I was telling my mom the other week about how my in-laws really need to move (FIL really needs a house without stairs) but that my MIL keeps insisting to me that she needs to redo her kitchen before trying to sell. My mom pointed out that this is a problem that HGTV has given our society, so many people now think they can do a renovation project and end up with a serious boost in their home value. In most cases that's not really true. This is an industry really backed by companies that want us to spend spend spend on projects for our homes. I wish I could make MIL see that, her taste isn't top notch and it's likely that whoever would buy the house would want to make some of their own changes anyhow, so it would be such a waste. Her kitchen isn't even that bad as it is now.
I recently watched two episodes of House Hunters. The first one was awful. The family was buying a McMansion. The wife complained that one house they looked at wasn't big enough - they had 2 kids and the house had 5 bedrooms. It has all the gendered stereotypes and was just awful.
But I did see a rare good episode - this single woman was searching for a house in PG County and she had a totally normal budget (I think it was $300,000). She had a cat named Sir Galahad and seemed fun and I wanted to hang out with her at her townhouse.
We used to watch HGTV a lot, and now it is a rare occurrence. What we liked was the variety....decorating on the cheap, decorating that was done by pricey designers, different approaches and styles, diy ideas, buying, selling, etc.. Now it is all HH and flipping shows that look alike.
Honestly, the magic of those shows wore off a long time ago, when we found out that all of the house hunting was fake, since the people have to have a home under contract before they sign on to any of those shows, and everything is scripted.
What seemed fun and refreshing about the hosts at first quickly gave way to annoyance because they are all so one note, and the same shtick show after show is boring.
Chip and Joanna Gaines are the worst, acting like they are so down to earth and hold their faith and family first, when they just keep doing things that show that it is money that comes first. They sue former clients who use their homes from the show as rentals, because it conflicts with their own b&b. Chip bought the reality business from his former partners without disclosing that they had signed on for the show, so the business was going to be worth more, etc.. Chip's antics are childish and not funny, shiplap painted white is not new or interesting when you have it on every house, and promoting your store, bakery, diner, b&b, whatever on the show is greedy.
And the complaining and criticisms on house hunters seems particularly petty when you realize they are saying those things about a home a friend or family member was kind enough to let them use for their 15 minutes of fame.
I did enjoy that My First House (or similarly titled) show. More diverse, more realistic on process, still got to snoop at real estate.
One gripe about the article itself - that part where the author trots out some Native American stereotypes and decides to discuss Joanna's ethnic makeup is gross. How is it relevant.
In the first season of Fixer Upper I thought it was interesting to see nearly condemned homes on some episodes be completely rehabbed on a normal person's budget. Now I can't look at another large island marble top kitchen without rolling my eyes. And if she builds a farm house dining room table ONE MORE TIME.
I hate HGTV. I leave the room when my H has it on.
ETA: I think living on the west coast has made it even less watchable, when I see what people can buy in other markets, it just pisses me off. LOL.
Also I find the Property Brothers creepy. GET YOUR OWN LIVES ALREADY.
Right? The house two doors down from me is about to go on the market. It is a 2BR, 1.5 bath, less 1200 sq feet and the bigger of the only two closets is not even deep enough to put a hanger in it. It will sell for over a million.
I have not watched HGTV in years because nothing on it looks like my life, LOL.
"This Old House" is great if you really want to learn something about renovating, latest home technology, small projects, money saving tips, etc.
I LOVE This Old House. They share practical tips and tutorials that are way more helpful than anything I have watched on HGTV. Plus I like that they want to restore and stay true to a home's historical architecture which you rarely see on HGTV.
I had HGTV on nearly 24/7 during DS's first month of life, and now I can barely tolerate it.
I do notice after watching it that I view my home much more critically and start making lists of things I "need" that would cost us way too much money. It's not good.
My mom hates HGTV and says no one seems to be content with what they have anymore and everyone has such lofty visions of what they deserve.
Post by livinitup on Sept 21, 2017 10:13:34 GMT -5
We have 2 major plans this fall/year:
1) Upgrade the main colors in the kitchen and family room. Taking out reds and bringing-in blues/neutrals. This is mostly cosmetic but we've been here a while and it will updates everything. My parents have never done this and it's quite the return to the 80's at their house.
2) Getting a dumpster. Can't wait to remove all of our unused crap. I truly believe it's going to feel like we've double our square footage.
DD watched flip or flop for a while. It was ok for some mindless TV. Why do they ALWAYS use the same cabinet hardware??
I used to watch This Old House as a kid. I still enjoy actual DIY programming.
