Summary

Love It or List It features a family dilemma over renovating or moving, where experts help find solutions and viewers feel the resonance.

The new season introduces Page Turner alongside David Visentin, bringing a fresh and competitive dynamic to a beloved show.

The show’s enduring popularity lies in its unique blend of design and real estate, reminiscent of its inception in 2008, appealing to viewers for being relatable.

Love It or List It has been an HGTV staple since 2008. And since 2008, the concept has remained the same. A family has a home that needs help, but there’s a dilemma. One spouse wants to stay in the home, the other wants to find a new home. So, they call in the experts! The home gets renovated as they search the market for a new forever home. In the end, they either will love their home or list it. Since its inception, the show has retained the same iconic faces as the series leads. Until now. Following the departure of long-time host Hilary Farr, HGTV has enlisted a network all-star, Page Turner, to join the legendary David Visentin. Even though there’s a new switcheroo, the dynamic this new pair brings maintains why viewers continue to love it. Page and David’s newfound rivalry was put to the test when Collider spoke to them about the new generation of Love It or List It. As David put it, “I think because it still resonates with people. I think what we started in 2008 is still relevant today.”
David Visentin and Page Turner Talk Their New Dynamic

Out with the old, in with the new

After all these years, it was important to learn why viewers simply cannot get enough of Love It or List It. “I think because it still resonates with people. I think what we started in 2008 is still relevant today,” David said. “People quite often find themselves in a home they may have been in for five or ten years that they don’t know what to do. And they don’t know whether they should renovate it, will it make the difference that they want, or should they just pack their bags and move. And in this show, they get to do both.” The reality is, when Love It or List It began its triumphant run, there wasn’t a show like it. “No one was mixing design and real estate the way that this show has. It got families watching it,” David pointed out. With generations of viewers being part of the journey from the start, it was now up to Page Turner to step into the beloved franchise, something that’s not always easy to do. But she knew that it was an honor. “This is a flagship HGTV show. And this is an icon, and here I am.” referring to her new partner in crime. “It’s just been amazing.” Of course, I had to ask David how it feels to be called an icon and a staple, but before he could answer, he humbly laughed as Page stepped in to say, “He doesn’t think he is, that’s what’s crazy.” But, after he composed himself, he said, “I don’t think of myself in those terms, but I appreciate the opportunity I’ve had since 2008. It’s a privilege to work in television. The travel you get to do. The people you get to meet and work with. I feel lucky. That’s the way I feel. I feel lucky.” Now that they are the new dynamic duo, it was time to find out if they had learned something about one another. Page revealed that David is exactly who he portrays to be on TV. “I feel like I already knew him, but he has an even bigger heart. He’s actually really, really funny,” she revealed. “He’s just the coolest guy ever. Ever.” For David, he said about Page, “The first taste I got of Page was her fiestiness. But then, as we were filming, I got the heart. I got the love that she feels for the job that she does and the people that she’s working with.” He even noted that the whole crew felt the impact Page brought to the show. “She lightened up the whole set. I’m pretty kind of laid back, and she comes in with the energy. It’s really a good yin and yang.” As David put it, “She’s like my caffeine.”
David and Page Reveal the Tricks of the Trade

The duo balance one another out

While it’s unlike any other competition show on the network, as both of their missions are to help the families at the heart of each episode, there certainly is a competitive edge between the new pair. When I asked if they had any pet peeves about one another, Page jokingly said, “Only when he wins,” only to realize that David was actually thinking of one. And it was in this moment that I realized their energy and dynamic are what is going to make this new frontier exceptional. Their dynamic is truly palpable. They are both competitive individuals, with David sharing that he does triathlons. Both having immense experience in the world of real estate, they understand that competition runs in their blood. Page, for her part, has the talent to see a home’s full potential as a diamond in the rough. Well, she got it from her mother. “You know what’s interesting, my parents, where I grew up in Los Angeles, there’s this place called Hancock Park, and we used to always drive through. My mother reminded me of this, when I was five, on our way to our optical business, I would always say, ‘Oh, I want to do this to that house and that to that house.’ And I remembered driving through. And then my mother was flipping in Atlanta, from Los Angeles. And so I would always go to Atlanta with her. But it really never connected until I started flipping. I said, ‘Mom, this is crazy. You were doing this when I was eight.’ And she was like, ‘I know honey, I’ve been trying to tell you.’ But you never listen to your parents until you become adults.” David has been in real estate for his whole life. It’s even the career his family is in. So, what’s the secret of winning over clients? “It’s getting them both on the same page. Quite often, they both have different ideas of what the perfect house is. And that is the process of showing houses,” he said. “Sometimes you show ten houses, sometimes it might take fifteen in order to get there. They don’t come in, usually, on the same page. It’s not that one wants to leave and the other doesn’t. What are they going to leave for? What is the most important thing that they’re going to think about that house when it comes time to make the decision? What’s going to push that button?”

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Image via HGTV

Before David and Page can get to work, they always do a walk-through of the homes in their natural state. And let’s just say, this new season had some houses that shocked them. “The biggest one for me was, it wasn’t even a split-level home, it was split because it had six, or seven, or eight different stairwells on one level,” Page recalled. Sounds like a nightmare to me. “It was bar none, the worst floor plan ever seen in my life,” David said. “I just wanted to hand that one to David,” Page joked. “But it turns out very interesting.” Of course, it wouldn’t be Love It or List It without some budget issues. They both slyly admitted it’s going to happen, per usual, this season. But they both will use their magic to help keep their mission in line. What is the hardest part about Love It or List It, aside from getting up early in the morning, according to David, is the divide the clients have. As Page put it, “Because one always wants to leave, that one becomes my contender. Even though I’m in this competition with David, it’s really that person who is dead set on ‘We’re listing this house and moving’ that I’m like, ‘Okay.’ So now I have to work on this person’s emotions and, sometimes, they come in a little spicy with me because they’re ready to go. That sometimes gets challenging because I’m actually here to help you.” David followed up revealing, “It’s really neighbor. It really has been, since 2008, neighborhood has been my nemesis.” It’s been 17 years since Love It or List It debuted. And it’s certainly evolved. “Her name is Page Turner,” Page proudly said as David laughed. “We are here. The evolution is complete.” As David put it, “The market goes like this. So, I guess things change a little bit. But the question’s still the same. It doesn’t evolve that much. People are still in the quandry of what to do when their house stops working for them. Prices change. Markets go up and down. But the question always remains the same. David and Page were both very excited to bring the new season to the viewers. “It’s a big change! But it’s going to be a great one,” Page promised. But there is absolutely one other thing that Page promises. There is no way she will do Rock the Block again. Not even with her new partner in crime. “Someone’s been there and done that,” David laughed. “He trusts me. You don’t need to do it,” Page said. But then when David floated for a million dollars, Page’s tune changed. So, let’s get that GoFundMe cooking to get HGTV’s newest pair on Rock the Block!