House Hunters International - General Discussion

[eel21788]

On 5/24/2022 at 6:52 PM, amarante said:

In California where there are specific building codes, masonry is not allowed because withstanding seismic grounds forces from an earthquake are different than those from a hurricane winds. If you have older masonry like brick it needs to be retrofitted and I believe even frame construction that is older needs to be firmly "tied" to the foundation. In past earthquakes many of the older brick buildings in East Hollywood crumbled versus framed construction.

I learned on a city tour of San Francisco that brick construction has been outlawed because in an earthquake, the bricks turn into projectiles.

[QQQQ]

On 5/26/2022 at 11:58 AM, proserpina65 said:

I imagine they're going to have to go back to work eventually, despite thinking they can just permanently retire early.

They were rather whiny about bedroom sizes and kitchens.  I found them quite annoying.  But the places were all really nice, even the small flat in the city center.

According to the websites I checked, there is a movement, although it's a fairly loose one.

In this couple's case, I believe FIRE stands for Foreign Idiots Really Entitled. So much whining about views, outdated kitchens, etc. 

[pep4]

Cangirly Stampede to Australia:

Sooooo, 2 minutes away is too far for a horse, which would inconvenience 1 person, but 10 minutes to the beach is perfectly close and only inconveniences the other 5 in the family.

Also to the realtor:  She's bringing a horse, not a herd of elephants and tigers.  Mr. Eddy is no big deal.

Though I'd guess nearly everything in that storyline was faked up. 

[mojito]

Playa del Carmen

I can't believe the first place was just $100 over the HH's budget at 1100 per month. I think it had 2 bedrooms, 2 baths and it was nice. I'd be afraid of renting that place only to have the owner decide to jack up its rent after 6 months because the price was so low. 

This lady was quite the adventurer. Left home at 17 and traveled. It would be funny to learn that she was actually backed--even partially--by family money because she really seemed to have gone it alone all these years, and would continue to do so. 

She went with a plainer, cheaper place that met her needs: a swimming pool for training in and a place to park her motorcycle. She didn't have many possessions; hers is a pretty compact life. 

[sskrill]

Canada chick in Paris.

Didn't have children in Canada so she could move to Paris and find someone to love?  She was so awkward on that date.  

Adrian had no patience with her, and I don't blame her.

[TVForever]

19 hours ago, sskrill said:

Canada chick in Paris.

Didn't have children in Canada so she could move to Paris and find someone to love?  She was so awkward on that date.  

Adrian had no patience with her, and I don't blame her.

Anyone have the episode number on this? My DVR didn't record for some reason.

[sskrill]

4 hours ago, TVForever said:

Anyone have the episode number on this? My DVR didn't record for some reason.

I was just catching up on my recorded episodes - looks like this might be from a few weeks back - S175/E1.

[seacliffsal]

Okay, the couple wanting a castle in Spain were really getting on my nerves as they seemed more interested in winning the award for being the most quirkiest quirky couple by being quirky.  Also, it was Spain so where was Nick?

[Chicken Fingers]

The couple in Spain were a little over the top, but at the same time, I liked hearing their kid laughing with delight at the dad's silly antics. That may change when the kid hits his teens, of course. 

[proserpina65]

4 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

Okay, the couple wanting a castle in Spain were really getting on my nerves as they seemed more interested in winning the award for being the most quirkiest quirky couple by being quirky.  Also, it was Spain so where was Nick?

I was telling that idiot father to shut the hell up about his fucking tower.  He was absolutely ridiculous.

[cinsays]

1 minute ago, proserpina65 said:

I was telling that idiot father to shut the hell up about his fucking tower.  He was absolutely ridiculous.

he just seemed like he was going out of his way to be annoying (make yourself a damned tower out of paper mache and be done with it!) and she wanted us to think she is just so quirky

the little girl seemed fairly normal and sweet despite it all

[Thumper]

Did the castle-in-Spain episode air last night?  I don’t think we had it.

[TVForever]

2 hours ago, Thumper said:

Did the castle-in-Spain episode air last night?  I don’t think we had it.

It was Tuesday night.

