bali to Bangkok is 4hours 20 minutes.  Not exactly a short hop.  And didn’t she say she doesn’t go all that often?  I just don’t get how they survive on an income that isn’t regular.  And it didn’t sound like he had a job.  

[scrb]

She owned her own salon for 10 years in New Orleans so maybe they're living on her savings.

I wonder if they can find comparable rental properties in Thailand itself.  Even if she has to fly to Bangkok, assuming she has to do so several times a year.

Would be a shorter flight plus not having to go through a lot of traffic on narrow roads to the Denspar Airport from Ubud.

[amarante]

11 hours ago, Ohwell said:

Bali couple:  I thought they both were kinda weird and they creeped me out.  Her eyebrows alone would scare the hell out of me.

I think she was heavily Botoxed because her forehead didn't move. The overly arched eyebrows are a telltale sign of a bad Botox job.

There has got to be some unspoken reason for why they chose to live inland for starters. I am not a beach person but if I were moving to a tropical location, the only reason I could think of would be because I wanted to live in a beach town.

[biakbiak]

25 minutes ago, amarante said:

There has got to be some unspoken reason for why they chose to live inland for starters. I am not a beach person but if I were moving to a tropical location, the only reason I could think of would be because I wanted to live in a beach town.

Ubud is extremely popular with expats. I lived in a small village near there when I was in college and loved it. Though it’s changed a great deal but still has the best babi guling.

 

[scrb]

Would coastal areas like Seminyak be more expensive?

Especially any place with a view?

Some tourist workers commute down to coastal resorts from small villages up north.

By scooter, over an hour each way, rain or shine.

[LittleIggy]

Bali: Wasn’t the real estate guy the same one who had to deal with the dippy chica who talked as if she were stoned? Poor guy! He has to deal with flakes it seems. 🙄

[buttersister]

At the end, all I could see is a thought bubble over her head that said: Bye, bye, Bali. Hello, Bangkok. And she leaves him in Bali holding the ball. 

[DonnaMae]

13 hours ago, amarante said:

There has got to be some unspoken reason for why they chose to live inland for starters. I am not a beach person but if I were moving to a tropical location, the only reason I could think of would be because I wanted to live in a beach town.

I would imagine that any house or apartment close to the beach would have been too expensive.

[scrb]

OK they air old episodes as new.  Tonight my Tivo recorded an ep. about a gay couple who look for a home in Johannesburg which they say first aired today but that isn't the case.

They must really be low on finished HHI episodes.

[buttersister]

I didn’t recall the Johannesburg couple, but thought it was pretty clear the burb house was a herring. Nice try telling me the big-ass bedroom with plenty of room for a desk was a no-go. But the biggest tell was their fantastic dining table, being “left behind” that they “could never afford.” 😂

[scrb]

New HHI has dried up.  They must have emptied the can.

I'm getting a bunch of HH episodes on Tivo but they also seem to be repacked reruns, like comics giving commentary on older episodes but they're release like first airings.

Well CA is allowing TV and film production staring 6/12.

But countries are still closed to nonessential travel.  So for instance, no sign of when New Zealand and Australia will open up to outside visitors.

Same for Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore.

These countries have all but eliminated the virus among the population.

Europe is signaling that they will open up to tourists from other continents some time this summer.

Some Caribbean islands are planning to open up in the summer too, because they can't miss that tourist money.

South and Central America though, the virus is raging through them right now.

But even if they're able to film in some countries, I would imagine they'd have to line up people who want to be on the show, set up the logistics for filming.  Then post production.

So the earliest maybe for new episodes might be early next year?

Or they may not do real work until there's a vaccine or effective drug treatments.

I wouldn't think HGTV would abandon any of their shows unless they weren't making money before the pandemic.  But maybe they have lost revenues so maybe they can't front money for production right away.

 

 

[scrb]

My DVR is set to record House Hunters International: The Adventure ...

Tonight at 10:30 PM

Description mentions something about Melbourne.

 

Not sure if it's really a new HHI.

Edited June 23, 2020 by scrb

[LittleIggy]

Australia: Nice to see the couple is still together. The baby is adorbs!

[buttersister]

Australian catch up— they could do more of those. Feel free, HGTV, to poll watchers on which HH we’d love to revisit!

[CrazyInAlabama]

I enjoyed the catch up episode in Australia so much.     However, the way the producers mess with timelines so often (shooting the 'search' when the person is about to leave and go home), that I bet it would be very difficult to do many of the catch up episodes.  

[TVForever]

I LOVE followup episodes! I would be happy with a whole season of these, especially since we're not likely to get any new episodes of house hunting for a really long time.

True, a good chunk of the HHIers are probably back in the states(or Canada) now, but I would be happy to hear them reflect on their experience abroad.  In fact, I was reading the blog of the young travel blogger woman who moved from Canada to Poland with her boyfriend. By the time their episode aired, they were back in Canada. But she recounts the experience of making the decision to go back to Canada as Europe was going into lockdown. That would be a great followup episode.

HGTV: Get together with the HHI producers. Those episodes could be filmed remotely. I would definitely tune in!

[scrb]

Enjoyed it but I don't think the logistics would be any easier than doing new episodes.

They used some of the cell phone videos that the couple must have taken.

But they also showed videos of family members visiting.

So did they go back and film with the couple at different times?

