Secrets That Sell

I don't know if I'd hire either of these women to represent me as a real estate agent if I were selling my house. To call them "real estate experts" is stretching things quite a bit.

I agree that the mother is annoying as all hell, with her inflection-free speech; it's like she's reading her comments off a teleprompter for the first time. Get the woman some Carnegie training in public speaking or get rid of her.

The daughter is a little more lifelike in the way she talks, but both of them seem to go out of their way to insult, demean, and berate all homeowners. I am constantly amazed that people have actually requested that they come to their homes; if they ever spoke like that to me I'd throw them out of my house bodily.

As for their comments and suggestions, yes, they are inconsistent. They tell one person to add some plants to a room, then they tell the next person they have too many plants. They suggest beige paint on the walls in one house, then complain that the next house, which already has beige walls, is too bland.

I saw one show where they went into a beautiful house that was obviously decorated by a professional, and when they couldn't find anything to criticize they started making stuff up, like move the couch two feet to the left or push the curtains to the side of the window instead of across them.

If they indeed know about real estate -- and I seriously doubt their expertise in that area either -- then that's the type of advice they should be giving, not design advice.