HGTV musings

[Octoberbride03]

One show that I love to hate (while not on HGTV, it is on DIY I believe) is The Vanilla Ice Project. Talk about beyond fake and scripted.

HGTV ran it after DIY did. I avoided that show at all costs. Now its gone on to the Jennie Garth Project A girl who's never picked up a tool until now. Why does she wanna do this?

They should have just left it a 1 and done thing with the Bronson Pinchot project which I really enjoyed when they ran episodes on HGTV. Loved seeing him do that. Showed me a whole new side to him.

Frankly my 2 favorite hosts were Debbie something(can't remember her last name) and Mike Holmes. I loved his show.

 

[tvguy]

Watched a little Love It or List it this afternoon.

Very educational episode from a standpoint of mindsets and real estate values. A family of 4 living in a 1,000 square foot house worth $650,000 BEFORE the renovations.
Lord, my first apartment was 1100 square feet, I can't imagine raising 2 teenage boys in that space. Not sure why they are just now looking to expand when the boys will be out of the house soon. And the value, lord, my 2,000 square foot house would be worth $1.3 million there instead of the $329,000 Zillow values it at. How do people afford to live in cities like this?

And they were concerned about being close to public transit so their boys could catch the 430 am am bus to swim practice. The first limited bus lines here don't start here until 5 am, and the full schedule doesn't kick in until 6 am.

 

[maxiesmom]

My guess is that while they are paying for the remodel/home they are not paying for the designer/contractor. That has to save some pretty big $$.

Jonathan (the contractor on Property Brothers) has stated that the only pay he and his brother take is from the TV network. The cost he quotes for the reno is to pay the other contractors, and for the furnishings. So not having to pay him or his brother is a huge savings for the home owners.

 

[teller80]

Jonathan (the contractor on Property Brothers) has stated that the only pay he and his brother take is from the TV network. The cost he quotes for the reno is to pay the other contractors, and for the furnishings. So not having to pay him or his brother is a huge savings for the home owners.

hhmmm.... I'm not buying it. So they do it out of the goodness of their heart and only get paid from the network?

On second thought, maybe he's right. I doubt they do much of the work themselves (I've assumed the work they show him doing is staged), and I think I read where the homeowner has to line up the comparable homes (when they're deciding which to buy). Maybe the show pays for the designers? I heard him say once (while working on his Las Vegas home) that he just got back from filming three reveals in one day, so I assume they are working on multiple projects in the same city at the same time, not doing one house at a time.

 

[indimom]

Watched a little Love It or List it this afternoon.

Very educational episode from a standpoint of mindsets and real estate values. A family of 4 living in a 1,000 square foot house worth $650,000 BEFORE the renovations.
Lord, my first apartment was 1100 square feet, I can't imagine raising 2 teenage boys in that space. Not sure why they are just now looking to expand when the boys will be out of the house soon. And the value, lord, my 2,000 square foot house would be worth $1.3 million there instead of the $329,000 Zillow values it at. How do people afford to live in cities like this?

And they were concerned about being close to public transit so their boys could catch the 430 am am bus to swim practice. The first limited bus lines here don't start here until 5 am, and the full schedule doesn't kick in until 6 am.

This is what fascinates me about the shows. What you can get for your money, and the different lifestyles people live in different areas of the country.

I've seen shows where the nearest "green space" was a community park blocks away, and this was a benefit. Soooo different than the life I lead, where near every home has at least a small yard and the vast majority live on actual acreage.

Shows featuring homes without parking, or homes with train or bus transport within walking distance. If you don't have a car in my community, you better have a bike or some hiking boots. I would enjoy not having to drive into work every day.

Huge condos with gyms and communal spaces look like a vacation destination to me, not a place to live day to day.

And I really like seeing the renovations, even when they are not my personal style. Amazing some of the improvement they make.

 

[JanaDee]

Love It Or List It is a Canadian show, filmed in Toronto.

 

[JanaDee]

Another old favorite was titled, I believe, "Best Bang For the Buck." Three couples remodeled a different room each episode, bathroom, kitchen, etc. Whichever team would recoup the most of their investment, according to a real estate agent and designer, would be the "winner."

I liked how the agent and designer would watch on a monitor and often criticize, snark, and generally ridicule the hideous taste of many of the couples.

The show was mis-titled IMO. Should have been "Least Worst Bang for the Buck."

Oh yeah...that was the show where they spent like $50,000 on a bathroom or master bedroom and $100,000 on kitchens.

