House Hunters - General Discussion

[StatisticalOutlier]

13 hours ago, answerphone said:

Everything looks so barren and dry in that area.

I have a friend who always ribs our Albuquerque friends by calling their town "Bedrock." 

I learned something in the Chicago episode.  I've never liked that gray stone that one house had on the front.  It always looks like the fake asbestos brick (or whatever it is) on houses in Queens, which I definitely hate.  But turns out it's a thing--lannon stone. 

Next time I happen past a bunch of those houses on my slow-speed bike tour of an unfamiliar neighborhood, I'm going to make a point to look at them instead of averting my eyes and trying to figure out what street might have better houses on it.

[ByaNose]

Chicago: It was nice to see it wasn’t a high rise or loft episode that cost $500,000 and above. I kind of thought he would pick #3 for the location and the price. I’m sure it will look nice after the renovation because his shirts, puffer coat and sweater were all color coordinated. LOL!!!! He has style so im sure it’s going to look great in the end. In fact, I would love to see the renovation when it’s done. He seemed like a nice and even the realtor was working with him and not constantly rolling their eyes at the comments. That said, the only thing missing in all three of the houses was no fireplaces. I thought you had to have a fireplace in Chicago?! Isn’t it like the law or something. LOL!!! I know I couldn’t live there because of the cold and snow. I’m have lived in the suburbs of Philadelphia my whole life (I’m 58) and, I can’t even take it here. LOL!!!

[tvrox]

On 4/14/2022 at 5:51 AM, BAForever said:

Lititz,  PA ICU nurses. She was quirky. Knew they'd end up in his preferred area. OMG, how much oversized sweaters did she own? I was fascinated- she wore them with dresses and pants and what looked like an apron.  Wanted to see her closet.

This episode was so funny to me. I lived in Lititz for two years-at least when I lived there (mid 90s) it was a tiny town no one had ever heard of. Very historical town (founded by the Moravians, if any of you know what that is) but tinyyyy. Never thought I would see a House Hunters there. 

And then New Rochelle! I grew up near there (and some of the houses they showed were actually in Eastchester, which is even closer). I would never move back there, but prices are high. Didn't surprise me what they had to pay. 

Edited April 22, 2022 by tvrox

[amarante]

Well if we are doing television series odd locations, In Plain Sight was set in Albuquerque. 

I think New Rochelle is one of the more expensive suburbs because it is a relatively easy commute into the city although I am not sure whether that is as much of a factor with all of the work from home jobs for white collar types. It was one of the earliest of the suburban developments - which is why it was the logical location for Rob and Laura.

The New Rochelle housing stock also reflects the era when it was built which is why it is so out of step with modern housing needs. I don't want to use the word "trendy" or "dated" because that implies that it is a matter of style and taste. However the older housing stock regardless of style just isn't in line with how many people want their homes to function. People generally do want at least 2 1/2 baths - at least a powder room on the ground floor; an ensuite in the master and a shared bathroom upstairs for the kids' bedrooms. And even if the master has an en suite it is generally a very tiny and would not be particularly comfortable even for a single user - no place to store hair dryers for example because women went to beauty parlors and didn't have all of that hair paraphernalia. 🤷🏼‍♀️

That bathroom in the unfinished basement was ridiculous. No one is going to use it unless the whole family arrives home at the same time and they all need to pee desperately and no one would actually send guests down a rickety basement stair case to an unfinished basement to use the "powder room".

I am not sure how taxes compare to other suburbs but NJ and NY suburban taxes are very high in places with good school districts. I saw a listing for a New Rochelle home listed for about $750,000 and the taxes were about $15,000 per year. 
 

 

Edited April 23, 2022 by amarante

[amarante]

On 4/16/2022 at 8:48 PM, mojito said:

I suspect that flippers are only a tiny portion of those purchasing homes. I think foreign and domestic investors are purchasing homes in the more affordable sunbelt cities, and their plan is to rent them out to all the people who can't afford to purchase homes.  There are a lot of deep pockets out there happy to make renters of us all. 

 

Today's New York Times had an article on corporate purchasers squeezing out home buyers. Based on the article the problem is in sunbelt states in areas with relatively inexpensive housing - i.e. $300,000 or less. I was amazed by the statistics in some of the areas. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/23/us/corporate-real-estate-investors-housing-market.html

Obviously it is location specific since corporations aren't snapping up the homes in high cost locations even when those expensive homes are "starter homes".

