House Hunters - General Discussion

[Crashcourse]

56 minutes ago, rhofmovalley said:

RI/CT. At first I was annoyed by the girlfriend's Eeyore voice, but I missed the first seven minutes and I guess she has had some health issues. So maybe that's why she sounded so down in the dumps.

Yeah, I think she had a brain aneurysm, they showed a photo of her in the hospital hooked up to all kinds of machinery.  She said she's still recovering so I guess her speech is still affected. 

I did think it was strange that they decided to buy a house together even though they aren't married and had known each other less than a year.  I forgot which house they chose.  

[amarante]

3 hours ago, cameron said:

Just looked up her blog on Instagram.  Some of her pictures are very interesting, to say the least.

God bless her as they say in the South but I seriously wonder why anyone would actually follow her or read about her. There is absolutely nothing of particular interest in her social media posts - she doesn't provide any kind of useful information - i.e. recipes, decorating. The pictures reflect a completely non-aspirational life - I mean with all of the talk about how important it was to have the right background for her photos - none of the phots reflect a beautiful decorated house; someone who is wearing fabulous clothing. I mean she is a plus size woman so it would seem like a great marketing opportunity to showcase plus size stylish clothing.

Unless she has bought followers there are approximately 60,000 people following her and I just wonder why?

 I don't follow social media of friends and family who live much more interesting lives - e.g. homes are decorated; they dress nicely; they cook and entertain; they travel. 🤷🏼‍♀️

And the dysfunctional relationship with the mother - rarely does one see something like that so clearly depicted. The husband appeared to have checked out emotionally. It seems like the mother must have a lot of money and uses it to control the family. 

[mojito]

Baton Rouge

I heard more comments and consideration given to "my blog", "gameroom", and "Agnes" and very little about the SIX (1-2-3-4-5-6) kids. I guess "making bank" means different things to different people. At the very least, it would mean not depending on mommy for money.

[CrazyInAlabama]

On 3/17/2022 at 11:07 AM, Crashcourse said:

Yeah, I think she had a brain aneurysm, they showed a photo of her in the hospital hooked up to all kinds of machinery.  She said she's still recovering so I guess her speech is still affected. 

I did think it was strange that they decided to buy a house together even though they aren't married and had known each other less than a year.  I forgot which house they chose.  

They bought the third house, without a garage, and that needed so much work before they moved in.   I think they paid way over asking too. Another poster corrected me, they paid $299k, under asking.  I get the episodes mixed up sometimes.     No way they'll get a full two car garage for $15k.     I really thought they would go with the first house after seeing the long detached garage with lifts already installed.   I was suprised that the first one wasn't the pick.  

The Baton Rouge couple, the poor kids seems like accessories, not children.    There seemed to be a whole lot more thought about the mother's blog background, than where the kids could live.  

I think it was the Houston couple where they underbid the list price, stuck to it, and got the house for that price.  

Edited March 19, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[pdlinda]

1 hour ago, Crashcourse said:

did think it was strange that they decided to buy a house together even though they aren't married and had known each other less than a year.  I forgot which house they chose. 

I noticed that even at the end (when my DVR was starting to record the next episode) when they were commenting on different things there was absolutely NO MENTION of any progress in the relationship toward being engaged or married.  

I guess they'll both own the home and pay for the upkeep and see where the relationship goes.  They seemed to have the intention of staying together into the future, so there was that...

[mojito]

1 hour ago, pdlinda said:

They seemed to have the intention of staying together into the future, so there was that...

Don't most couples have that intention?

I thought it was funny when the guy stated that it felt so good that they finally had a place to live. Must've been tough considering they've known each other for 8 whole months. 

I can see the sudden medical crisis accelerating their relationship. Purchasing a home is business. Sounds like beyond that, they're taking it slow. They still have to deal with her medical problems and marriage and children don't seem to be in their immediate future. Take your time, kids. 

