Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My First Sale depresses me--the people always have to take so much less money than they wanted/needed. I know it is usually because they overpriced their homes, but it's still depressing when they either can't sell and have to rent it out or take like $50k less than they wanted for the house.

This is what kills me on My First Sale. The listing agent will say something like "several homes next to you in your neighborhood exactly like yours sold 20 days ago for $400,000." The seller will say something like "but we paid $600,000." The agent will say "you have to be realistic in this market." The seller will say "ok let's list for $550,000." Then the seller gets the first offer of $500,000..rejects it. They the proceed to spend the rest of the episode getting offers alot lower than $500,000 and sometimes they end up not selling the home or wishing they could get the $500,000 offer again.
I saw one where the sellers were trying to sell a overpriced condo in the Miami market. They were quite nasty. Owners confronted the agent and it got very nasty cause he couldnt unload their condo at their inflated asking price.

But is this that different from RE Intervention where Mike tells them the issues with their home, then shows them a sold comp and a listed comp that are better than theirs but listed for less? The point is that people (especially ones that bought in the mid-00's) are still expected the early-to-mid 2000 price points or are forced into that because they don't have enough equity in their home and can't afford to sell for what the market will bear. Until people are comfortable with the new reality, that's going to continue to happen.

I had this problem selling my first house in 2008. I had to put in a lot of renovation money and still drop the price significantly (original listing price was $369K, I put in almost $15K and finally sold for $314K). It was disappointing because a comp sold in 2006 (just before I had originally listed it) for $410K. But, I had bought for $139K so I could afford all of the above. 6 months later, another comp down the street was listed for $249K and was on the market for over 100 days. It finally sold, but I forgot to look for what. The only reason I could afford the downturn was because I had bought *BEFORE* the big bubble, but those who bought in the bubble were up a creek.

Love Candace Olson, Genevieve Gorder and Emily Henderson. Also love Sarah Richardson. I dream of one day having someone design my family room/kitchen ... and of winning PowerBall ....

Anonymous wrote:My First Sale depresses me--the people always have to take so much less money than they wanted/needed. I know it is usually because they overpriced their homes, but it's still depressing when they either can't sell and have to rent it out or take like $50k less than they wanted for the house.

This is what kills me on My First Sale. The listing agent will say something like "several homes next to you in your neighborhood exactly like yours sold 20 days ago for $400,000." The seller will say something like "but we paid $600,000." The agent will say "you have to be realistic in this market." The seller will say "ok let's list for $550,000." Then the seller gets the first offer of $500,000..rejects it. They the proceed to spend the rest of the episode getting offers alot lower than $500,000 and sometimes they end up not selling the home or wishing they could get the $500,000 offer again.
I saw one where the sellers were trying to sell a overpriced condo in the Miami market. They were quite nasty. Owners confronted the agent and it got very nasty cause he couldnt unload their condo at their inflated asking price.

I love Real Estate Intervention -- but agree with PP who say the ones without Mike Aubrey just aren't the same. He is awesome in person, too. In late 2009, he sold our house in four days!

Our new favorite is Income Property. Scott is able to see possibilities in spaces that are really amazing.

I would love to be able to have Candice Olsen some do design work for me and have Scott finish our basement. *sigh*

Anonymous wrote:I love House Hunters, but I really need to stop watching it. We're in the process of looking for a home and when I see the kinds of houses people get on much smaller budgets it makes me want to pack my bags and leave DC.

Oh yes!!! It's hard to watch sometimes.
".... or will they choose house number 3, the most expensive one for $235,000 with the large pool, and great views, but the furthest from Mike's work- 20 minutes?"

Anonymous wrote:Holmes on Homes
-very good show, my husband was able to point out things to contractors and home inspectors, they asked if he was in the business, we laughed: no, just clocked a hundred hours HOH!

House Hunters International
- like the PP I just like to see housing in other countries, and also prefer the non-beach episodes

My first Place
-much prefer this one, as it shows the entire process and motgage difficulties, looking at 100 houses etc.