[LittleIggy]

9 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

Okay, the couple wanting a castle in Spain were really getting on my nerves as they seemed more interested in winning the award for being the most quirkiest quirky couple by being quirky.  Also, it was Spain so where was Nick?

Yeah, I can’t stand people who blabber on about how different and quirky they are. I was thinking “Hey, lady, dying your hair blue doesn’t make you unique. In fact it’s pretty mundane nowadays.”

9 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

Also, it was Spain so where was Nick?

At least the guy had silver hair!

[Bluesky]

On 4/11/2022 at 8:37 AM, laredhead said:

You don't have to travel to central America for part of that.  Come to south Louisiana where I live.  We have good A/C, screens, but we do have lots, and lots of insects.  I agree, and do wonder about the demand for yoga spas in places like that.

I guess I shouldn’t complain about these random ants that show up occasionally.  I’ve only seen 1 at a time.  Weird. 

[Grizzly]

Haarlem, Netherlands. No Sarah or Floor ☹️. Did you know that it rains in the Netherlands? I really liked the modern apartment, except for the artwork. The no stairs should be the clincher. Not sure how the Dutch survived, maybe they had less stuff to lug up the narrow stairs. How am I always so wrong about these things?

[LittleIggy]

I was hoping for Floor when I saw it was going to be in the Netherlands. ☹️
Those steep stairs with no outer railing were 😬.

[aghst]

Wife got what she wanted, unless hubby was serious about a garden in a dense, Dutch city.  Or extra room for visiting family.

He seemed to like living in Cape Town but his job took him away to Europe so it makes sense to cHoose Haarlem as a new base since he flies all the time to ScHipol airport.

As thE mother of a toddler, she didn’t seem to want to keep singing in night clubs eitHer.

The agent is not new to HHI but I don’t recall her doing any of the Netherlands episodes before.  Can’t recall which ones she’s done in the past.

Edited June 10, 2022 by aghst

[mojito]

SA to Netherlands

Maybe the couple gave the agent strict parameters about the kind of home they wanted (I'm playing along with the script). Or maybe, they were just a non-picky pair. They didn't seem to criticize anything, and were just focusing on location, price, and space. I suspect they both wanted to be inside the limits of Haarlem.

I didn't think they could be on the canal for $2500. 

That one place had me at "elevator". 

[amarante]

I would have gone with the modern apartment without stairs in Haarlem. A walkup apartment is inconvenient but I can't imagine dealing with carrying up a baby on those narrow stairs. The balcony could be baby proofed and the kid wasn't going to start climbing for awhile anyway.

Who are all of these people who are flocking to wellness retreats in horrible crappy surroundings. Are they attempting to capture the market of people who generally stay in hostels? Is that such a significant number of people or are we seeing every single yoga/wellness owner in these countries. 

That guy who wanted to grow his own fruit - honestly who cares where the food came from. I care more about the beds and toilets and showers because I don't think he would be serving gourmet meals anyway. 

[proserpina65]

On 6/9/2022 at 11:03 PM, Grizzly said:

Haarlem, Netherlands. No Sarah or Floor ☹️. Did you know that it rains in the Netherlands? I really liked the modern apartment, except for the artwork. The no stairs should be the clincher. Not sure how the Dutch survived, maybe they had less stuff to lug up the narrow stairs. How am I always so wrong about these things?

I hated the modern apartment, not even the elevator would've sold it for me.  (Ftr I hate modern architecture.)  I loved the first place and was glad they took it.  You get used to the stairs.  Now, if they'd had some kind of health condition which made climbing stairs painful, that would've been different.

On 6/10/2022 at 12:22 AM, LittleIggy said:

Those steep stairs with no outer railing were 😬.

Now THOSE stairs were scary!  No outer railing and no wall on that side?  No way.

On 6/10/2022 at 12:20 PM, mojito said:

I didn't think they could be on the canal for $2500.

That surprised me.  I guess maybe Harlem is less expensive than Amsterdam.

[Grrarrggh]

23 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

That surprised me.  I guess maybe Harlem is less expensive than Amsterdam.