The housing market has changed a bit. Baby Boomers deciding to age in place have contributed to the fact that there just aren't enough homes out there for people to purchase. I can certainly see wanting to get a starter home, as the husband did, but these days, I think if you can stretch it, get the home you feel you could stay in for a long time. Chances are you're already paying too much for it; it'll take some time to get equity in it. I suspect it was a better choice, going with the wife's instinct and purchasing the home that was larger than meeting their space needs right now.

[BAForever]

Really like Spencer in Colorado. He had a lot more intelligent/insightful comments than the typical "I like open concept" "I like all of the natural light". He had 3 unique choices. Good job realtor sisters. 

[spunky]

I'm enjoying seeing my fellow Trinis (Trinidadians) tonight.  Based on their comments they're from one of the lower income neighborhoods. Whatever house they choose it will definitely be enough space to "bus ah lime" (hangout).

Edited March 18, 2022 by spunky

[msuvig]

Last nights house hunt -I think in Indiana. Did they say why the woman can’t climb stairs sometimes?

[Seelouis]

2 hours ago, msuvig said:

Last nights house hunt -I think in Indiana. Did they say why the woman can’t climb stairs sometimes?

She has MS

[CoppersMom2021]

As someone familiar with the area, I knew the Baton Rouge couple (with the blogger *never heard of her or her mom btw*) would choose the Prairieville house. People move there out of the city to get a little more bang for your buck and visually have the “we made it” feel. Which is EXACTLY the area she would go for to keep up her “brand” “image” or whatever she called it.

 

[LittleIggy]

NJ: Why on earth do a couple with 2 kids need a 6000 sq. foot house? They wanted to show that they “had arrived”! Arrived at what? Wasteful consumerism?

[topanga]

On 3/16/2022 at 9:50 AM, mojito said:

He did talk about children a lot and never mentioned a spouse. He probably just likes keeping his private life private.

I liked the townhome, but I liked the home he picked, too. He came off as a nice, normal person. Even if he weren't an artist. 😉

Except he called it "creating art." What does he actually do? Paint, draw, sculpt, 3D print, silkscreen? Creating art makes it sound like he's curing cancer. No offense artists.

 

On 3/16/2022 at 1:35 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

I wasn't surprised he didn't actually buy in Boulder, the prices there make the rest of Colorado look cheap in comparison.    The third one way out of town was too isolated.

Didn't he still pay a lot over the asking price? Like almost 100K over? 

 

On 3/16/2022 at 1:35 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

New episode in Baton Rouge.    She's a blogger, and insurance agent, and she wants her mother to chip in.   The couple have six kids, not that far apart.  They do a family photo with matching sweat suits or whatever they are.   The wife is worried about her brand image, if she gets what she can afford, instead of something more expensive. 

They are living rent free at her mother's cottage, and wife says she wants freedom to live without her mom's input, but she's the one who calls her mother for money.       Wife wants high ceilings, and crown moldings, and her own blogging office, because it will look good in the photos.  The mother offers to chip in $50k, but wife says it's her mother's way of controlling them.  First house 4 bed 2.5 bath, two story, is 4 beds big enough for a family of 8?   I don't understand why the wife wants the huge upstairs bonus room into a game room, when the husband wants it for a big shared kid's bedroom.  

 Second house, needs updating.  The attached apartment looks good, and has a separate entrance.   

Third house, huge, over priced, needs a lot of work.   They buy the first house, the fancy one, but they won't need the mother to finance the house either. . 

They were a weird couple, but they were entertaining. The mom (Hazel?) reminded me of loving yet controlling black women in my extended family. She might have been exaggerating for the camera, but I believe that's how she really is. 

The mumbling husband with the dry humor was hilarious. He was from Cleveland, I think, but why did he sound like he was from your neck of the woods, CrazyInAlabama?

And the wife was a little too bubbly. Being around her would exhaust me. 

[CruiseDiva]

54 minutes ago, topanga said:

And the wife was a little too bubbly. Being around her would exhaust me. 

