Buying Naked, a reality television series that aired on TLC back in 2013, focused on real estate transactions within nudist communities and followed realtor Jackie Youngblood and her team as she assisted clients in purchasing homes in clothing-optional neighborhoods. The show was primarily filmed in Pasco County, Florida, which is also known as the nudist capital of North America. While the show’s premise respected the nudist communities and initially kicked off with two pilot episodes before being ordered for the complete first installment of eight episodes, the hiccup in its format was that it ended up focusing a bit more on the sensationalism and novelty of nudity instead of strictly zeroing in on their actual lifestyles.
Instead of blurring the private parts of individuals, the show ended up taking a creative path and used creative camera angles, fruits, food, and decorative items to cover genitalia. While that might have made it stand out from shows like Naked and Afraid, the major problem was that it depicted activities like riding a motorcycle or lawn-mowing and even cooking naked as normal — while the actual nudists would at least wear an apron whilst cooking and protective gear while indulging in other activities, which made the show feel a bit exaggerated. While the show might have been appreciated by some for its unconventional nature where nudist couples would come for house-seeing naked, it felt a bit scripted for its eight-episode run, failed to pull in viewers, and was eventually canceled.
Jackie Youngblood Had Been a Nudist Long Before the Show Was Proposed
Youngblood was an active part of the nudist community, and hence, did not only have the understanding of the community’s preferences and values, but was already doing business among them. To this date, the mother of four and grandmother of eight realtor’s Twitter bio has this explicitly stated. The problem, however, was, when a New York-based production company reached out to her with an idea of the show where they wanted the people to buy real estate naked. She asked them if they were joking and actually thought that one of her friends was playing a joke but clarified that “they were serious,” during Real Estate Rockstars podcast.
This is from over a decade ago and back then there was a trending influx of such shows included but not limited to Naked and Afraid and Dating Naked. So as long as the producers were respectful, it seemed like an idea worth trying. They went on to do two pilot episodes and only after the nudists saw that they were being given spotlight respectfully, did the stakeholders decide to move forward with the complete season.
‘Buying Naked’ Helped Unveil Several Nudist Community Etiquettes
Buying Naked offered viewers a glimpse into the unique etiquette rules of nudist communities on TV. For instance, one key rule highlighted was the no-gawking policy — nudists are mindful not to stare at others’ bodies and, if needed, wear sunglasses to maintain discretion. Youngblood’s team members, who were not nudist, therefore, were trained for this. Alex, one of the new realtors was shown experiencing this situation in the first official episode “Brave Nude World.” Another standard featured was the practice of greeting others with a handshake rather than a hug, as that minimizes uncomfortable physical contact. The show also revealed the towel rule, a fundamental part of nudist etiquette that requires individuals to sit on a towel whenever they use a communal seat, both for hygiene and consideration.
Safety practices were also emphasized, with nudists wearing protective aprons while cooking or working in the kitchen. However, it’s the way they were implied that made it cringe-worthy. For instance, in the very first pilot episode, “Nudey-wed’s First Home,” the show features a recently married couple Mike and Hillary Cummingham as they search for a home to suit their clothes-free lifestyle. The female half mentions how she once burned herself while cooking bacon without clothes — which sounds ridiculous in practicality. Being a nudist is one thing but burning yourself while you’re at it is just plain exaggeration and awkwardly scripted shock value. The show, however, further did highlight other honest concerns of nudists looking for homes — such as homes with higher fences, secluded outdoor areas, and no-clothing-proof kitchen shelves, etc.
The Show Doubled Jackie Youngblood’s Sales but Couldn’t Continue
The show’s popularity may have been short-lived, but Buying Naked had a lasting impact on Jackie Youngblood’s real estate career. By bringing her work with the nudist community into the public eye, the show dramatically increased her visibility and clientele. In fact, Youngblood reported that her sales nearly doubled after Buying Naked aired, as per Real Estate Rockstars Network, as she became recognized as the go-to realtor for nudist-friendly properties.
Despite the spike in business, however, the show itself struggled to retain viewership and couldn’t continue after the first installment. The other questionable bit was that the show featured relatively good-looking buff couples only but in reality, people from all shapes and sizes are a part of the nudist community — which added to its existing stack of reasons that made it look scripted.
Buying Naked aired on TLC in 2013 and is available to stream on Prime Video.