Million Dollar Listing LA - General Discussion

[lynxfx]

3 hours ago, Stan39 said:

But the technology will always become outdated and I don’t consider any built-in features to be selling points if I’m thinking of a house as an investment. I saw on another show a guy built a custom TV display that had a 70” screen TV emerge from the floor seamlessly. That’s great, but when he sells it the next buyer will want 75” or higher resolution or something that won’t work with the very specific custom TV lift he built for around 70 grand. I thought the same way about that toaster elevator or whatever. It’s too custom and too specific

Reminds me of all the track homes built in the 90s and early 2000s. They all liked to make built in entertainment centers featuring a square cubby meant for a 4:3 CRT TV. Now they barely would fit a 30" flatscreen. Now they tend to make the mounting area for a flatscreen above the mantel which is way too high. 

The hidden cubby for the toaster didnt make much sense since it looked like just a regular toaster shoved in. Guess it is just a hidden compartment with an outlet. I would put alcohol in there, maybe a chiller with dry ice so when it rises a nice cloud of fog rolls out. Drinks anyone?

[amarante]

5 hours ago, Stan39 said:

Maybe you’re right. And I did like the water bottles. I still just find it hard to believe you’ll really get a return on your investment by cold calling hikers in the neighborhood. Especially if the market is really as saturated as they say. You’d think most people looking for a house would already be on Zillow or something. I’m not sure two random guys handing out water outside could get me to think about buying a 3M dollar house (or whatever it cost). But LA is different. 

I don’t believe they set up outside Runyon Canyon as anything other than a stunt. I just meant that attempting to attract the demographics of those who visit Runyon is nit necessarily bad marketing because there are people who might want to purchase a house in that neighborhood. 

However, as a real promotion, it would be staffed by a low level person because these guys aren’t going to be wasting time shlepping and actually handing out promotional materials. It would have made sense to tie it in with an Open House On the same day to encourage people to drop in after hiking but someone hiking Runyon might be interested in either moving there or upgrading their home if they already do live close by.  

it was more targeted than the completely random visit to the Art Show which made zero promotional sense. They might as well just have handed out fliers on a random street corner  

 

 

[oakville]

11 hours ago, dleighg said:

His book must have sold very well-- sad to say, human rights advocates don't usually make tons of money 😞 

I am happy that Tracy was able to sell their house quickly for a good price. I loved their home.

The outside terraces were beautiful.

[dleighg]

1 minute ago, oakville said:

The outside terraces were beautiful.

they were, but nitpicking they were a bit narrow. But for the price (I know $$$) it seemed very nice.

[Katmai]

3 hours ago, lynxfx said:

Reminds me of all the track homes built in the 90s and early 2000s. They all liked to make built in entertainment centers featuring a square cubby meant for a 4:3 CRT TV. Now they barely would fit a 30" flatscreen. Now they tend to make the mounting area for a flatscreen above the mantel which is way too high.

This reminds me of my great uncle's house that he built back in the 60's. He was a draftsman, by trade, so he measured everything out meticulously. The single garage was built using his then-car measurements with no consideration that they might get larger as time passed. The garage door was less than one foot wider than his car at the time. As he got older, and decades zoomed by - he lived to be 92 - his cars got bigger and wider. His last car was an 70's land-yacht of a sedan of which he scraped both sides of it repeatedly pulling into and out of the garage over the years. He did the same thing with the oven and when it had to be replaced, it was a major bitch to find one small enough to fit into it's home. God love him, in his later years, realizing what he did, he would just laugh at himself about all of it.

[Surrealist]

17 hours ago, Stan39 said:

That’s the other thing I now notice watching these shows (as I get older). I remember my dad telling me that he and my mom never had dreams of living in a big mansion, because neither would feel comfortable having so many people constantly in the house doing the work. I think I’m the same way. You’d never really have privacy because there would always be something at the house that needed cleaning, fixing, updating. 

Same. I love looking at the big houses, but wouldn't want to deal with the upkeep.

Ishmael and Priscilia's house was the perfect size. I know some might think it's on the smallish side, but thinking about its upkeep doesn't throw me into a panic like the Razor House.