Baton Rouge blogger is "making bank" with her online "brand"? LOL! Good for her, but I hope they can make the mortgage payments without that "bank" from her blog. From personal experience, an online site has limited income potential. My ad revenue went from several hundred dollars a month to not much in a few years. 

[spunky]

2 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

NJ: Why on earth do a couple with 2 kids need a 6000 sq. foot house? They wanted to show that they “had arrived”! Arrived at what? Wasteful consumerism?

Unfortunately some people in the Trinidadian community can be very judgemental. That statement was most likely for a hateful family member or a former neighbor who was openly hoping for them to fail. The "we have arrived" was more of "we worked hard and we made it, now go run yuh mouth about that!"

Edited March 18, 2022 by spunky

[Cetacean]

9 hours ago, Seelouis said:

She has MS

Was any mention made of doorframe widths or the ease of adapting the flow?  I would love to see even one HH episode with someone disabled that addresses the practical concerns that folks face. 

When I had my current retirement home built, the designer asked right up front if I wanted wider doorways to address things like a wheelchair.  I was grateful he brought it up (and, yes, I did get them) but of course it made me feel ancient.  However, if it allows me to stay in my home longer, that's the big plus.

Of course, there is never any mention of school quality, safety of neighborhoods, or taxes - just restaurants and bars within walking distance on most episodes so I expect we'll never get that demand off the "must have" phrases list.

[ECM1231]

On 3/17/2022 at 1:02 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

They bought the third house, without a garage, and that needed so much work before they moved in.   I think they paid way over asking too. 

 

 

If I recall correctly, the asking price for the home they purchased was $299,000, the least expensive of the 3. It was in Connecticut, not too far from the RI border. I remember being surprised that it was the least expensive, because I would have thought that homes in CT sell for more.

I'm pretty sure they didn't pay over asking. I think the male homebuyer said they offered asking price and the sellers countered with a price of $305,000, or something a few thousand over. The buyer said that didn't sit right with them and they stood firm. The sellers then did accept the original offer.

I had to laugh at that and thought way to go. My husband cannot understand the concept of paying more than the asking price. Our son lost out on his first house by bidding under. The next time he offered 10K over asking price and it was accepted.  

Also, I often wonder if the real estate agents know what they are talking about, because no way can you build a garage, not even a one-car garage, for 15K.  At least not in my neck of the woods. 

Just like the episode in Indianapolis, where the young woman had called off her engagement and decided to purchase a home. She had a dog and one of the homes was not fenced. Her R/E agent told her a fence would cost 2K. In what universe is she living? Smh 

We paid over  4K just for the composite fence panels alone, to fence in our yard. This was way back in 2010 and my husband and son did all the work.

[mojito]

23 hours ago, spunky said:

Whatever house they choose it will definitely be enough space to "bus ah lime" (hangout).

And "pong melee"?

[LittleIggy]

8 hours ago, spunky said:

Unfortunately some people in the Trinidadian community can be very judgemental. That statement was most likely for a hateful family member or a former neighbor who was openly hoping for them to fail. The "we have arrived" was more of "we worked hard and we made it, now go run yuh mouth about that!"

Lots of people on HH say they want to buy a house that says they “had arrived,” not just this couple. Sad that “arriving” seems to mean spending money for more house than you need. 
Baton Rouge: Why on earth would anyone want to look at pictures of some stranger’s family dressed up in matching outfits (except to laugh at them)?

[cameron]

10 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

If I recall correctly, the asking price for the home they purchased was $299,000, the least expensive of the 3. It was in Connecticut, not too far from the RI border. I remember being surprised that it was the least expensive, because I would have thought that homes in CT sell for more.

I'm pretty sure they didn't pay over asking. I think the male homebuyer said they offered asking price and the sellers countered with a price of $305,000, or something a few thousand over. The buyer said that didn't sit right with them and they stood firm. The sellers then did accept the original offer.