This Old House actually did construction projects vs. the "things are gonna fall apart as soon as the camera leaves" crap most of the HGTV shows do. My dh absolutely can't watch HGTV anymore because he starts pointing out everything they're doing wrong and/or isn't up to code.
Post by andreay82 on Sept 21, 2017 10:29:19 GMT -5
I enjoy HGTV every now and then but the thought of moving again makes me super anxious. We also did a ton of cosmetic work on our first house, like wallpaper removal, painting, etc...nothing expensive by any means. But that's ruined me. And I want to reno my kitchen because the layout is terrible and there's no counter space or good storage. Basically, I'm lazy when it comes to living. I'd rather drink more wine than deal with decorating and house projects.
HGTV is white noise for me - that, and SATC reruns are like my hotel room guilty pleasure when I travel for work. We don't have cable, so I don't see it often.
But when I do...I can see this, I find myself trolling the real estate sites, sending links to homes twice our budget to my H, convincing myself that we could totally afford to do an addition, redo the kitchen, and update the master bath for peanuts. Then I get crabby because I remember that it cost more to finish our basement (with no plumbing, pretty basic finish) than it costs C&J to redo an entire Waco farmhouse. FAKE NEWS.
Post by OrangeBanana on Sept 21, 2017 10:31:33 GMT -5
I think another poster touched on it but all I see on these shows anymore is white cabinets, gray walls, huge open concept stuff and stupid shiplap. I used to like shiplap but now it's ruined for me.
I love watching This Old House just like another poster said. Years ago they did a remodel of an old farmhouse and barn and it was gorgeous! I learned a lot about old houses too.
I also blame HGTV for the whole farmhouse style being so popular. My new build is actually a farmhouse but it's ON A FARM.
I love to hate watch House Hunters. The more I hate the people, the more I enjoy the show. I am not sure what that says about me.
I do this with Tiny House Hunters. DH and I make stiff drinks and yell "this one has so much storage!!!" The stranger the people, the more I enjoy the show. There was one episode where it was a married couple and 3-4 kids, and the Dad was physically touching the Mom in every scene, and he/they kept talking about how they needed a "really private bedroom for mommy daddy quiet time" 😬 And then they ended up buying a 400 sq ft shed to live in.
Post by 2curlydogs on Sept 21, 2017 10:36:13 GMT -5
HGTV was my initial go-to when I was trapped nursing S for hours on end. But I had to stop because my H would come home and I'd be like "We need to re-do everything in the house."
Post by suburbanzookeeper on Sept 21, 2017 10:36:32 GMT -5
I watched HGTV a lot when I was on bedrest. Somewhere in their I joined their viewer panel so I get emails 1-2x a month to share my opinions about their content. I pretty much only watch for seasonal stuff now (Halloween & Christmas decor) so it's fun to comment on their surveys that they're one PSL away from being completely basic. DH & I are avid DIY'ers and it's just not realistic or useful anymore.
Yesssssss! Also the room covered entirely in cardboard, with cardboard furniture.
This is my favorite episode ever. She used LIQUID NAILS to attach that shit. You know it took out chunks of drywall when they got rid of it.
I also loved the one where she wanted to paint the goddamn carpet!
I seem to remember that she had to talk the people into actually doing it, and said that it should come off easily if they wanted to change it. LOL! LIES!
Post by Velar Fricative on Sept 21, 2017 10:42:08 GMT -5
HGTV was mindless TV during maternity leave. The only show I didn't totally hate-watch was Love It or List It because I like David and Hillary and it's interesting to see what they do with the current houses, so it doesn't seem as formulaic to me.
But the whiny "acting" is so funny though. YOU BETTER TELL HILLARY SHE NEEDS TO REDO THE MASTER BATHROOM WITH FIVE BUCKS OR ELSE.
Yesssssss! Also the room covered entirely in cardboard, with cardboard furniture.
This is my favorite episode ever. She used LIQUID NAILS to attach that shit. You know it took out chunks of drywall when they got rid of it.
I also loved the one where she wanted to paint the goddamn carpet!
The painted carpet is a classic that I will never forget. I remember watching that when I was still living at home. My room had green carpet. I gave painting my carpet a minutes thought and even then I knew it was a very bad idea.
I watched a few episodes of a tiny house show and I wondered if any of those hipsters dropping $120k on a portable shack have ever heard of a RV? You can get a luxury pull behind RV for under $35k...with a full bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, built in storage, etc. I had a really hard time understanding why, in choosing to lead a minimalistic lifestyle, they were investing so much in something that would never be worth anything.