House Hunters - General Discussion

[kirklandia]

On 7/2/2019 at 5:34 AM, laredhead said:

 OK, off to look up info on Tehachapi, which is another place I've never heard of.

Fellow boomers may know it from the song Willin' (Little Feat, Linda Ronstadt).  

"I've been from Tucson to Tucumcari
Tehachapi to Tonopah "

Beautiful area!  But perplexing house choice for an extended family.

[CruiseDiva]

Last night's couple was looking for a year-round permanent home at a beach town in Mass. close to extended family. The wife insisted that they be ON the beach. A ten minute walk to the beach from a lovely 3-bedroom house (husband's preference) just didn't cut it for her and they ended up with a 2-bedroom, one bathroom shack "right on the sand" that was actually more expensive and over their budget. The two daughters were toddlers so sharing a room now won't be a big deal, but they aren't going to have the room they need in less than 5 years or so unless they can add on to that 1000 square foot house. Sure, they can spend a lot of time outdoors in summer, but they are going to have cabin fever when the winter snow sets in and they are stuck inside with two small children.

And the beach was not appealing with all those rocks they had to step over to get to a sliver of sand. I see a lot of stubbed toes and cut feet in their future.

[doodlebug]

1 minute ago, CruiseDiva said:

Last night's couple was looking for a year-round permanent home at a beach town in Mass. close to extended family. The wife insisted that they be ON the beach. A ten minute walk to the beach from a lovely 3-bedroom house (husband's preference) just didn't cut it for her and they ended up with a 2-bedroom, one bathroom shack "right on the sand" that was actually more expensive and over their budget. The two daughters were toddlers so sharing a room now won't be a big deal, but they aren't going to have the room they need in less than 5 years or so unless they can add on to that 1000 square foot house. Sure, they can spend a lot of time outdoors in summer, but they are going to have cabin fever when the winter snow sets in and they are stuck inside with two small children.

And the beach was not appealing with all those rocks they had to step over to get to a sliver of sand. I see a lot of stubbed toes and cut feet in their future.

Yeah, that made no sense unless, as usual, the story was fabricated and they were buying the house to use for vacations and weekends and expected to be renting it out most of the time.  They would've had to have doubled the space in order to have a reasonably sized home if they were going to live there full time.

[chessiegal]

I have a step-daughter living in a 2 bedroom 1 bath house with 7 children aged 12 to 2 sharing one bed room..

[CruiseDiva]

9 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I have a step-daughter living in a 2 bedroom 1 bath house with 7 children aged 12 to 2 sharing one bed room..

I didn't mean to imply it couldn't be done. You do what you have to do. We lived in a two-bedroom house for several years and I have three younger brothers. But my parents didn't go on TV and spend nearly $400K for it. I felt sorry for the HH husband who clearly wanted the roomier house and caved into his wife's demand for the crappy beachfront place. 

[chessiegal]

I think my step-daughter having 7 kids is nuts, and cramming them in 1 bedroom is even nuttier.

[Kohola3]

21 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

They would've had to have doubled the space in order to have a reasonably sized home if they were going to live there full time.

Four people in 1000 square feet was the norm when I was growing up.  A whole generation of us grew up to be functioning adults.

My issue would be anything on an ocean anymore.  The hurricanes are getting fiercer every year and that's a lot of money to pay for something that could easily be destroyed.  I live on Lake Huron and people are thinking twice about buying right on the lake shore as the Great Lakes rise.  Lake Huron/Michigan (the are essentially one lake) are sixty three inches higher than in 1964.  Yep, over 5 feet which means places with nice beaches are now surrounded by seawalls with the lake lapping at their front porches.

[ByaNose]

Husband & Wife buying a condo in Fort Pierce, FL for them and their 4 adult children. The kids were in the 20’s. The parents bought a 2 bedroom condo. So much for the whole family and eventual in laws being there at the same time. Why don’t people ever look ahead and think it through. At least, get a 3 bedroom house. Overall, it was just your basic 2 bedroom 2 bath condo. 

[cameron]

7 hours ago, ByaNose said:

Husband & Wife buying a condo in Fort Pierce, FL for them and their 4 adult children. The kids were in the 20’s. The parents bought a 2 bedroom condo. So much for the whole family and eventual in laws being there at the same time. Why don’t people ever look ahead and think it through. At least, get a 3 bedroom house. Overall, it was just your basic 2 bedroom 2 bath condo. 

Time to cut the apron strings by both the parents and children.  They are grown and should be living their own lives.

[Kohola3]

7 hours ago, ByaNose said:

So much for the whole family and eventual in laws being there at the same time.

