Florida Flipsters' Fireplace and Foam Beam Controversy

Submission 17,526

About

Florida Flipsters' Fireplace and Foam Beam Controversy refers to mass backlash levied against the house-flipping TikTok couple Florida Flipsters (@floridaflipsters) who added "German smear" to a stone fireplace and installed a faux wooden beam made of foam in the living room of their current property. The look of the fireplace was criticized as well as the installation of the foam beam in which they hung a light fixture (a move some deemed dangerous). The criticism levied against the couple centered on discourse about house-flipping in general which many dubbed detrimental to a property's worth.

Background

On March 3rd, 2024, TikTokers^[1] @floridaflipsters posted a video that documented them doing a "German smear" on a stone fireplace. The female narrator claimed that they were going for a "Cottagecore" look. Over four days, the video received roughly 6.1 million plays and 448,900 likes (shown below, left).

On March 6th, 2024, the account posted a follow-up TikTok^[2] that documented the installation of a faux wooden beam made of foam on the ceiling of the fireplace living room. The couple also installed a light fixture into the foam beam. The video started with the female narrator saying that she had to turn on TikTok's "Anti-bullying" controls due to backlash from her previous video. Over one day, the TikTok received over 2.4 million plays and 81,400 likes (shown below, right).

Online Reaction

Reactions to the first TikTok^[1] from @floridaflipsters were predominantly negative, such as a stitch posted by TikToker^[3] @aver.deedle on March 6th, 2024, who started her video by saying, "I have no respect for house-flippers," gaining over 1.4 million plays and 209,600 likes in a day (shown below, left).

TikToker^[4] @artlust posted a similar video on March 6th, 2024, criticizing @floridaflipsters by criticizing the practice of house-flipping in general. Her TikTok received roughly 285,100 plays and 15,700 likes in one day (shown below, right).

Non-viral posts about the videos were also shared on Twitter / X^[5]^[6] in March 2024.