Edited June 19, 2020 by Surrealist

[geauxaway]

7 hours ago, dleighg said:

they were, but nitpicking they were a bit narrow. But for the price (I know $$$) it seemed very nice.

Those terraces were totally giving me anxiety.   Did not look relaxing at all!  Everything looked like it was right up to the edge and nowhere to walk around.  Same with the pool area.  Nice pool but all the chairs went RIGHT UP TO THE EDGE.  How do you get around them???

[Carolina Girl]

On 6/17/2020 at 3:41 PM, NYGirl said:

Wow I'm shocked that Flagg and Altman put their past behind them and are working together.  I'm looking forward to seeing more.

That said....ugh that Razor House.  Spectacular views but such a sterile house.  I was not impressed at all.  I liked the outside of Ish and Priscillas house but I wasn't crazy about the inside.  I didn't like the small hallway upstairs and the size of the bedrooms.  The outside was beautiful.

I did like James' client Joey's house but that too seemed very narrow.

I'm looking forward to the real estate porn that is NOT the Property Brothers and I love that there's not a lot of "open concept".

I had two questions myself.  What's the  (1) annual salary for a full-time window washer and (2) cost of Windex by the pallet?

[CrazyInAlabama]

The house Tracy was selling (the author, and lawyer) was nice, but the terraces looked dangerous to me.      I would like to visit the Razor house, but I could never live there, I'm afraid of heights, so the view for me would be really far back from the terraces.   

With Tracy's clothes, I understand that she's buying designer clothes, but that white shirt top was horrible.    It looked like she forgot to put on pants.   

[Stan39]

I also think it’s funny when the non-cast seller’s agent has to play the role of the tough guy but just ends up looking stupid. 
“We tried selling this house with a local agent for $30M and didn’t get any offers, so why should we hire and listen to you?”

”Umm... because you listed the house for $30M with a local agent and didn’t get any offers. Is this a trick question? Are you really this bad at your job???”

[Stan39]

On 6/18/2020 at 11:49 AM, retired watcher said:

I thought the exact same thing. High waists do her no favor. Also did we meet her new assistant? What a difference from her last one. My husband drooled every time she was on. I wonder if she is a realtor on her own now. Or if Tracy wanted to be the gorgeous one again.

His wife is a lawyer.

According to Erika’s Instagram (Tracy’s first assistant) she’s an agent now and still has the show in her bio, so she’ll probably show up at some point on the show. Unless, like you said, Tracy is trying to push her out. 

[bichonblitz]

I'm not feeling the Altman and Flag relationship. You know in real life these two would never be friends. All for the show and it's not working for me.  I prefer a little more drama between these two. 

I now appreciate Tracy after watching "Selling Sunset". She has class and is professional unlike the barbie twits on that show with the 8 inch stiletto's and skirts up to their yahoo. 

Edited June 20, 2020 by bichonblitz

[MsTree]

I actually like and enjoy Flagg & Altman's new-found relationship. After so many seasons of arguing & bad mouthing one another, it's nice to see them getting along.

Whether or not they're friends outside of the show, they have both matured enough to realize that while they have their differences, they can get along and even have a few laughs together.

 

[Stan39]

7 hours ago, MsTree said:

I actually like and enjoy Flagg & Altman's new-found relationship. After so many seasons of arguing & bad mouthing one another, it's nice to see them getting along.

Whether or not they're friends outside of the show, they have both matured enough to realize that while they have their differences, they can get along and even have a few laughs together.

 

One of my pet peeves on reality shows is when the cast does stuff that’s clearly unprofessional, shows incompetence, or would be grounds for dismissal in real life. It’s why I stopped watching Below Deck. I’d much rather watch these two guys (either pretend or truthfully) show how good they are at their jobs. It’s much more rewarding to see someone accomplish something I couldn’t do because I don’t have their years of training, experience, and passion for their work. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

They showed the season where Josh Flagg's grandmother died.   That was so awful.   However, the way other people told him adorable stories about her was so nice. 

[TV Diva Queen]

On 6/18/2020 at 8:22 AM, NYCFree said:

I can completely believe that the Razor mansion was the inspiration for the Stark Ironman mansion.