Could be that family all staying together isn't something they want.  That's why there are hotels.  Spend the day together and then part for the night.

[ByaNose]

11 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Could be that family all staying together isn't something they want.  That's why there are hotels.  Spend the day together and then part for the night.

But they kept making a big deal out of it for the reason in buying it. Even at the end they were all on the beach saying how great it was “they” got the place. I guess I always think a one or two bedroom vacation home is for a single person or possibly a couple. That said, they seemed happy which all that matters. 🙂

[chessiegal]

It was probably an investment rental.

[cameron]

52 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

It was probably an investment rental.

Thinking the same thing.

[NYGirl]

I saw one like this the other day.  It always makes me scratch my head.  A family of 5 looking for a 3 bedroom...2 daughters and 1 son.

What do they buy?  A 1 BEDROOM!!!!  Where the hell are they putting those kids???

[cameron]

41 minutes ago, NYGirl said:

I saw one like this the other day.  It always makes me scratch my head.  A family of 5 looking for a 3 bedroom...2 daughters and 1 son.

What do they buy?  A 1 BEDROOM!!!!  Where the hell are they putting those kids???

Regarding the Ft. Pierce family, why did the grown kids even have a say in what was being bought unless they are financially contributing to the pot.  Sounds like a lot of made up drama for tv.

[chessiegal]

Ft. Pierce were buying an in investment rental and had some need to be on TV.

[DonnaMae]

They HAD to have an ocean view, and there was no way they could afford a house or an apartment with three bedrooms.  The sons will be bunking in the living room.  I wonder if the parents will discourage the kids from marrying.  There wouldn't be any room for any more unless they add bunk beds to the living room.

[Kira53]

On 6/29/2019 at 9:15 AM, doodlebug said:

That one made no sense.  She obviously had a job she loved and worked hard and didn't want to leave.  It seemed like they were moving to Costa Rica on a whim and she was not at all looking forward to being a full time mom while keeping the kids quiet and out of the way while dad worked from home.  Of course, the whole story might be bogus and they were buying a vacation rental.

Not the real story.   The place was too small but on the beach is a good rental for a short time and go back home and be a nurse again.

On 6/25/2019 at 6:38 PM, Ohwell said:

I thought the rent or buy scenario was unusual, and also showing four properties.  But then I thought if they're doing rent or buy, they wanted to show two rental properties and two for sale.   

I do wonder if this is going to be a new "twist" on HH.  I hope not because I don't think it's necessary.

I think they were trying out a new format - "Rent or Buy?"  Without the realtor, they can show 4 properties.  This is like HHI.  It's a valid try since a portion of the viewers are here for the house porn anyway.

 

 

 

On 6/28/2019 at 8:18 AM, laredhead said:

I think the Palm Springs drag queen was auditioning for a reality TV show.  Over the top doesn't begin to describe him.  I like seeing houses on the Palm Springs episodes because they are so different from the ones in my area of the country.  I like contemporary style, and I even liked the one with the orange kitchen.  It was a little too much orange for my taste, but it was nice to see something other than white Shaker cabinets and gray walls.

I was puzzled by the yard (maybe the one they bought) that had all of those plants that looked like vines staked around the perimeter.  I am assuming those were vines that were supposed to grow over the wall and form a green backdrop.  Sort of looked like the beginnings of a vineyard.  Very odd. 

On 7/7/2019 at 12:35 AM, ByaNose said:

Husband & Wife buying a condo in Fort Pierce, FL for them and their 4 adult children. The kids were in the 20’s. The parents bought a 2 bedroom condo. So much for the whole family and eventual in laws being there at the same time. Why don’t people ever look ahead and think it through. At least, get a 3 bedroom house. Overall, it was just your basic 2 bedroom 2 bath condo. 

Edited July 8, 2019 by Kira53
Drag queen was on Ru Paul's Drag race. Over the top there too. Was hated by the other Queens.

[LittleIggy]

Boise: Okay, didn’t like the first house but loved the fork/spoon hardware on the kitchen cabinets. Cute! I don’t for the life of me understand why anyone would build a house without access to the backyard from the house. Odd.

[laredhead]

I did not realize that Boise was such a hot real estate market.  What's fueling it? 

I didn't like any of the houses.  The one they called the "spider house" had a neighbor who looked to have had about 10 cars parked in the front yard and driveway, and in the background you could see something covered with a blue tarp.  That wasn't their choice, but when I look at houses, I also look at the neighboring houses and yards.  I wouldn't want to live next to what looks like a used car lot.

