House Hunters International - General Discussion

[Ohwell]

5 hours ago, scrb said:

So I don't know if Americans can say that racism is more of a problem in Australia and NZ.

I'm not saying that racism is more of a problem in Australia and NZ than in the U.S., but since it apparently is a problem (as with other countries, as well) I don't want to travel halfway around the world to experience it.  Plus, there's the earthquake issue.

[scrb]

I would just say, if you have the opportunity to do it, you should, without worrying about what might happen.

NZ has some of the most stunning landscapes in the world.  You will be able to enjoy your trip with little chance of encountering unpleasantness.

[Ohwell]

I'll just take your word for it, but no thanks.  There are plenty of other places in the world that I'd like to visit.  Heck, I'm not even done with my U.S. wish list yet. : )

[FormerMod-a1]

Please keep the discussion to what you see on the show, and remember to keep it civil.  Everyone is entitled to their opinions.

[Pine]

Mother and son in Akumal,  Mexico was bland.

The son was not comfortable at all.

[Kohola3]

2 hours ago, Pine said:

The son was not comfortable at all.

Lord, no. I bet he got dragged kicking and screaming into being on TV.  I bet his friends tortured him mercilessly after seeing it.

[Peanutbuttercup]

Not surprisingly, the family on last night's "moving to South Africa" episode went there for a sabbatical, not for a permanent move. Overall I enjoyed the episode though -- they seemed nice and didn't make ridiculous demands.

[mojito]

Didn't know that it was a sabbatical situation. Missed that somehow. Nice enough couple.

I chuckled when the mother wondered how her oldest daughter would like  the loft. What teenager wouldn't like that gigantic, away-from-the-family space? I was confused, though, when the wife referred to the loft as a "study area" later. Did that mean that the girls were sharing a bedroom after all, I wondered. I don't blame the wife for being turned off by the furniture. The living room chairs were worn and dirty-looking and the tile counter tops would've been a turnoff. But knowing that it was a temporary situation shines a different light on things. 

His comment about their not being comfortable enough to use the tub in full view of each other seemed to semi-embarrass, semi-surprise the wife, although she did laugh, too. His other comment that a 5-minute drive would translate to a long walk threw off the real estate agent. I think it's one of those dumb things you say without thinking and shake your own head once you hear yourself say it.

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 5/9/2017 at 5:17 PM, debraran said:

Ive heard a lot of bad reviews on the washer/dryer all in one combos that they show a lot in tiny homes. The biggest complaint is the drying time which uses a lot of electricity since it takes so long (some say hours) and some have said the washer didn't spin dry very well. I'd rather just have a washer or small stacking model myself. I used one in a small condo and for me, hubby and one baby, it was fine.

I have one of those washer-and-dryer in one units in my RV and I love it.  It spins like a mofo, leaving a lot of stuff almost dry. 

Every once in a while I'll use an old-school top-loader at a laundromat, and the clothes are still WET when they come out.  And even the big front-loading machines at laundromats leave the clothes wetter than my little unit.

There are two types of the combo units--vented and unvented.  I wouldn't have an unvented one if you gave it to me for free.  The vented (to the outside) ones are vastly better, but still not great as a dryer, mainly because the drum is small compared to a regular dryer, so things can't tumble around as much.  So clothes can be wrinkled if you're not careful.  It doesn't help that you can set it to wash AND dry unattended, and people think clothes that have been spun so hard they're stuck to the side of the drum will magically release and fluff themselves and emerge from the dryer wrinkle-free. 

There are techniques for things like jeans and sheets, and in a perfect world no technique would be needed just to dry clothes, but since I don't have room for a stackable, I deal with it. 

It is interesting to compare the laundry machines in American houses to the ones in Europe.  Americans need to be able to wash 28 bath sheets at once, for some reason.

[SmithW6079]

On 5/23/2017 at 5:31 AM, Peanutbuttercup said:

Not surprisingly, the family on last night's "moving to South Africa" episode went there for a sabbatical, not for a permanent move. Overall I enjoyed the episode though -- they seemed nice and didn't make ridiculous demands.

I have no issues with an international move being temporary, especially for teachers. I liked the couple too, but I think the older daughter still got gypped of her room.  Looks like they set the upstairs as a family room/office, with her bed in the corner. Maybe there's a certain time when everyone has to leave so she has some privacy. I wonder if they put up a shoji screen or something to block off her space. 

I found the couple moving to Mexico to open the bed and breakfast to be deadly dull, the husband especially. Could he get anymore low-key?

I was also disappointed that we didn't see the completed renovations, which makes me suspect that was just the "story" for the show.

