Sorry, Lance Bass! HGTV announces purchase of 'Brady Bunch' house
The sale of the Brady Bunch house has had bigger plot twists than the endearing family show ever did.
The HGTV network has won the bidding on the house and will restore it to “its 1970s glory,” David Zaslav, the CEO of parent company Discovery Inc., announced Tuesday during the company’s second-quarter earnings conference call.
“More details to come over the next few months, but we will bring all the resources to bear to tell safe, fun stories with this beloved piece of American TV history,” Zaslav added.
That ends the mystery of who won the Brady Bunch house. The 2,500-square-foot home at 11222 Dilling St. in Studio City, Calif., which served as the exterior of the Brady’s residence on the iconic TV show, was for sale, and former boybander Lance Bass, of ‘NSync fame and an apparent Brady Bunch superfan, declared himself the winning bidder on Friday. He even shared with his Twitter followers his plans to make the interior — which was filmed on a studio set — match how it did on the series, which ran 1969 to 1974.
Super excited to announce they accepted my offer on the #BradyBunch house last night!!! This is going to be a fun project!
— Lance Bass (@LanceBass) August 3, 2018
Real estate dealings are notoriously tricky (more often a headache), and apparently the deal wasn’t final on the house, which was listed for $1.85 million, but saw bids in the $3 million range. A “heartbroken” Bass tweeted again to say that he lost his dream home due to what he was told were “unforeseen circumstances” — a studio that wanted the house “at any cost” swept in with a winning bid. Bass said he felt used by the seller’s brokerage company, Douglas Elliman, to drive up the cost of the house, which was reportedly also bid on by Jonathan Scott from Property Brothers.
With a heavy heart I post this… 😢 pic.twitter.com/sG8bBP142P
— Lance Bass (@LanceBass) August 5, 2018
Lance’s real estate agent gave further explanation to TMZ, saying that all bids were to be submitted on Thursday at 3 p.m. — and no bids were to be accepted after that. Bass was deemed the highest bidder — giving his offer 5 minutes before bidding closed — and the seller’s broker even sent paperwork to him to finalize the deal. However, a rep for Douglas Elliman told the website, “Our fiduciary obligation is to the seller, who decided to go with the highest, most qualified buyer.”
At first Bass was unhappy when it was revealed that HGTV is the big winner. He made clear his feelings when he wrote that he and the others bidding on the house “were in it for the right reasons,” shading the studio’s powerplay.
That’s the sad part. All the other individuals I know were bidding would have been great owners. They were in it for the right reasons.
— Lance Bass (@LanceBass) August 5, 2018
It didn’t take long for him to change his mind, as he explained in a tweet.
HGTV??! Aw man. I’d be pretty upset if it were anyone else, but how can you be mad at HGTV?? My television is stuck on that channel. Kudos HGTV, I know you will do the right thing with the house. That was always my biggest worry. I can smile again. 😁
— Lance Bass (@LanceBass) August 7, 2018
And the network posted a nice response, giving the saga a happier ending.
Aww, thanks @LanceBass. Consider yourself officially part of the HGTV bunch! Yours truly, HGTV (aka The Lance Bass Fan Club) https://t.co/m09akz1ezq
— HGTV (@hgtv) August 7, 2018
Meanwhile, HGTV is already celebrating the big news on social media. The network shared the first of several “clues” about what was to become of the house now that it’s a done deal. They promise “something groovy.” And somewhere Lance Bass is saying, “HGTV! HGTV! HGTV!”
🎶Here’s the story🎵
Guess who has a big project planned for this iconic ‘70s TV home? Watch for more clues, coming soon. pic.twitter.com/mgOqTeasRW
— HGTV (@hgtv) August 7, 2018
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