House Hunters revelation

[MNNHFLTX]

Okay, TV is so boring lately that I have resorted to watching numerous first-runs and re-runs of House Hunters. I've always liked this show but wondered what the real story was behind it. Now this week it was revealed by one of the participants in Texas that they had already closed on a house before they were chosen to be on the show, and they had to find two other "fake" properties to view to make the show seem legit. Does this surprise me? Not really--I always figured that the people participating had already narrowed the houses down to a few and that these were not randomly chosen by the real estate agents on the show. And I have my doubts about some of the woman's story (in Texas) since her husband was a real estate agent himself and they were obviously looking to capitalize on the publicity (and maybe still are).

Anyone else heard (or care) about this situation? ;)

[AgentC]

I used to love House Hunters. Recently I've gotten a bit bored about regular House Hunters but I always try to watch House Hunters International.

I haven't heard about this particular person's story but I have heard this before. I think the article I had read said they are on such a short time line that they do not have time to wait for a real search and that usually to be on the show you already have to have a closing scheduled on a house you have purchased. Supposedly you can tell which house is the real house because it is the one without furniture but I have found that is not always true.

Since I am really watching for the houses and to see if they would chose what I would, it doesn't really matter to me that it is faked.

[Jillirose]

Love the House Hunters International! I'm sure there is a lot of staging, as is typical in reality TV. I'm just interested in seeing other houses, layouts, and decor so it doesn't bother me too much :)

[Georgesgirl1]

Doesn't surprise me that it is "rigged." Isn't all reality TV at least a little scripted?
I still think it is interesting to see what you can get for your money in different parts of the country and world. I like to watch House Hunters International more because it is interesting to see what is standard in other parts of the world.

[SBETigg]

Like Cindy, I already knew this. And I thought it was common knowledge. In the celebrity version, I don't think some of the celebrities even end up buying a house or were even in the market. I still find it entertaining. I love looking at houses.

[VWL Mom]

I like watching House Hunters and others like it and am guilty of trying to see if I can pick the right one. Much easier to choose real estate when it's not my money or my budget :blush:

I read the article about this woman and can't really figure out her motive other than promoting her husband's business as Beth said. Not sure what she thought the shock value in tell people that reality tv is staged would be. pretty much common knowledge.

[DizneyRox]

Anyone else heard (or care) about this situation? ;)
Don't care, I watch wrestling... :D

[MNNHFLTX]

Don't care, I watch wrestling... :D

That is the strangest segue I've seen in a long time, lol!

I love HH International too! It's fascinating to see the cultural differences (why do we Americans have such a thing about the "open concept"?) It also gives me ideas about future vacations.

[DizneyRox]

That is the strangest segue I've seen in a long time, lol!

I love HH International too! It's fascinating to see the cultural differences (why do we Americans have such a thing about the "open concept"?) It also gives me ideas about future vacations.

Was supposed to be a joke on the whole it's fake idea...

HHI is interesting though. Its interesting to see the different house types instead of the touristy things. I also find it humbling when people go looking in other countries with $400k in hand to get a second home to spend a few weeks in the summer.

[mickeys_princess_mom]

Love the House Hunters International! I'm sure there is a lot of staging, as is typical in reality TV. I'm just interested in seeing other houses, layouts, and decor so it doesn't bother me too much :)

I love it, too. I dream of househunting in Europe. :blush: I was a little surprised by the "revelations", but who knows? Will continue to enjoy the scenery. :)

[BrerGnat]

Every "reality" show on TV is fake to some degree or another. House Hunters wouldn't work if they didn't already have a "winner" house. What would happen if the buyer(s) didn't like ANY of the 3 houses? There has to be a guaranteed ending.

My favorite revelation was finding out that in Europe, your clothes washing machine (if you even get one) is usually located in the KITCHEN! That's odd!

[TheDuckRocks]

Oh, big deal! I love these shows and will continue to watch them. My only surprise in the whole thing is that anyone who has watched more than a few of them would be "shocked" to find out the truth. What difference does it make anyway? I find much humor in what new, first time buyers with a buck-fifty think they should get.

[Belle of the Ball 051411]

Every "reality" show on TV is fake to some degree or another. House Hunters wouldn't work if they didn't already have a "winner" house. What would happen if the buyer(s) didn't like ANY of the 3 houses? There has to be a guaranteed ending.

My favorite revelation was finding out that in Europe, your clothes washing machine (if you even get one) is usually located in the KITCHEN! That's odd!

My thoughts exactly! I still like watching House Hunters because I love looking at houses and seeing what houses are worth in different areas of the country/world.

You can sometimes tell which house "won" by looking at the female's hair in the shot where they are deciding which house to buy. Sometimes they film vising the houses on different days or will change clothes for the camera but the hair style will be the same on the day/house they choose!

[SBETigg]

My favorite revelation was finding out that in Europe, your clothes washing machine (if you even get one) is usually located in the KITCHEN! That's odd!