I had to laugh at that and thought way to go. My husband cannot understand the concept of paying more than the asking price. Our son lost out on his first house by bidding under. The next time he offered 10K over asking price and it was accepted.  

Also, I often wonder if the real estate agents know what they are talking about, because no way can you build a garage, not even a one-car garage, for 15K.  At least not in my neck of the woods. 

Just like the episode in Indianapolis, where the young woman had called off her engagement and decided to purchase a home. She had a dog and one of the homes was not fenced. Her R/E agent told her a fence would cost 2K. In what universe is she living? Smh 

We paid over  4K just for the composite fence panels alone, to fence in our yard. This was way back in 2010 and my husband and son did all the work.

Probably, it was lower because of that area of Connecticut.  The gold coast of Connecticut (lower Fairfield County) is very expensive, partly due to its proximity to New York City.  Lots of prominent and famous people live there.  Definitely would cost more there  than living in Rhode Island.

[CrazyInAlabama]

11 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

If I recall correctly, the asking price for the home they purchased was $299,000, the least expensive of the 3. It was in Connecticut, not too far from the RI border. I remember being surprised that it was the least expensive, because I would have thought that homes in CT sell for more.

I'm pretty sure they didn't pay over asking. I think the male homebuyer said they offered asking price and the sellers countered with a price of $305,000, or something a few thousand over. The buyer said that didn't sit right with them and they stood firm. The sellers then did accept the original offer.

I had to laugh at that and thought way to go. My husband cannot understand the concept of paying more than the asking price. Our son lost out on his first house by bidding under. The next time he offered 10K over asking price and it was accepted.  

Also, I often wonder if the real estate agents know what they are talking about, because no way can you build a garage, not even a one-car garage, for 15K.  At least not in my neck of the woods. 

 

Oops!   Thanks for the correction.   I guess I mixed it up with the Houston couple.   

[Grrarrggh]

Was there nowhere between Woodbridge and Richmond that's cheaper? Between what she spent to build the house, an extra 6-8 months rent and gas she could have bought in Woodbridge for less.

[mojito]

On 3/18/2022 at 11:57 AM, LittleIggy said:

They wanted to show that they “had arrived”!

Ah, new money. You kind of wonder if people think that who they are isn't enough: they need "things" to define them. Is this what they want their kids to learn?

[CrazyInAlabama]

I'm wondering if it's entirely a community idea, to buy the biggest and the grandest to impress others.   I really liked the Trinidadian (spelling?) couple, and I like looking at huge houses.   

I bet a lot of the decorating is done by either buying the furniture from the seller, or calling a local furniture store with a design service to have the sales person come to the house, show the store's various predone rooms with furniture, and wall decor, and write the check.   Then, the furniture store has everything put into place.   I hope they didn't hire an independent decorator, that is a lot extra for what you get. 

The NJ buyers did have a previous home, and kept talking about how big it is, so they might already have a lot of furniture to move into that outdated mansion they bought.  

OWN had the usual Saturday marathon of mostly older episodes, the prices ten or more years ago are amazing compared to today.   One woman moving to Kansas wanted a walk out basement, but yet she also wanted it for a tornado shelter.   I hope she realizes that you need a windowless room for tornado shelters.     Then they reran the LaPeaches in Huntsville episode again, I think this is the third rerun over the last month. 

Edited March 20, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[pdlinda]

1 hour ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I like looking at huge houses.

Same here!! 

I love looking at huge houses; however, my enthusiasm is tempered with caution regarding arranging for:  Cleaning and organization, heating/cooling and furnishing.

It's plausible that cleaning help is a given; however, from personal experience I know how unreliable some services are and you would need a team of people to keep that huge house clean and orderly. 

Then, the utilities rear their ugly head as I see my bills going in ONLY ONE DIRECTION:  UP, UP, UP!! 

And finally, furnishing all those rooms and additional spaces is an expensive proposition.