The wife was a bit too perky for my taste, and kept finding things that she considered quirky and cute.  Cabinet pulls are not a reason to buy a house, nor are built in cabinets that won't close and have doors that will have to be replaced.  It was refreshing to hear both of them say they didn't care if the bedrooms were small because they didn't spent a lot of time there.  The only wish was for an en suite bath which makes sense.  Would have been nice to see the house (duplex) they were living in in L.A.

Has anyone mentioned the couple looking for a MCM house in Palm Springs.  I liked the husband's sense of humor.  All the guy wanted was a pool, which makes sense to me if you are going to live in Palm Springs.  The wife made some valid comments about the style and fixtures not being MCM in a couple of the houses, and I liked her comment about not being able to enjoy one of the back yards because of the neighbor's barking dogs.  I think the realtor in this episode has appeared on HH before. 

[CruiseDiva]

2 hours ago, laredhead said:

I did not realize that Boise was such a hot real estate market.  What's fueling it? 

I didn't like any of the houses.  The one they called the "spider house" had a neighbor who looked to have had about 10 cars parked in the front yard and driveway, and in the background you could see something covered with a blue tarp.  That wasn't their choice, but when I look at houses, I also look at the neighboring houses and yards.  I wouldn't want to live next to what looks like a used car lot.

Not sure that it's a red hot market, but maybe The Boise Boys are fueling it?

The three houses the couple toured were dumps. I wonder what the neighbors think of that tree house. What an eyesore to have in a front yard! Almost as bad as all the cars parked in the yard of the other house.

I'm so glad I live in the Deep South. In my subdivision you can buy a 2500 square foot, four bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home with living room, dining room, family room, kitchen/breakfast nook, laundry room, and deck for $250K. That might also get you a screened in porch and swimming pool.

[twinks]

I was surprised at how little you get for your money in Boise. Those houses were awful imo.  They weren't really even livable. I didn't think any of them were charming or cute. As long as they're happy!

[twinks]

20 minutes ago, CruiseDiva said:

Not sure that it's a red hot market, but maybe The Boise Boys are fueling it?

The three houses the couple toured were dumps. I wonder what the neighbors think of that tree house. What an eyesore to have in a front yard! Almost as bad as all the cars parked in the yard of the other house.

I'm so glad I live in the Deep South. In my subdivision you can buy a 2500 square foot, four bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home with living room, dining room, family room, kitchen/breakfast nook, laundry room, and deck for $250K. That might also get you a screened in porch and swimming pool.

Same. Double the space and they aren't gut jobs.

[suebee12]

Well, I guess we have found two more houses for the Boise Boys to tackle! And tackle would be the operative word...what a lot of work to make either of these houses livable!  I think in the first season of their show, the boys mentioned how many tech companies were moving in. I found an article about why Boise is growing and how it is affecting the cost of housing.

https://www.curbed.com/2019/1/22/18193112/boise-real-estate-housing-downtown

[CrazyInAlabama]

I was shocked at how little you get for the money in Boise, and I can't believe the couple bought that house.     It's going to cost a fortune to add on to it, and I suspect that it's going to need a lot more updating of electrical and plumbing than they think.     From what I've read the price rise in Boise is from tech companies moving in, and people leaving California.   The prices have really gone up there.   

I didn't like any of the houses.    At least they didn't buy the first house, that was awful. 

I couldn't believe the first house wasn't hooked to city water, when it was between all of those houses.    I can't believe a well in that neighborhood would still be legal, or pass safety testing that I'm sure they would require.     The couple should have sold their California duplex, and bought something that suited them better.    

Edited July 9, 2019 by CrazyInAlabama

[ByaNose]

I thought I would be seeing deals in Boise since they were moving from high rent district of California but the houses in Boise were dumps. I wouldn’t know a rich neighborhood from a poor neighborhood in Boise but I expected more for the money they spent. It also didn’t help that the presentation wasn’t tv ready with the gloomy weather either. The family seemed nice and it appears they have some ideas but overall the houses were soooooo underwhelming.

[CoolMom]

On 7/6/2019 at 9:40 AM, chessiegal said:

I have a step-daughter living in a 2 bedroom 1 bath house with 7 children aged 12 to 2 sharing one bed room..

I think siblings sharing a room is a good thing but NOT 7 kids in one room.  That's a bit much.

[Mu Shu]

Boise looked depressing. Those houses were gross. But surely, an L.A. duplex would sell for enough to upgrade that ugly house.

ill take the Deep South, thank you very much. Cali people can’t take our weather. Keeps prices down, though I am looking to buy in the Jupiter area. Wish me luck on that.