I watched this episode with my son and said I wouldn’t want to live there. As the tour continued, I said “but I’d LOVE to be quarantined there!” Now I have a new category for real estate porn.

Ha!  me too..When Altman kept referring to Batman, I was like "fool, that's Tony Strark's house"

ETA:  I love how Flagg did a country bumpkin voice to Altman when he got in the car "Gee, I always wanted to ride in a brand new Rolls Royce"  I love Flagg's shade throwing.  

I hated Tracy's house, it was so plain and disorganized, I'm waiting for the Eastern European developer to buy it and tear it down, $1M for that land in the Hills is a steal.  

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by TV Diva Queen

[SunnyBeBe]

I didn’t care for Tracy’s personal home. Very bizarre looking imo. Ugh...I like her though.

I admire a man who appreciates a nice bottle of wine and likes to dress up once in a while. I find it annoying the way some people are ALWAYS jeans and tshirt. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

So Tracy's house was on the market for just under $25 million?   Wow!.    I'm hoping it sold quickly.     I hate it when something is on the market for a long time.    Tracy's plan going forward sounds so sensible.   That house certainly was spectacular.  

I think a lot of people would be wanting to change a lot of the decorating features.   There might have been a buyer that likes that elaborate, glitzy style.  

I think she was sincere about selling because it was time for Tracy, and the daughters to start over, and change after the divorce.   

Edited June 27, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[SunnyBeBe]

6 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

So Tracy's house was on the market for just under $25 million?   Wow!.    I'm hoping it sold quickly.     I hate it when something is on the market for a long time.    Tracy's plan going forward sounds so sensible.   That house certainly was spectacular.  

I thought her house seemed very dated. I could imagine buyers looking at it and thinking of all the stuff they'd have to redo. At least she was trying to spruce it up before listing, but, still...  It was large and that's good. I too wonder how long it took to sell it.   I still wasn't clear on why she and her daughters had to get out of the place. It was quite roomy and had lots of amenities. Maybe, the memories weren't good. 

[TV Diva Queen]

I loved Tracy's home, no wonder she fought for it in the divorce. 

[Stan39]

27 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I thought her house seemed very dated. I could imagine buyers looking at it and thinking of all the stuff they'd have to redo. At least she was trying to spruce it up before listing, but, still...  It was large and that's good. I too wonder how long it took to sell it.   I still wasn't clear on why she and her daughters had to get out of the place. It was quite roomy and had lots of amenities. Maybe, the memories weren't good. 

Maybe she can’t afford it anymore? It seems like LA real estate agents are particularly leveraged on stuff they rent/lease that’s out of their price range. They live beyond their means and when they hit a couple bad months they suddenly need to dump stuff. The divorce and a poor market might have something to do with it. 

[SunnyBeBe]

Yeah, it might have been that she knew the place needed updating (more than the sprucing up she was doing.)  and she couldn't afford it. I would think to really give it a makeover would take close to a million.  Plus, I don't get why people want something with that many rooms.  It just seems like overkill.  I think that covid has really changed me with regard to my personal taste in  real estate.

In my state, NC,  the real estate market is going really great. Houses are selling very fast, often the first day listed. I have my license and am thinking about going active.  I'm just nervous about covid and all the personal contact.  Virtual house tours are common now, but, there's still a fair amount of personal contact that's involved. 

Edited June 24, 2020 by SunnyBeBe

[amarante]

I was a bit amazed that the Sunset Square house even sold for $2,200.000 because of the location. I live in the neighborhood so I am quite familiar with it and this house was the first house above Sunset and abutted the large parking lot for an auction house. 

There are also a lot of plans to "densify" the area by greedy developers which would mean those closest to Sunset would be most impacted. For example who would want a hotel or a large supermarket right next door to their home. 

I also though the interior layout was very odd as it seemed like a railroad or shotgun flat. He just gutted the hell out of the interior and rebuilt in generic current style. I don't care what he spent on finishes - it could have been done so that the interior wasn't so out of synch aesthetically with Arts & Crafts architecture. 

As you get further north, the area becomes more solidly residential and desirable - especially the blocks just north of Hollywood Boulevard. Ozzy and Harriet lived there in a large Colonial style home which is still there. I think it was used for exterior shots in the series and some of the interior shots although the interior has been modified since they lived there. 

