Original subtitles

[seagull cries]

[joyful, tropical music playing]

[engine revving]

[Jonathan] Are you taking Parker to Taekwondo?

Parker is crushing it at Taekwondo.

He's three years old.

You and I didn't start karate until we were seven.

You know Charlie's doing Taekwondo, right?

Oh, that's right.

-[Jonathan] He loves it. -[phone chimes]

-You missed a call from Sarah. -Oh.

-Can you check it for me? -[Sarah] Hey, Drew.

It's Sarah calling.

We had a family reach out about needing some help.

They lost everything in the Eaton fire, and they're

in temporary housing right now, urgently looking for a home.

The budget is good. It's $1.3 million.

They have a house in mind that has an ADU, but they would need

to turn it into a short-term rental to cover the mortgage.

If there's any way you and Jonathan

could squeeze in a viewing at the house,

that would be amazing -- thanks.

[Jonathan] That's awful.

So many of these families just feel absolutely hopeless

because not only have they lost their home, but they've lost

everything in it. -I mean, I'd love to help them.

I think we can get over the next couple of days, right?

Let's get it done.

[main theme playing]

[gentle music playing]

-[Jonathan] Hello. -[Carin] Hello.

-What's happening, guys? -[Carin & AJ] Hi.

[Jonathan] How's it going?

-AJ? -AJ.

[Drew] Hey, how are you? Good.

-Hi, Carin. -[Jonathan] What's going on?

-Carin, nice to meet you. -[Drew] So this is the house?

[Carin] This is the house.

And you've seen this house how many times?

-[Carin] Twice. -Twice?

We'd like to see what else there is too, but I, you know,

it was definitely something that we wanted to revisit.

[Drew] I looked up the listing just to kind of know the area.

This is now listed at low 1.2's, right?

-[Carin] Mm-hmm. -So it's listed

below the average sell price

in this neighborhood at both times.

Whoa, wait, wait. There it is.

-[Carin] Yep. -[Jonathan] Is that why it didn't sell?

-[Carin & AJ] Probably. -[Jonathan] OK.

But for you, is that a good thing because it's bringing

the price down? -[Carin] Yes.

[AJ] We started searching for a house about 10 months ago.

We had a couple places we really liked

and got outbid... -Yeah, yeah.

...and, you know, it's like we're going hundreds of thousands

of dollars over asking price, and...

I'm really sorry about what happened with your house

in the fire, but is it changing what you're looking for?

Yes.

[exhales]

January 7th, the Eaton Fire,

um, took our rental. It was terrifying.

And I think of,

um, what does a life-or-death situation look like?

-Yeah. -And that was probably

the closest that I've ever --

yeah, it's definitely the closest I've ever been

in my life. -[sirens wailing in distance]

[AJ] Embers the size of, like, tennis balls are flying.

And at that point, like, I wasn't really thinking of...

"Oh, we're gonna lose our house."

It was like, "OK, let's survive and get out of here."

I just remember AJ waking me up and saying, "It's gone."

[sniffs]

[voice cracks] And just realizing everything is gone.

[sniffs]

[Jonathan] Sorry to hear that, you guys. It's just heartbreaking.

Zoe lost her family home of 42 years in the Palisades fires,

and her parents lost every single childhood memory.

You know, it's rough.

Um, yeah, I lost all my work.

-So, like -- -All my hard drives and all my work.

More than -- yeah, so that's what she does.

She's a photographer for a living.

And now we're in a temporary rental, and... -[Jonathan] Yeah.

Definitely, I feel like I'm camping sometimes.

You know, like life in bags puts a little more pressure

to really need to secure someplace to move to.

You know, we'll discuss as we look at this,

and we're gonna show you some houses as well... -[Carin] Mm-hmm.

...that I think the big thing to think about is you either really

stretch and find a way to spend a little bit more in a home

that you can grow into... -Mm-hmm.

...which is a good financial strategy,

if you can handle it.

The other option is find something that's comfortably

within your means.

And if you find that, then you don't have to feel

like you're stretched, but then you know at some point

in the future, you're probably going to have to move again.

I'm not sure if we're up for moving again.

-You have two kids? -Two kids.

-Well, they're grown. -They're adults now.

Free! You're free!

[Carin] That's the other thing.

The houses that we looked at years ago, we now can downsize.

What is it about this place you love?

It has some character.

Um, we did like the convenience of the neighborhood a lot.

[AJ] The more time we spent in Highland Park,

there's a bit of a nightlife. There's restaurants.

[Carin] It's easy to get to from everywhere,

which I really liked.

[AJ] It's still close to your dad.

It's closer to my parents.

And Dodger Stadium's right down the street.

[Carin] Super close to Dodger Stadium. That was a big thing.

I think Jonathan and Drew can help us a lot just by, um,

helping us open our eyes to more possibilities.

One thing that we really liked about this place is

the potential for a short-term rental.

There is an apartment downstairs.

Oh, it's already a functioning apartment?

-I'm not sure how functioning it is, but there's a space. -Well...

Where's the access to that, is it...

It's through the front door.

