You’d expect contractors and designers to know what they’re doing. They’re supposed to be professionals, after all! Unfortunately, there’s always the chance that when you pay to have your house renovated, you might get unlucky and hire a substandard team. Some of them cut corners to save on costs, are sloppier than a tray of sloppy joes, and have the common sense and aesthetic insights of a box of rusty tools.
DIY and home design expert, and TikTok content creator Kaitlin Mattes, @theedelweisshaus, has filmed a hilarious series of videos where she revealed how she bought a new home and eventually found out just how horribly the house was flipped. Before the purchase, she saw the home virtually while in New York to take care of the kids, while her husband was able to view the house in person, as he was already in Massachusetts. In the videos, she identifies the mistakes that were made and comments on everything with some of the most creative and polite insults we have ever heard.
We couldn’t wait to share the ‘horribly flipped house host’s’ insights with all of you Pandas. They’re entertaining but also act as a gentle warning for anyone looking into buying flipped houses. You’ll find the design mistakes she spotted in her house after moving in as you scroll down. Meanwhile, here are the links to Kaitlin’s first and latest videos in the series.
Bored Panda reached out to Kaitlin for a friendly chat about her witty video series, her new home, her aspirations, and what keeps her passionate about DIY, home design, and TikTok. “In true turning ‘lemons into lemonade’ fashion, I thought it would be a fun way to bring light to the situation we were dealing with in our home. As a content creator, I’m always looking for fun content and this was perfect!” she told us that she was having fun and had no idea that it would go viral.
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Kaitlin moved into a flipped house with her family and quickly realized that the contractors had made a ton of mistakes
Image credits: theedelweisshaus
According to Kaitlin, there is “a bit of a pandemic among quickly flipped or built homes.” She revealed that she’s gotten tons of messages from people in similar situations. Alas, she isn’t alone! “They were living in situations where cut corners caused a great deal of stress and in some cases, severe financial despair for them.” However, this doesn’t entirely mean that you should avoid flipped homes like the plague. Read on for our full interview with Kaitlin. If you enjoyed her videos, be sure to follow her on TikTok and on Instagram for her freshest videos.
Her funny and insightful videos about what was messed up in her home quickly went viral and launched her to internet fame. Here’s the first TikTok in the series
@theedelweisshaus See the mistakes made in my master bathroom #flippedhousefail #flippedhomes #homediyfails #newhome #whatisthismadness ♬ Music For a Sushi Restaurant – Harry Styles
Just a regular old roof and a gutter that butts up to the doorframe. Who even needs to live a mile from the ocean when you could just bring it? Inside your door.
Bored Panda was curious about how the home renovation has been coming along after Kaitlin, her husband, and her kids all moved into the flipped house. She opened up that the process has been slower than she’d care to admit.
“I have been pretty angry with the amount of money we bought this house for vs. the amount we have to use to put into fixing what was done to it that I can’t seem to get out of my own head. I won’t give up though. No way!” she was defiant that, in the end, they’d accomplish all of their goals.
“We love everything about where we live and the neighborhood, the schools, the community. We wouldn’t change it for the world! I believe every house has a heartbeat and I will fix this old girl up until I hear hers again. I just need a moment to decide how I intentionally design each room with love. Home takes time!”
Somewhere down the line, someone’s brain said, “Let me just buy this brand-new vanity. I’ll just cut the cr*p out of it and then we won’t make working drawers because that makes perfect sense.” Brilliant.
Despite everything that’s happened, Kaitlin told us that people shouldn’t shy away from flipped homes. “We all know that flipped homes are usually done quickly. In most cases, as long as there isn’t severe structural or electrical damage, there is no reason to walk away from a home that is in the perfect location,” she noted.
“Cosmetic issues can always be fixed and even in your dream home, there will always be something you need to change! There’s beauty in learning new skills along the way. Think of a home as a person, are you going to be the one to love it or will someone else do it better?”
Bored Panda also wanted to learn more about Kaitlin’s TikTok roots. We wanted to hear more about how she first got started with making and posting videos on the platform.
“I started out just to share some before and after shots of my home out of sheer boredom. Now, I have a place to share my weird, theatrical self, my multicultural family, and talk about parenting through depression! It’s amazing how many strings of relatability we can find as humans to each other. The world can feel so big yet TikTok and all other platforms help us feel so much more connected.”
I’m really trying to come in at an angle so you guys can really get an idea of the hill I’m talking about. That’s a straight up toe-stubber. Yep.
Kaitlin shared what keeps her passionate about creating content on TikTok: “I’ve been doing this a long time and the DIY/Home Design community of women out there slinging power tools is just amazing. There is no other field I’d rather be in. I’m so inspired and have grown immensely as a human over the past several years due to the friendships I’ve made from like-minded creators and followers, who are now friends, alike!”
The DIY and home design expert told us that she hopes that the people watching her videos will be able to see through her satire and realize that she shares in their frustrations.
“If I ever get the opportunity, I would love nothing more than to find a way to get to some of my followers and help them find the courage to fix some of their own horribly flipped issues. I feel for those who spent more than necessary during the real estate crisis and perhaps don’t have the means to fix what was left for them or the know-how. Finding a home’s heartbeat, one home at a time!”
(PS—You can find the links to all of Kaitlin’s awesome TikToks underneath each screengrab in the list. They’re a lot of fun to watch, be sure to check them out.)
They went for the unfinished farmhouse look with this beam, which they also couldn’t possibly finish and left about four inches there.