[SunnyBeBe]

8 minutes ago, amarante said:

I was a bit amazed that the Sunset Square house even sold for $2,200.000 because of the location. I live in the neighborhood so I am quite familiar with it and this house was the first house above Sunset and abutted the large parking lot for an auction house. 

There are also a lot of plans to "densify" the area by greedy developers which would mean those closest to Sunset would be most impacted. For example who would want a hotel or a large supermarket right next door to their home. 

I also though the interior layout was very odd as it seemed like a railroad or shotgun flat. He just gutted the hell out of the interior and rebuilt in generic current style. I don't care what he spent on finishes - it could have been done so that the interior wasn't so out of synch aesthetically with Arts & Crafts architecture. 

As you get further north, the area becomes more solidly residential and desirable - especially the blocks just north of Hollywood Boulevard. Ozzy and Harriet lived there in a large Colonial style home which is still there. I think it was used for exterior shots in the series and some of the interior shots although the interior has been modified since they lived there. 

I appreciate your perspective of the area. I kept wondering why he put so much into his investment, considering all the minuses about the place.  Like they said, you don't make a profit on every investment property.  His choices seemed odd. I thought the interior looked okay though. 

[lynxfx]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I kept wondering why he put so much into his investment, considering all the minuses about the place.  Like they said, you don't make a profit on every investment property.  His choices seemed odd. I thought the interior looked okay though. 

Definitely seems to be a case of over improving a flip. I personally wouldn't touch one of those historic protected homes with all the regulations and requirements. You are paying for fees and changes that return no value.

The Josh and Josh paring continues to be my favorite this season.

[dbell1]

I’m loving Josh2.0  They’re hysterical together. 

Tracy was spot on, she’s willing to do the work, not send a junior agent to list a property. Sorry D&J, she’s still hungry, you’re not.

who was the hairy guy in the game? Ick. Too hirsute. Dude needs a wax job. 
 

[Marley]

David annoys me for some reason. 

[amarante]

On 6/25/2020 at 12:44 PM, lynxfx said:

Definitely seems to be a case of over improving a flip. I personally wouldn't touch one of those historic protected homes with all the regulations and requirements. You are paying for fees and changes that return no value.

The Josh and Josh paring continues to be my favorite this season.

If you like the character of a neighborhood, living in an HPOZ zone is very desirable. You won’t have a horribly out of character McMansion built on your block. The area is very charming and people deliberately choose to live there. 
 

This particular guy was an idiot in terms of his choices. The realtors made it appear as if the entire location was problematic whereas it was the location of his lot which was less desirable than homes more in the middle and north of Hollywood. 
 

He then made expensive aesthetic choices which would be completely unappealing to a lot of people who want a Craftsman home. And aside from that the layout was weird with that useless hallway and the walnut slats which maybe would work in a mid century home. 

Edited June 29, 2020 by amarante

[dleighg]

I don't think this is a spoiler but I'll put it in spoiler tags anyway. The Razor House sold

 

Spoiler

in 2019 for $20.8M to Alicia Keys

 

[geauxaway]

2 hours ago, dleighg said:

I don't think this is a spoiler but I'll put it in spoiler tags anyway. The Razor House sold

 

  Hide contents

in 2019 for $20.8M to Alicia Keys

 

WHOA!!!!

[CrazyInAlabama]

I didn't feel sorry for the developer that over-built that house in Sunset Square.   It was so over the top, that I think the developer made the classic flipper mistake in building to his own taste, and spending unnecessary money on things that wouldn't improve the sales price.    

I love Josh and Josh's road trip, and co-listing.    I can't believe they both made it to La Jolla and back without bigger issues than buying a lot of tourist junk.  

I love Josh Flagg, and am used to Josh Altman.   I'm guessing a lot of the arguments, and confrontations are for the show, since they all seem to be friends in real life.    I like James and David, and hope that the brother recovers completely.      

However, I never liked Madison.  I don't know if he reminds me of someone else, or if I just dislike him for some other reason, but I just don't like him.  

I'm betting that the co-listing on the Razor House was that whichever realtor made the deal would pay some type of amount to reimburse the co-lister for their expenses.     Or else the co-list was just for the show.    