As the article pointed out there is very little that can be done about it since there is no way to forbid a homeowner from selling to a corporation. Interesting the one example they used was a condo townhouse where they put a restriction which specified that a new buyer would have to live in the place for a year before renting it out. My condo used to have that restriction to prevent the building being over run with absentee landlords but a recent statute in California where I am located made those kinds of restrictions illegal.

Edited April 24, 2022 by amarante

[mojito]

18 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I've never liked that gray stone that one house had on the front.  It always looks like the fake asbestos brick (or whatever it is) on houses in Queens, which I definitely hate. 

Yeah, I never liked that look either. It's right up there with those shingled houses that look like roofing material. You see it on old homes in the northeast.

[Angeltoes]

On 4/22/2022 at 3:05 PM, Crashcourse said:

I liked the Chicago guy

I did, too.  I wasn't surprised he was gay but I wonder if his Italian Catholic family was.  It looked like all his siblings were boys.  His mother should be nominated for sainthood.

Quote

He seemed like a nice and even the realtor was working with him and not constantly rolling their eyes at the comments. 

Since the realtor was an ex, I'm sure he was used to him.

[Grizzly]

23 hours ago, amarante said:

Well if we are doing television series odd locations, In Plain Sight was set in Albuquerque.  

 

 

 

I loved In Plain Sight!

[ECM1231]

On 4/21/2022 at 2:39 PM, pdlinda said:

I grew up in NYC and my best friend moved to New Rochelle so I visited there many times.  She moved to a house similar to what the couple bought.  The interior looked like the house my friend lived in MANY YEARS AGO!

The THOUGHT that such a house would cost over $700K today literally made me cringe!!  

When I coupled the New Rochelle episode with the N.M. one, it was even more STARK as the house there for about $400K was absolutely beautiful, ESPECIALLY when compared with the house in New Rochelle.

While I hated that weird wall texture of the New Rochelle Tudor Colonial, I loved its charm. I liked all the arches, the woodwork. I'm a big fan of designated rooms and don't like open concept. The NM home, while very pretty and new, was very generic. I think with some renovations the New Rochelle house can be a show stopper. Obviously ymmv.

[laredhead]

The Chicago HH said he was one of 11, and that picture showed 10 children, so there was one more in the future.  Wonder if they ever had a girl?  4 of the children looked like 2 sets of twins.  I cannot imagine having 10 boys. 

I was surprised at his choice of houses, and thought #1 would be the one.  I guess $$ counted a lot.  I think I would figure out a way to get at least a half bath added to the main floor.  This is one of those episodes that I wish HGTV would revisit with updates later. 

[Hedgehog2022]

6 hours ago, Angeltoes said:

I did, too.  I wasn't surprised he was gay but I wonder if his Italian Catholic family was.  It looked like all his siblings were boys.  His mother should be nominated for sainthood.

Since the realtor was an ex, I'm sure he was used to him.

I tought the realtor was just an old good friend...his ex was his landlord.

[WI GIRL56]

8 hours ago, Hedgehog2022 said:

I tought the realtor was just an old good friend...his ex was his landlord.

I also thought the realtor was a friend.  His Ex was his landlord.   I am originally from Chicago and grew up next to Evanston.   I knew the 1st one was too far away from where he was living.

[laredhead]

Kirklandia, the former owners had it decorated & furnished very nicely.  Looks like enough room for him to make an addition to the house.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Tonight is Janet,  buying in L.A. in Echo Park, or Rampart Village (where she lives now).   Her budget is up to $450k, possibly a duplex, or two flat with income property.   

#1 condo, $459k, near downtown L.A. , 1 bed 1 bath, garage, HOA fees $400 a month, 650 sq ft. 

#2 south of downtown L.A. $590k 3 bed 2 bath to rent out a bedroom or two, A small yellow house surrounded by what look like apartments.    960 sq ft,  I'm not sure about that neighborhood, the houses around the one she's touring look run down.   It has washer/dryer hook ups in the kitchen.  The side yard has fence mesh on it.   Primary bedroom has an en suite. looks like street parking only. 

#3 Duplex, South L.A. 20 minutes from Rampart Village, and her job.  $660k, rental income from the other side of the duplex, with a current tenant.   2 bed 1 bath on owner's side, 668 sq ft, kichen redone.   Tenant side has separate entrance, $1800 a month, rented already, 516 sq. ft.

She chooses #3 (I like that best of all three)., bought for $660k. 

[Grizzly]

LA. That was interesting that a bank would loan you more money to buy a duplex. I would never want to buy in California. The prices you pay for such small space is ridiculous. But the pay for social workers must be pretty good.

