PROPOSAL FOR NEW HGTV SHOW

ENTITLED “SCALE DOWN”

THE FANTASTIC FOUR

Technical and Professional Writing 219-018, Mitchell Hall Room 116. Proposal written by
Alyssa Holguin, Amy Ruybal, Jayme Cousins, and Grace Saiz.

INTRODUCTION

Beautiful cities, popular landmarks, iconic locations, and foreclosed houses. Initiated by the
housing market crash over a decade ago, many real estate markets in prime locations all over the
US have not made a recovery. Instead, large luxury homes lie vacant and become damaged. In
Orlando, Florida for example, nearly one in every 340 homes has been foreclosed, the majority
of these being large properties. In Visalla, California that number is one in every 381 homes.
Worse still is New Jersey, where one in 605 homes has been foreclosed, many being oceanfront
homes. All over the country, several mansions like the 95 million dollar home in Beverly Hills,
or the 100 million dollar mansion in Miami, Florida have been possessed by the bank for over 7
years, with no end in sight. Meanwhile, middle-class families struggle to find homes in these
prime locations due to the cost of property. So, the empty homes present the problem of wasted
space in these popular cities. As the focus on better living and sustainability concerning the
environment becomes more critical, this problem needs to be addressed before it gets worse.

PREMISE

For this reason, we have come up with a feasible and entertaining solution. We propose a
different kind of home improvement show. Instead of making smaller homes into upscale luxury
homes, we work with the local banks to renovate foreclosed luxury homes in prime locations.
Using sustainable and repurposed materials, the team will transform them into sustainable living
spaces, like apartments or townhouses, which can house many families for much more
reasonable prices. The banks will benefit by having an actual income of money from tenants. In
addition, more active
residents will help benefit the
economy in these cities,
which have been struggling to
finally recover from the
market crash.

Through the use of

sustainable materials as
well, we can help promote
these more modern building
styles and resources to be
used by viewers all across the
country. Our main focus is
promoting better living, not
just economically or
environmentally, but personally
as well.

​PLAN

For the first season we plan to focus on luxury homes in California, more specifically San Jose,
because this area has some of the most expensive homes in the U.S.
Combining the eco-friendly materials, the carpentry volunteers, and the downsize, this will make
it much more affordable to live in such a high end area.

Step 1: Use surveys and focus groups to test the market (May 1-8, 2019)

Travel around the neighborhoods of California and explain the concept to interested parties. We
will also downsize homes into more affordable living spaces and make a TV program to show
the process. Customers will then be given an opportunity to answer some questions and give
their opinions on our proposal.

Is this a reasonable idea?

Would these apartments or townhomes be affordable for you?

Would you live in one of our downsized homes?

Would you watch the TV show? Etc.

Step 2: Gauge the consumer and financial support (May 8-13, 2019)

Use the surveys taken in the field to ascertain their opinions and consider their preferences
regarding these homes and change anything that might make customers unhappy.
Also, speak with the bank(s) to be sure everything is in order to financially support our goals.

Step 3: Fix and Develop the new tv show (May 13-August 2019)

Currently, we already have a budget breaking down every expense, from eco-friendly materials,
to the meals for the camera crew. We plan to have Chip and Joanna Gains as hosts for the show.
More importantly, there are two local carpentry businesses in San Jose, California that will be
volunteering to do all the renovations for the downsizing. Our next step is to get the deal
finalized and start downsizing these foreclosed luxury homes.

VOLUNTEERS

Our first volunteer group is “Future Vision Remodeling”.

They will be focusing on the renovation inside the homes. This business’s goals are to have
happy customers and build beautiful homes. At Future Vision Remodeling, they have the best
San Jose tradesmen to work on your project. All of their craftsmen are journeymen, meaning
they are all experts in their fields. Whether its carpentry, plumbing, or electric work, Future
Vision Remodeling is going to make your remodeling or construction project the success you
want it to be. They can handle all levels of projects from new construction to commercial
conversions. Future Vision Remodeling was established by Founders Shawn and Roy to reflect
their creative vision of bringing all aspects of the home improvement process together under one
roof. Located in San Jose, Future Vision Remodeling specializes in entire home, kitchen,
bathroom remodels, and room additions. They also take care of inspections, permits, and
paperwork.

Our second volunteer group is “Amador Construction”.