I understand that the buyer's have a lot of $$$ that they worked so hard to earn and that they own 8 properties.  I also know that they have massive expenses so I hope that their income keeps up with the increases in property tax, maintenance costs and all the other expenses they will face so that their huge "statement home" will always remain in the pristine condition they found it in when they bought it.

Edited March 20, 2022 by pdlinda

[amarante]

I thought the homes in New Jersey were all suffering from having been built 15 years ago. 

This was especially true of the kitchens which I am almost 100% certain were built at the height of the "Tuscan" kitchen craze and all of that dark woodwork was painted white for the current sale. But if you looked closely you could see it in terms of the balustrades and other fugly style of the details. 

Wasn't one of the homes in Saddle River NJ? - that is an expensive community and I would bet that a large home built in the more fashionable "modern farmhouse" style would have been significantly more expensive.

[buttersister]

Quote

xcept he called it "creating art." What does he actually do? Paint, draw, sculpt, 3D print, silkscreen? 

He was a creative director (usually that means an agency and $$$). HIS art is what that salary (or severance package) now lets him do, either full time or part time. Most CDs with an art background did stuff on the side or when they got cut loose. CD writers had screenplays or novels on a hard drive (used to be in a drawer). 

[kirklandia]

I never wanted big, fancy or new. My dream house would be small, modest and older. Like this one, in a nearby neighborhood built during WWII to house workers at a nearby shipyard. 
It sold in 2 days.  Dream on...

Edited March 20, 2022 by kirklandia

[dogdays2]

Quote

NJ: Why on earth do a couple with 2 kids need a 6000 sq. foot house? They wanted to show that they “had arrived”! Arrived at what? Wasteful consumerism?

None of us knows the people on these shows.  We see little, edited snippets.  Also, I'm not going to decide how much house anyone else "needs."  Maybe it's not what they need but what they want.  A lot people see their house as a sign of financial accomplishment / professional success.  It's their money -- if they choose to spend it on a house, that's their decision.  

Someone above asked about areas between Woodbridge and Richmond -- Fredericksburg is one that comes to mind, 50 miles south of DC and 30 south of Woodbridge.  There are also communities directly south of Woodbridge that are cheaper than Woodbridge and viable options if you don't need to commute to DC daily -- a lot of new construction there as well.  As someone who lived many years in NoVA, I was VERY surprised that the realtor took her to Richmond (90 miles from Woodbridge).  It made me think there was some other reason that maybe we weren't told b/c I don't know anyone who chooses Richmond when they really want to be in NoVA.  [Nothing wrong with Richmond -- it's a lovely city in it's own right but it's not generally considered an option to NoVA (sort of like saying you want to live in Washington DC and then buying a house outside of Philadelphia)].  Along those lines, I sincerely hope that she works from home 100% of the time.  The I-95 corridor between Richmond and northern VA is a DISASTER traffic-wise pretty much all of the time.  Whatever commute time the realtor quoted is accurate -- only if you drive at 3 am on a Sunday morning.

[rhofmovalley]

35 minutes ago, dogdays2 said:

I was VERY surprised that the realtor took her to Richmond (90 miles from Woodbridge).

Decoy house. They probably couldn't find one that was closer in. Although I would imagine the production setup wasn't much fun.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Washington D.C. deciding between in town townhouse, and house in the burbs, with a bad commute.     They have a $1 million budget, which in D.C. doesn't buy much. 

House #1 was a bad commute, and the yard needs fencing for Graham the Golden Retriever.    I don't like basement bedrooms without egress windows, and the house may have four bedrooms, but not an en suite.   I totally dislike the granite in the kitchen, and the house doesn't seem to have central air either.  

House #2-D.C. rowhouse, with stairs to the front porch, and on street parking. Unfortunately, the front porches means a common porch with the neighbors.   I like the house hunter, he likes sectioned off rooms, not open concept.  The granite looks a lot like house #1, so I dislike it too.   No grass in the small yard for Graham the dog (I love that name).  Very narrow stairs.  Nice main bedroom closet. 2nd floor bath has the narrowest sink, no en suite.   I don't like this house at all. 