You can decide who's good cop, who's bad cop.

-Let's take a look inside. -[Drew] Yeah.

[AJ] Upstairs is the main living area.

This is sort of like a common area for the renter?

Yeah, there's a lock there, and then a lock on that

back door. -[Drew] Oh, that's -- OK.

And if that locks and this locks,

who gets to use this?

[Carin] That would be where we'd put AJ's office.

[Drew] I mean, as far as an office would go, this is a good size.

Is there anything you lost that's sort of irreplaceable?

The first time I cried after the fire was -- I realized that

I'd lost my entire Dodgers bobblehead collection.

He said, "My bobbleheads."

And I went --

At first, I was like -- but I realized how much

that meant to him.

You know, so I didn't, you know, give him any grief saying,

or anything else, but, you know, it was his...

It was -- I guess it was symbolic of,

like, the...of everything.

[Drew] Well, I'm sorry to hear that you guys have to go

through that. We collect as well.

I mean, we collect medieval armor and swords, and I know

what it means to me if you're losing a passion

that you've had as a hobby or a collection for years.

Would this work for you as an office?

This would totally work for me as an office.

-Should we keep going? -OK.

[Drew] I was trying to figure out how we could reconfigure

so you don't have to share an entry with your tenants.

-Yeah. -But --

You could put a door right here.

-But then, they would -- -Oh, but then there's the garage.

-The garage, right? -Yeah.

I guess the door could just be here then, right?

I know, but you're still sharing one area.

It would be nice not to have them at all in the same space,

but now I'm seeing your back area is up five steps.

-Yeah. -You're [bleep].

-Yeah. -[Drew] All right, yeah.

[Jonathan] This is a short-term rental.

-[AJ] Correct. -[Carin] Yes.

[Jonathan] Oh, look at those cabinets.

It's got a retro flair. Oh, it's a fridge.

-I don't think you wanna -- -Yeah, no.

-Oh, that smell. -[AJ chuckles]

I mean, I think all of this will have to probably go.

[Drew] Well, especially if you're trying to rent this out.

[Jonathan] The bathroom's a very tricky space.

[AJ] The shower is the size of, like, an RV shower.

[Jonathan] Bedroom, pretty standard size room.

It's not huge, but it's not tiny.

[Carin] I mean, I think it has potential.

It's just kind of dark down here.

[Drew] If this is a rental, you don't wanna overspend on it, right?

-[AJ] No. -The whole point is to help save

and offset your costs, not spend more on it.

And did you look up what this would rent for in this area?

[AJ] 150, 200 bucks a night.

[Drew] You're wanting to have a short-term rental ADU because

you wanna help offset some of your mortgage costs, right?

-Correct, yes. -[Drew] OK.

What is your budget, by the way?

-What's your max budget? -1.3.

Is 1.3, though, stretching you right to the max?

-It's taking us to the... -It's -- yeah.

Yeah, between that and college payments, yeah.

So, like, would you also consider just getting a house

that's a little cheaper or something maybe a little smaller

that could work with you without the additional tenant hassles?

I'm definitely open to see what's out there.

Have you ever had a short-term rental before?

-[both] No. -It's a lot.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing, because you can actually make

more money with that than a long-term, but there's a lot

more work because of the turnover.

I mean, we do have adult children,

and when they come to visit, it would be nice

for them to have somewhere to stay

and not be all on top of each other.

[Drew] You're gonna have to spend a bit of money to make it look

appealing enough that people would wanna stay here, right?

Is this where most of the work would have to happen,

or is upstairs in rough shape?

Upstairs seems to be fine.

-Yeah, downstairs. -[Jonathan] Oh, that's good.

This is most of the work, for sure.

[Drew] I like hearing that.

♪♪

Oh, I can see the beams have been painted.

Look up here. This is nice.

♪♪

[Drew] This gives me more confidence with this house

because there isn't a lot of obvious stuff to fix up here.

I love the high ceilings. I like the beams.

I think these fixtures are fun.

[Drew] How much of your budget are you wanting to spend

downstairs on renovation?

You can probably get this for $1.2

or just a little over that. -[both] Mm-hmm.

So $80,000, whatever takes you to $1.3, that's it.

-We can go a little over. -We can go a little bit over.

[Drew] OK -- is there any work done outside?

-[Carin] No. -[AJ] No.

♪♪

-[Jonathan] The Tiffany blue. -[Drew] Wow!

Obviously, nothing has been done here.

It would be really hard to do anything more than just

adding some plants back here. -[AJ] Right.

What would your dream be back in this area?

[Carin] What we want is to be able to bring people outside.

Friends and family and hang out, watch a game.

That's something that we -- we like to do.

[Drew] I think this is a great house for a lot of pluses.

Obviously, with the train right behind,

there are some negatives and the basement needs

a lot of work to have an actual functional suite

that people will want to rent.

[Carin] Right.

I would love to see the rooms,

if you don't mind, we'll just poke our heads in the rooms.

-Yeah. -Sure.

[Drew] But I think this is an amazing house.

It has opportunity.

[Carin] Fantastic.

Oh.

