1. The problem with this asd is that we never hear the husband's objections. So we don't know whether he's a real estate coward, or perhaps is the only person mindful of the family's imminent bankruptcy! Either way, the agent's relevance is murky. Bad ad.

Posted at 4:23PM on Apr 11th 2006 by Brad Hill

2. whomever has a problem with this ad needs more to do with their time. the assumptions people are making are a leap large enough to jump the Grand Canyon. Go sell a house.

Posted at 6:17PM on Apr 16th 2006 by jeff nunn

3. The frame of the ad is that w/out a professional telling you what to do you won't do the right thing, which is called "cashtration," The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

Posted at 9:05PM on Apr 20th 2006 by chris Hudson

4. the ad is great. targets the woman (the usual instigator in buying a house) and markets the realtor as her perfect "backup". the man is coerced into the deal by the wife's arguments plus the professional standing by with facts.

it's a great ad. but it makes my stomach turn.

Posted at 10:04PM on Apr 20th 2006 by abb

5. If this woman is a manipulative bitch, then I must be a psychopathic banshee straight from the garden of Hell.

Am I the only one?

Posted at 7:20PM on Apr 21st 2006 by Big V

6. What about this woman is so extreme - calling her 'extremely assertive' amd so on. Calling her 'manipulating' is completely inapplicable too, since thry're hasving an open, frank discussion. Actually, she's serious and direct, and is answering points such as 'the kids are one and three,' which anyone with kids knows is in fact exactly when one starts to think about neighborhoods, schools, moving etc. And what about this man is wimpy? He seems unsure, but willing, even desirous of being convinced. It's strange to me how much people are projecting into this ad, especially men. She's a leader I guess, and he's not, which is simply part of the human behavorial spectrum.

Posted at 10:40PM on Apr 22nd 2006 by Susan Solomon

7. Maybe it isn't as clear in this clip, because perhaps one cannot see the expressions as sharply as the other copies I've seen of this commercial, (this one seems oddly "squished up" for some reason) but what makes the woman seem so horribly bitchy are her expressions. Which are very clear on a non-distorted copy.

That little head shake at her husband, and the way she says, "What? WHAT?" and gets in his face, as if his point of view holds no validity whatsoever.

She's making him STUTTER, for god's sake! Where is her respect for his opinions?

Let's switch this around; let's do this commercial again but put the husband in the "pro-house" position. So it's the husband confronting his wife while she has the refrigerator open and there is a male realtor on the speakerphone backing him up. The husband says, "What? WHAT?" while his wife tries in vain to explain her point of view, then he gives her a little snotty headshake at her words like she's a stupid moron for not accepting his point of view immediately.

Finally she capitulates to the wisdom of the two men and it ends with them condescendingly telling her she made a great decision. You hear the wife's voiceover during the shot of the Century 21 card, talking about how great the kitchen is (instead of the garage like the husband does here).

Maybe she starts gushing about looking forward to waxing those kitchen floors soon.

Would everyone be okay with that? Hell no! The uproar would start up immediately. And rightfully so.

If my husband ever talked to me as disrespectfully as this woman is talking to her husband, I think I'd hang up on the realtor and call a counselor to find out why he was suddenly being such an asshole.

But because it's a woman doing all this to a man, I guess that's okay. Men are open season when it comes to making one's spouse look foolish and weak.

Frankly, her attitude reminds me of the way my daughter tried to talk to me when she was 15 and wanted to go out with her friends. "What MOM!? WHAT??!!"

Here's "what":

I sent her to her room and grounded her until she learned better manners.

Posted at 5:05PM on Apr 24th 2006 by Amber

8. The most persuasive ads are mini-movies that hang together every second of the 30 or 60 they've got. This is one bad ad - inconsistent at every turn. Did anyone else notice this blue-collar couple looked rather old to be parents of babies? (aside: 40-year yuppies having babies is another story) I'll suggest the back story: 2nd marriage, for him or both. He's got child support payments, & she's pissed at being held back. "The kids are 3 & 1" crack is totally unbelieveable; it's only stuck in their to establish him as a lout. There's no motive for him giving in - unless she's hot in the sack, maybe.

I think this ad totally backfired - notice it's gone from the airwaves. "Suzanne says.." wha? Take financial advice from a real estate agent? And finally the picture on the business card. Real estate is whoredom in a suit, isn't that why newspaper ads show a picture of the agent instead of the house? What?!(squint & thrust head forward)

Century 21 & the ad agency got a foot stuck in their own bullshit.

Posted at 11:10PM on May 4th 2006 by julie

9. This ad arouses some strong emotions, therefore it has achieved something. However, it parallels a lot of stereotypes (unfortunately somewhat based on reality) about the real estate industry, that it is full of ball busting overly manicured psychological titans of financial destruction. Either way, I am feeling tense.

Posted at 1:38PM on May 25th 2006 by margalit