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, Grizzly said:

But the pay for social workers must be pretty good.

It's not, thus her $450k budget in Los Angeles.  The $660k purchase price, even with rental income, for a small home in an iffy neighborhood (as described; I'll have to watch to pinpoint where), is interesting -- I will definitely check this episode out tomorrow, because it's such a huge gap between stated budget and purchase price.

[edie3]

LA, those houses she looked at were so sad to be so expensive! But good for her for getting out of paying rent.

[rhofmovalley]

Yep, that's Southern California for you! Nothing under $500,000 is going to be in a reasonably decent neighborhood. I'm sure you all noticed lots of bars on windows.

South LA used to be South Central LA until someone decided that South Central had negative connotations, so they took out the "Central". It's still the same neighborhood. I worked in that area and yeah, definitely need to keep your eyes open and be alert.

And for the record, there are lots of families and good people living there. But the crime rate is high.

I think it's safer for Janet (dammit!) to have neighbors on the property given that she lives alone.

[CrazyInAlabama]

14 hours ago, Grizzly said:

LA. That was interesting that a bank would loan you more money to buy a duplex. I would never want to buy in California. The prices you pay for such small space is ridiculous. But the pay for social workers must be pretty good.

I think the fact there was a paying tenant already living there made a big difference to the bank.    I bet if the tenant wasn't paying rent, or the apartment was vacant, then the bank wouldn't have done the deal.    I like that the tenant unit had a very separate entrance from the main house.   

I liked the house she bought better than the second house.  That one looked seriously over looked by the apartment houses around it.   The neighboring houses didn't look very good either.  

Edited April 27, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[amarante]

While the third house in LA with the tenant might have made more sense financially I would not want to live in a single family home in South Los Angeles as a single woman. 

It still has a high crime rate although the area is improving. And yes, unfortunately most of the people living there are decent hard working who are victims of the high crime rate but that doesn't make the area safer.

The first neighborhood mentioned (Rampart) is infamous for the Rampart scandal of the police department and is synonymous with police misconduct. The Shield which was a television series was "inspired" by the scandal.

When I first moved to Los Angeles that area (Rampart - Pico-Union-Westlake (not to be confused with Westlake Village) was really high crime. There was a revival movie theater that I went to because I didn't know about the neighborhood until I read about a mugging on that street in which the woman's finger had been cut off because she didn't get her ring off fast enough. That ended my visits to THAT movie theater. 

[Grizzly]

Lancaster, PA. They were a good couple, they could disagree without being disagreeable. I could deal with the green kitchen but that green was everywhere. And none of the places had yards so I guess it's good they had cats. Not sure I'd use her as an interior designer but I'd hire him if I had wealth to manage.

[Grizzly]

California-not Bakersfield. They are buying this potentially million dollar house with land for grandkids that don't exist yet? Gee, no pressure on their son and his wife. DIL even looked away when Carrie mentioned grandkids. Maybe they should look in a different area since all the properties were hilly. Oh course the contractor bought a fixer. I liked Gary.

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 4/26/2022 at 9:31 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

Tenant side has separate entrance, $1800 a month, rented already, 516 sq. ft.

I swear they said the tenant side had two bedrooms.  In 516 square feet.  I wish they'd shown it.

[BAForever]

Lancaster PA couple. I liked them but no parking would be rough for me, looked like they maybe shared a car. Figured she'd get her choice, but he seemed ok with it. When someone says they like "European" style homes. What the heck? Europe is a pretty big place! Assuming to her it means defined spaces and "charm" (whatever charm means). 

[cameron]

22 minutes ago, BAForever said:

Lancaster PA couple. I liked them but no parking would be rough for me, looked like they maybe shared a car. Figured she'd get her choice, but he seemed ok with it. When someone says they like "European" style homes. What the heck? Europe is a pretty big place! Assuming to her it means defined spaces and "charm" (whatever charm means). 

Another gold faucet/gaming couple.  Grow up already.

 

[cameron]

Rampart Village realtor needs to get some decent clothes for his job.  He looks like he is going out to do yard work.  Be professional looking isn't too much to ask and that home buyer needs to ditch that watchman's knitted hat.  It's south LA not Chicago.

Edited April 28, 2022 by cameron

[rhofmovalley]

3 hours ago, BAForever said:

Lancaster PA couple. I liked them but no parking would be rough for me, looked like they maybe shared a car. Figured she'd get her choice, but he seemed ok with it. When someone says they like "European" style homes. What the heck? Europe is a pretty big place! Assuming to her it means defined spaces and "charm" (whatever charm means). 