It's big.

Aesthetically, I get why they like it.

It feels move-in ready.

It feels like it's everything that aesthetically they want.

There are little things here and there that are not great.

I feel like we can get something where they don't have

to deal with the renter.

[Drew] I wanna show them a house that has a separate ADU

because I feel if they didn't have to have the hassle

of a short term, just to make a bit more money,

and they could get a really solid long term tenant,

but a separate unit from your house,

I think that would be better.

I'm not necessarily disappointed that they didn't

have a positive reaction to the space, but I think,

um, you know, not everyone has our kind of, um...

-Quirkiness? -Quirkiness.

-Feeling for this neighborhood. -I do like this place a lot.

I think that it has so much potential, but I also need

to see some other places just to see if there is anything out

there that they can find for us and what else is out there.

Right.

[joyful music playing]

[Jonathan] OK, guys, check it out.

-First thoughts? -[Carin] It looks cute.

-Potential. -Yeah.

[Carin] It's nice.

[AJ] It's different than what we've been

looking at, but...

[Jonathan] You have three parking spaces.

But when you look out here,

so we're still Highland Park.

You have good access. Freeway's just over that way.

So, I mean, as far as convenience,

I'd say this is just as convenient as the other place.

Right. Question -- is there...

opportunity for income properties?

Is there an ADU, guest apartment,

anything like that here? -No!

Just checking.

[Jonathan] That's why I'm showing you this place.

Unless you wanna rent out your garage to somebody.

I -- I know people that would rent it.

The reason I want you to see this place is

because you can get a little bit better of a deal.

-[Carin] OK. -It doesn't really need

much work. -[Carin] OK.

[Jonathan] And then you don't have to share your space with somebody.

[Carin] OK.

-Check this out. -Oh, wow.

[Carin] This is open. I love it.

[Jonathan] Very open. Very different...

Yeah, very different.

...entry than that other house.

I always love when there's a niche for your dining table,

and this has got lots of natural light too.

What do you think of the layout when you have the dining room,

kitchen, and living room all connected?

I definitely like open concept where you can see everything.

[Jonathan] You'll notice some weird things that they did.

Why would you put your cabinets three feet above the counters?

-Yeah. -[Jonathan] I like how you're literally moving in

and testing everything. -[AJ] I'm checking everything out.

[Jonathan] Overall, you could move in.

You could enjoy this.

-It could be totally fine. -Yep, totally.

Minor changes...

...to fix it right up. -Great entertaining.

The living room is really big.

They're not even fully utilizing the space

the way they could.

My question, does the panther table come?

[Jonathan] The panther table is amazing.

[AJ] We, uh -- we used to have a big couch.

I know.

One thing you'll notice is just a comfortable space.

When you have a space like this, you can configure it

to whatever you want. -[AJ] Mm.

And that's why I'm trying to --

I'm trying to dig through the surface layer

where you're like, "Oh, yeah. Yeah, we want a tenant."

You want a tenant,

or a tenant would be a necessity?

Like, I've been going back and forth on what it is

that we really, really want.

You know, if -- if we have an ADU with the way

the real estate market is,

and not just on buying homes, but on rentals,

Carin's dad and my parents, all of them are getting old.

[Carin] Mm-hmm.

And, you know,

what it costs to be in assisted living,

I haven't talked to you about this -- sorry.

Um...

[AJ] If we have an ADU, I'd like to have a place ideally

where my parents, her dad, can have a place to stay,

even for -- if it's six months, a year.

Yeah, these are things you need to think about.

The other house is set up with that downstairs space

that could be its own thing, whether it's for family

and friends or whether it's to rent out.

But in here, you've got, you know, three bedrooms

plus an office.

Technically, it's got a closet, so it's like

four bedrooms. -[AJ] Four bedrooms.

-Yeah. -Let's go to the office.

It'll be your office. You go first.

-Or whose office? -Are we gonna...?

Yeah. [chuckles] Yeah.

I think rental income would definitely help us out.

We've got two more years of college to pay for.

It's really, really expensive.

The idea of having income, even if it's only $1,000

a month coming in, would definitely help us out.

[Jonathan] Check out your backyard.

[Carin] Wow.

[Carin] It's got the kitchen, lime tree.

I'm hearing the freeway.

[Jonathan] Much like the other house where you have the train behind you...

-Mm-hmm. -...here you've got the freeway down below.

-It's not crazy. -[Carin] No.

And you don't hear it inside,

but you do hear it back here. -Right.

[Jonathan] You had made a comment about how you wanted

an outdoor kitchen for hosting or when the girls are home.

This is a bonus. Check out this outdoor kitchen.

-[Carin] Oh, wow. -[AJ] I like it.

-[Jonathan] You've got side burner, a grill. -[Carin] Side burner.

[Jonathan] You can put an outdoor fridge here.

-Yeah. -I like it.

[Jonathan] Now, one thing to consider,

this house has been on the market for quite a while.

They have done some reductions.

I feel like if we play our cards right,

you could probably get this for around 1.15.

OK.