[chessiegal]

1 hour ago, CoolMom said:

I think siblings sharing a room is a good thing but NOT 7 kids in one room.  That's a bit much.

I agree, but it's all they can afford - they are renting. My husband wants to buy them a house, but I've already cashed in an IRA, my IRA, early to buy them a van big enough to carry around their brood. If Dad wants to cash into his retirement, that's his business. I'm done.

[debbie311]

On 7/6/2019 at 9:35 PM, ByaNose said:

Husband & Wife buying a condo in Fort Pierce, FL for them and their 4 adult children. The kids were in the 20’s. The parents bought a 2 bedroom condo. So much for the whole family and eventual in laws being there at the same time. Why don’t people ever look ahead and think it through. At least, get a 3 bedroom house. Overall, it was just your basic 2 bedroom 2 bath condo. 

I just watched this one on the DVR last night.  I just found the wife very irritating.  The entire family seemed to be reading from a script.  The mom actually teared up in the beginning because she wants her adult kids around. Lighten up! Someone needs to cut the apron strings if you ask me.  And why the adult daughter had a say ("I will take THIS room") - again I know this was scripted.

[cameron]

36 minutes ago, debbie311 said:

I just watched this one on the DVR last night.  I just found the wife very irritating.  The entire family seemed to be reading from a script.  The mom actually teared up in the beginning because she wants her adult kids around. Lighten up! Someone needs to cut the apron strings if you ask me.  And why the adult daughter had a say ("I will take THIS room") - again I know this was scripted.

Thought it way over the top phony.

[LittleIggy]

Seattle: I liked the couple (cat people!). Guess if you are from NYC Seattle seems reasonable in terms of homes! 😆 I loved the third house.

[CrazyInAlabama]

It was funny to see Seattle called more reasonable for real estate, compared to their tiny NYC place.     I would have bought the second house, not the first one.   The second was much more space, a better price, and he could have put his garden where those pine trees were on the raised area.  

[scootypuffjr]

I loved the second Seattle house. Under budget, all the space they could desire, a lot of old school charm and quirk - what's not to like? I did like the first house, the one they chose, but (assuming it was all legit, which I know it isn't), I would have chosen the second one - just as nice in its own way, no immediate renovation necessities and under budget as well

[CruiseDiva]

Indiana husband and wife doctors with a blended family of six children wanting a 6-bedroom house near her child-caregiver parents. They seemed like a very nice couple, but I wondered if his  sons from a previous marriage would even be spending a lot of time with them in that huge house. The husband said the boys were fine with sharing a room.

They did select the best (and with the playset in the yard, the most obvious) house. It was a very pleasant HH episode to watch.

Edited July 11, 2019 by CruiseDiva

[Gurkel]

24 minutes ago, CruiseDiva said:

Indiana husband and wife doctors with a blended family of six children wanting a 6-bedroom house near her child-caregiver parents. They seemed like a very nice couple, but I wondered if his  sons from a previous marriage would even be spending a lot of time with them in that huge house. The husband said the boys were fine with sharing a room.

They did select the best (and with the playset in the yard, the most obvious) house. It was a very pleasant HH episode to watch.

I tried to nitpick that couple just because that's what I do when I watch House Hunters. But I agree with you. I couldn't find anything really wrong with them. They were a pleasant couple whose 'demands' weren't unreasonable. When it came to renovations, they were quick to label things like wall paper or worn carpet as cosmetic problems, not deal breakers. 

And even though the houses they looked at were large and rather expensive, based on their dual-income as ENT doctors, they actually could have afforded a much grander home I'm glad they didn't however. Their choice made them appear somewhat fiscally responsible. And who knows how much they're paying their former spouses for alimony and/or child support?

[doodlebug]

6 minutes ago, Gurkel said:

I tried to nitpick that couple just because that's what I do when I watch House Hunters. But I agree with you. I couldn't find anything really wrong with them. They were a pleasant couple whose 'demands' weren't unreasonable. When it came to renovations, they were quick to label things like wall paper or worn carpet as cosmetic problems, not deal breakers. 

And even though the houses they looked at were large and rather expensive, based on their dual-income as ENT doctors, they actually could have afforded a much grander home I'm glad they didn't however. Their choice made them appear somewhat fiscally responsible. And who knows how much they're paying their former spouses for alimony and/or child support?

Not to mention their student loans.  Presuming they borrowed their way through med school, they may each owe around $250,000. 

