If you are intrigued by home improvement, house flipping, home renovations, or interior design, there are a huge number of TV shows for you to check out on various streaming services. Almost too many! So here is a list of 5 streaming shows you might want to check out if you aren’t already a regular watcher.
Fixer Upper
I’m starting with arguably the most popular home improvement show from at least the past 10 years, and possibly ever. It really became a model for similar shows, both in the content structure and how it helped the hosts launch other shows, books, magazines, retail, and a host of other types of businesses. I can’t imagine that the two stars (Chip and Joanna Gaines) had any idea what was coming when their pilot aired in May 2013.
Mix two talented and engaging stars with a design that caught on in a big way (Modern Farmhouse), and you have what amounted to a runaway hit for HGTV. Even people who aren’t huge fans of home improvement shows probably know the stars’ names.
The show itself helped cement the narrative structure used by the majority of home improvement shows we see today - home search, pick a winner, follow the renovation (with at least one obligatory hiccup), and then wrap it up with a reveal of the newly remodeled home. Add some fun side stories about the stars’ home life and you pretty much have the recipe for a huge number of similar shows.
While the stars are a huge part of the show’s appeal, Joanna’s design style might be the real driver of success. It wasn’t long before new home builders were including many elements of her designs (shiplap!) into new home construction. The couple has since left HGTV and launched their own network (Magnolia) but you can still watch the 5 seasons of Fixer Upper to watch how it all came to be.
Restored by the Fords
This series focuses on brother/sister team, Leanne and Steve Ford, who renovate older homes in the Pittsburgh PA area. Leanne is the designer and Steve is the contractor/carpenter. Much like Chip and Joanna Gaines, the two are engaging and fun to watch as they navigate renovation projects for their clients on each show.
The biggest differentiator for this show is Leanne’s design style, which starts with black and white and often sticks there. It’s a pretty rare episode (maybe non-existent?) where white isn’t featured prominently. She has an interesting mix of urban chic and yet relaxed vibe.
The show has 2 seasons (thus far), along with an offshoot series. Leanne has also branched out to have home furnishings and design elements available at various retail locations.
Property Brothers
When it comes to home improvement siblings, you can’t have a list of shows and not include Property Brothers. Jonathan and Drew Scott (twin brothers) have become an institution on home improvement TV. With their original show (Property Brothers - 7 seasons - or 13, because HGTV splits them up) and then offshoot series like Brother vs. Brother and Property Brothers: Forever Home, they make up a pretty good portion of the home improvement TV universe.
In this show, we get a real estate agent (Drew) and a contractor (Jonathan) who work together to help clients find reasonably priced homes that need a facelift and then transform them into their clients’ dream homes.
You get a lot of good-natured sibling rivalry, mixed with the otherwise typical renovation projects. If you enjoy the show, definitely check out their many side-project shows.
Home Town
This show features husband and wife combo Ben and Erin Napier. Ben is the contractor and Erin is the designer as they help clients find interesting historic homes around their hometown of Laurel MS.
Once again, the show’s success is due to the personable stars and the home transformations, which often include custom furniture built by Ben. The fact that it focuses more on historic homes also lends a different element to each episode.
The show is going on its fifth season on HGTV and has already spawned one offshoot series.
Good Bones
Last on our list follows mother/daughter team, Karen Laine and Mina Starsiak Hawk as they help clients renovate homes around Indianapolis, IN. The show has been running since 2016 and is currently in production on season 7.
The stars began flipping homes together in the early 2000s, with Mina as a real estate agent and Laine as her partner and retired lawyer. For the show, they purchase dilapidated homes and bring them back to life.
Again, it is the combination of interesting projects and the interplay between the starts that makes the show a hit.