Nearly every city in Europe is less expensive than Amsterdam. 

[Dehumidifier]

Woman in Ireland gushing over the view of a mud flat 🙄.

[BAForever]

14 minutes ago, Dehumidifier said:

Woman in Ireland gushing over the view of a mud flat 🙄.

Did you hear they used to live in Manhattan? The mud flat comment made me laugh.

[LittleIggy]

People are still kissing the Blarney Stone? Is it disinfected between kisses? 🤢

[Bastet]

10 hours ago, Grrarrggh said:

Nearly every city in Europe is less expensive than Amsterdam.

Yeah, it usually comes in around number ten on any given year's list of most expensive European cities.  But I never really registered it as expensive when visiting there.  London, yes, I was aware, and, oh my gods, even with all I knew going in, I still suffered sticker shock in Zurich.  Amsterdam, though, it didn't make an impact (and not because I was blinded by love; I love London every bit as much).  But it would be more impactful living, rather than visiting, there, of course.

As for the episode, I looked it up and, yep, while the overall cost of living between Haarlem and Amsterdam isn't terribly different, housing costs are, especially when buying rather than renting (about 30% higher in Amsterdam when buying, and about 15% higher when renting).

[CrazyInAlabama]

5 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

People are still kissing the Blarney Stone? Is it disinfected between kisses? 🤢

Nope, not since tourists started smooching it.   

I wonder if she looked at the requirements for permanent residence in Ireland?   It's not enough to have some DNA site say you're 98% English-Irish ancestry, and by the way, English and Irish aren't the same thing for citizenship, or permanent residence.  I think they said that the partner was the one with a job, so it depends on Ireland's rules about work permits, and if Miss English/Irish is smart, she'll check the rules before announcing it on TV that she's going to work from Ireland. 

[mojito]

Kips Bay, Manhattan to Cork, Ireland

The woman declared in disgust that the sofa was "blue-ah". Is this some new speech pattern or am I only now noticing it? I'm hearing it in a certain demographic (always females) a lot lately.

A home in the city with outdoor space and apparently non-urban views.  That's reasonable. 

I thought it was funny when the woman gushed about how all their guests would be impressed by that muddy space. Yikes.

[buttersister]

3 hours ago, mojito said:

I thought it was funny when the woman gushed about how all their guests would be impressed by that muddy space. Yikes.

LOL! Indeed. Guests who currently live in Manhattan and stare into their neighbor's window? 

[Crashcourse]

I was delighted to see the Cork episode because I traveled there several years ago.  The city is lovely, and I found the people to be very friendly.   I went to Blarney Castle, watched a few people slobbering while trying to kiss the stone and I said "Nope."  

The couple wasn't annoying, so that was a plus (although I did kind of cringe when she called one place "quaint" and I suspect James the realtor cringed, too.  LOL).

I actually understood her mud flat comment because, taking into account all the surrounding  scenery, I can see it being a beautiful place.

[mojito]

29 minutes ago, Crashcourse said:

The couple wasn't annoying, so that was a plus (although I did kind of cringe when she called one place "quaint" and I suspect James the realtor cringed, too.  LOL).

Was that the cottage? Except for the door, the building looked like some public housing projects in the US.

[Crashcourse]

49 minutes ago, mojito said:

Was that the cottage? Except for the door, the building looked like some public housing projects in the US.

I think it was the last place they saw, but I don't remember if that was the cottage.

[deirdra]

19 hours ago, Dehumidifier said:

Woman in Ireland gushing over the view of a mud flat 🙄.

I watched a documentary about the Ireland potato famine and the women had to scrape rocks to get enough soil to grow something. The husbands were away fishing in the ocean in tiny boats and often didn't come home.  So I can see how women would gush over a mud flat in Ireland.😀  They probably don't know the difference between a mudflat and a beach of sand.

Edited June 15, 2022 by deirdra

[eel21788]

2 hours ago, mojito said:

 the building looked like some public housing projects in the US.

On my first trip to England, every time my aunt saw any large brick building, she would point and announce, "Look! Low-income housing!" I have no idea why she thought that it was low-income housing or why she was so fixated on it as though it was the best tourist attraction ever.

