Leonard (Johnny Galecki, left) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons, right) on...

Leonard (Johnny Galecki, left) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons, right) on "The Big Bang Theory." Credit: Warner Bros.

When it comes to home sweet home, sometimes TV gets it just right.

And other times, the small screen is oh-so-wrong.

Face it: The titular "2 Broke Girls" couldn't afford the rent on their apartment in a trendy neighborhood of Brooklyn (if they paid the rent, that is).

So what would it cost to snag some of today's popular TV homes? And how practical are the settings for the characters who live there?

From sitcoms to dramas, check out the real-world price tags for the fictional dwellings that six hot TV shows call "home."

-- "The Big Bang Theory": Seven years (at least), and that elevator still doesn't work.

Other than that, the downtown Pasadena, Calif., apartment is a fairly realistic -- and affordable -- choice for a couple of university scientists, says Bill Podley, president of Podley Properties, a Pasadena-based firm.

What it would cost in real life: That two-bedroom one-bath in an older, no-frills building with a simple lobby and communal laundry room would likely rent from $1,800 to $2,200 a month, says Podley.

-- "Castle": Where would you live if money were no object?

For best-selling author Richard Castle, the answer is: a supercool, mega-bucks loft in Manhattan.

And while the inside of that home sweet home is actually a soundstage, the creators have gotten the details right, says Siim Hanja, senior vice president and director for Brown Harris Stevens in New York. "It reminds me of places I've seen."

What it would cost in real life: Anywhere from $6 million to $10 million, Hanja says. Typically, loft-dwellers gut the inside and create their own, very personal spaces, he says. And, with the circular staircase, the exposed brick and beams, and the skylight, "This one has some really interesting details in it," he says.

-- "Mike & Molly": This sitcom love story is also a love note to the Windy City.

And it gets the real estate right, says Matt Laricy, managing partner with Americorp Real Estate in Chicago.

The Flynn family home -- in an unidentified Chicago neighborhood -- is "like the typical bungalow that we have," he says.

"In Chicago, most of our housing was built in the late '50s," says Laricy. "Brick ranch, Georgian, bungalow and Cape Cod -- those are the basic ones." For the most part, Laricy says, you walk down the street, you're going to see these types of houses. It's pretty realistic that you could move right in and find one of those.

What it would cost in real life: "Each neighborhood is different," he says. "Depending on condition," figure $225,000 to $300,000, he says.

And now that that Mike and Molly finished off the basement as a studio apartment, add about $25,000, he says.

-- "2 Broke Girls": Granted, it's not your typical Big Apple pad usually seen on television.

It's a run-down, forgotten squat. But with a little work, that tiny, ground-floor one-bedroom apartment -- even on the outer edge of supercool New York City neighborhood Williamsburg -- would go for up to $2,000 a month, says Marta Maletz, associate broker for Brown Harris Stevens.

"There's so much demand and so little supply," she says. "Prices are pretty equivalent to the East Village and downtown Manhattan. It's crazy."

In the show, the girls are squatting rent-free. But the idea of a basement apartment that's so dilapidated, it's been all but forgotten?

Not going to happen, Maletz says. "There's no way a landlord wouldn't spend the minimum amount just to get rent out of it."

-- "Burn Notice": The loft is gone, but the Westen family home is still standing.

Clearly, this is no ordinary house.

Owned by the mother of superspy Michael Westen, his childhood home looks like a demure 1920s Florida bungalow. But in the last seven years, it has survived explosions, firefights, renegade spies, a lot of DIY repairs and a slew of guests -- both voluntary and involuntary.

If you want the real-life version (minus the garage full of spy gadgets, burner phones and that sleek, black Dodge Charger), you'd be most likely to find something similar "in the eastern portions of Miami," says Liza E. Mendez, broker/owner of Pedro Realty International.

What would it cost in real life: Today, a 1920s bungalow-style three-bedroom house with a converted garage could fetch anywhere from the low $200,000s to $700,000, says Mendez.

-- "Blue Bloods": It has to be the most recognizable dining room on television.

Every week, the extended Reagan clan gathers around the table at the family home in Brooklyn. And, unlike a lot of shows, the creators placed the house in a very specific place: Brooklyn's Bay Ridge neighborhood.

The small-screen depiction of the area is spot-on accurate, says Annie Rose, vice president with Brown Harris Stevens.

In the waterfront section of Bay Ridge, "The homes are just like the homes on 'Blue Bloods,' " she says. "They're very grand, and they're unique."

What it would cost in real life: Homes that overlook the harbor, which are typically built in the 1920s and 1930s, list for anywhere from $1.5 million to as much as $4.7 million, Rose says.


Mortgage rates inched down the week of June 20, 2013, after rising for six consecutive weeks, as investors kept their eyes on the Federal Reserve.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell 2 basis points to 4.12 percent. A basis point is one-hundredth of 1 percentage point.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell 2 basis points to 3.3 percent. The average rate for 30-year jumbo mortgages, or generally for those of more than $417,000, fell 3 basis points to 4.29 percent.

The 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage fell 1 basis point to 2.99 percent. With a 5/1 ARM, the rate is fixed for five years and adjusted annually thereafter.

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