HGTV’s CHEAP OLD HOUSES Stars Talk Hacking the Housing System

Published: May 17, 2024

HGTV’s CHEAP OLD HOUSES Stars Talk Hacking the Housing System

By Movieguide® Contributor

HGTV stars Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein of the show CHEAP OLD HOUSES recently spoke with Fox News about how people can “hack the housing system.”

“I think if I were a candidate, I would be focusing on looking at ways that we can help regular homeowners look at fixing up cheap old houses,” Ethan said. “We are in the business of cheap old houses, we fix up old houses, and we do it on HGTV. We can’t wait to show people how to kind of hack the housing system to create real estate…that is more affordable. Right now, people are struggling and it’s a very difficult economy, and inflation is quite high, mortgages are quite high.”

Today’s economy and housing market have been a struggle for many. An article by Redfin explains the current state of the market.

“The housing market slumped because of sky-high housing costs. The median U.S. home-sale price is up 4.7% year over year to a record $386,951, and the median monthly mortgage payment is sitting at $2,858, just $26 shy of the all-time high set in April,” Redfin reported.

“But affordability is starting to improve a bit: Daily average mortgage rates have steadily declined since the start of May, and this week’s slightly softer-than-expected inflation report sent rates below 7% for the first time in over five weeks. And 6.3% of home sellers are dropping their price, on average, the highest share in a year and a half, which may mean price growth loses momentum soon,” the outlet added.

Despite today’s economic challenges, the Finkelsteins still find ways to make the best out of older and more affordable houses.

“All houses need maintenance. New houses need maintenance, old houses need maintenance,” Elizabeth told Fox. “I would rather work on a house that’s built with old-growth wood and solid materials that can be repaired and can be worked on over time versus newer homes that are often built with subpar materials which, quite frankly, are also unaffordable at this moment.”

The couple’s HGTV show is inspired by their Instagram account that features cheap, old houses from around the world.

“When HGTV fans told us we needed a show with Ethan and Elizabeth, we listened because we understand how easy it is to fall into the rabbit hole of hunting for cheap old houses,” said Loren Ruch, group senior vice president, programming and development, HGTV. “Everyone will be astounded by the incredible, inexpensive property treasures that Ethan and Elizabeth find and they also may be inspired to buy a cheap old house of their own.”

CHEAP OLD HOUSES sees “Historic-home experts Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein help homebuyers find old properties sold at ridiculously inexpensive prices. Then they restore these architectural gems to new glory.”