Watching HGTV

We like watching HGTV just so we can sit there criticizing other people's behavior, opinion, and sense of style. Some of them crack me up. They will walk through a bedroom and comment on how small it is when it is already bigger than what they currently live in. Another sticking point is the whole "2 sinks in the bathroom" deal. I don't think I have ever lived in a house with 2 sinks in 1 bathroom. Whirlpool bathtubs or "spa tubs" as they are called, apparently are another big wish list item. Never had one. I would think it would take forever to fill up and just be a big waste. The last one I saw was being used to store excess clothing! People complain about traffic noise, wallpaper, size of yard, and amount of renovation needed all the time. The one that gets me the most is the guy having to fix or renovate something and complaining about it. Now, in all fairness, I think remodeling is a hobby. I don't know what these guys would be doing if they didn't have to paint, replace, or otherwise change something in the house. What would you do? Watch TV? Play golf? Xbox? I guess everyone has their own take on this.

We watched a "House Hunters" episode last night where the couple was downsizing because the guy had lost his job in banking. Judging by some of his comments, he must have been in construction at some time because he was always commenting on how he would have to re-do something. They had 4 kids. They were looking for a 5 bedroom house with a budget of $400k. That doesn't sound much like downsizing to me! They were looking at 4000 sq ft houses with granite counter tops and all the bells and whistles. I did find out that they were moving out of a 7500 sq ft house so I guess you could call it downsizing.

The House Hunter Internationals shows are even more irritating. It amazes me how someone would want to buy a house 6000 miles away that you would have to fly to in order to get there. How much does it cost to fly 4 people from Dublin, Ireland to Rio once a month? I can't believe how small some of the houses and apartments are in Europe. No wonder they are always sitting outside a cafe somewhere! They can't fit in the house. We apparently have it made in the US with big rooms and actual yards. (disclaimer: I never lived in a densely populated urban area - you know - like big cities)

I think HGTV played a large role in the housing crash. They had all these shows about flipping houses and appraising houses to see how much equity one could borrow against for renovations, additions, or new boats. Even after the crash, they still have people buying houses with no money down. The ones that piss me off the most are those who consistently low-ball houses and then can't understand why they didn't get the house. I had someone low-ball me once and I told my realtor that the guy could kiss my ass and that I wouldn't sell him the house, no matter what. Since selling the house was in my realtor's best interest, he smoothed things over and I did sell the guy the house but he was still an asshole!