[Jonathan] Even with 50 grand in renovations,

'cause there isn't much to do, they've already done everything

that would keep you under 1.2, which means you could have

all of this for yourself, more square footage than

the other house, bigger yard than the other house,

but you don't have to share it with a stranger.

It's a lot to think about. I don't think it's that bad.

-I like this set up. -This totally works for us.

-Would you be able to...? -This bar doesn't totally work for me.

-It's a little high. -Just get higher stools.

-Could do that. -Yeah.

It's definitely different than the other house.

Drew's looking for another property to show you right now.

So, in the meantime --

Is that a competition between you two?

We're twins. It's always a competition.

[Carin] Always competition.

Continue to poke around, kick the tires.

I mean, while we're here...

-Mm-hmm. -...really check it out.

Make sure this is a house that could or could not

work for you. -[Carin] OK.

-All right? -Sounds good.

[Jonathan] Whoo. -[AJ] I will mark it down

as a possibility. -[Jonathan] Good.

I'm just trying to be realistic because,

you know, these days and with their budget,

they're not gonna get absolutely everything on their wish list,

but they can get a house that they can grow into

and make changes as they want.

But right now, I mean, they could move in as is

and be very happy here.

[AJ] It would be nice just to have our own space.

-[Carin] Yeah. -[AJ] Yeah.

If we were empty nesters with a renter, it's like,

I don't know, it's like having another --

could be like having another teenager.

No, no, no.

-[AJ] Even if it is short term. -[Carin] Mm-hmm.

There's gonna be someone in our house.

[soft music playing]

We're at the breaking point of compromise, to an extent.

I want to settle down somewhere and unpack

the few things we have and start building back a life.

♪♪

-This is the one. -[Carin] Wow, it's so cute.

-[AJ] This is pretty cool. -And it's close to my dad.

-Oh, I love it. -[AJ] This is great.

Jonathan showed you the place that didn't have an ADU.

-[Carin] Mm-hmm. -I wanna show you something that does have it.

-It's from 1910. -[Carin] OK.

[Drew] It's five bedrooms, three bathrooms,

including the ADU.

The ADU is detached.

So you can have a long-term tenant here with a dependable

rental income. -[Carin] Easy access.

-[AJ] That is a bonus. -Yeah.

You have this gorgeous little porch.

You can sit out here and watch the sunset.

[Carin] Looks really cute.

Look at the little rocking chairs.

Oh, wow.

♪♪

-It's nice. -I like this.

Yeah, this is the best we've seen so far.

[AJ] I like the size of the kitchen.

[Drew] This kitchen with an island is phenomenal.

[Carin] Mm-hmm.

[Drew] It's a small footprint.

Actually, this sofa here,

this sectional is making it feel smaller.

This is too big.

So you have a laundry, which is nice, actually.

A really big laundry room here.

Bathroom, kids' room, another bedroom.

[Carin] Oh, this is nice. Is this the primary?

-[Drew] This is the primary, yeah. -[Carin] OK, [indistinct].

-So access to the backyard through that. -[Drew] Yeah.

[Drew] All right, let's see what we got.

All right.

-[Carin] Ah, here we go. -[Drew] It's a good size.

[AJ] There's a lot of space back here.

-Your garage is the ADU. -[Carin] OK.

This is big. That's a big ADU.

Oh, wow.

♪♪

[Carin] This is large.

[AJ] I would almost move back here and rent out the front house.

No, honestly, you could make a lot of money.

What would a two-bedroom like this go for?

At least $3,000 a month.

And just imagine too, if you did move back here comfortably

and you rent out the main house, you could get

over five grand for that. -Yeah.

[Drew] This gives you options.

Something like this is pretty cool.

[Carin] Look at this.

That makes our mortgage payments much more manageable.

[Drew] What do you think about

the difference between having to...

spend extra money to renovate a place to get it ready

or to be able to start renting it out right away?

That's really an attractive option.

-This place listed 1.39. -OK.

-But no renovation needed. -Let's put in an offer.

-Oh. -Oh, was that...

-Do you wanna talk about it? -[Carin laughs nervously]

Are you OK? Do you like it?

I love it, but I think we need to discuss the numbers.

Is it realistic?

Can we talk about it for a second?

-Yeah, you want me to step out? -Yeah.

Yeah, yeah, sure, go for it.

-[AJ] Do you love it? -[Carin] I do.

[Drew] This is a tricky one because they're gonna have to add

a lot more money, and that's a really tough

pill to swallow, so...

There's a lot that I love about this that could work for them.

In fact, they could even live comfortably in that

ADU, make a lot more money.

Every month, they could make almost double

off the main house.

The idea of not having to deal with tenants, like the house

Jonathan showed them, that's awesome.

But at the end of the day, I think this is the best bet.

In my mind, this is the best bet.

[AJ] The numbers add up,

contingent on us being able to rent this out.

You know, this is gonna be really tight for us.

But at the same time, I want to grow roots and settle down

and, you know.

Let's make it happen.

Oof.

I'm feeling nervous for them.

[door knocks]

-[Drew] Am I good to come? -[Carin] Yeah.

