Do you have HGTV Syndrome?

What is HGTV syndrome?

Luckily, it is not a real syndrome, but unfortunately, what the joke addresses is a serious issue that real estate buyers today may believe or do. (Thank you to Inman for the idea/article!)

HGTV can be a fun channel to watch. In one show, buyers look at three homes and choose between the three. You see what you think are the negotiations happening live. What most people don’t understand is that buying real estate doesn’t work that way. Of course, sometimes people do only look at three houses. But in those shows, by the time you see them, those buyers have looked at a number of homes, and these three homes are the ones where the SELLERS were willing to let the cameras in. Those buyers have already BEEN THROUGH their negotiations. They are NOT REALLY choosing between those three homes at that moment. They have ALREADY contracted for the house of their choice. What you see is usually a “reenactment” of what they did when they were going through the process.

On another show, a kitchen makeover costs less than $10,000. Though that may be the case, rarely have I seen the cost so low for a full kitchen overhaul including appliances, cabinets, and the like.

Here is the bottom line. HGTV is fun. You can get some good ideas. BUT, as in most “reality TV” the reality TV shows are not actually showing TRUE reality. There are creative takes, scripts, and changes to stories to make them more interesting.

Please know that buying a home in Baltimore and elsewhere is a very time consuming, invasive, hard, and arduous process. Yes, it is worth it in the long run, but I would rather you be prepared, rather than expect it to be a fast, quick, easy transaction!

For more information about buying a house in Towson, please contact me. I can help you overcome the syndrome!

 

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net