Edited June 28, 2020 by CrazyInAlabama

[retired watcher]

23 hours ago, geauxaway said:

WHOA!!!!

No mention of Flagg in the article.

[bichonblitz]

Tracy was trying hard not to laugh during her confrontation with David. She actually cracked a smile a few times as if she was thinking she can't believe she let herself be sucked in to playing this drama. Oh, well. Anything for a buck, I guess. 

I read an interesting article on Altman the other day. Apparently he and his brother worked hard in their early twenties and became very successful multi-millionaires by the age of 26, then he lost it all. Pissed all of his money away on flashy livin'. He went in to a deep depression and had to build himself back up all over again. He said he would never be that stupid again and has learned how to save/invest his money. I never liked him but have to say I have new respect for the guy now. 

Edited June 27, 2020 by bichonblitz

[QQQQ]

I've been watching older eps on Bravo all day, and just had another one of my brilliant ideas (tm Blair Warner). I would love to see a 3-part special where Flagg, Altman, and Fredrik have to sell houses in the rural midwest. It could be a contest (who sells the most, etc), whatever. I would just be entertained the fish out of water aspect. (And licenses be damned!)

[Marley]

31 minutes ago, QQQQ said:

I've been watching older eps on Bravo all day, and just had another one of my brilliant ideas (tm Blair Warner). I would love to see a 3-part special where Flagg, Altman, and Fredrik have to sell houses in the rural midwest. It could be a contest (who sells the most, etc), whatever. I would just be entertained the fish out of water aspect. (And licenses be damned!)

I would watch this show lol.

[QQQQ]

Yes, my thought wouldn't be to make fun of midwesterners. But I'm so tired of seeing these shows refer to some $10 million homes as teardowns. Come walk through a typical 100 year-old Wisconsin farmhouse someday and then let's talk. I actually would be interested in hearing Flagg and Frederik's thoughts for budget-friendly updates. 

[amarante]

6 hours ago, bichonblitz said:

 

I read an interesting article on Altman the other day. Apparently he and his brother worked hard in their early twenties and became very successful multi-millionaires by the age of 26, then he lost it all. Pissed all of his money away on flashy livin'. He went in to a deep depression and had to build himself back up all over again. He said he would never be that stupid again and has learned how to save/invest his money. I never liked him but have to say I have new respect for the guy now. 

I wonder if they lost in when real estate tanked in 2008. That would be in synch with their age lines. Of course they probably were never really multi-millionaires except in terms of leveraged chimerical real estate holdings.

Mike from Shahs purportedly was wealthy on Vegas commercial real estate until the 2008 recession. Of course he never actually succeeded in making money again except from a salary for his Shah casting unlike the Altman brothers who are genuinely successful active realtors. It is a reason that I appreciate the show versus some of the other reality shows where the only reason the cast members are wealthy is because they are making money from the show and other promotional opportunities derived from their association with the show.

[SimonSeymour]

On 6/25/2020 at 11:26 PM, amarante said:

If you like the character of a neighborhood, living in an HPOZ zone is very desirable. You won’t have a horribly out of character McMansion built on your block. The area is very charming and people deliberately choose to live there. 
 

This particular guy was an idiot in terms of his choices. The realtors made it appear as if the entire location was problematic whereas it was the location of his lot which was less desirable than homes more in the middle and north of Hollywood. 
 

He then made expensive aesthetic choices which would be completely unappealing to a lot of people who want a Craftsman home. And aside from that the layout was weird with that useless hallway and the walnut slats which maybe would work in a mid century home. 

100% agree. I love old homes, but the first half of that house up until the kitchen is a complete waste of space. It’s just a very wide hallway, with no discernible use for any of that area. They threw in a couch along one of the walls that faces . . . nothing. 

[Stan39]

4 hours ago, SimonSeymour said:

100% agree. I love old homes, but the first half of that house up until the kitchen is a complete waste of space. It’s just a very wide hallway, with no discernible use for any of that area. They threw in a couch along one of the walls that faces . . . nothing. 