-[AJ] Yeah. -[Drew] Yeah?

So...

We think we wanna put an offer in.

[Drew] OK.

Take a couple of deep breaths, because

this is gonna move very, very fast.

[both] All right.

This is a place that's move-in-ready,

and it's in a neighborhood that we wanna be in.

It's got the ADU.

It's got a place for entertaining indoors and outdoors.

You know, those were the things that we really wanted.

And if they throw these chairs in with it,

I think we did a good job.

[enjoyable music playing]

[Jonathan] So is this why you've been so stressed?

-This is gonna be great. -No, it's great.

And I like that we didn't have to shift it too far in.

We still have the space next to the pool.

Over there is gonna be...

Wait, is there a toilet over here too?

That's on the upper level over there.

Oh, I see. OK.

Oh, this is the agent for AJ and Carin's offer.

Ah, crap. They didn't get the house.

-Really? -Yeah, they were outbid.

-Uh, I had a feeling. -Yeah.

[Jonathan speaks indistinctly] Do you think it's feasible

that you'll find something else?

I've texted and asked if they wanna look

at some more houses. I see three dots.

-They're typing. -OK.

All right.

But it's taking a minute.

Maybe I'm getting fired.

"OK, no, uh, we need to just make a move.

Let's put in the offer on the first house."

Well, the train house, at least, has been

on the market for quite a while, so I guarantee you

we can get an even better price for them.

I think that's what excites them.

They like the neighborhood, and they know we can get

a good price on it, so they have...

And I know I can make it beautiful.

I will focus on the offer. You focus on the plan.

Why don't you help me with this first before you leave?

[upbeat music playing]

[AJ] Disappointed -- we didn't get the house with the detached ADU,

but we got...

[both] The train house.

-Yes. -Super excited.

Uh, love the neighborhood.

[Carin] You know, not only is this gonna generate income,

it's also a great place for our kids to come

and spend the night.

Now we just have the renovation to tackle, and I have a lot

of faith in the brothers that they are gonna kill it.

I feel like I'm celebrating a huge win right now.

It's been a year full of L's,

and it's nice to get a big dub, so...

♪♪

[Jonathan] AJ and Carin have made a few big decisions

on where their budget will work hardest.

AJ's office, the ADU, and the backyard.

For the ADU, they're keeping the kitchenette streamlined,

but fully equipped for short-term rentals.

A fridge, microwave,

coffee maker, paired

with a clean, modern aesthetic.

And ultra durable finishes

that look great,

photograph beautifully,

and can stand up to high turnover.

In the bedroom, it's all about looks and comfort.

Whitewashed pine slabs on the walls,

generous bedroom storage, soft lighting,

and a quality mattress for a good night's sleep

will go a long way toward meeting these guest expectations

and boosting rental appeal.

And because so much of this home's footprint is devoted

to the rental, the backyard becomes essential.

This isn't a luxury add-on, it's functional

and an extension of their everyday living space

for their friends and family.

-Cabins are all coming out. -[man] One, two, three.

There we go -- oof.

[Jonathan] All these kitchen cabinets are coming out,

but they're in good shape, so they'll be donated.

What is holding it?

There we go.

Guys, some things are just not easy.

[howls]

[joyful music playing]

-[Jonathan] Hello. -[Drew] Hey.

I'm in creative mode.

[Jonathan] We've got Dodgers stuff.

We've got rally towels. Whoo!

Hey.

Kids are sleeping. Don't rally towel in the house.

[Jonathan] Can I just say, this is amazing?

I know. I love it.

Obviously, losing everything in the fire was

pretty devastating. -[Drew] Yeah.

But this will be the start to him rebuilding that collection.

I feel we have a good grasp on the ADU,

knowing what we could do with that space. It's the office.

I'm just struggling to get my head around it,

because he wants to have a TV.

-He wants to have a desk. -[Jonathan] He asked for a sofa.

There's no way that there's a sofa going in there.

We could do a chair.

I'm trying to use this space as a reference,

'cause his is 10 by 10.

So his is pretty much the same as this.

Where is the suit and armor gonna go?

[Drew] Where are the swords gonna go?

These swords here, Jonathan and I got

when we were 10 years old.

That was what started the addiction.

Traveling Scotland,

and then we've collected more and more.

I understand AJ's desire

to replenish his Dodgers collection,

-Yeah. -...because you're the perfect example.

You are obsessed

with your collectibles and everything. -Yeah.

So I'm like, "I'm obsessed with one day

using the code that I know for your front door sneaking in

and taking your stuff." I am leaving all of this here.

-Take good care. -[Drew] Oh, I will.

[Drew] I'll just add a few to my collection.

[joyful music playing]

I mean, I don't know if I blindfold you guys

or if I just drag you in. -[Carin] I -- let's see.

Oh, wow.

♪♪

[Carin] All right, I see a lot of cool changes.

You actually have a great setup for a kitchenette.

The challenge is the furniture placement is so tight.

So we've got the electrical and everything run.

You can see we've got the sconces, wall-mounted TV.

We've got our seating and stuff as well.