[biakbiak]

10 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

Looks like they set the upstairs as a family room/office, with her bed in the corner.

She actually also had a bed higher up in a loft in the eaves. They showed her reading up there on her bed.

[SmithW6079]

Quote

7 hours ago, biakbiak said:

She actually also had a bed higher up in a loft in the eaves. They showed her reading up there on her bed.

 

Is that what that was? I saw her sitting up there but didn't realize it was a bed. 

[laredhead]

I was waiting for someone to comment on the Indiana to St. Thomas couple.  I wonder how much $$ they made off the sale of their business or whatever it was that gave them a retirement windfall.  When someone says they had no money then something wonderful happens to them financially, and then they retire and buy a $700,000 "fancy" house I do wonder about their financial savvy.  They never did say what their occupations were before they retired.

The door/windows that opened to no deck and had no screens were a disaster waiting to happen.  I agreed with the wife, that a couple of glasses of wine and some inattention could end up with a body down below on the rocks.  The condos were depressing and looked like a hotel suite, which I guess they really are. 

[my3sons]

2 hours ago, laredhead said:

I was waiting for someone to comment on the Indiana to St. Thomas couple.  I wonder how much $$ they made off the sale of their business or whatever it was that gave them a retirement windfall.  When someone says they had no money then something wonderful happens to them financially, and then they retire and buy a $700,000 "fancy" house I do wonder about their financial savvy.  They never did say what their occupations were before they retired.

The door/windows that opened to no deck and had no screens were a disaster waiting to happen.  I agreed with the wife, that a couple of glasses of wine and some inattention could end up with a body down below on the rocks.  The condos were depressing and looked like a hotel suite, which I guess they really are. 

Did I hear correctly that her mother married his father when she was 17?  If so, doesn't that mean she married her stepbrother?

[laredhead]

Yes, you heard correctly that she married her step brother.  I don't remember the ages involved, but I do remember that there was a 25 year difference between their first date and their wedding.   

[TVForever]

Indiana to St Thomas:

1. Based on this episode, I was unimpressed by what 600K buys there. 

2. Who the heck designs CUSTOM deck sliders on the side of a cliff? Meanwhile, the floor to ceiling opening in the bedroom (that actually would walk out onto the deck) is just a picture window that DOESNT open?  I've never seen anything so insane.

And by the way, the place really wasn't all that fancy.

[Pickles]

I don't have high hopes for the Indiana couple moving to St. Thomas, when it comes to their financial sense. She said they lost everything in 2008, but then had a windfall when he sold his business. He mentioned that he was worried about her spending, because no money was coming in. He was retired and wanted to stay retired. I see the money running out pretty quickly. I would never uproot like that and put that much into a house. Sock a good portion of that windfall away. If they lost everything once, there could be a next time. That memory would never go away for me.

[mojito]

Americans (or in this case, mainlanders)  seem to think that their $600K will go a long way on tropical islands, as though they're discovering the place before everyone else comes down to jack up the prices. 

The way the Indiana lady kept talking about her "grandbabies" (that word irritates the crap out of me and I don't know why), I wondered why she was leaving her family at all. 

He sure aged very well. He looked several years younger than she.

Edited June 2, 2017 by mojito

[Mittengirl]

Finally, someone else irritated by "grandbabies"!   What is wrong with "grandkids/grandchildren"?   Especially when the children are not babies anymore.  I hate when people refer to kids well past infancy as babies.  

I wonder if the children and grands end up visiting as much as the parents think they will.   Plane trips with little kids seem like too much trouble to be undertaken all that often.

[Pine]

I didn't like any of the places the Indiana couple looked at, not even for a weekend. 

[biakbiak]

12 hours ago, Pine said:

I didn't like any of the places the Indiana couple looked at, not even for a weekend. 

Me either. I hated that rock wall in the third spot. I would not like to live full time in a complex that most likely has quite a few of vacation renters. People just behave differently on vacation and have a different timetable then people who live there full time even if your retired.

[mojito]

Missouri to Belize.

I liked this couple a lot. So reasonable.  She was concerned about his health (he had a stroke 5 years ago). She seemed to want him to take it easy so he could live longer. He seemed more interested in having fun before he died. I'm glad they chose the condo over the house. I liked its view better. I was impressed with how she didn't demand to be on the beach and close to a city at the same time. She just wanted to see the water. I also liked that their compromise was his agreeing to the condo and being "given" the "extra" to buy a boat. 

[AuntiePam]

2 hours ago, mojito said:

Missouri to Belize.

