ENTERTAINMENT
‘Brady Bunch’ house sells for a catastrophic loss
Television network HGTV has sold the Los Angeles home to a superfan of the American sitcom, completing a series of big losses.
How can buying a house be considered both a bargain and “the worst investment ever”? Ask Brandy Bunch superfan Tina Trahan, who has spent “only” $3.2 million on the Los Angeles property that was used as the exterior of the Brady family home in the famous American sitcom, which ran from 1969 to 1974.
For younger readers not familiar with the show, The Brady Bunch told the story of a stepfamily with six children (three boys and three girls), taking a light-hearted look at typical teen and preteen issues.
Interior renovated to look exactly like the Brady home
The long-time owner of the house in the Studio City neighbourhood, which was built in 1959, died in 2018 after living there for 50 years, with television network HGTV buying it for $3.5 million, almost double the listed price.
The reason they were so keen to get their hands on it was due to their A Very Brady Renovation mini-series, the concept of which saw actors from the original show help renovate the inside of the house to make it look exactly like the Brady home. When the sitcom was filmed in the 1960s and 70s, a sound stage was used for indoor scenes.
One-storey house gets a new floor...at huge expense
And big changes - to the say the least - had to be made, as the house had only one storey compared to the Brady home’s two; an entire new floor, famous staircase includes, had to be built. As well as overpaying to buy the house in the first place, HGTV also went significantly over budget with their refurbishment, spending $2 million rather than the estimated $300,000.
What was the asking price for the Brady house?
The Warner Bros. Discovery-owned network have now completed a spectacular sequence of losses by selling the house to Trahan for “just” $3.2 million…42% below their asking price of $5.5 million.
The Brady Bunch superfan says she will use the house, described by luxury real estate agent Douglas Elliman as “reportedly the second most photographed home in the USA after the White House”, for charity and fundraising events, as well as a luxury rental.