In 1970, Sarah Daniels parents bought a house in Shaughnessy for $64,000. They sold it years ago but, if theyd kept it, it would be worth $6.5 million today.
When Daniels was in the market for her own home, the seventh generation Vancouverite wanted her dollars to stretch as far as they could. That desire as well as the fact she has three dogs took her far from the neighbourhood where she grew up. But as a White Rock resident with a 2,000 sq.ft. three-bedroom beachfront home, dont tell her she made the wrong choice.
Today, her role is to push other young home owners over the I-dont-want-to-live-in-the-suburbs ledge. And its her brothers job to push them back downtown.
Daniels and Philip DuMoulin are the brother-sister team behind Urban Suburban, a successful HGTV show that eavesdrops on home-buying couples who cant decide whether they want to accept a smaller space downtown or more buying power a few neighbourhoods away. Both are realtors and the back-and-forth bickering between them is as real as the dilemma the couples on their show face.
Season Two started a few weeks ago with a Vancouver couple. They have two young children and as the kids grow up, their two-bedroom condo will grow too small. She wants to stay downtown near her friends and favourite haunts; he wants a house with a yard. Daniels makes the pitch for a house in Port Moody; DuMoulin steers them towards a duplex in Riley Park. They compete to see who can win the battle between urban and suburban.
On the show, and in real life, Daniels shoots from the hip. A former Global news anchor, she has an ease on television thats only made stronger by a no-holds-barred personality. Her brother is a bit more gentle hearted, but this season, she says, expect to see more drama between Daniels and DuMoulin and the couples themselves. In the first season Philip feels he was thrown under the bus verbally so this year hes upping the ante, says Daniels during an interview at the Opus hotel, one of her favourite downtown haunts. And when it comes to the indecisive couples, expect a few tears and door slamming this year.
While some aspects of the show need careful planning, Daniels says nothing is scripted. What you see is what really happened. She is indeed as blunt in real life as she is in the show but thats more of a Canadian trait than some people expect. Canadians can be bulls in a china shop but we clean up after ourselves.
House hunting tips
Sarah Daniels is, um, forthright when doling out advice about what home to buy. Thats why her Urban Surburban fans as well as her real-life real estate clients love her. Here are some of her tips:
Dont listen to your friends and family. One woman was constantly consulting her mother. Your mothers not living with you so I dont give a rats ass what she thinks.
Buy for five years, not two years. With the cost of realtor and legal fees, as well as taxes, chances are youll only break even if you try to sell too soon.
Buy the most property you can and dont go for the lure of unnecessary finishings. If youre worried about what your friends might think about your kitchen, you shouldnt be buying a house; you should be getting your head examined.... If you buy something all tarted up, youre paying for someone elses fix-ups.
Dont fall in love with the bling. Put your money into the neighbourhood and the house. What you need is a house with good bones, not a kitchen with a new granite kitchen top.
When asked what advice she can give to couples about how to resolve their differences between whether to go urban or suburban, she said, Rock, paper, scissors.
Urban Suburban airs back-to-back episodes Tuesdays at5pm on HGTV. You can also watch them online at HGTV.ca/urbansuburban/. If you love your neighbourhood you can also join their photo challenge on the Urban Suburban Facebook page.
