VIRGINIA BEACH — A new HGTV series kicks off this week with an episode featuring a Virginia Beach couple who loves to surf and wants to buy a bargain house near the water.
“Cheap A$$ Beach Houses” premieres at 9 p.m. Wednesday.
The half-hour episode centers on married couple Jordan and Cat, who don’t want to break the bank to live by the beach. They’ve been renting inland but have dreamed of owning property closer to the ocean and have been saving up for the move.
The median listing price for homes at the Oceanfront is $649,000 as of September, according to realtor.com, the official site of the National Association of Realtors. The couple has a budget of $300,000 to $450,000.
“We’re finally in the right spot to own a home,” Cat says in a rough cut screening of the premiere.
Jordan’s a litigation manager for an insurance company; Cat’s a chiropractor. They love the outdoors, running and walking Miller, their Australian shepherd.
In the series premiere, the couple enlists Virginia Beach real estate agent and friend, Scott, who is also a surfer, to help them find a home.
Cat tells Scott she wants lots of natural light; Jordan wants an extra bedroom for guests and a location as close as possible to the beach.
“I would love toes in the water,” Cat says.
Filmed during the summer, the episode follows the couple as they surf at the Oceanfront and relax on the crowded, resort area beach. The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier and the Lesner Bridge are among the local landmarks featured.
The house hunting journey begins in the Oceanfront’s South End. They walk through a home listed at $362,000, but it has an outdated fireplace and 1980s-style bathrooms begging for upgrades.
“I don’t love fireplaces, especially when they jut out four feet into the living room,” Jordan says.
The couple and their realtor check out several more options, including a two-bedroom, one-bathroom unit in the heart of the resort area for $279,900, and a fully-renovated, 1,000-square-foot, high-rise condominium overlooking the Chesapeake Bay at $469,000. The show wraps up with the pair deciding on their favorite “cheap” house while sipping fruity drinks at Ocean Eddie’s Seafood Restaurant on the fishing pier.
Virginia Beach’s film office approved 17 requests this year including the Food Network’s Great Food Truck Race, a commercial for Adidas and “The Pirate King” movie.
“Cheap A$$ Beach Houses” will have 16 half-hour episodes. The second one in the series, airing at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, features a couple from Flint, Michigan, who head to Fort Myers Beach, Florida, to search for the ideal waterfront home at a reasonable price.
The series will be available to stream starting Thursday on HBO Max and Discovery Plus.
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com