She claimed to be a designer and to have such a great sense of style, but she dressed, well, less than stylish. I wanted to take her shopping for flattering clothes. 

[Dehumidifier]

9 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I swear they said the tenant side had two bedrooms.  In 516 square feet.  I wish they'd shown it.

Yes, they did.

21 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I think the fact there was a paying tenant already living there made a big difference to the bank.    I bet if the tenant wasn't paying rent, or the apartment was vacant, then the bank wouldn't have done the deal.    I like that the tenant unit had a very separate entrance from the main house.   

It is a very bad idea to buy a house where you have to rely on a tenant to help pay the mortgage/taxes, especially in a big city where judges are reluctant to evict problem tenants and possibly add to the homeless population.  Even if they stop paying it takes months to get them out.

[CrazyInAlabama]

They're having a marathon of HH recent shows this morning on HGTV, apparently the theme is spoined, entitled, demanding people with awful voices.    The two women outside of D.C. who are going to adopt, and the other wife wants a smart home.  The smart home fan said 'I want a garage door that opens at the touch of a button', it's called a garage door opener, and alsmot every garage has one. or you can put it in.   

Then there's the couple that are getting married, currently are focused on their dog, that the husband or fiance carries in a harness he wears, and I really hope the dog gets to walk more than the show displayed.     Then the couple who are looking in Sacramento wine country, she wants a vineyard, and coincidentally they buy a 30 acre vineyard across the street from her parents' winery.     Or the Chicago woman who has a sister as a realtor, and walks into a ripped up condo, and that's the one she 'buys', does anyone get fooled by this routine any more?   

[Thumper]

12 hours ago, Grizzly said:

California-not Bakersfield. They are buying this potentially million dollar house with land for grandkids that don't exist yet? Gee, no pressure on their son and his wife. DIL even looked away when Carrie mentioned grandkids. Maybe they should look in a different area since all the properties were hilly. Oh course the contractor bought a fixer. I liked Gary.

I liked that couple.  They had fun banter without being mean to one another.

I wasn’t crazy about any of their options, given what they SAID they wanted, but in the end they seemed willing to fix it to what they wanted.

[rhofmovalley]

15 minutes ago, Thumper said:

I liked that couple.  They had fun banter without being mean to one another.

I wasn’t crazy about any of their options, given what they SAID they wanted, but in the end they seemed willing to fix it to what they wanted.

And apparently have the money to do so. Husband said he anticipated spending $250k on Renos.

They did come across as down to earth despite their wealth. Nice couple.

[amarante]

11 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I swear they said the tenant side had two bedrooms.  In 516 square feet.  I wish they'd shown it.

Here are examples of two bedroom homes of approximately that size. All the rooms are obviously of modest size

https://www.bhg.com/decorating/makeovers/california-bungalow-home-tour/

https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/528-square-foot-1950s-florida-house-photos-36946868

[StatisticalOutlier]

2 hours ago, rhofmovalley said:

She claimed to be a designer and to have such a great sense of style, but she dressed, well, less than stylish. I wanted to take her shopping for flattering clothes. 

Was she the one who did the french tuck with two different outfits of a bulky sweater and jeggings?  That looked awful.

(And totally off topic, but I still remember the first time I saw jeggings for sale.  I'm almost positive it was at a Walgreens, and I thought, "Who the hell would wear tights that are marked up to look like jeans?"  The answer, of course, is everyone on the planet.)

[proserpina65]

6 hours ago, cameron said:

Another gold faucet/gaming couple.  Grow up already.

?

 

[rhofmovalley]

1 hour ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

Was she the one who did the french tuck with two different outfits of a bulky sweater and jeggings?  That looked awful.

(And totally off topic, but I still remember the first time I saw jeggings for sale.  I'm almost positive it was at a Walgreens, and I thought, "Who the hell would wear tights that are marked up to look like jeans?"  The answer, of course, is everyone on the planet.)

My son used to work at the Gap. He texted me one night saying he knows the apocalypse is coming soon because they had just received a shipment of baby jeggings 😆

But yeah, the cardigan over the crew or turtle neck sweater and jeggings was not stylish. I could see she's "busty" but there are ways to camouflage that without dressing like a nun.

[amarante]

1 hour ago, rhofmovalley said:

And apparently have the money to do so. Husband said he anticipated spending $250k on Renos.