It's not normal that, you know, we would have to try

and squeeze everything in, but we have a little bit more

flexibility than if this was the main kitchen of a house.

-This would be challenging. -Right.

[Jonathan] When I'm in a hotel room,

what's the most that I usually need?

Coffee maker, microwave, TV, and a small fridge.

You don't want a second kitchen with, like, full appliances.

I think it's gonna feel really good once it's all

said and done. -OK, sounds good.

Take a peek over here. You can just see the bathroom.

Again, a very, very tricky space.

Adding a half-sink allows for a larger shower.

Darker tiles and accents

give the space this visual interest

and contrast.

It'll not only look great,

but it's also easy to maintain for the next rental.

Oh, I like this use of space.

-It was very claustrophobic. -Yeah.

-Bedroom is actually... -All right.

...coming along, we've got paneling going up.

Once it's all painted out, it's gonna be really cute,

really comfy -- and this will be a whole wall of storage.

So far, no disastrous finds?

-No. -OK.

However, we've seen some real signs of lacking maintenance.

HVAC is a problem.

It has not been maintained at all.

This is what a filter should look like.

[AJ] OK.

[Jonathan] This is the filter I took out of it.

-Oh! -Much different.

This is choking out your furnace.

So you literally are not getting any airflow through this at all.

It should be like this, but it's not even just this.

The condenser on the side is pretty bad too.

Normally, you would service your HVAC unit once a year,

especially with how hot it gets.

I mean, you can look at this and you can notice

there's a problem. -[Carin] Oh, that's disgusting!

[Jonathan] Yeah, you've got like a sweater on your condenser.

So I don't think this has been done in years.

[Carin] OK.

If the motor's struggling to get the airflow that it needs,

then it just means the motor's gonna burn out quicker

and it costs you more money. -[Carin] Yes.

No, we don't want that.

-[Jonathan] No, we don't. -Nope.

[Jonathan] There's so many things within a house that

if you don't maintain it properly,

it's gonna cost you even more money,

'cause you're gonna have bigger problems.

You have to have someone come at least once a year

to check out your HVAC, but

I think homeowners can do a great job of

most of those things.

[gentle music plays and ends]

[gentle music playing]

[Jonathan] Obviously, important space for you guys.

You were saying you wanted something that's gonna be like

an extension of the indoor entertaining space

for when your daughters are home

or when you have friends over.

-[both] Exactly. -[Jonathan] Need to figure out,

what all are you looking to put out here?

-[Carin] A smoker, a pizza oven. -[AJ] A smoker, a grill, and a pizza oven.

[Jonathan] Oh wow, so you got a lot.

[Carin] Are we being too ambitious?

I mean, you guys are asking for a lot of things

that are expensive. -[both] Mm-hmm.

So in order to have this space fit your budget,

you're gonna need to put in some sweat equity.

I'm all for that.

Can you deal with the spiders while you rip out

some of the old vines? -Yes.

[Jonathan] And just yank the whole thing like this.

-[Carin] Oh, OK. -[Jonathan] You don't even need to cut it.

Anybody who wants spiders, come over here

and do this part.

-[AJ] Oh, yeah, look at this. -[Carin] Oh.

-[Drew] For the wall... -[Carin] OK.

you obviously can't just paint over top of this,

so you're gonna take a little bit of sweat equity

to get rid of all the little bits of the vin-age.

-All right, sounds good. -All righty.

-Thank you. -Have a good one.

-Spider! -Oh -- [gags]

[Jonathan laughs]

Oh, look, we only have the rest of this whole thing to do.

[AJ] That's terrible.

-This sucks. -[both laugh]

Well, you know, we said we were willing to get our hands dirty.

[Carin] Oh, that color's gonna look so nice!

♪♪

[AJ] You know, the smile I have on my face isn't indicative

of how I feel about the work.

It's -- it's more of like, "OK, God, I'm done for the day,

and I can go get a taco or something right now."

Not done, but um -- but we see progress.

-We see progress. -We put a dent.

We put a dent in the work, and it feels good.

[upbeat music playing]

When it comes to having a place where you have people coming

through, a lot of foot traffic, everything, though it looks

good, should be bulletproof.

-I agree. -Yes.

So a rug or some carpet does break up the sound,

so it doesn't sound like a hollow box.

What I think we could do is get a rug that's gonna be

a low profile, something that's got commercial durability.

So all of this will wear better with high traffic.

But we need to talk about your furniture...

-OK. -...for the living area.

It does always worry me about maintenance.

You know, if you have somebody who comes in and really

scuffs it up, but this is a performance fabric,

so it's designed to stand up

to whatever a renter is gonna throw at it.

So I personally would get something in this realm.

I mean, we could go fully dark, but then I think it is gonna

start to feel dark in there. -I'm not the expert.

-I will defer to you. -I wish I could say.

Yeah, and you're not the expert, so you'll defer to me.

-I'll defer to you. -And then I'll just pick the [bleep].

[AJ] OK, perfect.

I think the design stuff that -- that Jonathan showing us is --

is great, but I'm not a designer, so...

I like it.