It’s a little understandable when home owners don’t understand the value of their house, but you’d hope a developer would have some sense when trying to flip a place. Have a mentor or somebody knowledgeable who can tell you what you should and should not spend money on. Just seems like common sense. 

[Grrarrggh]

I think James (or was it David?) made too much of what Tracy said. It's a competition for godsakes. Of course she's going to try and make she gets the listing by pointing out that you're not treating the seller as if you care. 

[Marley]

Yea it was pretty lame. When he was saying she was talking trash I thought it was gonna be some major insult. All she said was he didn’t show up for a listing appointment from what they were saying and it honestly seemed true. 

[Stan39]

6 hours ago, Marley said:

Yea it was pretty lame. When he was saying she was talking trash I thought it was gonna be some major insult. All she said was he didn’t show up for a listing appointment from what they were saying and it honestly seemed true. 

Plus, the seller asked her the specific question. It wasn’t like she was proactively sharing gossip. Should she have not answered the question? Or just given some lame answer that they’re both equally good? She seemed to have a valid and fair response to the seller. 

[SunnyBeBe]

I really enjoyed tonight’s episode. Maybe, my all time favorite. I liked the way the properties were presented.  There was creativity and lots to laugh at.  That band scene with the Altman Bro’s was very entertaining. Rarely, do I feel so positive about this show. 

[Surrealist]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I really enjoyed tonight’s episode. Maybe, my all time favorite. I liked the way the properties were presented.  There was creativity and lots to laugh at.  That band scene with the Altman Bro’s was very entertaining. Rarely, do I feel so positive about this show. 

I thought the Altmans might go cringe, but was pleasantly surprised. I, too, enjoyed the whole episode.

[UsernameFatigue]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I really enjoyed tonight’s episode. Maybe, my all time favorite. I liked the way the properties were presented.  There was creativity and lots to laugh at.  That band scene with the Altman Bro’s was very entertaining. Rarely, do I feel so positive about this show. 

I was thinking as well that this may be my all time favourite episode. While I am not a fan of mid century modern, compared to today's modern glass and concrete boxes, they at least have an abundance of character. I also loved that this episode high lighted the personal touches of the realtors. The Brits' idea to have renderings made of what the Pasadena property could look like. Josh Flagg's hilarious (and so true) comments on getting to know a new clients (who was hilarious in her own right). And finally the Altman Bros jamming with the roof top band. 

I am not looking forward to the peeing contests with Fredrick. I have enjoyed the realtors getting along so far this season. 

[dleighg]

I cringed when Altman asked that guy to play his music. That can be VERY dangerous! And when did David start calling James "Jim"? It seems like Jim is a purely American thing for a "James".

And kind of surprised that Flagg really even wants to have cold call buyers as opposed to sellers. My impression is that buyers are a whole lot more work than sellers for the $$ and that it's usually more of an entry-level real-estate gig, unless it's someone who's a previous client.

[sugarbaker design]

1 hour ago, dleighg said:

It seems like Jim is a purely American thing for a "James".

Not that James is Irish, but there's been Irish Jimmys in my family for ages, including my brother and grandfather.

[TV Diva Queen]

3 hours ago, dleighg said:

I cringed when Altman asked that guy to play his music. That can be VERY dangerous! And when did David start calling James "Jim"? It seems like Jim is a purely American thing for a "James".

And kind of surprised that Flagg really even wants to have cold call buyers as opposed to sellers. My impression is that buyers are a whole lot more work than sellers for the $$ and that it's usually more of an entry-level real-estate gig, unless it's someone who's a previous client.

I think they were playing around with each other. "Jim" responded right back with "Dave"  

[SunnyBeBe]

I would be glad if they totally abandoned the fake fighting.  They can demonstrate the competition in more reasonable and realistic ways. imo.  It appeals to me more, anyway.  I can't help but wonder how they're doing with covid.  There are ways to work around it. I wonder how much of that we will eventually see. 

[Surrealist]

3 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I would be glad if they totally abandoned the fake fighting.  They can demonstrate the competition in more reasonable and realistic ways. imo.  It appeals to me more, anyway.  I can't help but wonder how they're doing with covid.  There are ways to work around it. I wonder how much of that we will eventually see. 

Me too. I like Fredrik, but am not looking forward to this drama.