LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Home renovation shows are all the rage.
Chip and Joanna Gaines, hosts of the hit Waco-based show “Fixer Upper,” are currently on the cover of PEOPLE magazine. “The Property Brothers” (Jonathan and Drew Scott) are bickering twins who fix up and renovate homes, humorously of course, and have 20 spinoff shows of their own.
Another show not to be missed is HGTV's “Flip or Flop,” which also features a charismatic married couple (this time Orange County's Tarek El Moussa and Christina El Moussa) who guide viewers through the drama of flipping rundown homes.
The 30-minute show features the El Moussas, ridiculously photogenic parents with two ridiculously photogenic kids, who buy homes that are sometimes out of sight, then renovate and resell, or “flip.” Most of the time, the couple makes a decent amount of money, but occasionally they end up with a loss or a small profit, or “fail.”
The couple are capitalizing on their popularity off-screen by launching their own seminar series across the country that promises to teach people the secrets to success.
But CBS2's Tom Waite reports some people feel they were misled by the seminar.
“I know a lot of people there weren't happy,” Doug Stevens said.
Mr. Stevens, a Florida teacher and pastor, spoke with Mr. Waite over FaceTime. He spent about $2,000 to attend El Moussa's seminar. The celebrity couple did not show up but appeared on videotape.
“You go to a paid conference on a Friday night and they give you homework. They tell you to get a higher credit card limit,” Stevens said.
Stevens said the seminar's goal was to upsell.
“The idea is to get people to attend big conferences,” said Stevens, who said those conferences can cost anywhere from $26,000 to $56,000.
El Moussa's seminars are run through a Utah-based company called Zurix, and consumer advocates say people should be cautious when attending celebrity seminars.
“If you're going to put money into education, choose university or college,” said Jamie Court of the consumer watchdog.
The El Moussa family's lawyer says thousands of people have attended the seminars and given them positive reviews. The lawyer says his clients take great pride in their work, sometimes helping disgruntled customers one-on-one.
For more information on Tarek, Christina, and “Flip or Flop,” click here.