What the Realtors want from TLC and HGTV
Ever since I broke down and ordered cable, my wife and I have been checking out the seemingly endless parade of home shows on stations like TLC (formerly known as The Learning Channel) and HGTV. Some of the shows I like. Others … ugh.
Anyway, I’ve been talking to several real estate agents for a story I’m working on for the Washington Post. One of the topics centers around what these agents would like to see from the real estate shows on cable T.V. I’ve always wondered if agents consider the shows allies — educating potential buyers and sellers about the housing market — or enemies, filling the heads of buyers and sellers with housing myths.
Turns out, it’s a little of both. Agents are thrilled that shows such as Sell this House and Hope for your Home have educated buyers and sellers on the steps involved in renovating and selling homes. The shows have particularly helped agents as they try to convince sellers that their homes have to be in pristine shape before they go on the market.
But agents do wish the home shows would provide some important lessons for buyers and sellers, lessons that the shows either ignore or gloss over.
One agent told me that she’d love to see the home shows focus more on the steps potential buyers have to take to get the right mortgage loans. She’d also like to see the shows focus more on how important it is for buyers to set a realistic budget when buying a home.
Another complaint? The shows don’t demonstrate just how long and time-consuming the house-shopping and -buying process can be. Granted, this might not make for the best television, but the agents I spoke with would like the home shows to accurately reflect how much time and effort goes into turning an initial offer into signed sales documents.
Another agent wondered why the home shows rarely focus on the importance of the negotiating process. After all, rarely do sellers and buyers agree on everything. Compromises have to be hammered out, and that takes serious negotiations.
The consensus among the agents I spoke with is that the home shows have helped create savvier home buyers and sellers. But they’ve also given these same consumers some unreasonable expectations concerning the house-buying and -selling processes.