I liked this couple a lot. So reasonable.  She was concerned about his health (he had a stroke 5 years ago). She seemed to want him to take it easy so he could live longer. He seemed more interested in having fun before he died. I'm glad they chose the condo over the house. I liked its view better. I was impressed with how she didn't demand to be on the beach and close to a city at the same time. She just wanted to see the water. I also liked that their compromise was his agreeing to the condo and being "given" the "extra" to buy a boat. 

I like that he's getting a boat, but where's he going to keep it?  Now he'll have to pay extra for storage, where with the single-family home, he had the space. 

The view was better, but the husband did say that he wasn't crazy about people living above and below them.  Close neighbors can be really stressful. 

[Pickles]

The couple moving from San Diego to Morocco with their two tiny kids. They seemed nice and their boys were cute. I just can't imagine selling everything and relocating to Morocco for a better life. Aren't there places a little closer to home where you could do that? They did say they wanted to expose their kids to different cultures, so I guess that is their reasoning. I would not be that adventurous with two little kids in tow. I worry about that upstairs outdoor space. It did have a low wall, but I would still be afraid one of those kids would go catapulting over the wall. The couple seemed to think it would be great play space. I would have to be out there supervising at all times. 

[Ohwell]

San Diego to Morocco couple:  While I can understand wanting to expose their kids to different cultures, I think the kids could appreciate it more if they were at least a few years older.  And I agree about that low wall.

[biakbiak]

The wall wasn't that low. In the final shot they had done a granite bar on the view side and they were sitting on high bar stools. 

I adore Morocco and go at least every other year to visit friends but I was underwhelmed by the options.

[SmithW6079]

On 6/3/2017 at 11:22 AM, Pickles said:

The couple moving from San Diego to Morocco with their two tiny kids. They seemed nice and their boys were cute. I just can't imagine selling everything and relocating to Morocco for a better life. Aren't there places a little closer to home where you could do that? They did say they wanted to expose their kids to different cultures, so I guess that is their reasoning. I would not be that adventurous with two little kids in tow. I worry about that upstairs outdoor space. It did have a low wall, but I would still be afraid one of those kids would go catapulting over the wall. The couple seemed to think it would be great play space. I would have to be out there supervising at all times. 

 

On 6/3/2017 at 0:02 PM, Ohwell said:

San Diego to Morocco couple:  While I can understand wanting to expose their kids to different cultures, I think the kids could appreciate it more if they were at least a few years older.  And I agree about that low wall.

 

On 6/4/2017 at 1:37 AM, biakbiak said:

The wall wasn't that low. In the final shot they had done a granite bar on the view side and they were sitting on high bar stools. 

I adore Morocco and go at least every other year to visit friends but I was underwhelmed by the options.

I liked the first house they choose; it really was the best option. If it were just me, though, I might have taken the second house. I love the idea of a separate "house," especially if used as an office.

What annoyed me most about the couple was their oft-repeated refrain: "We want it to be Moroccan, but not too Moroccan." You're moving to fucking Morocco, morons! A cheesy touristy-sconce on the wall does not make it "too Morocco." 

[awaken]

Morocco mom was either miserable to be there or had severe case of RBF. She smiled twice the entire episode ( at the pool table and at the thought of having the kids in the separate little house), but otherwise wore a perpetual expression of sadness, concern, and anxiety. 

[debraran]

Maryland to France couple seemed "real". I liked the place they took, the balcony in the last apartment might not be safe for a toddler and it was far from her work. The show always has one that is really overpriced or inconvenient. This one was a  train ride and 20 minute walk which might  be a pain after a while. 

Their little boy was adorable and I think they were realistic in what they could do and not do. The 2 month followup seemed to find them a little tired and in transition. It's a lot to take in, moving, buying things, getting child care, new job, husband traveling. I imagine some days are a lot of stress but at least they have the "French charm" ; )  I think my one complaint in this episode was the overuse of those words, it was annoying. 

My daughter taught English for a year in France as a way to see it on the cheap and enjoyed it.  She found not being fluent an issue on occasion but she got better and better as time went on. They didn't mention their ability to speak the language unless I missed it.

Edited June 9, 2017 by debraran

[Ohwell]

Maryland to France couple:  It was the husband who kept talking about "French charm" but I still liked the couple.  And yes, the little boy was adorable.  

Their last name sounded French, so I suspect the husband has French roots and, therefore, the wife is probably fluent in French.

[TVForever]

In fact, the wife and the realtor seemed to be teasing the husband about his need for "French charm", air quotes and all. I appreciated the show finally acknowledging (sort of) how much they've scripted in that ridiculous phrase.