I knew for sure that a lot of those buildings weren't low-income housing, and I was worried that when she kept saying it over and over again, we were going to offend the locals. Fortunately, I never heard any of them commenting on the uncouth, crazy 'Mericans.

[aghst]

I visited Cork like 20 years ago one time for work.  Too busy to sightsee.  Center was okay, the hotel I was in was near the water which had swans.

I learned that Cork or the coastal area near it is called the Irish Riviera but didn't see too much sun.

The Ireland of the movies and Game of Thrones are elsewhere on the island.  But I think Cork became a big growth area because US tech companies built facilities there.

Can't recall the agent's name, the guy is pretty funny.  He said very high demand or low supply of rental housing in the city.

Also said it's hard to find rentals willing to allow pets so they should be happy with what they ended up with.

Things I most remember about my trip.  As soon as people got off the plane, you heard all these lighters flicking on because the Irish were fiending to light up.

Restaurants had a small section for non-smokers but they weren't separated so not a pleasant dining experience.

Irish took their tea with milk, which was something I hadn't seen before -- hadn't been to England yet.

[Crashcourse]

Also, I remember Cork had a McDonald's and I had the best burger ever! 😋

[MartyQui]

I think the mud flat was a salt marsh…so most of the day it would actually be pretty. I think they picked the house that suited them best.

[aghst]

1 hour ago, Crashcourse said:

Also, I remember Cork had a McDonald's and I had the best burger ever! 😋

I went to the McDonalds there and remember them having banana shakes.

[proserpina65]

On 6/14/2022 at 10:42 PM, Dehumidifier said:

Woman in Ireland gushing over the view of a mud flat 🙄.

To be fair to her, if you looked beyond the mud flat, the view of the river was nice.  And that's the last time I'll be fair to her cause she annoyed me.  Especially with the comment about the "ugly" blue-ah sofa, which looked perfectly nice to me.

18 hours ago, Crashcourse said:

I think it was the last place they saw, but I don't remember if that was the cottage.

That was the place I liked the most.  That third bedroom was a perfectly okay size.  One could easily have fit a twin bed in there and it was plenty big enough for a desk.  Hell, it was almost as big as the only bedroom in my first apartment and probably bigger than the 3rd bedroom/office in my current house.

16 hours ago, aghst said:

Irish took their tea with milk

I thought everyone did until I met my best friend.  She's the first person I knew who drank black coffee too.

[Grrarrggh]

20 hours ago, eel21788 said:

On my first trip to England, every time my aunt saw any large brick building, she would point and announce, "Look! Low-income housing!" I have no idea why she thought that it was low-income housing or why she was so fixated on it as though it was the best tourist attraction ever.

Reminds me a bit of Americans complaining that they made the Black family house into a block of flats in one of the Harry Potter films. Noooo.... a lot of expensive houses are connected in London. 

Edited June 16, 2022 by Grrarrggh

[Grizzly]

Vaucluse, France. Budget is 200k but we have saved a bit so it can go up to 600k! That's quite a jump. Lucas has an interesting tattoo, I don't hate it. These properties are not to my taste. I wouldn't want to do the major renovations. The third is certainly fascinating with that history. Instead of a restaurant, they should do a B&B. Curtis and his practicality wins out. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 6/15/2022 at 5:02 PM, deirdra said:

I watched a documentary about the Ireland potato famine and the women had to scrape rocks to get enough soil to grow something...So I can see how women would gush over a mud flat in Ireland.

Sounds like the HH is slyly bolstering her Irish ancestry cred.

On 6/15/2022 at 9:58 AM, mojito said:

The woman declared in disgust that the sofa was "blue-ah". Is this some new speech pattern or am I only now noticing it? I'm hearing it in a certain demographic (always females) a lot lately.

It's a thing.  I first remember it from Chelsea, from 16 & Pregnant and Teen Mom.  Her boyfriend's name was Adam, and she always pronounced it Adam-uh.  I always picture a slight foot stomping on the "uh."

