I’ve a giant pet peeve…well, true to my grumpy old man persona, I have about a million giant pet peeves. Here’s the one I’m fired up about today: why does every single renovation show on HGTV spend more money than they really need to? Like Holmes exclusively buying the most expensive materials for your home when there are just as good, and cheaper, options out there. Or, Jillian Harris spending a disgusting amount of money on furniture when she could be giving those people that must-have powder room.
I’ve been back on the HGTV train (the perfect show to have in the background while a baby crawls and screams and giggles all day) and have been watching a lot of Love it or List it lately. And, I’ve noticed a trend. Every time they open up the house to make these huge changes to design, something goes wrong. The roof needs fixing, the plumbing needs replacing, the old electric panel can’t handle any new technology thrown its way. That’s all normal when it comes to older homes needing an update, and honestly, the homeowners freaking out about it need to chill. Did they buy a home knowing absolutely nothing about it? Do they not understand what goes on underneath their walls and that making sure a house is structurally sound is far more important than flashy wallpaper or paint colours?
Obviously not. It’s a terrifying truth about homeowners, and one I was made aware of time and time again when I worked in real estate. People buy homes and know absolutely dick all about them. They know absolutely nothing about how to keep them updated, or what to do if a fuse blows, or if they have plumbing issues. They blissfully ignore the problem, hoping it’ll go away, or call in someone to repair it (ain’t no shame), then flip out when it costs money. They’re often confused when an older home needs updating and don’t understand how something they spent so much money on could cost even more money. Like homeowners haven’t been talking about how much houses cost to maintain since the beginning of time.
Anyways, I digress.
Every time they open up these homes, there’s a problem. They’re often older homes and haven’t had any upkeep over the years — hence the reason for them to go on the show — and it makes sense. They’re houses and shit happens, plus, what fun would it be if a house got perfectly updated for $10 and everything went smoothly? No renovation show would exist because it would be so simple to upgrade yourself.
What doesn’t make sense is the allocation of the budget. Every single time this happens they need to get rid of one of their wishes. Yes, money can only be stretched so far, as my husband loves to tell me as I drool over a $14 per square foot tile. Sometimes, you have to give in and think about what truly is important. Is it the expensive tile? Or, is it that deep sink you always dreamed of? I don’t understand why all of these renovations need to come complete with a brand new couch, coffee table, TV, heated floors where you really don’t need them (after putting them in myself, I know that you can save about $1,000 give or take the square footage of an average bathroom, by not installing them), or the most expensive tiles. I don’t know about you, but whenever I do a renovation, I don’t automatically get brand-new everything.
We try to keep as much as we can when renovating the house. Sometimes, it’s because we like that item, other times it’s because the original item works just fine, still. Often, it’s because the kitchen table only has a few scuffs and something somewhere else needs updating or replacing. It’s all about give or take. If they would stop spending $20,000 just on new furniture, maybe they could put in that second bathroom that they were told was a deal breaker.
Yes, I know that the furniture makes the design sparkle and pop and the homeowners absolutely lose it over a new table, but wouldn’t it be better if that custom made something or other was just a run-of-the-mill-but-still-looks-great item that costs way less and they have a powder room, too?
The budgets always seem too small in the designer’s eyes, mainly because they don’t seem to understand what a clearance section is, or how to choose tiles that look good and don’t cost $14 per square foot. You can still wow those homeowners, still make a beautiful home, without overspending. Don’t tell my husband I just admitted that. Maybe the Love it side would win a lot more if they would stop overspending, and actually learn how to stick to a budget.
Juniper and Daisies 