Nov. 25, 2020

Two Sioux Falls business owners found their first home tonight in front a national television audience on the show “House Hunters.”

Jason and Lacy Steinberg, the owners of obstacle course training program 605 Ninja, appeared on the HGTV program alongside their real estate agent,  Aaron Rietsema of Hegg Realtors.

The couple had put off buying their first home so they could secure a business loan instead. Lacy was hoping to find a newly built home within a 12-block radius in Tea, while Jason really wanted “that fun house” with room for a rock climbing wall and treehouse.

Both agreed they wanted a basement after going through last year’s tornadoes without one. And the hope was to find a house for $300,000 or less.

They toured a newly built home in Tea, a house in Sioux Falls built in 1940 and a home in Tea built in 2016.

“’House Hunters’ likes the idea of not having the same town in an episode, so they were really excited we were looking at Sioux Falls and the surrounding area,” Rietsema said.

The episode also showed the couple’s business, which is at the Western Mall in Sioux Falls, as well as shots of Falls Park and downtown Sioux Falls.

“It does a good job telling the buyers’ story, their hopes and dreams and how they (went about) looking for a house,” Rietsema said.

In the end the Steinbergs chose the existing home in Tea that was just slightly outside their desired neighborhood and had to move fast to secure it, coming in close to their budget.

“I definitely feel like I was being too picky on my location,” Lacy Steinberg said. “This is a great location.”

And Jason was allowed to add obstacles in the oversized garage.

One thing the episode didn’t show: The Steinbergs initially were thinking about building a home until Rietsema convinced them to reconsider.

“He gave us really realistic reasons,” Lacy Steinberg said. “We were dead set on building and Aaron really helped guide us into making the right decision as a first-time homebuyer. He changed our path and in the best way possible.”

The HGTV crew spent almost three weeks in Sioux Falls this summer, Rietsema said.

“They had really good things to say about Sioux Falls,” he said. “In between shoots they got to explore our town and all said it’s a beautiful town with a lot of life and a lot of options.”

Sioux Falls business owners to be featured on ‘House Hunters’ this week