 

[Iowajes]

hhmmm.... I'm not buying it. So they do it out of the goodness of their heart and only get paid from the network?

It's not from the goodness of his heart- it's for the network pay. He makes the money by being on a TV show.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

hhmmm.... I'm not buying it. So they do it out of the goodness of their heart and only get paid from the network?

On second thought, maybe he's right. I doubt they do much of the work themselves (I've assumed the work they show him doing is staged), and I think I read where the homeowner has to line up the comparable homes (when they're deciding which to buy). Maybe the show pays for the designers? I heard him say once (while working on his Las Vegas home) that he just got back from filming three reveals in one day, so I assume they are working on multiple projects in the same city at the same time, not doing one house at a time.

I think the show compensates the personalities well and likely more than the contractor fee. It isn't a "goodness of the heart" thing so much as it is an easier path to wealth and fame--marketing themselves while receiving a paycheck versus paying for that marketing.

 

[perdidobay]

Part of the Scott brothers income comes from their Real Estate and Investment company, that is doing very well.
And did you know Jonathan is also a successful magician? The reason he moved to Las Vegas.
I'm guessing that not very much of his money comes from starring on a HGTV show, he has so many other income streams.

He has an impressive bio
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3405146/bio

 

[disneychrista]

hhmmm.... I'm not buying it. So they do it out of the goodness of their heart and only get paid from the network?

I am sure they are getting paid WAY MORE from HGTV then they would from contractor & real estate fees.

 

[mom2rose&john]

I watch HGTV more than any other network. I do miss the decorating shows. It seems that all the shows are about big renovations that require skilled labor to accomplish what they say is DIY

I love all the House Hunter shows. Did anyone watch the Tiny House House Hunters last week. I was intrigued. The family of six hoping to live in a 600 square foot house. I hope they do a "where are they now" episode on that one.

Property Brothers has grown on me. I am watching their home renovation in Las Vegas. They interact well with each other and the older brothers voice is so much like the twins I almost thought they were triplets.

I loved Design On A Dime. I wish they would redo that series.

Flip of Flop is annoying, but I still watch. I hope they film a house that takes a loss. That would be fun to watch. There was one when they had to charge things on a charge card. They of course sold the house for $100 grand over all the comps (yea right).

Love it or list it is okay. The ones I have watched all have listed the existing house. It's amazing the price of housing in Toronto. The $950,000 house goes for about $500,000 where I live two hours south in NY.

Fixer Upper is growing on me. I like the relationship of JoJo and her Husband (I can't remember his name). Fixer Upper is the show I would like to be on. Her style and mine are similar and she seems to regard the owners style over her own when she designs.

 

[LBIJim]

Oh yeah...that was the show where they spent like $50,000 on a bathroom or master bedroom and $100,000 on kitchens.

Yeah, that's why I think the show should have been named Least Worst Bang for the Buck. Those 50k bathroom renovations increased the home's value by maybe 20k tops. It would cost a potential buyer mega-bucks to rip out all the hideous junk they installed and re-do it.

 

[Darcy03231]

When I interviewed Real Estate agents last year to sell my parents house, which was pretty much as it was when built in 1960*, they told me remodeling a house you are planning to sell is a waste of money. I sold it to investors 17 days after listing, and they apparently felt differently. They did a complete remodel before re-listing it. A year later it finally sold, for about what they had in it, maybe a little less. Nothing like having $700,000 tied up for a year and making nothing on it.

*Literally as built. Original built in appliances, furnace and a/c. I was shocked that in all the work the investors did, they left the 53 year old furnace and a/c untouched.

I think a lot depends on where your home is located.

We sold our house last summer. Before putting it on the market we put in a new kitchen (cabinets, counter, backsplash and kitchen sink/faucet - the floor had already been done several years before and we kept the appliances, which were not stainless steel) and two new bathrooms (total gut jobs). By doing this we sold our home in 48 hours for about a $100,000 more than a similar house that didn't have the kitchen and bathroom upgrades. We spent about $30,000 to do the work. In our case it was definitely worth it to put the work (and money) into it.

 

[Philagoofy]

I think I had a very depraved childhood. My family of four had one bathroom in the whole house. No powder room or 1/2 bath and just 1 sink in the small bathroom. And we had to "share" it with all our guests. I don't know how we did it.

This seems to be the new thing with House Hunters. The parents are appalled that their children will have to share their bathroom with the guests. Yet in one show, the 2nd house they looked at, there were only 2 baths but they didn't say anything about that. The inconsistencies drive me crazy but I still watch (& complain) and enjoy.

