For tonight’s episode, they changed things a bit by having teams scoring each other’s work first, before LLB, Kyly and Saul came in to give their scores, just to create some tension.
This is arguably the best renovation round of the season with 8s and 9s galore.
Kimmy and Rhi topped the round while Kayne and Aimee finished on the bottom for the second time in a row. Kimmy and Rhi ended their renovations and finished on top of leaderboard with an unassailable lead of 52 points over the plumbers and Laith and George, meaning the twins were the first team to make the grand final.
Before the renovation of Lenore’s family house, I thought Tanya and Dave and Tamara and Rhys were at risk of going home, it all changed at the conclusion of the round with only four points separating the five teams due to the high scoring.
Although Kimmy’s home would be the last to be renovated, she and Rhi would not be able to relax. It would be interesting to see if they were planning to score strategically during the reveal.
In the promo for this weeks renovation, it looks like Brad loses his shit with Tanya.
Get the popcorn ready!
It was in Brisbane. It was really hot and he was sweaty. She helped him wipe the sweat from his eyes.
Listening to Tanya and Dave is like banging your head against a brick wall 
The final house to get the interior renovations this season was Kimmy’s house at Summerhill, a southwestern suburb of Launceston, Tasmania.
https://www.realestate.com.au/property/85-hardwicke-st-summerhill-tas-7250?source=property-search-hp
Before and after floor plan:
Note the new floor plan has been rotated 180 degrees from the old one. Among the changes, the rear bedroom had been converted into the kitchen, with the old open floor kitchen becoming the pooch pad. The former bathroom / toilet / laundry was changed into the guest bedroom.
Back in March, a reporter from local paper The Examiner took a series of photos outside the house.
In this one you can see Tamara and Rhys on the left, and Tanya and Dave chatting to one another, during a filming break.
A shame to see the garden exterior round go but understandable given the circumstances. I wonder if that’s why they went back up to 4 episodes per reno later in the series to claw back a bit of time. Must say I’ve enjoyed having that extra episode of the renos - the first few felt like we barely saw the renovating.
I’ve always felt too they should go from 6 > 4 at this stage as this is the main point of the competition afterall. It is quite close too - the twins are safely through on 207 points, more than 50 above any other so can’t be caught. Beyond that Kayne and Aimee and Laith and George are both on 155 while the other three teams are on 151, so it is genuinely all up for grabs, especially as Kayne and Aimee have dropped alot of points the last two renos.
Must say though the scoring has all been a bit safe this year - all around the 7-9 mark pretty much weekly. No real disasters but no real wow moments either, but on the whole all pretty good.
P.S. Just wanted to add about Lenore and Bradley’s house that from the homeowners and judges comments it’s clear again the architect screwed up by including a den when really the house needed a much bigger dining area. They really needed to move that bathroom too.
They’ve just been the best of the mediocre. Can’t really say there has been any “wow” moments this year.
I think budget cuts have affected it. There was only one extension this season, and that was only because it was an easy one where it extended onto an existing balcony.
We’ve never really found out in any series what the renovation budgets were but I suspect you’re right. Seems to be the Velux windows, Bosch appliances, Mr Cabinets fixtures and then a bit of paint.
This means House Rules: High Stakes grand final will be on Sunday, June 7 at 7pm.
TV Tonight has confirmed the finale is Sunday 7 June 2020.
I knew that synopsis for next week couldn’t have been right.
I think the synopsis for next week is right. The reveal of Kimmy’s house is Sunday and Monday, then the final round begins on Tuesday, continues on Wednesday with renovations. The reveal and winner announcement will be on June 7.
I only just caught the first part of the renovation of Kimmy’s house. Tamara and Rhys allocating the pooch pad to Laith and George was clearly a payback for the couple being given the nursery during renovation of Lenore’s family home in the previous round. But, both rooms received an 8 from the homeowner.
UPDATE 2/6: Tanya and Dave were the first team to be eliminated after receiving straight 7s from the judges and fellow teams. Lenore and Bradley received 7s from LLB and Saul and missed out on a grand final spot by just three points. After coming last in the past two rounds of renovations, Kayne and Aimee made a huge comeback by topping this round with 43 points including three 9s from the judges. I think they could challenge Kimmy and Rhi for the title.
The grand final challenge was a charity renovation project for Wentworth Community Housing in Penrith in western Sydney. The four remaining teams had to renovate a home which had been converted from two shipping containers joining together, for a man named Lionel who first had a triple bypass, then got blind in one eye and lost his own house. The landowner donated part of the backyard for the low-cost home.
https://www.realestate.com.au/property/104-woodriff-st-penrith-nsw-2750?source=property-search-hp
Floor plan:
The front garden and verandah would be the only time gardens and exteriors would make an appearance this season.
This is the kind of challenges that should be the basis of the show. Renovation for a good cause.
Enough with emulating The Block with the excessive drama and penthouse renovation.
Sorry for the double post.
As seen on the Tuesday Ratings topic, the show’s recorded a record low audience which is absolutely unacceptable for a major network like Seven. I’ve made some suggestions to how this show can potentially improve over there and on this topic, but I’m keen to hear what others think on this topic. Try going back to the original? Or maybe it’s time to cut this show (and MKR) loose and try something else (and even then, is there any other shows they could try that is a big international format not taken by Nine/10)?
The House Rules concept is generally good but this season had also been affected by COVID-19. For next season the zone wars need to be removed to allow for flow of ideas across adjoining rooms (e.g. master bedroom and ensuite). Renovation of backyard and exteriors needs to be restored. Also the producers should consider a charity renovation at the start of the season.
Was it? I didn’t see that reported anywhere. Was there any report of the season being cut short?