They will be focusing on the renovations on the exterior structure and landscaping outside the
homes. Amador Construction, LLC was established in 2000 by Johnny Amador.
Johnny Amador, the company’s owner, has over 20 years’ experience in the construction
industry and over 16 years of building strong relationships within the industry and with each
client. Johnny is very hands-on and personally consults with each client to ensure he meets their
needs and preferences.
Amador Construction is dedicated to an efficient, stress free project with an ultimate goal of
delivering the highest quality product to their clients.

Both of these talented carpentry businesses know how expensive it can be to live in California in
these luxury homes. We have been in constant contact with these businesses, and both are more
than happy to volunteer for this project along with spreading name recognition for future
projects.

AUDIENCE

On average, about 70% of audience members for home improvement shows are generally aged
45-58 years old. Additionally, the audience for shows looking at luxury homes in prime
locations tends to be aged 27-35 years old. However, on the HGTV network, millennials make
up nearly 55% of the viewers. By combining these two types of shows on this particular
network, we can expect to catch the attention of both of these demographics.
This allows for an increased
viewer count.
In addition, our focus on
sustainable living can draw
in the growing number of
people looking for
environmentally and budget
friendly ways of living.
This range of interest will
bring in more viewers, and
set this show apart.
 BUDGET

For our home improvement show we have concluded that the overall proposed budget is
$500,000. This includes all costs necessary to record, advertise, and release the show on the
HGTV network.

The costs are as follows: The host will cost $30,000 combined for Chip and Joanna Gaines. The
celebrity status will be important for the future of the show and for gaining interests from the
audience and demographic listed above.

The production cost is $180,000 in total which then breaks down to form a crew cost of $80,000,
meals at $20,000, gas at $30,000, equipment at $30,000, and furniture at $20,000. Within the
budget set aside for crew we will pay wages for the cameramen, lights, producers, and drivers.
For meals, the budget set aside will be used to feed the entire crew and cast including the hosts.
The gas budget will be used for the semi trucks, that we have attained by donation, to move all
equipment and materials to and from the locations necessary. The cost of the gas is $1,000 per
fill up. The budget that we have set aside for furniture is to purchase pre-owned furniture in great
condition from second hand stores like Goodwill. This will furnish each room in the house.

Next, we have prepared to pay for advertisement time, twice a week for nine weeks airing on
Mondays and Wednesdays at 6pm, costing us $425 per ad which came out to a total of $7,650.

The last cost is the materials. Since we have decided to go with sustainable materials the cost is
$35 per square foot. This cost, in total, will change when we estimate the square footage of each
individual house.

The manual labor will be completed by local companies voluntarily, as a way of advertising for
the local businesses and workers in the community. We will also utilize the customers as
potential workers to help build their own sustainable house.

If given the opportunity to move forward with our HGTV show, we have estimated that the show
in the future will lead to its own payment as the popularity is inevitable.
 As for the overall cost of the show, we have conducted detailed research and used costs of
similar shows on the HGTV Network as a format. As a result, this has made our complete
production process cheaper than most other shows that are currently airing.

The luxury homes will be borrowed from interested banks that will allow us to do the work so
that they, in the future, can rent and sell the newly designed properties. Borrowing will keep our
purchase cost nonexistent.

The goal of the show within the budget is not to break the bank and ask for money prematurely,
but to gain popularity and pay for our own production costs. Reaching this goal will allow us to
reduce the production cost HGTV will be responsible for.

Area of Cost: Actual Cost:

Host per Episode $30,000

Production in total $180,000

Crew $80,000

Meals $20,000

Gas $30,000

Equipment $30,000

Furniture $20,000

Ad Time per Ad $425 → $7650

Sustainable Material per sqft $35

Total: $500,000

*​The italicized font represents a further breakdown of all that Production entails with separate
costs.
 CONCLUSION

With our budget of $500,000, well below the standard amount spent on a ten episode season, we
intend to recreate the home-improvement genre. Few shows, if any, focus the same way on
community as we do, leaving a gap in the representation of not only HGTV, but also other
networks. We aspire to create a show filled with opportunity and learning, giving homeowners
the chance to create their own dream homes. They will learn important skills while also
providing local businesses with the possibility of new customers and press. We want to make the
communities, generally reserved for the rich, more attainable for everyone. We are all born with
talents, wants, needs, and dreams. However, opportunity is never given out equally. We plan to
provide that much more opportunity through our premise and process. The new home will cost
the homeowner almost nothing, leaving room not only for needs that were not being filled, but
also dreams that were unattainable before.