“How Much Do You Pay in Rent" with Caleb Simpson + Home Improvement Q&A + Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin

On this episode of This Old House Radio Hour, we sit down with viral sensation Caleb Simpson, the TikTok star who’s made a name asking one simple question: “How much do you pay in rent?” Caleb shares what 500+ home tours have taught him about housing, design, and what our spaces say about who we are. Then, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin reflects on turning grief into meaning by recreating her 19th-century farmhouse inside a Boston condo. Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein from Cheap Old Houses showcase two historic stunners for less than $125K, including one with its own National Register–listed playhouse.

We also dive into your DIY questions—from whether you should paint over ugly floor tile, to what to do with a puddle-prone bathtub, and how to protect your HVAC system from power surges. And we play another round of What’s That Sound?, where your favorite This Old House pros try to guess the noise—and maybe save your outlets in the process. All that, plus a Simple Fix from Jenn Nawada that tells you if your backyard trees are dying.