In any event, any remote shooting they did probably was done before the pandemic.

I heard other shows like The Amazing Race will hire local filming crews, rather than only use American crews who travel with the cast and the producers.

So maybe they could hire a local crew and then producers can remotely prompt the house hunters on what topics to discuss or kind of give them some kind of structure.

But what makes it difficult too do more follow ups like this is that many of the house hunters are not really settling in these places permanently.  They're there for some job or some shorter-term stay.  Like the woman here, she was only going to stay 14-months but then met her future husband and decided to stay there permanently.

Did she find another acting gig or has she put her career on hold?

They could have filmed more about their current life now, don't even really watch all of the original episode, just a few clips to remind the viewers.

[LittleIggy]

I wish they would do Comedians on Couches versions of HHI, especially if they did episodes with some of our fave real estate agents like Richard, Adrian, and Kevin (Baby Elvis).

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, LittleIggy said:

I wish they would do Comedians on Couches versions of HHI, especially if they did episodes with some of our fave real estate agents like Richard, Adrian, and Kevin (Baby Elvis).

Heck, let's have some HHI eppies with Richard, Adrienne and Kevin snarking on the various clients and giving us behind the scenes info.  I bet they'd be entertaining as all he**.

[blueray]

I had deja vu yesterday with the Puerto Rico episode. It said it was new, but I felt like I seen something very similar. A couple was moving there to help out with the aftermath of the hurricane. And that they looked at two nice houses and one that was falling apart. And of course picked falling apart one. Did anyone else had this too? I think it was a different episode but very similar to another one.

Also in this one the people were dumb. They said that they were looking forward to moving to a different country. Puerto Rico is part of the US. So they aren't. And it was also a bit insulting to think that these people need "your" help with getting food. It's one thing to say I want to help the rebuild but they are very capable of growing and owning their own agriculture business. 

Edited June 25, 2020 by blueray

[TVForever]

6 minutes ago, blueray said:

I had deja vu yesterday with the Puerto Rico episode. It said it was new, but I felt like I seen something very similar. A couple was moving there to help out with the aftermath of the hurricane. And that they looked at two nice houses and one that was falling apart. And of course picked falling apart one. Did anyone else had this too? I think it was a different episode but very similar to another one.

Also in this one the people were dumb. They said that they were looking forward to moving to a different country. Puerto Rico is part of the US. So they aren't. And it was also a bit insulting to think that these people need "your" help with getting food. It's one thing to say I want to help the rebuild but they are very capable of growing and owning their own agriculture business. 

It annoys me that HGTV always puts these Puerto Rico episodes in HHI, instead of domestic HH, although I understand why they do it. I guess the same would apply to the US Virgin Islands episodes.

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, blueray said:

I had deja vu yesterday with the Puerto Rico episode. It said it was new, but I felt like I seen something very similar. A couple was moving there to help out with the aftermath of the hurricane. And that they looked at two nice houses and one that was falling apart. And of course picked falling apart one. Did anyone else had this too? I think it was a different episode but very similar to another one.

Also in this one the people were dumb. They said that they were looking forward to moving to a different country. Puerto Rico is part of the US. So they aren't. And it was also a bit insulting to think that these people need "your" help with getting food. It's one thing to say I want to help the rebuild but they are very capable of growing and owning their own agriculture business. 

I'm pretty sure it was a rerun; the couple seemed familiar, too.  The constant referencing of hydroponics and hoop houses was a giveaway.  I figure they bought the land and started building the house when HHI came along, so they pretended that someone else had started to build and abandoned it.  When they kept harping on how they couldn't afford houses at the top of their range that might need improvements while being all excited about an uncompleted house that didn't have electricity and claiming it would be within their budget to finish construction; it seemed obvious.  There was no way to know that a partially built home that had been through a hurricane was going to be within budget, either.

As far as people in PR needing help getting food, they did say that PR imports much of its food when it's climate would support more agriculture; so they weren't entirely wrong that perhaps a non-traditional food growing method could become popular there and increase the locally grown options.

[LittleIggy]

That episode was a rerun. I don’t know why it was listed in some places as new.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The HHI about the couple moving to Maidenhead, England has Richard, which is wonderful.  But again he has a couple of bizarre rental hunters.    He just said they were "fusspots", and I totally agree with him.    He always seems to get the quirky ones.  

The man knits, and needs room for that.  That doesn't take much room, even if you have a range of needles, and aids, and stored yarn, they do have storage cabinets for knitting supplies for the home.    

My guess is that his emphasis on only getting one bedroom isn't budget, but he doesn't want the girlfriend's family staying with them. 

Edited June 26, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[Grizzly]

I love Realtor Richard! And he's too funny about fusspot Andy.

[Irlandesa]

11 hours ago, blueray said:

So they aren't. And it was also a bit insulting to think that these people need "your" help with getting food. It's one thing to say I want to help the rebuild but they are very capable of growing and owning their own agriculture business. 

Yeah the whole "we don't want to be a 'savior'" moment was a bit "methinks you protest too much." 

It's just so easy to say, we loved the island and discovered there was a space in the agricultural market for us.

[buttersister]

He’s a fusspot! Oh, Richard, how I’ve missed you. And your cool convertible. The guy was annoying and clearly insists his gf knit, too. Oh, honey.