This was well over 10 years ago, and it's become much more prevalent since then.

[aghst]

12 hours ago, Grizzly said:

Vaucluse, France. Budget is 200k but we have saved a bit so it can go up to 600k! That's quite a jump. Lucas has an interesting tattoo, I don't hate it. These properties are not to my taste. I wouldn't want to do the major renovations. The third is certainly fascinating with that history. Instead of a restaurant, they should do a B&B. Curtis and his practicality wins out. 

Looked like a lovely part of France but doesn't seem to be a huge tourist destination like nearby Avignon or the Luberon villages.

Does the chef house hunter work in a restaurant which tries to attract tourist clientele or hope to open one?

Do people who live in small villages patronize restaurants enough to sustain them?

I think the choice they made was good, not to put all their money into a big property without getting an idea of the local market.  That third place was also 45 minutes away from the restaurant where they have jobs, so they'd have had long commutes for awhile.

They don't know that that place is necessarily good for restaurants.

Also, they happen to choose that area because that was the first job he found after culinary school.  So he might prefer or find jobs in a different region.

[mojito]

13 hours ago, Grizzly said:

Lucas has an interesting tattoo, I don't hate it.

Initially, I sort of felt like I was swallowing in sympathetic discomfort at the sight of that tattoo on his throat like that. 

[Kimboweena]

On 6/15/2022 at 10:58 AM, mojito said:

The woman declared in disgust that the sofa was "blue-ah". Is this some new speech pattern or am I only now noticing it? I'm hearing it in a certain demographic (always females) a lot lately.

Yes! Hate that, been noticing it for a while.

[stcroix]

I'm wondering if the town in France only has tourists a certain time of year? I saw NO people as they were walking around -- and no cars on the roads around them or even at a distance.  It looked deserted.  I may have missed a car but this place, while beautiful in it's way, didn't look like a place people would flock to a restaurant.  And not much parking for customers from what I could tell. 

I think the above idea of a B&B is a good one. 

[ArtFossil]

The "chef" (Lucas?) graduated from culinary school (hope it was a good one!) and now has what is apparently his first job. So he wants to buy a house in this village and open a restaurant?

What happened to training? And why doesn't he consider some of that training outside France? There's a wide world of cuisine out there.

In any event, in France or not, with a partner willing to support him he could concentrate on building his skills and experience for a few years.

I thought Vaucluse is a region? What village are they actually in?

[aghst]

Vaucluse comes from the Roman words for closed valley.

One of the homes was located in Monnieux.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Richard Blanco is on fire tonight!    Young couple moving in together for the first time, she's Canadian, and is moving to Coventry England for a university course for him.   Impossible wish list, for $1200 a month.  Richard is on fire on this one.     You can almost see his thoughts about their wish list, close to train, 2 bed 2 bath, outdoor space, for $1200 a month furnished.   

1st place 2 bathroom, so you know that's probably the one she'll demand.   

Carrie doesn't even go into the second place and already says she doesn't like it.  #2 has a big kitchen, it has an oven, all of the appliances. lots of cabinet space, but furnishings aren't up to her standards.   Carrie gets snotty about the kitchen and bath, it's $200 under budget.   1 bath, that's pretty big.   For one income, $1000 is a bargain.    Richard wants to strangle both of them. 

Third place has a great back yard, 1 bath. 2 bed, two story, $1200. Kitchen isn't big enough for her royal pickiness, bath is too small. bedrooms upstairs, but bath downstairs, so you know she'll whine.  

Richard really analyzed them very well, Carrie's in charge, and boyfriend should get over it. 

They pick #1, Carrie wins again. 

Edited June 22, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[Kiddvideo]

Coventry, England: “I don’t know what Richard was thinking.” EXCUSE YOU? Mentioning it was her money multiple times, and the way she stated how it “wasn’t at all a sacrifice” to support him and make the move makes me think she considers it a big sacrifice. “I have to do what’s right for me.”

It’s two of them. How big of a kitchen do they need?

A pet peeve: People who say “I” when “me” is correct. It’s “for Max and me.”

I’m calling it. The chances of them making it as a couple? Zero.