This Charlotte-area home competed for HGTV’s ‘Ugliest House in America.’ Take a look inside
Editor’s note: The South Carolina home did not win — but stay tuned for further updates. We all still have a lot of questions.
HGTV’s “Ugliest House in America” recently made a pit stop in the Charlotte area, where host Retta toured what she called “the never-ending scariest treehouse of all time.”
During the show, Retta, a comedian and actress, travels to “15 horrendous homes nominated by their owners and shares her hilarious reviews of the astonishingly bad designs, cringe-worthy layouts and sorely outdated styles,” according to HGTV.
The winner of “Ugliest House in America,” will receive a $150,000 renovation from HGTV designer Alison Victoria. The finale aired on HGTV on Monday, Sept. 4, but if you missed seeing it, the episode will re-air Saturday, Sept. 9 at 6 p.m. and Thursday, Sept. 21.
The 3,300-square-foot home first featured on the show Aug. 28 was built by the previous owner in the woods of Lancaster, South Carolina in 1997. The home was crowned the “Ugliest House in the Southeast” in the episode dubbed “The Sorry Southeast.”
Homeowner Jennifer told Retta she fell in love with the home after seeing the surrounding foliage, though she did not tour the entire house before buying. She also paid $30,000 under the asking price — but her daughters begged her not to buy it.
“I didn’t know what happened in the house until I moved in,” Jennifer said. “I’m scared to go inside after the sun goes down.”
According to HGTV, Jennifer called 911 every night during the first week she lived in the house, and her neighbors walked her inside when she came home after dark.
“My rooftop room made so much noise,” Jennifer said. “I thought it was someone trying to break in.”
“I think my house is very scary,” she added.
While building the house, the previous owner made some questionable design choices, like adding sheds from hardware stores to expand it and including four exterior doors.
In the kitchen, the previous owner installed multi-colored mosaic tile, floor tile on the counters and a small dishwasher that doesn’t work. It also features a non-functional hood.
Other amenities include a room decorated with trains, a spare bedroom with a tree growing through the ceiling that creaks at night, a swimming pool surrounded by a cage with “predator marks” on its lining, a bedroom with a reinforced ceiling and a room with a trailer door deadbolted with a dumbbell.
This story was originally published September 2, 2023 at 6:00 AM.