They did come across as down to earth despite their wealth. Nice couple.

I appreciated that they were realistic about the costs of renovating. 

Ajd of course his grumbling about remodeling was just a ruse for the show since he was in the construction business AND he wanted a huge space for his workshop and tools. No one who didn’t enjoy it would have that kind of a shop and he is obviously going to hire labor to do the stuff he doesn’t enjoy doing. 

[Pj3422]

Lancaster, PA couple… Oh, the heck with the couple; I just loved their realtor’s voice! I wonder if he was in radio or TV before he got his real estate license. 

[amarante]

9 hours ago, rhofmovalley said:

She claimed to be a designer and to have such a great sense of style, but she dressed, well, less than stylish. I wanted to take her shopping for flattering clothes. 

She was an interior designer with a developer and that might not translate to clothing style. I used a designer for my remodel who is great with design and construction knowledge but her clothing taste is not that great. She is larger than the Lancaster women and wears leggings with short tops.

I also think that the Lancaster woman might not be used to having gained some weight especially in the upper body area. In all of the photos they showed of her younger, she looked very slender so the weight and large bust might be a new thing. But definitely for someone with fleshy arms and a large bust putting a knit cardigan over a clinging top was not the wisest fashion choice for her body type because her figure wasn't bad - just not dressed in the most flattering way.

What I was curious about is why she wasn't purchasing a house from the developer. I get that they wanted a specific area but I would think that there might have been financial benefits from buying through the employer that would have made buying their first home make sense. Meaning no disrespect but is downtown Lancaster such a thriving hot spot that living within five minutes is critical for one's life style?

[Grrarrggh]

Talent in one area doesn't mean it extends to others, no matter how much they may seem to be the same sort of thing. Or she might dress how hubby likes. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

I just remembered something the HH in Los Angeles said--that she'd met the tenant in back and she wasn't interested in jacking up the rent because they (I don't know who all is living there) are a part of the neighborhood and maybe work there, or something along those lines.  And I thought (engaging in serious profiling), "Of course.  She's a social worker."

Which made me think, "I'd love to have a social worker as a landlord."  And to further think that with the current housing crisis, for both people buying and renting, we should shove all the investors out and give big incentives to social workers to buy multi-unit properties to live in and rent out the other part.

[chessiegal]

I'm 5 minutes into the Philadelphia episode, and not sure I can continue because of her upspeak! Argghhh!!!

[Grizzly]

You can do it chessiegal, concentrate on how hot Jordan is!

Edited April 29, 2022 by Grizzly
Mixed up words

[chessiegal]

1 minute ago, Grizzly said:

You can do it chessiegal, concentrate on how hot Jordan is!

Sorry. I bailed.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The problem is that if the existing tenant has a long lease, then I don't think you can raise the rent until that expires, and there maybe limits on how much you can raise the rent to.   Does L.A. have rent control on a duplex?  

Tonight's new one in Philadelphia, she wants 2 to 3 bedrooms, a row house, and her realtor is an old friend from college.   Emily is 5'11", so higher ceilings are a must, and snowy street parking is a concern.  The bad thing is her budget is $240k, and the realtor says she's going to have to go higher, which she's been approved for.  The realtor, Jordan,  seems very nice, and so does Emily the house hunter. 

#1 up and coming neighborhood (when a realtor says up and coming, that's a bad sign)1 bath, 4 bedrooms, built in 1925, not exactly a row home, not touching the houses on either side, and had a nice yard, and good street parking (unless some intern blocked off the curb).   Decent size room on kitchen, needs all appliances, and not many cabinets, back deck is dangerous, and the back yard is tiny, with chain link between the many neighbors.  Unfortunately, the finished basement has some pipes Emily will have to watch out for.  One bathroom is narrow and strange.   Needs a lot of work.

#2 needs less work, but that means more expensive. $264,999, parking isn't as easy here. rowhouse (attached on one side, so not totally a row house) built in 1940, 1375 sq ft, nice hardwood floors, living room/dining/kitchen are nice, needs new appliances (they work now, replace later), kitchen cabinets could be refaced for a lot less work, time, and money than ripping them out.  basement is never going to be anything but mechanical stuff.   Backyard is all fenced, with some grass, and unlike #1 the deck won't collapse and kill you.  The orange bedroom wall matches the realtor's sweater.  

