House Hunters: Can You Picture It?
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
One of my favorite shows is House Hunters on HGTV (Home & Garden Television.)Yeah, I know -- it's sometimes very staged, with homeowners being shown homes that aren't on the market. But I like it. Most of the homes are in my neck of the woods, my friend is a show editor, and I worked with Suzanne on a film project a few years ago (she's a very funny stand-up comedian, by the way.)
The one thing about the show that always disturbs me is when a prospective homeowner is viewing a house. They'll walk into a loudly bright fuchsia room or one with pitiful wallpaper from the 1960's -- and they'll declare that they don't like the room. Or the whole house. I guess it was odd to discover that some people don't see the potential of a house when they're walking through it. Like everything must stay exactly the way they bought it... so it has to be "perfect" before they'll move in.
I could see if a master suite was too small. Or if the property had no garage or any room for a garage. Room additions and moving walls ain't easy. But replacing a countertop on a dated 70's bathroom-from-hell is not that hard.
Do you have problems "visualizing" the potential of a house? Does it have to be "move-in ready" or you wouldn't buy?
When considering a home purchase, it's understandable to want to move into a house that you don't have to do much to. But many want to change even a brand new house that they designed. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a perfect house.
Look for good "bones" in a home that you're viewing. Bones mean the overall basic structure. Does it have enough rooms? Are the rooms big enough? Is there a basement? An attic? You can always move into a house and make changes down the road. But adding a basement to a finished house might not be a good project to take on.
Better to find one that already has the spaces you want.
If you get a chance, bookmark the ConstructionDeal.com website. We can help you find a home improvement contractor at no cost. So... when you do want to make some of those changes, you'll save time and money when you look for a local contractor.
Labels: Home Improvement Shows, TV Shows
4 Comments:
ok so while reading your post i had to shout I KNOW!! re your comment about people who declare hate for a house based on something cosmetic...what the hell people? ah well. It'll probably pay off for us some day when we find an awesome house that's still on the market because people cant see past yellow paint or bad wallpaper.
commented by 
merideth, 12:56 PM
merideth, 12:56 PM
Oh, that would be great!
Realtor: "We've found you a 4 bedroom, 2 bath McMansion in the heart of Beverly Hills."
Me: "I can't afford Beverly Hills."
Realtor: "It's only $145,000!"
Me: "Why so low? O.J. live there?"
Realtor: "Well... I hate to bring this up, but... it's got a pink laminate kitchen countertop and orange shag carpeting in the guest house."
Me: "Noooooooo!!!"
Realtor: "We've found you a 4 bedroom, 2 bath McMansion in the heart of Beverly Hills."
Me: "I can't afford Beverly Hills."
Realtor: "It's only $145,000!"
Me: "Why so low? O.J. live there?"
Realtor: "Well... I hate to bring this up, but... it's got a pink laminate kitchen countertop and orange shag carpeting in the guest house."
Me: "Noooooooo!!!"
That attitude absolutely drives us nuts. We had trouble selling a house, in a great neighborhood and schools, because it was either fix up ours (new kitchen) or purchase a newly built house in the 'burbs. When my wife and I we're looking at houses all we would see is the potential. Our realtor would stop us and make us move on when we started moving walls and doing mental demolition when we were looking for a new house.
As for HH: We looked at over 100 houses and in 6 months. It’s a little contrived with these people only “looking” at three listings. Oh, and our realtor never announced each room like they do in the show.
As for HH: We looked at over 100 houses and in 6 months. It’s a little contrived with these people only “looking” at three listings. Oh, and our realtor never announced each room like they do in the show.
I hate HH because all the people on it seem like whiners. "I need to move because I'm single and live in a 3 BR/2.5 BA home and my only pet, a goldfish needs more room..."