Maybe the best part is, is that they didn’t tile correctly and the grout is coming out and we’re gonna have to replace these. Well, me. And they are actually moving.
So I was trying to enjoy my coffee in the room across the way here, and I happened to look over at the island and saw this and I thought, wow, that looks really crooked. Maybe I just need more coffee. I just went on to get my level. Let’s measure this together, shall we. Do you see that? How hard is it to make something level? Something called levels. They’re great tools. They help you make things straight, huh?
Kaitlin and her husband, parents to three children, bought the flipped house in Cape Cod in Massachusetts, where they moved to from upstate New York. They hope to renovate the house slowly over time so that it can match their expectations.
They were looking to make the move a year ago, but they ran into some difficulties. The property market was in a very bad state: interest rates were rising, and would-be buyers were overpaying, and waiving contingencies and inspections just to secure a home.
The family was pressed for time, so they opted to buy their current home, only asking for an ‘information only’ inspection.
The house was fine in terms of potential structural and electrical flaws. Kaitlin had remained in New York to stay with the kids and saw the home virtually. Meanwhile, her husband, who was living in Massachusetts already, was able to view the home in person, and was present for the inspection.
There was a wet spot on our ceiling and then all of a sudden, a second one. What in the muffled motorboats are we supposed to do with this nonsense right now? Hurricane’s really pushing it. Yeah. Well, at least we found where the water’s coming from.
Kaitlin took her frustrations out in video form, showing that a heavy dose of good humor can help turn even a headache into a place full of potential. She is incredibly optimistic that she’ll be able to bring out the house’s full potential with care, attention, and lots of DIY.
Previously, we covered on Bored Panda why some contractors are completely awful at doing quality work. There are several possible reasons for this.
First, they might simply not be good at their jobs. There are tons of hard-working and talented professionals out there. But it would be naive to think that everyone is skilled, diligent, and willing to go the extra mile.
Secondly, the contractors and designers could be misinformed and might have a completely different interpretation of what their clients want. In other words, there might be some miscommunication wreaking havoc here.
And finally, they might cut corners in order to save money and have bigger profit margins. Usually, it’s a combination of the three, in different proportions, that leads to disastrous renovations.
I don’t mind a pathway to the door. However, putting stones directly on top of grass does us no good. And whoops, looks like you missed a few, you flip-flop. Let alone they’re uneven. Too far, spaced apart, and it’s uncomfortable to walk on. No good.
Wouldn’t it be nice if the cupboards actually had handles where they’re supposed to be? This cupboard is upside down.
I’m down with a good trim paneling here, that’s all fine and dandy. And actually this wall looks all good, rectangle, rectangle, rectangle, we know our shapes, and then what in the hell did you do here? Two squares. Could we not figure out the measurements to keep it the same?
In some cases, contractors might not have access to the materials that they need, so they opt for (cheaper) substitutes. They might want to use up the materials that they have stored somewhere, for example. Constant communication with the team is vital if you want to avoid major mishaps. But also keep in mind that some minor mistakes are impossible to avoid: no house flipping is ever ‘perfect.’
I’m gonna ask you to dig deep now and find out why you chose violence and who hurt you, potato chip, because this is not okay.
Typically, I like to leave any leftover paint inside of a can. However, these ‘flapping curtains’ decided to leave it on the driveway for us, and my neighbors officially think I’m psycho stabbing at white globs all over the driveway.
This massive slam. It literally sounded like the oven just got up to run out the door. I am terrified. It was so loud and I come in the kitchen thinking I’m gonna find something scary and look, oh, isn’t that lovely?
And I look a little bit further and you know why, these ‘potato chips’ did not grout anything under here. They literally just slapped it on. I can’t.
However, keep an eye out for contractors who maliciously cut corners. One red flag to look for is someone who uses materials that aren’t fit for the purpose. For instance, a big no-no is using non-weather-resistant woods (e.g. ash, oak, pine) outdoors.
In general, the more you know about design, DIY, building, and architecture, the more you’re likely to notice when things are going wrong. It’s also something that you pick up through life experience. Learning who to trust to renovate your home falls into that category.
Entering into our primary bathroom, not only did you do a wonderful job on your tile cutting, we’ve got already water damage on our sheet rock.
“Worm children” have figured out that these are the butt holes of our stairs and they filled them with Legos and rocks. This morning I found granola mixed in with yesterday’s buggers.
We see a normal vanity cabinet. What in the Gray Poupon has this ‘shoe’ done to the cabinet? This is horrific.
No house is ever ‘perfect’ or truly ‘finished’—they’re all works in progress. It depends on each family what interior design mistakes they’re willing to put up with. Some small mistakes even give the home a unique, charming character. Others might propel you to internet fame, as you vent about them on TikTok.
I could see behind the toilet that there was actually wallpaper. You cannot paint over wallpaper.
This nice little modernish awning that they put on. It’s cute. I like it actually.
Well, let’s dive in deeper. So it’s held up by three brackets or is it? Okay, so it’s not hanging on by anything there. Great. Can’t learn about studs if you’re not one. And I’m sure one of these days I’m gonna be inside of this giant bear trap. Thanks a lot.
It’s actually not hard. It’s basic math. You spoons. Could you not have figured out a half an inch to each square to make it all the same?
Here’s the thing, hazelnut, how is it so hard to use joint compound but also finish your work.
Certainly couldn’t be bothered to put a cover plate on that, you fermented pickle.
Note: this post originally had 40 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
