My First Home
By Sierra Filucci,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Newbies take the real estate plunge.
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.
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What's the Story?
TLC's MY FIRST HOME follows newbie purchasers as they traverse the exciting, confusing, and often-stressful terrain of first-time home buying. Each episode tracks the progress of a couple, family, or single person as they meet with real estate agents, loan advisors, home inspectors, appraisers, and others involved in the process. When buyers or agents use technical terminology, definitions appear at the bottom of the screen, and throughout the process, the show keeps track of asking prices, offer amounts, repair estimates and each buyer's credit score, down payment amount, and interest rate. What drama there is comes in the form of the buyers' sagas, as in one episode, when a single woman looked at more than 20 houses in St. Louis before finding one she liked. When she then found out it was in bad shape, she had to go through multiple rounds of negotiation before settling on a price both she and the seller could live with.
Is It Any Good?
For real estate junkies, especially those itching for their first home, this show is a lot of fun to watch. Plus, it may actually help would-be buyers learn some of the lingo and a little bit about what to expect from the home buying process. But kids and teens probalby won't find much to interest them, unless they have a particular (and peculiar!) fascination with architecture and ARMs. Still, if they happen to catch an episode, there's little for parents to worry about.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why shows about houses and real estate are so popular. Do you think viewers learn anything useful from these programs, or is it mostly just vicarious living? Do you feel like you have a sense of how the real estate business works after watching? Families can also discuss their own home. Do you own or rent? Is owning a home something that kids look forward to? What needs to happen in order for someone to own a home? What are the risks and benefits of home ownership?
TV Details
- Premiere date: April 21, 2007
- Network: TLC
- Genre: Reality TV
- TV rating: TV-G
- Last updated: November 4, 2022
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