[laredhead]

I also liked that the Indiana couple didn't freak out over worn carpet and declare minor things deal breakers like so many other HH's do.  I will say that the grandparents looked older, and wonder how they feel about babysitting daily.  Maybe they don't have to do it every day, but taking care of children that young is a full time job.  Yes, the play set gave away the house choice, not to mention that it had all of the rooms they wanted.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The rerun of the older couple moving to Nashville was interesting.    The wife had a big travel / camper trailer, that they called an RV.     The wife wanted a log cabin type house, and somewhere to park the RV/camper next to the house.     The realtor showed them three places, all with room for the trailer, but never mentioned that many places don't allow street or driveway parking of RVs, trailers, and similar items.    It wasn't a surprise that they bought the first place, and it was furthest from the neighbors, and I'm sure was outside the city limits.      

It could be that the house had a septic tank too, since it was well outside of town, so you can't park something like the camper on it.  

Edited July 12, 2019 by CrazyInAlabama

[CruiseDiva]

1 hour ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

The rerun of the older couple moving to Nashville was interesting.    The wife had a big travel / camper trailer, that they called an RV.     The wife wanted a log cabin type house, and somewhere to park the RV/camper next to the house.     The realtor showed them three places, all with room for the trailer, but never mentioned that many places don't allow street or driveway parking of RVs, trailers, and similar items.    It wasn't a surprise that they bought the first place, and it was furthest from the neighbors, and I'm sure was outside the city limits.      

Even the husband didn't want to look at that camper in the driveway. The wife had hair to die for and seemed nice, but her insistence on "projects" was annoying.

[Ohwell]

I thought the Chicago couple was nice but it was one of those episodes where I was kind of bored because I wasn't excited about any of the places shown. 

[doodlebug]

4 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

I thought the Chicago couple was nice but it was one of those episodes where I was kind of bored because I wasn't excited about any of the places shown. 

Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the places they saw.  That 'log cabin' was horrendously dark inside.  Of course, these are people who are parking a great big ugly trailer next to their home, so they probably have a different feeling about the aesthetics.

[CruiseDiva]

15 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the places they saw.  That 'log cabin' was horrendously dark inside.  Of course, these are people who are parking a great big ugly trailer next to their home, so they probably have a different feeling about the aesthetics.

The husband called the camper her "she shed" and during the reveal segment he found her sitting in it. She was kind of whacko to want it in the driveway when there was plenty of room to park it in the back yard out of sight.

[chessiegal]

"It's at the top of our budget." I know it's scripted, but if you don't want to spend the top of your budget, lower your damn budget.

[Ohwell]

1 hour ago, doodlebug said:

Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the places they saw.  That 'log cabin' was horrendously dark inside.  Of course, these are people who are parking a great big ugly trailer next to their home, so they probably have a different feeling about the aesthetics.

Oops, I was referring to the engaged couple where the woman was from Tampa and the husband was a firefighter in Chicago.

[doodlebug]

59 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

Oops, I was referring to the engaged couple where the woman was from Tampa and the husband was a firefighter in Chicago.

Oops!  Sorry, I was commenting on the Nashville couple moving from Cincy, I shouldn't have quoted you.

I found the woman in the Tampa to Chicago to be kind of annoying with all her complaining about how they couldn't get as much for their money in Chicago as they could in Florida.  Well, duh!  I thought the houses they saw were pretty typical of what you can get at that price range in Chicago.  My sister lived there with her husband and they eventually moved out of the city because it was so very expensive to find a nice home to buy in a decent area unless they wanted to spend a million bucks.

[Ohwell]

2 hours ago, doodlebug said:

I found the woman in the Tampa to Chicago to be kind of annoying with all her complaining about how they couldn't get as much for their money in Chicago as they could in Florida. 

Yeah, she was a bit annoying but I thought it was one of those instances where the producers had to have something for her to say, because, really, they both struck me as kind of low key.

[laredhead]

By the time the Nashville couple had seen 2 houses, I was yelling at the TV for the realtor to please find that annoying woman a log cabin to look at so she would shut up about it.  The one they looked at was dark, dated, and I would have turned around and walked out the minute I walked in. 

I agree with previous comments about the camper.  There was plenty of room to put that camper behind the house.  Spend a little $$$ on some gravel and put a parking pad behind the house and to the side of the garage. 

I didn't like any of the houses they looked at.  Prices in Nashville, and surrounding areas, have increased dramatically in the last 10 years.  You have to be willing to make long drives into the city to work if you have a limited budget. 

[buttersister]

Quote

I thought it was one of those instances where the producers had to have something for her to say

Agree. She had annoying dialed up to 11, but his face was the giveaway, stifling outright laughter, it looked to me

[LittleIggy]

Hawaii: Another place where you can spend close to a million bucks to buy a dump needing major renovation.