Property Virgins
-not a big fan of Sandra? She loves to crush people: "look at this beautiful neighborhood! Well it is totally out of your reach!" Every episode, every single one.

I really like the one where three designers/architects propose a major renovation project, and they get to pick one. Forgot what it's called.

I have a totally different take on the Property Virgins thing--she meets them in their dream neighborhood so she can hear about what they would ideally have in a house. No one goes there with the expectation that she is going to say, "Well, good news, you can afford it!" She doesn't actually show them any of those homes--the homes she shows them are all within their budgets.

Oh, and I totally agree with all of the double sinks comments. That one gets me every time! I thought maybe I was a freak--I could care less if there are two sinks in my bathroom. It really does not cause a lot of issues in my life. I never would even think about it if I didn't hear other people complaining that there is no way they can get ready in the morning with only one sink. How long are these people actually running water out of a faucet?

Holmes on Homes
-very good show, my husband was able to point out things to contractors and home inspectors, they asked if he was in the business, we laughed: no, just clocked a hundred hours HOH!

House Hunters International
- like the PP I just like to see housing in other countries, and also prefer the non-beach episodes

My first Place
-much prefer this one, as it shows the entire process and motgage difficulties, looking at 100 houses etc.

Property Virgins
-not a big fan of Sandra? She loves to crush people: "look at this beautiful neighborhood! Well it is totally out of your reach!" Every episode, every single one.

I really like the one where three designers/architects propose a major renovation project, and they get to pick one. Forgot what it's called.

My First Sale depresses me--the people always have to take so much less money than they wanted/needed. I know it is usually because they overpriced their homes, but it's still depressing when they either can't sell and have to rent it out or take like $50k less than they wanted for the house.

Cracks me up when folks walk in a home and say "I cant live with this carpet, paint color, ceiling fan." And they continue to be focused on it.
Love the double sink comments.

I used to LOVE Buy Me. Wish they would make new shows. I guess their new version is My First Sale. Like that one but Buy Me was the best.

Anonymous wrote:Anything with Mike Holmes! Holmes Inspection and Holmes on Homes, love them. Also love Income Property and agree that House Hunters is getting old. I sort of like that new show with the kitchen cousins. And Selling LA and Selling New York are awesome just to see how "other half" lives. No one ever sells anything though! It's pretty much all I watch.

I've stopped watching Mike Holmes because it depresses me. Who knows what hidden problems are in my home. I also sure as heck know the average contractor isn't going to spray foam (without charging an arm and leg if I was crazy enough to suggest it) or do any of the top of line extra detail in the things that aren't apparent to the eye that you see on the show.

I do like the brothers, Selling NY, Income Property, and High-Low project. My new favorite is Kitchen Cousins. I've cut back on HGTV though, some Food Network is filling the gaps because the kids like Chopped, Cupcake Wars, and Worst Cooks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:13:46, I forgot about Real Estate Intervention! My husband and I love that, but only when Mike Aubrey is on. The new version sucks.

Oh my...haven't watched recently...what happened to Mike Aubry? He *IS* REI. Wouldn't be much of a show without him.

I agree. He is a huge value-add.

Loving the comments folks. I love Property Virgins, House Hunters and My First Place. However, I hate the part in Property Virgins where Sandra/Egypt take the home buyers to a house in their dream neighborhood, they guess the price and she tells them "well this is way above your budget, I'm going to a neighborhood containing homes in your budget." Even though Sandra/Egypt shows them decent homes in their budget, I cant stop comparing it to the dream neighborhood/house.
The shine has been off House Hunters for me every since The Washington Post did a story a couple years back about somebody from the DMV area buying a home. That's when I found out that the buyer has already closed on their chosen property. What a letdown. Oh well, I still like it. Though I can only watch the show if it's somewhere I could imagine myself actually living.

Oh, I LOVE Sarah's house and Divine Design as well. I think both of those women have beautiful taste. Candace Olsen can make the darkest, most depressing basement light and bright--but she clearly works without a budget.