Review of HGTV’s House Hunters - to appear soon in REALTOR® magazine
House Hunters has a fairly simple premise — a salesperson shows a buyer three homes, they make a decision to put in an offer, and we check in with them a few months later.
As part of HGTV’s first-time home buyers’ week, we meet recent graduate Lindsay who is looking for a condo closer to her job, and enlists local practitioner J.J. Love to help. She has a price range up to $160,000. Lindsay tours three condos in the Nashville, Tenn. area, ranging from a bargain-priced two-bedroom townhouse listed for $125,000 to a brand new unit with an asking price of $162,000.
Lindsay ends up choosing the place at the top of her price range. She explains that she loves the fact that she would be the first owner, that the unit has a garage, plenty of closet space and that her parents both like it — always helpful, especially since they are providing the down payment.
But a few questions need to be raised about House Hunters. Why is the buyer only shown three places? Most buyers would look at many more before choosing. Sure, it’s only a half-hour show, but would you want to have to commit to placing an offer on a home when you have only seen three? How much did Lindsay end up paying for her new condo? We never find out, so we don’t know if Ms. Love is a skilled negotiator and is truly working on behalf of Lindsay in order to find her the best deal possible. It appears that her agent has picked out each unit to show her. Were they her listings, or listings from her office? This issue is not addressed either.
As an agent who works exclusively for buyers, I would love to see a show that portrays how a knowledgeable real estate practitioner puts clients’ best interests first. This means consulting with potential buyers at length about their goals, while also educating them about market conditions — rather than merely focusing on selling them a home.
In this era of escalating foreclosures and short sales, consumers should occasionally be able to see what is involved in the process of buying “distressed” properties, not just cute, new-construction condominiums. The final verdict: entertainment first, reality second, if at all.
