Help! I Wrecked My House host Jasmine Roth pulled back the curtains of the HGTV casting process.
Roth spilled several behind-the-scenes details about how people are selected to appear on the network’s home renovation shows, including her own, in a blog post titled, “Why Your House Can’t Be on HGTV.” Speaking from her own experience, Roth revealed that she’s had to turn down applicants for her show due to “unrealistic expectations.”
“I love ambition and I love a good pie-in-the-sky plan, but if I tell a family that something isn’t going to be possible and they don’t seem to believe me, that’s a big red flag that they’re going to be problem clients,” Roth shared on her blog. “And to all of you that have applied to be on my show – thank you! It means the world to me that you would consider me and my team. Keep applying!”
Roth has hosted Help! I Wrecked My House since 2020. The series follows Roth and her team as they help homeowners transform their disastrous fixer-uppers into their dream homes. Roth has also appeared on other HGTV shows over the years, including Hidden Potential, A Very Brady Renovation, Brother vs. Brother, Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge, Rock the Block, and more.
HGTV
Earlier in her blog post, Roth said that the “stars have to align” when it comes to viewers appearing on HGTV series. “There has to be a production company ‘casting’ (aka looking for houses) in your area and then you have to check off all the boxes for whatever the parameters that particular show has set,” she wrote.
One rule that could disqualify applicants is the time period of their project. “Because we’re making a TV show, we have to follow all the construction and progress on camera. So if your project is a multi-year project (like many of my @builtcustomhomes projects are) it won’t work for TV. Sorry!” Roth explained. “But hey, look on the bright side – chances are you’ll have a beautiful new house at the end of your project!”
The project’s budget also plays a significant role in the casting process. “Leave it to TV to make you feel bad about saving your money and investing it into your house. Ha!” Roth quipped. “Similar to the timeline, if a project has too many moving parts, it’s impossible to follow it in a half-hour or 1-hour show. So if your renovation budget is over $150,000, chances are your house can’t be on TV.”
In addition to sharing details about HGTV casting rules, Roth also reminded viewers how to tune in to Help! I Wrecked My House in a Monday, October 6, Instagram post. In the clip, Roth said she was inspired to do so after her own mother had questions about the show’s airtime.
“I have a feeling that if she doesn’t know how to watch this said TV show, a lot of people don’t,” Ruth joked. “So, we were out of town last week. [My mom] doesn’t have cable, so she wasn’t able to watch it when it aired, which is the best way to watch it. So, if you have the opportunity to watch it [in] real time on your cable network, please do that. Thank you.”
Roth continued, “Otherwise, you can stream it the next day. You can stream it on the [HBO] Max app, or you can stream it on Discovery+.”
Roth concluded the video by asking her mother, “Is that clear? Do we need any more instructions?” Her mom replied, “I’ll give it a go.”
Help! I Wrecked My House, Wednesdays, 8/7c, HGTV