But here's the kicker: More often than not, the homes are staged, meaning the homeowners don't get to keep the furniture and decor that's shown on TV. “Most if not all of our flipping shows are staged,” Betsy admits, noting that, depending on the client, sometimes the renovation will include some of the furniture.
The home renovation reality TV show on HGTV, Love It Or List It, is great to binge-watch. However, not much of the show is actually real. Multiple episodes of HGTV's hit show, Love It or List It, have been binge-watched over the years, but some behind-the-scenes facts may change the show's perception.
Roth said that it's not uncommon for her to call in favors (read: get steep discounts) from vendors in return for having their work featured on her shows. "So, while the budgets are real, just remember that the perks of being on TV aren't fully reflected," she explained. So, there you have it!
Surprisingly, the answer is no. The couple (or person) is responsible for paying for their own renovations, but that doesn't mean they walk away totally empty handed. While HGTV doesn't fund the renovations, they do pay for one big ticket item.
To put it simply, no. While HGTV doesn't specifically address payment in their application, they do note that homeowners now must have a $100,000 renovation budget (this requirement was previously $50,000 and then $75,000). So we assume that means participants are not in this for the paycheck!
An HGTV rep reportedly told the website: “The homeowners always pay for the renovation and they are given the opportunity to purchase the furnishings and décor used for the staging. What they don't purchase is removed from the home." So there you have it!
Suffice it to say, David and Hilary have a special bond that makes Love It or List It even more entertaining to watch. And we'll be the first to admit that we're fans of the on- and off-screen chemistry between the two — platonic as it may be.
Hilary redesigns parts of the home based on the desires of the homeowners and their budget and she oversees the renovations and construction. David finds real estate listings that meet the homeowners' needs and budget to convince them to list their current house and buy a new one.
The Making of an HGTV Show
"But what happens really is real. The producers might have you repeat things a few times, and they might film things multiple times from different angles, but the reactions and conversations are real. The hard thing is remembering what you said before when asked to repeat it."
"People often ask us why we don't do bathrooms or why all the rooms aren't shown on the show," she wrote in a post on Instagram, "and the answer is easy: we design the rooms that our homeowners tell us matter most to them (usually common areas), what their budget will safely cover, and what we have time to do for ...
While there may be some television and editing magic to speed up the timeline, lovers of HGTV's "Fixer to Fabulous" can rest assured that the show is very real.
Carter Oosterhouse, the HGTV host and star of TLC's Trading Spaces, has been accused of sexual misconduct by a former employee. A former makeup artist from the show, Kailey Kaminsky, told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview that she worked with Oosterhouse as his makeup artist in 2008.
As with most reality television programming, there is always the question of how much truth and “reality” the shows actually depict and how much is scripted or pre-planned. However, there is no question that Lyndsay Lamb and Leslie Davis are the real deal. Their versatile company, Lamb and Co., was founded in 2009.
What makes Home Town so special is that all of the work is being done in Ben and Erin's actual home town of Laurel, Mississippi. According to the town's website, Laurel's population is 18,500 and is located 30 miles north of Hattiesburg and 60 miles south of Meridian.
She underwent a third lumpectomy, and the tumor was considered precancerous. Farr is now in remission. Now, Farr, who has a new home renovation series, Tough Love With Hilary Farr premiering Dec.
Hilary has not announced any plans to leave Love It or List It. Her new show might take up some of her free time, but since both shows are on HGTV, there's a good chance that producers want to make sure Hilary has time to film both.
He doesn't just pretend to be a real estate agent for his show, "Love It or List It." Visentin really works as a real estate agent, which he has done with pride for over three decades. After graduating from West Humber Collegiate Institute and the University of Waterloo, he began his career as an agent in 1987.
One such couple, Deena Murphy and Tim Sullivan, who appeared on HGTV's “Love It or List It” in 2016, sued for breach of contract and were countersued for libel, slander and product disparagement. They ended up settling out of court.
You need a budget of at least $100,000.
The minimum number you have to be willing to spend on things like renovation and design is $100,000. It used to be $50,000, and then it climbed to $75,000. The show has been on for over a decade!
“The homeowners always pay for the renovation and they are given the opportunity to purchase the furnishings and décor used for the staging,” the publication continues.
If the winner opts for the cash alternative, the Dream Home crew is usually able to sell the home in a month, sometimes in days. Though the new owners remain nameless, they purchase the homes at or around the price that HGTV deems the houses worth, but “ rarely at full value. ”
According to HGTV's official sweepstakes rules, the 2023 cash option is $750,000, accepted in lieu of the house and its contents. The winner also gets the vehicle and cash prizes, usually a nice car, and $100,000 to 250,000.
Since those properties with valuations of over $1 million can come with tax bills into the high hundreds of thousands, the vast majority of winners end up either selling the homes back to the developers or just accepting the cash alternative, which is a lower amount but consequently comes with less tax responsibilities ...