House #3-3 bed 1.5 bath, very close to the streetin Arlington.  It looks like radiators again, so maybe no air conditioning. True marble countertops, I don't like them.   Electric baseboard heat in the kitchen, and radiators everywhere else.  Big backyard with lots of landscaping that will need mowing, and trimming.  Really far from town for commuting, according to the one buyer.   I wonder if they could add another bathroom?  1.5 baths and two stories means everyone uses the main bath upstairs, with three bedrooms.     

I really don't like any of their choices.   They picked #3. 

Edited March 22, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[buttersister]

I thought #3 was their best bet and compromise. Arlington's close in for Rick (?) and Tom got the style of house he wanted. I'd bet they bonded on it also being the right house for their pooch (yeah, busy street, but enormous backyard). Hilarious that they got quickly married to suit the lenders! 

[MsTree]

DC couple: So Graham is your son???  Funny, but he doesn't resemble either one of you 🙄

[cameron]

DC house hunters show.  I was really surprised that you can still find a house with that square footage and totally done in DC for that low of a price, unless it was in a questionable area.  Do know the road that #3 house is on and it is really busy all the time, but the drive to DC is relatively short and easy.

[Crashcourse]

I liked the DC couple and their son, Graham.  I thought #3 was the best choice for them. 

[Grrarrggh]

I'm in the area and had a few guesses for where that Arlington house is, each quite a short drive to Washington. I wish they'd said what neighborhood the rowhouse was in. 

[cameron]

1 hour ago, Grrarrggh said:

I'm in the area and had a few guesses for where that Arlington house is, each quite a short drive to Washington. I wish they'd said what neighborhood the rowhouse was in. 

First house was way out 16th Street and over the Maryland line in Silver Spring.  Not exactly close to downtown, while #3 was a short jump down to Key Bridge and DC area.  Also #3 was in an area of lots of restaurants.  #2 not sure, but I think up behind the National Zoo area.

[LittleIggy]

DC area: Interesting that the couple went ahead and got married before purchasing the house. Guess there were legal/financial advantages.

[Thumper]

Salem, Massachusetts.  The husband is cracking me up at the third house.  “I will never go this far into this basement!”  😂.  It was creepy, down a long hallway with no lights.  The house is cool with history, but looks scary from the outside — salt box/Georgian with dark grey/black paint. 

Waiting to see which house they pick.  Hah!  They chose another house.

[Grizzly]

Salem, MA. The husband reminds me of the actor Matt Jones on Bob 💕 Abishola. Love old houses but I don't think I could live in one. #3 was practically a museum. I thought the one they picked was a good compromise and under budget.

[CrazyDog]

2 hours ago, Thumper said:

Salem, Massachusetts.  The husband is cracking me up at the third house.  “I will never go this far into this basement!”  😂.  It was creepy, down a long hallway with no lights.  The house is cool with history, but looks scary from the outside — salt box/Georgian with dark grey/black paint. 

Waiting to see which house they pick.  Hah!  They chose another house.

I haven't watched this show in forever, but I was drawn in to the houses in Salem. The husband was hilarious, and I was 100% on his side for the third house.

Realtor: "There's great storage in this insanely creepy basement."

Husband: "This space is everything wrong with this house."

Lol.

It was absolutely amazing from a historical perspective but a bit much to live in. So cool to see though.

They paid $110K over asking on their pick...yowza. Stating the obvious but the markets are insane.

[cameron]

I would certainly not call house #1 in Salem a victorian by any stretch of the matter and #3 in Ipswich is way more than 15 minutes away from Salem, especially in summertime traffic.

[LittleIggy]

11 hours ago, Grizzly said:

Salem, MA. The husband reminds me of the actor Matt Jones on Bob 💕 Abishola. Love old houses but I don't think I could live in one. #3 was practically a museum. I thought the one they picked was a good compromise and under budget.

