SPOKANE, Wash. – For the second time in six months, Spokane is being featured on HGTV’s House Hunters.
A young military couple flew from Japan to buy their first home.
Dane and Mindy Arnholt found out early, like many others in Spokane, homes are quickly snatched up and it made their road to home ownership a bit bumpy.
Mindy, a photographer, and Dane, a major in the Air Force, had received orders to Fairchild Air Force Base.
"It's difficult if you were here buying a house let alone across an ocean, oh by the way it's a 12 hour time difference,” Dane said.
It did not help that the homes in Spokane were going quickly.
"Trying to do it all alone when everyone here is asleep and houses are going in a day it was nearly impossible," Dane explained.
"It was like there were already offers on houses I hadn't seen yet and it's like, gosh, it was just going so fast," Mindy said.
According to Realtor.com, Spokane is ranked as a top destination for home buyers. Local realtors said prices are going up and supply is low.
"Everything was going for over the asking price, which was frustrating because you know then you have a budget in mind and you're looking online and you're like, oh well that's not really the budget we have to add 15,000 to that so it was a little tricky," Dane said.
The first time home buyers enlisted the help of HGTV's House Hunters. House Hunters follows couples and families as they search for a new home. The Arnholts flew all the way from Japan to be a part of the show.
"It was nice to have some boots on the ground. You can do everything online but there's nothing like knowing, it sounds silly but even what a house smells like, like you want to walk in and see it and feel it," Mindy said.
They ended up finding their dream home on the show. The Arnholt did need to do some renovations. So far it's looking like it was well worth the home buying journey.
The episode airs at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday on HGTV.