Don't hear quite so much about man caves as before. My dream house would have a large craft room for me. On only 1 or 2 shows do I remember the woman wanting a sewing/craft room for herself.

I wonder if the people having their house renovated on shows like Love It or List It are being put up in a hotel or staying elsewhere because they sure look surprised at the reveal. I know even if they've been living there they'd have to look surprised & pleased for the show.

I too miss Carol Duvall & That's Clever, really enjoyed them. I can't find any craft shows anymore.

 

[barkley]

when you consider that hgtv launched just 20 years ago this month-it's had a phenomenal impact on how people shop for real estate/decorate their homes. before it began running all it's buying/selling/renovating shows who but a few instantly knew the terms 'decluttering' and 'staging' as it applied to selling a home? except what people saw in magazines and on 'lifestyles of the rich and famous' who ever thought about doing a 'focus wall' in an entirely different (and often obnoxious color) in their bedroom or living room? honestly-if you shopped for an existing home prior to the mid 90's do you every remember seeing a home stripped bare of all personal photos, possessions-and with obviously brand new renovations/furniture? (I sure don't-the homes looked exactly like I expected a home to look like in a given neighborhood, and with family photos....lived in).

I remember talking to a realtor about 10 years after hgtv started airing-and he was talking about having to adjust to a whole new breed of buyers who didn't care about the 'bones' a house had, only if it had what hgtv was currently promoting as the end all/be all/must haves in decorator and layout upgrades (I have to wonder if this has changed with the shift from home selling shows to heavy duty home repair/renovation shows on the network). he said he kept getting demands for open concept floor plans, cathedral ceilings, luxury master bath 'retreats' and walk in closets- and couldn't get it through to buyers that if they were only shopping homes in neighborhoods built in the 60's-80's it wasn't likely they were going to have much success

 

[CdnCarrie]

I prefer the selling/ buying home shows over redecorating.

Use to really like Selling your House with Tanya Memme and House Doctor from the U.K. Those were the best!

 

[Philagoofy]

One of the Property Brothers at Home episodes, they mentioned that they donated some of the items they took out, such as kitchen cabinets, as a way to help others & recycle rather than adding to a dump. I think that's great but on the regular Property Brothers show, they seem to always destroy the cabinets & countertops. Even when they have buyers who make a point of saying they are concerned with the environmental impact, they still rip apart the cabinets.

As far as the staging and decluttering, I somewhat agree. I don't mind going through a lived in house with personal pictures but decluttering does help. You can better see the size and what type of shape the room is. Maybe a paint of coat would help too sometimes. We saw a house with a basement so full of junk and a bedroom painted all black, that we didn't even want to consider it.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

One of the Property Brothers at Home episodes, they mentioned that they donated some of the items they took out, such as kitchen cabinets, as a way to help others & recycle rather than adding to a dump. I think that's great but on the regular Property Brothers show, they seem to always destroy the cabinets & countertops. Even when they have buyers who make a point of saying they are concerned with the environmental impact, they still rip apart the cabinets.

As far as the staging and decluttering, I somewhat agree. I don't mind going through a lived in house with personal pictures but decluttering does help. You can better see the size and what type of shape the room is. Maybe a paint of coat would help too sometimes. We saw a house with a basement so full of junk and a bedroom painted all black, that we didn't even want to consider it.

I had at first "protested" selling our house empty. But it was a night and day difference once the home was empty and scrubbed from top to bottom. It presented much better and would be more appealing to buyers, especially in a tight market.

YMMV if you have nicer stuff--but even when we were house shopping in 1999, if the house was cluttered or didn't show well, I had a difficult time with it and I wasn't even watching HGTV. One house we looked at was over decorated with country bunnies. It was very clean and very neutral except for those bunnies. It looked like a sales floor of a country bunny decor store. And that distracted from any features. It is unlikely we would have bought the house anyway...but the bunnies hid any potential game changing features.

 

[Tuffcookie]

Fixer Upper is great. I love the wife's style and they seem to have a good relationship.

Flip or Flop annoys me to no end. I just find it hard to believe that in this environment it's that easy to consistently flip for a big profit.

I miss Candace Olson.

I liked Selling NY too. And Selling London. Never got into Selling LA.

I do too!

I also miss Michael Payne's Designing for the Sexes, show.

The Flip or Flop show is one of my least favorite shows on HGTV. I can't get past the wife's voice.

TC