How "real" are the HGTV shows House Hunters or What You Get for the Money? (filmed, how much)

[Panks]

No, I don't mean the fact that EVERYONE finds their dream home after only looking at 3 houses! But if you listen to them every market is "hot" or "booming" or has "appreciated 40% in the past year".

I'm just curious if others think they do a good job of showing the towns they live in. Not that they always tell you where they are filming!
Or if its more like Glamour Shots (if you're old enough to remember them!) for cities. ..everyones a 10.

[samyn on the green]

It is a TV show, in the same way that fantasy island was a TV show. Not something to base an opinion on. If these TV shows were a piece of food they would be chewing gum, something to crew on and spit out, not something to build a meal (opinion) around. Opinions should be based on reality and experience.

[vetegnc]

I assume they tape their top 3 choices, and show their decision based on those.

[MsV]

I'm with vetegnc - their script used to be more evasive, but I'm noticing now they often say something like "after browsing through the market, so-n-so's realtors will show them three viable options. Which one will they choose?"

What you get for the $ is not far off the mark. I'm aware of real estate pricing in many of the areas they portray, and yes, I'm sure they "stage" which place they will feature to productively highlight that area.

But, let's be honest, these shows are probably a remarkable marketing tool subsidized by the real estate industry - they are an ingenious idea!

[christina0001]

I'm sure it's staged as vetegnc describes as well, but it is fun to watch! I would love to be on house hunters.

[NittanyLion]

I think house hunters is a great show! They only show their top three choices, not every house. It makes for good TV for people who are interested in real estate.

[Panks]

I remember about 5 years ago, they used to write house #3 of 37 (on the bottom of the screen ). Now they just write #1, #2,#3. The only reason I think it matters is that it gives you an idea of how much choice you might have in that market.

I've noticed that sometimes if they are filming homes in a really hot neighborhood, the buyers look at homes that are nothing like what they say they wanted. I always wonder if that means the inventory is so low that there aren't even 3 homes to film and they have to stick in a few more homes just as a comparison. Good to know MsV thinks the prices are pretty accurate...I had wondered if they were.

Since I haven't traveled in the US very much, I watch all the HGTV house shows to get an idea of what the US looks like. Otherwise I'm limited to just whatever pictures I can find in books or on the internet which are mostly monuments or famous buildings.

I still wish city-data people would film their neighborhoods and put their video on Youtube and post a link here. I think those would be great videos.

[NewToCA]

I think House Hunters is pretty realistic about what you get in the markets. I think it has significantly improved in a few ways the past couple of years. Originally, it seemed all of the shows were out of California, starting with "they better get moving because multiple offers bid up the prices." Now, they seem to cover multiple markets and aren't California focused (probably because they have no sales, but that's another thread). Second, they now mention the prices they are shopping in, and price per house. Finally, it doesn't sound quite as scripted. A couple of years ago a couple would go into a California dump barely standing with no flush toilets and mention that they were disappointed in no granite ...

Sounded like planned marketing stuff to me.

[Lisa_from_Debary]

I watch house hunters and the international version...I have heard the buys say that they looked at loads of houses...my assumption is that they only filmed their top three choices.

I saw one the other day where they had a photograph of one house with snow on the ground and then when they were looking at others is was short sleeve weather...

[pwright1]

Originally Posted by NittanyLion

I think house hunters is a great show! They only show their top three choices, not every house. It makes for good TV for people who are interested in real estate.

This is what I thought. Not just 3 houses to choose from but the top 3 from many they looked at. Did you know Suzanne Whang is a comedian? I saw her act and she is pretty funny.