Museum was my reaction too! I would not want to live in a museum. Those ceilings were so low!

[CrazyInAlabama]

I liked seeing the Salem houses.  They had an episode of My Lottery Dream Home in Salem this season, but nothing was as old as house #3.  

House #3, that basement was scary.     I would have wanted a structural engineer to examine that house, the realtor (I guess it was the realtor) saying because the floors didn't squeak that the house was sound isn't right. 

[mojito]

Salem, MA

Interesting homes to look at. A nice change of pace from what we usually see. 

I appreciated the third house the most, but cool things like the old kitchen just took up space, and I wouldn't have the heart to tear it out (don't know if the historic society would allow it anyway). I wanted to smack the husband for being such a scaredy cat about the basement, but I agree with him on the house in general. It was was just too....too. And dark, as well.

Anyone know about old New England homes? Were many built with the front entrance on the side of the house or had new streets built around the house made the front the side now? Was this maybe typical of homes built in the city? The house to the left was back to back (by a few feet, it seemed) with a side front door. I wish HH had zoomed out so we could see more of the arrangement of homes in the vicinity.

 

[cameron]

6 minutes ago, mojito said:

Salem, MA

Interesting homes to look at. A nice change of pace from what we usually see. 

I appreciated the third house the most, but cool things like the old kitchen just took up space, and I wouldn't have the heart to tear it out (don't know if the historic society would allow it anyway). I wanted to smack the husband for being such a scaredy cat about the basement, but I agree with him on the house in general. It was was just too....too. And dark, as well.

Anyone know about old New England homes? Were many built with the front entrance on the side of the house or had new streets built around the house made the front the side now? Was this maybe typical of homes built in the city? The house to the left was back to back (by a few feet, it seemed) with a side front door. I wish HH had zoomed out so we could see more of the arrangement of homes in the vicinity.

 

 

7 minutes ago, mojito said:

Salem, MA

Interesting homes to look at. A nice change of pace from what we usually see. 

I appreciated the third house the most, but cool things like the old kitchen just took up space, and I wouldn't have the heart to tear it out (don't know if the historic society would allow it anyway). I wanted to smack the husband for being such a scaredy cat about the basement, but I agree with him on the house in general. It was was just too....too. And dark, as well.

Anyone know about old New England homes? Were many built with the front entrance on the side of the house or had new streets built around the house made the front the side now? Was this maybe typical of homes built in the city? The house to the left was back to back (by a few feet, it seemed) with a side front door. I wish HH had zoomed out so we could see more of the arrangement of homes in the vicinity.

 

Very common style here in downtown historic Charleston, SC.  Think it depended on the size of your lot.   The red house next door has the same style layout (door on the side).  

[Cetacean]

7 minutes ago, mojito said:

Interesting homes to look at. A nice change of pace from what we usually see. 

Best episode in a long time, that's for sure.  Such unusual places!

That third house certainly had museum vibes.  It was lovely that the owners appreciated and preserved the history but, as @mojito said, it is totally unusable space other than to show to visitors.  And all of the rooms were so dark.

I was right there with the hubby on the creep basement.  When I was a kid I was totally convinced there was a man living behind the furnace (one of those great big oil burning ones) and refused to go down there as much as possible.  Ghosts I could manage but not The Man Behind the Furnace!

[chessiegal]

Salem. In what world was the first house they bought a Victorian? 

They blurred out the plaque on the third house. I'm assuming it is on a historical society listing. 

[rhofmovalley]

I'm pretty sure the third house in Salem is actually a museum. The blurred plaque probably indicated that.

Must have been short on decoy houses.

[chessiegal]

The real estate agent in the Salem episode is with Re/Max in Plaistow, NH, about 30 miles from Salem. Her sold listings don't show the house they bought. 

I'm not seeing the third house as any kind of museum on the Visitor's web site or historic web site.