I also liked the place they chose. As the wife was going on about the lack of closets/storage, I couldn't help thinking, "That's no problem that a trip to IKEA couldn't solve." And sure enough, in the after pictures, it looks like they've made a few IKEA runs.

They seemed like a nice little family, and their toddler was such a cutie.

[javajeanelaine]

The couple that were looking for a vacation home in Cabo… The wife was so unpleasant.

[AuntiePam]

29 minutes ago, javajeanelaine said:

The couple that were looking for a vacation home in Cabo… The wife was so unpleasant.

I couldn't get over that awful hair.  Seems like if you can afford to move to Cabo, you could afford to see a stylist.  Or at least buy some conditioner.

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, javajeanelaine said:

The wife was so unpleasant.

Wow, did she have her hubby firmly under her thumb.  I bet that dude has to ask permission to go to the bathroom.

[cyberfruit]

5 hours ago, TVForever said:

In fact, the wife and the realtor seemed to be teasing the husband about his need for "French charm", air quotes and all. I appreciated the show finally acknowledging (sort of) how much they've scripted in that ridiculous phrase.

I also liked the place they chose. As the wife was going on about the lack of closets/storage, I couldn't help thinking, "That's no problem that a trip to IKEA couldn't solve." And sure enough, in the after pictures, it looks like they've made a few IKEA runs.

They seemed like a nice little family, and their toddler was such a cutie.

The realtor was perfectly snarky when needed. Her outside reply to their budget and need for charm being, "Well, I know what I have, so." cracked me up. I love when the realtors show their true personalities. 

The charm aspect was clearly pushed by the producers because, um, if you need French charm...go outside. So, I was with the wife on that one. Still, they were a cute family. 

[mojito]

Cabo.

The man was insistent on a damned garage. His little escape. He's in Cabo and he needs an escape. Maybe what he really needs is a divorce. And then she bargains with him that instead of a garage, he could have a room of his own? And he went along with that? Wow, she's still his boss.

Quote

I couldn't get over that awful hair. 

I'm not sure what kind of options a person has when they have thin hair. Cut it shorter?

[AuntiePam]

7 minutes ago, mojito said:

I'm not sure what kind of options a person has when they have thin hair. Cut it shorter?

Maybe.  I'm no expert, but it looked like she could trim the ends, apply some conditioner, and just brush it.  (Maybe she had a bad perm.)  I kept expecting her hair to look better from one house to the next, like maybe she had one bad hair day -- but her hair stayed the same.  Shallow, I know.  It confirmed that HH doesn't use stylists.

[SmithW6079]

10 hours ago, javajeanelaine said:

The couple that were looking for a vacation home in Cabo… The wife was so unpleasant.

 

10 hours ago, AuntiePam said:

I couldn't get over that awful hair.  Seems like if you can afford to move to Cabo, you could afford to see a stylist.  Or at least buy some conditioner.

She was a grade A bitch. I thought house 3 was better, not only the amenities, but the views. It seemed like there was a good view from both the patio and the rootop.

I doubt very much "his" room, with its sad lone piece of exercise equipment remained "his" for very long. Besides, he didn't want an exercise room, he wanted a garage to tinker, presumably with engines and such.

Hopefully, the husband finds some beautiful Mexican woman with thick luxurious hair and dumps the harridan.

6 hours ago, cyberfruit said:

The realtor was perfectly snarky when needed. Her outside reply to their budget and need for charm being, "Well, I know what I have, so." cracked me up. I love when the realtors show their true personalities.

Except it's all false anyway, so what's the point? The house is chosen already, so the realtor's "snark" was just more "acting."

I didn't care for the couple so much, well, at least the husband. Americans should be banned from demanding "[country's] charm," because all it does is show their apparent belief that Europe, apparently, still exists in the 19th century. 

[LazyToaster]

Swimmer moving to Australia. Something tells me she's going to get tired of her cousin pretty quick.  She should have taken the under budget city apartment. 

[KLovestoShop]

I wanted to smack the cousin in the Australia episode.  She was a real pain in the butt, trying to take over the HH's life.  If she is really serious in training for the Olympics, the cousin should be told to shove it.  

[Pickles]

The swimmer in Australia. I really thought she would take the budget apartment and be close to the pool for her Olympic training. Omg, the cousin was too much! No mention was made of the swimmer having found a job and then I suppose she had to buy a car. I wonder if her parents were just funding her dream? Expensive.  Interesting that she had two male roommates. She was very cute. Lol.