I never know what it's gonna look like until

it's all put together, so... -Trust the process.

Trust the process.

[rock music playing]

♪ One, two, three, hey! ♪

Did you hit the wall?

No, what? What are you talking about?

-No, it's fine. -I would have...

moy-dered you. By the way, tile looks

sweet.

Oh, you wore your matching-the-tile shirt.

Yeah, exactly.

I think this is actually gonna be great.

I will say, from my perspective, I still think

we should have done a plan

where it would have been a full kitchen.

I know it would have cost them a little bit more money.

Without a range or a cooktop,

it's not a fully-fledged kitchen.

And so this is only going to cater

to people for short term now.

Without a range or a cooktop,

it's not a fully-fledged kitchen.

And so this is only going to cater to people

for short term now.

I think with this layout, they will get cash-flow

positive faster than if they spent

all that extra money to do a larger kitchen.

That would have affected the furniture placement.

[Drew] No, don't get me wrong.

I think as a hotel room layout for short-term rental,

it's perfect. Anyway, it looks great.

You don't always get everything.

You gotta work with your budget.

[grunts]

In?

-Little things. -[Jonathan] There you go.

-Sweet. -[Jonathan sings]

[both] All right. Perfect.

[upbeat music playing]

[AJ] We've been in limbo for over nine months, and it's a pain

in the neck, and it's sad, and it's aggravating.

I just wanna get settled.

[Carin] You know, this process has been so daunting and so long.

I am finally gonna be able to refocus in my energy,

in my photography and in my art.

And -- B camera, marking.

[Carin] Being a photographer, it's been my passion.

[AJ] A few days after the fire, we drove by our place

and said, "Let's go check out the garage,"

'cause the garage was underneath our townhouse.

We wanted to grab something, you know, anything,

and 80-90% of it went into the dumpster.

But I was able to recover a couple bins of photos

that were sealed that didn't get water in it.

That just made me smile, 'cause it was the bin

with my children's pictures when they were younger

before I went to fully digital.

It was those little moments to help you get through

the hard things.

[camera clicks]

♪ Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh! ♪

♪ Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ I had a thought yesterday ♪

♪ That everything will be OK ♪

♪ As long as I make it home ♪

♪ I don't need All the silly things ♪

♪ Like silver, gold And diamond rings ♪

♪ All I need is you and me ♪

♪ I've been making My way back home ♪

♪ And everything's right ♪

♪ Everything's great ♪

♪ I'm loving my life ♪

[Drew] I was concerned that it's not gonna feel comfortable,

livable and stylish enough,

but this is absolutely phenomenal.

Sometimes you gotta kind of find a creative solution

to an awkward space.

They're gonna be making money on this right away.

[music continues]

[Jonathan] You think we should open all of these and play

with them a little bit before we...?

Ha, ha, no.

[Jonathan] This is pretty cool.

Not only does AJ collect incredible Dodgers

paraphernalia, but he also collects incredibly cute

family photos. -[Drew] They are pretty cute.

♪ Everything's great ♪

♪ I'm loving my life I'm loving...♪

-[Drew] Got the goodies. -[Jonathan] Yes.

[Drew] Everything they could want is right here.

This says "Welcome."

Information on the area, some dark chocolate,

some pumpkin spice espresso, even a loofah.

When your guests see everything beautifully curated,

it puts them at ease and makes for a better stay.

It also feels unique,

so I think it's gonna photograph better,

and I think it's gonna rent better.

This is gonna be a home run.

[Jonathan] Nicely done with the basket.

♪ Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ 'Cause I feel alive 'Cause I feel alive ♪

Oh, my gosh, yes.

It's been nine months of temporary housing.

-I'm ready to settle down. -Me too.

And I just can't wait to have a place that we have

friends over. -High five.

-High five. -All right.

Yes. Moving back and forth.

-Hey, guys. -[AJ] Oh, look at this.

-What's happening? -[Carin] Hello.

-[Drew] The big day. -Oh, my goodness.

[Carin] I'm excited and nervous.

And I know I've said excited a lot.

I can see it in your eyes.

Your brain is sort of not sure what to expect.

-Yes. -Well, this has also been a journey for you guys.

-[AJ] Yeah. -[Carin] It has -- it has.

Every day you think of something like,

"Oh, yeah, no, that burned in the fire."

Yeah.

The big thing is having a place.

-Having a place to call "home" is gonna be huge. -Incredible.

You're being positive. You're looking at your future.

But I think once you get in here,

you can start getting that short-term rental going.

-[Carin] Mm-hmm. -I think you're gonna start

to see light at the end of the tunnel.

-Very cool. -I'm so excited!

-I'm excited for you. -Awesome.

Let's go. Let's look.

[Carin] I keep saying "excited."

Guys, let's say it one more time together.

-OK. -[all] Excited.

[Drew] All right, let's get inside.

[Drew] All right, check out your office.

-OK, here we go. -All right.

Wow!

Yes. Look at this!

[Carin] Oh, my gosh!

♪♪

-This is awesome. -Oh, look at the pictures.

This is incredible.

Oh, we even got Olly. See? Favorite child.

