The model home, referred to as the Seawind unit ("Let 'Em Eat Cake") is where most of the Bluth family resides. It is located in the planned Sudden Valley subdivison built and owned by the Bluth Company.

About

The model home is the residence of Michael Bluth, George Michael Bluth, Tobias Fünke, Lindsay Bluth Fünke and Maeby Fünke. G.O.B., Buster Bluth and George Bluth have all, at times, lived there.

The house gradually falls apart as the series progresses, illustrating just how well Bluth construction worked. It is revealed in the series that the model home's design was used in Iraq for Saddam Hussein's palaces.

Though the model home is designed to be shown off and is removed from any other developed area, it does have working water and electricity. Before the events of the pilot episode, Michael and George Michael live in the attic and keep the main house immaculate for showing; however, when they accept the Fünke family into their home this becomes impossible to maintain and they take up residence in the main house.

Layout

The model home's first floor features a small foyer leading into the kitchen, which in turn leads into the living room. The stairwell, accessible from the foyer, has a landing which looks down over the living room. The kitchen features a dining space and a full appliance range, while the living room includes a small bar positioned directly below the landing.

Upstairs there are three bedrooms: the master bedroom, where Michael sleeps; the guest bedroom, usually occupied by Tobias and Lindsay, with two twin beds; and the kids' room, with a bunk bed, usually occupied by George Michael and Maeby. Each bedroom has its own separate bathroom. There is also a hidden room where most of the family secrets are kept behind a wall, discovered by Michael in Season Three. The attic is accessible from the upstairs hallway.

Attic

During Season Two, Michael Bluth hid his fugitive father George Bluth in the model home's attic. George Michael originally hid him in the attic in "Good Grief" but Michael staged an escape so his son would not be responsible.

George grew quite bored and tried to pass the time by using a breast pump, ordering a hot tub, taking notes on Maeby's screenplays, and talking to Lindsay's childhood dolls. When he needed to hide, he would use the Aztec Tomb. When he needed attention he would howl like a wolf. Tobias, G.O.B., and eventually Kitty find George in the attic, in part to an episode of Scandalmakers.

Stages of Destruction

The house remains largely intact during Season One except for in "Key Decisions" when Trisha Thoon comments on the cheap nature of the mini-mansions in a FOX 6 report, and similarly in "Let 'Em Eat Cake" where she tours a model home in Iraq.

When Tobias begins auditioning for the Blue Man Group, blue handprints start to appear on the walls of the first floor. Michael takes a sledgehammer to a wall to find something hidden, and the hole is never replaced. ("The One Where Michael Leaves") The house really begins to collapse in earnest in the episode "Switch Hitter", with various effects such as frames, windows, and molding falling away when something hits the walls. The fridge also falls through into the garage. This all leads to the Season Two finale "Righteous Brothers" where the structural integrity of the living room fails causing the living room to collapse. This was caused by the large amount of water pumped under the house without any plumbing.

In Season Three none of the issues have been fixed. When Tobias is diagnosed with Graft Versus Host and uses a wheelchair, a handicap ramp is built inside the house.

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Versions

The standard model home|("Pilot")

Model home in Iraq ("Let 'Em Eat Cake") ("Exit Strategy")

Nighttime standard model home ("The One Where They Build a House")

Nighttime standard model home with adjacent second model home ("The One Where They Build a House")

Bug bombed standard model home ("The Immaculate Election")

George Bluth's hideaway in Cabo. ("Development Arrested")

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Images

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