[suebee12]

1 hour ago, Pickles said:

Interesting that she had two male roommates

She did need someone to do all the yard work!

I, too, was surprised that she didn't choose the apartment near the pool. She could have walked to it and it was probably close to stores, etc. Why live near her pushy cousin?

[mojito]

Vancouver to Perth.

The cousin brought out the Mean Girl in me: was she desperate for a friend, and if she has friends, will the swimmer steal them all away from her?

That third home and the surrounding homes looked they  came off some sort of futuristic movie set for a script that called for a sterile-looking non-descript neighborhood. The homes were nice enough, but without large trees and second story homes (they all looked fairly flat), the place looked so bland and strange to these American eyes. My mind flashed to "The Stepford Wives" and "The Truman Show". Not to say, however, that they wouldn't appeal to me.

This episode felt more fake than usual to me. I'm skeptical of  the Olympic story. Really, a team set three years in advance? People get injured, new athletes surface, performances weaken, etc. She emphasized proximity to the pool but only looked at one apartment in the vicinity (according to the story, of course). What jobless person would rent a large house 45 minutes from the pool that was supposedly the center of her life for the next few years?

[awaken]

15 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

 

She was a grade A bitch. I thought house 3 was better, not only the amenities, but the views. It seemed like there was a good view from both the patio and the rootop.

I doubt very much "his" room, with its sad lone piece of exercise equipment remained "his" for very long. Besides, he didn't want an exercise room, he wanted a garage to tinker, presumably with engines and such.

Hopefully, the husband finds some beautiful Mexican woman with thick luxurious hair and dumps the harridan.

Ugh, Cabo lady was so rude to her husband, the poor guy.  Hopefully that was all an act for the show!  If he spoke up about anything, she gave him a smackdown like "it's all about YOU, isn't it!?" when the entire time, it was all about HER!  

[SmithW6079]

Holy shit! Five minutes in, and I couldn't stand the Aussie cousin. The realtor tried to steer the swimmer, but the cousin was relentless in her neediness. What an emotional vampire. 

And don't Olympic athletes train all the time? How is it she has freedom to go out drinking and clubbing with her vampire cousin?

[KAOS Agent]

On 6/10/2017 at 11:37 AM, mojito said:

This episode felt more fake than usual to me. I'm skeptical of  the Olympic story. Really, a team set three years in advance? People get injured, new athletes surface, performances weaken, etc. She emphasized proximity to the pool but only looked at one apartment in the vicinity (according to the story, of course).

If you look at some results for the Australian national team, you'll see that she was competing with them as early as 2014, so the three year time frame fits with her history, even if it's highly implausible that she'd be a lock three years out. She was on the team competing at Worlds for the right to compete in Rio although she doesn't seem to have made the Rio team. Maybe she got fed up with the cousin and fled back to Canada to try for a shot there but ended up back in Australia when that didn't work out.

[debraran]

Nothing in that show felt right, some fake is always there, but this didn't flow. Way too much hype with the cousin, almost came off as "stalking", the cousin you don't want around, and too much emphasis on roommates (they wouldn't want that other place because of bedroom size ?) Maybe it's growing up with money, she seemed to come from some the way she was talking. I wish her well, but a serious athlete that wanted to drive 30 minutes to workout to be nearer to her cousin? 

Edited June 12, 2017 by debraran

[mojito]

On 6/11/2017 at 10:31 PM, KAOS Agent said:

If you look at some results for the Australian national team, you'll see that she was competing with them as early as 2014, so the three year time frame fits with her history, even if it's highly implausible that she'd be a lock three years out. She was on the team competing at Worlds for the right to compete in Rio although she doesn't seem to have made the Rio team. Maybe she got fed up with the cousin and fled back to Canada to try for a shot there but ended up back in Australia when that didn't work out.

After I wrote this, I thought about how teams form and compete throughout the world. Just because you're on the team now, doesn't mean you'll make it to the Olympics. The story still smells, though.

[javajeanelaine]

I wouldn't want to spend a minute with that person.

[aguabella]

About the parents on sabbatical teaching in S. Africa with the 2 daughters, yes, I wondered what happened with that loft / attic bedroom, too.  It actually was the younger daughter reading in that nook.  (Confusing, lol!) 

They did have multiple beds in the loft but perhaps they were for sleepovers.  The other b/r was set up as a girls' room.  So, I'm thinking the daughters did have separate bedrooms.

Anybody else notice that she hadn't at least covered that ghastly furniture in the l/r?  Or, if you don't even want to invest $50 (or whatever), at least throw some white sheets on it!  Guess everyone has their own taste / priorities.