Who would’ve ever thought that watching people look for their next home could be entertaining? Evidently, HGTV was in on the secret because they have monopolized the industry on televised home search. House Hunters is a fairly successful show. It has had a steady and loyal viewership since it first aired in 1999. The show’s even branched out and produced two spinoffs: House Hunters International and House Hunters Renovation. The premise for House Hunters is simple enough. We see homebuyers in the middle of looking for a home. They then get a selection of three homes to choose from, and by the end of the show, they pick one out of the three. It’s a quick show, 30 minutes from start to finish, but it’s effective and entertaining enough to get us hooked.
Most people who watch House Hunters get obsessed, actually. And we also know that it wasn’t a perfect system. We obviously know that house hunting takes more than just visiting three homes, so we understand that there’s a lot more that goes on in the background than we are shown on screen. However in 2012, a report fueled the fire and claimed that House Hunters is actually fake. A woman who had been previously featured on the show revealed details on how her House Hunters experience worked out.
Bobi Jensen, whose episode aired in 2006, stated that her and her husband had already picked out their home before they were selected for the show. Jensen also stated that the two other homes they visited were actually their friends’ homes. Apparently, the producers of the show already had a story pitch for the couple, regardless of whether it was true or not.
HGTV responded to any subsequent allegations about the show being fake basically by stating that they have reasons for doing what they do. According to the network, their only goal is to make a television show that will be entertaining for its viewers. They do their best to maximize production time, so they look for homebuyers that are already further along in the process. They also take into consideration the homebuyers themselves, stating that the process of home buying itself can be stressful and fast. House Hunters offers homebuyers the opportunity to relive the entire experience again minus the hassle and the stress. We get it from both angles.
We get that House Hunters is just trying to put out a good show. We also get that it might not be the most realistic thing on TV right now, and we get why some fans might be outraged that it’s not what it may seem to be. But it’s just a TV show after all, and the most important goal of a TV show is to entertain its viewers. House Hunters does that and more. It’s no doubt that the show has gone on for 19 years now. No matter what may go on in the background, all that matters is that it’s good television.
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