-Yeah. -It's not a big space.

We were trying to cram a lot into a small area without it

feeling cramped, and I feel it's still pretty spacious.

-[Carin] Mm-hmm. -[AJ] I love how big the desk is.

Let me just start off by saying, obviously, you've been

through a lot, lost all of your memorabilia.

[AJ] This is fantastic.

This is way more than I could have ever asked for.

-[Carin] Yeah. -[Jonathan] Not meant to...replace,

obviously, the important collection you had,

but hopefully this will spur a new collection. -This has -- yes.

This is a great, great, great start.

I'm looking at something just like, "Oh, this is fantastic."

[Carin] Yes -- this is so cool.

[Jonathan] Would you say that this is a home run?

-[AJ] Grand slam! -[Carin] Grand slam.

[Drew] Do you wanna see your rental suite?

-[Carin] I do. -[AJ] Yes.

-Oh. -This looks great.

Look at this!

[joyful music playing]

[Carin] Oh, my gosh, there's my artwork.

I'm not shy, but I never really display my work.

And to see them up just, um, it's making me tear up.

This is -- yeah, these are -- these are all your pictures.

What is it that makes you tear up?

This is beautiful. It's incredible.

It just brings me so much joy.

You're so talented, and to be able to see it up is awesome.

[Carin] I mean, what you did with the space.

'Cause I was wondering, how are you gonna have

seating and a dining area?

[Drew] Why don't you check out the bench?

I mean, here we have four of us can easily sit around

this table comfortably.

[Jonathan] You wouldn't think that you could get a kitchenette,

a built-in banquette, -[Carin] Yeah.

a living area with a TV,

all of this stuff into this space.

When I was trying to envision it, I couldn't...

-[Jonathan chuckles] -...without it being awkward.

And you guys really nailed it with still having everything

that you need and it not being overwhelming anywhere.

-It's perfect. -Mm-hmm.

This is gonna just wow anybody who comes here

and stays here. -[Drew] Yeah.

[Jonathan] And even the bathroom.

I mean, you remember the size of it, right?

-This has the shower. -[AJ] Wow!

-Oh, my gosh. -Oh!

How did you guys do this?

It's gorgeous.

[Carin] And this tile is so pretty.

-[AJ] This looks great. -[Carin] Absolutely gorgeous.

-This looks fantastic. -And functional.

[Jonathan] Could it get any better than this?

-No. -[Jonathan] Check out the bedroom.

-Oh, my. -[AJ] Wow!

-This is awesome. -This is insane!

[Carin] Oh, my gosh. It's so pretty.

These people get a lot of closet space.

I'm jealous right now.

They have more closet space than I do.

This is a room that's gonna

photograph so beautifully for your rentals.

And this whole rental suite is helping you offset some

of your expenses for the property,

which is allowing you to get back on your feet.

This did take away from the space

that you could use for yourselves.

And so that's why we were talking about

that back patio area. -Let's check it out.

That's our space. I know.

Let's check it out.

[joyful music playing]

Oh, wow. Look at the kitchen.

-Yes! -[all laugh]

That's what I've been waiting for.

-Yes, the kitchen! -[AJ] Yes!

♪♪

-[Jonathan] This was the dream. -[AJ] This is the dream.

-AJ a smoker. -Oh, look at the pizza oven.

[Jonathan] I'm jealous.

This is way nicer than my pizza oven.

[Carin softly] Wow.

[Drew] Anything you could possibly want.

-[Carin] Storage. -[Drew] Beverage fridge.

[gasps] A refrigerator. We can watch the games.

This is incredible.

[AJ] Just being able to, like, be in community with our friends

and family, and this is a space that I can see us doing that.

And you know what's great?

He's gonna cook, 'cause he's such a good cook.

So, I'm gonna get fed really, really, really well

for a long time.

I wanna point out, when we looked at your office,

you were beaming.

Then we looked at your rental space, you were beaming more.

Now you've come out here, you look like you're alive,

like you're like, "ah!" -Yeah, this is --

[Carin] Oh, this is incredible. And seating area.

[Drew] You're losing an interior space because you're not gonna

have that suite downstairs, but you're gaining this

as an actual functional livable space.

[Jonathan] Our ultimate goal here was to set you up for success,

mentally, emotionally, but also financially.

And I think you have the whole package here.

I think so.

We appreciate all of the help, the design.

It's more than what we imagined.

You found a great home here, and now you just need to fill it

with some of those memories. We'll get out of here.

-We'll let you guys explore, but congratulations again. -[Carin] OK.

-Enjoy the party. -[AJ] Thank you.

-[Carin] Thank you. -All right.

Can we be invited to at least one of the parties?

-Oh, yeah. -[AJ] Absolutely.

[Drew] See you at a Dodgers game.

-[Carin] OK. -Remember, I clean if you cook.

-All right. -Perfect.

We have now moved six times since the fires.

To call this "home," generate some income,

host parties, I mean,

it's just a -- a nice silver lining

on a really crappy...thing.

It is a direct reflection of things I love.

I -- I think we're set up for success.