Northeast Georgia natives Whitney and Alex Kleinert have returned to the place they call home after ten years of living in Boston to slow down from city life, be near family and bring the skills they’ve learned back to their hometown. But they didn’t come back alone— they brought HGTV’s “House Hunters” with them.
When the Kleinerts lived in Boston, they starred in season 140 episode 3, “Country Mouse and City Mouse,” of the HGTV show as they searched for a new home within the city. When they decided to return to Habersham, “House Hunters” came with to document their search for their new home.
“Every day was a new adventure,” Kleinert said on filming the episode. “The crew is super sweet and it was really cool for us to get to know the different crews that we worked with. They were long [filming] days, but fun days.”
Even with a group of strangers tagging along for their house hunting experience, it wasn’t long before they all felt like friends. Kleinert’s mother, Shawn Knight, was more than happy to extend her southern hospitality to the California film crew, cooking breakfast for them and even bringing them a Sugartopia cake. Kleinert says that over the course of filming, the crew was falling for Northeast Georgia.
“They [the crew] love Northeast Georgia,” she said. “You get backhanded comments sometimes from people, but they never said anything [unkind] about Northeast Georgia. They were like, ‘Oh my God, these mountains are gorgeous, this is so much more relaxing than California.'”
The couple’s real estate agent, Kelly Ausburn with the Norton Agency, says that while working on the episode was hard work, it was a rewarding experience.
“It was laborious but exciting,” Ausburn said. “To be part of helping the Klienerts find their way back home being my goal, but adding the Hollywood elements in the mix, was over-the-top. Everyone involved in this project was fabulous. From guidance from my broker Diane Brown to the sweet personal assistant to the set director, Zach, I could not have had a better experience.”
Kleinert said the episode was like filming a 22-minute “live photo album,” commemorating a move that brought them back to their families. Knight was also involved in the episode, and Kleinert says that her mother being on-screen with her made the episode even more special.
“We’re all super excited, especially my mom,” she says. “My husband and I are excited to see it [the episode]. It’s a cool way to commemorate moving back down here.”
She says one of the changes that stands out most, other than Alex looking at buying a tractor, is the 10-minute drive to get coffee. But she says the trade-off of seeing nature right outside her door and on her drive every day, being closer to family and making an impact in her hometown are all well worth the drive.
Kleinert says that coming back to her hometown with a “new set of eyes” after her experience in Boston and seeing how her hometown has blossomed has been an exciting experience. The Kleinert dogs are enjoying their big yard to run in, something they haven’t had, and Whitney and Alex are thrilled about the parking situation at their home.
While there is no announced air date, the episode is scheduled to run at some point next year.
This article has been updated.