#3-$289,900 but much more finished than the first two.  Townhome, 4 bed 2.5 baths, not a row home, but it's newly remodeled, and pretty turnkey.   Built in 1925.    Lovely open first floor, living/dining/kitchen, no yard, but a little deck off of the kitchen, over the alley.   There's a dog park around the corner.  Emily fits in the basement, height wise.  Basement could be rented out to help with the mortgage, and has a separate entrance in the alley.  Main bedroom is huge, with an ensuite, I wonder if the basement has a full or shower bath, or if it's a half bath.  

She buys #2 for the back yard.   Her realtor is helping her move in.  Bought for $260,000    

I think the one she bought was the best of the three that were shown.    I hated the bizarre backyard on the first one.     The third one with only the deck, and nothing for the dog unless you want to go to the dog park, was not going to work. 

Edited April 30, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[shapeshifter]

33 minutes ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

The problem is that if the existing tenant has a long lease

Regardless of what the lease says, either party can break it with 30 days notice. 
I don't know about the legal specifics of raising the rent in this situation, but the owner can give the current tenant notice and then rent to a new tenant at any (higher) rate. 
During the early days of the pandemic, tenants could not be evicted in almost any case, but I'm pretty sure that's all gone away now.

[ByaNose]

Philadelphia. I from the burbs outside of the city about 25 minutes. All the young kids are moving there for their jobs, nightlife and easy access. I get the appeal. That said, I wouldn’t have moved into any of those places. My idea of Philadelphia is a high rise with all night security and amenities. LOL!!! Also, I’m 58 and I’m too old for that shit. LOL!!!!

[amarante]

10 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Regardless of what the lease says, either party can break it with 30 days notice. 
I don't know about the legal specifics of raising the rent in this situation, but the owner can give the current tenant notice and then rent to a new tenant at any (higher) rate. 
During the early days of the pandemic, tenants could not be evicted in almost any case, but I'm pretty sure that's all gone away now.

That isn't true in most major cities where there are fairly stringent laws which protect tenants.

You can't evict someone until their lease expires and even though most tenants have the right to remain subject to rent increases which are regulated depending on the type of housing. If you purchase a place with a tenant living there it can cost you a lot of money to get them out especially if they are older or have some form of disability.

Even if the HH wanted to move her family into a place she bought, she would have to buy out the tenant in order to have it vacated.

That is why the cost of getting rid of a tenant is factored in and there is a premium on vacant units if the tenant isn't paying market value rent due to some type of rent regulations. In some places, if an apartment is converted to a coop or condo you can't get rid of the existing tenant and so the cost of the condo will be somewhat determined by how long the tenant will stay in the unit - an older tenant might be expected to die relatively quickly.

Not to mention that even if a landlord has cause to evict it can be a difficult and long process if the tenant is shrewd.

[amarante]

I thought all of the Philadephia homes were awful and potential money pits - especially for someone on a budget.

Economically it made very little sense to me to buy a dilapidated home for $265,000 when there was a remodeled one for $289,000 because it will cause more than $25,000 to improve the less expensive one even with modest changes. 

As I recall the bathroom seemed really dreadful 

I don't think people have a clue as to how expensive remodels of kitchens and baths are. Not that the $289,000 home was really that great either as I assume it was "flipped" and I assume that any home that is flipped is going to only make the least expensive cosmetic choices.

When I see an episode like this with all the choices being awful, I think that the HH could have just waited and found something that was less terrible. But then I think she would have been better off in a condo because it is less likely to need the kind of expensive repairs that those old homes were likely to need like plumbing, electrical, roofing etc.

I had to spend $5000 for an upgraded electrical panel and I installed a new HVAC unit that was about $6000. Not to mention all of the stuff I spent money on in terms of better constructed cabinets and higher quality appliances.

Edited April 29, 2022 by amarante

[pdlinda]

7 hours ago, amarante said:

But then I think she would have been better off in a condo because it is less likely to need the kind of expensive repairs that those old homes were likely to need like plumbing, electrical, roofing etc.

I completely agree with you.  I thought ALL THREE choices were horrendous and the one she bought was a true "money pit."

Edited April 29, 2022 by pdlinda

[CrazyInAlabama]

4 hours ago, amarante said:

I don't think people have a clue as to how expensive remodels of kitchens and baths are. Not that the $289,000 home was really that great either as I assume it was "flipped" and I assume that any home that is flipped is going to only make the least expensive cosmetic choices.

With flips I know it will be the most trendy finishes, but what worries me more is the quality of the wiring, plumbing, HVAC, etc. that's behind the drywall.    I really worry about updated wiring being attached to old unsafe wiring, galvanized pipes, etc.