My laundry area in my new house is in my kitchen. It's a big closet really, between the side entry and the kitchen. It used to be upstairs by the bedrooms but the previous owner relocated it to the kitchen area. I'd thought about moving it when we moved in, but I decided it's very handy where it is and I like it.

[MNNHFLTX]

My favorite revelation was finding out that in Europe, your clothes washing machine (if you even get one) is usually located in the KITCHEN! That's odd!Yes, from our travel experiences, either in the kitchen or the bathroom. Since our laundry room is located just off of our kitchen, that doesn't seem so strange to me. But ask me to run one of those combination washing/dryer machines they have in Europe and that's another matter. We tried to use one in Ireland when we stayed at an apartment there and could not figure out how the dryer part worked. We ended up with a small load of soaking wet laundry that we dried in the rear window of our rental car as we traveled to our next destination!

[BrerGnat]

Washer and Dryer NEXT TO the kitchen is normal.

Washer/Dryer combo machine located where the Dishwasher should be...WEIRD!

[AgentC]

. . . But ask me to run one of those combination washing/dryer machines they have in Europe and that's another matter. We tried to use one in Ireland when we stayed at an apartment there and could not figure out how the dryer part worked. We ended up with a small load of soaking wet laundry that we dried in the rear window of our rental car as we traveled to our next destination!

:funny: I could so see that happening to me. I'm also amazed especially on the Asian episode how much smaller many of the kitchens are and how some apartment/condos don't have ovens.

[ozmom]

My favorite revelation was finding out that in Europe, your clothes washing machine (if you even get one) is usually located in the KITCHEN! That's odd!

Funny, the house I grew up in, in Southern California built in late 1950's had washing machine in the kitchen, right next to the refrigerator.

[SBETigg]

Washer and Dryer NEXT TO the kitchen is normal.

Washer/Dryer combo machine located where the Dishwasher should be...WEIRD!

Okay, yeah, a little weird. I have to watch more of the International episodes.

[MNNHFLTX]

Washer and Dryer NEXT TO the kitchen is normal.

Washer/Dryer combo machine located where the Dishwasher should be...WEIRD!Lol--not if you live in Europe. We have friends outside of London who have the teeniest tiniest townhouse with the teeniest tiniest kitchen--probably no more than 4 X 5 feet, and they still have the washer/dryer in the kitchen.

[MNNHFLTX]

:funny: I could so see that happening to me. I'm also amazed especially on the Asian episode how much smaller many of the kitchens are and how some apartment/condos don't have ovens.Oh, I know, Cindy! I could not live without an oven! How about the places that have a little loft for a bedroom? And why are the bidets across the bathroom from the toilets?? That's something I've never been able to figure out. :eek2:

Okay, my observations are digressing into potential potty humor--so sorry. :blush:

[AgentC]

Okay, my observations are digressing into potential potty humor--so sorry. :blush:

I have a 4 & 6 year old. In my house potty humor is an everyday occurrence. :)

[Ian]

I've always assumed these shows were scripted to a degree. The unpredictability of actually going out and showing someone three houses and making them choose one would be an almost impossible scenario to "produce" into a 30 minute TV show.

What if they didn't like any of the houses? What if they couldn't get a mortgage? Or didn't have a big enough downpayment? Or the seller changed their mind? Etc.

I pretty much assume all "reality" TV shows are, for the most part, staged. You can tell, especially on some of the hidden treasure shows like Pawn Stars and Storage Wars, that the cast is "acting" out a scene. Also, some of the occurances are just so improbably that it's impossible to believe they happened naturally.

[Scar]

I've always assumed these shows were scripted to a degree. I've personally seen the opening sequence to an "American Pickers" show shot. It was definitely scripted.

[BrerGnat]

Many moons ago, a high school friend of mine was chosen to be on the cast of Real World Seattle. She dropped out when they presented her with her "character development storyline and script."

Ever since then, I've known that "Reality" TV is about as real as pigs that can fly.

[TheDuckRocks]

My thoughts exactly! I still like watching House Hunters because I love looking at houses and seeing what houses are worth in different areas of the country/world.

You can sometimes tell which house "won" by looking at the female's hair in the shot where they are deciding which house to buy. Sometimes they film vising the houses on different days or will change clothes for the camera but the hair style will be the same on the day/house they choose!

Anyone ever catch the episode where the woman changed the color of her hair from blonde to brown and then back to blonde because of the editing?

[Hammer]

Like most of the posters have said, I realize that these HGTV shows are scripted, but I still enjoy many of them like House Hunters, My First Place, My First Sale and Property Virgins. I crack up at some of the stupid things people fixate on when looking for a home! As someone who just sold her first place and moved up to a larger home (which I only had 5 weeks to find it and finance it), these shows did give me ideas for staging my house for selling and how to configure open concept layouts in my new place.

[Kairi_7378]

A friend of the family was on House Hunters last year. After filming, they had told us about how the process worked. There are so many steps to moving, and in order to squeeze it all into a half hour, I am sure that a lot of it has to be set up beforehand.

I still enjoy the show, though.

[Arielfan98]

I actually heard about this from my sister. It really ruins the fun of the show :P