Property Brothers is a Canadian reality television series produced by Cineflix, and is the original show in the Property Brothers franchise. It airs on W Network in Canada and HGTV in the United States. The series features identical twin brothers Jonathan and Drew Scott. Drew is a real estate expert who scouts neglected houses and negotiates their purchases. His brother, Jonathan, is a licensed contractor who renovates houses. Together, the Property Brothers help families find, buy, and transform fixer-uppers into dream homes on a strict timeline and budget.
Development
Drew was offered a gig as a host of a real estate competition show that ultimately didn't materialize. Cineflix, however, wanted Drew for a show tentatively called My Dream Home, with the intention of finding a female co-host. When they learned he had a brother who was also in real estate, the production company asked the brothers to make a sizzle reel. Jonathan and Drew submitted themselves making over their older brother's living room. Six months went by before Cineflix responded favorably, and a week later they began filming a pilot for the show in Toronto. Originally, the network wanted Drew to work as the contractor because of his physique; when they realized that Jonathan was licensed, however, they switched the roles.
As Cineflix searched for a distributor, six months went by with no offers, when (off the strength of the pilot) the W Network in Canada ordered a full season; meanwhile HGTV passed. Taking note of the show's success in Canada led HGTV to condense the existing episodes to 30 minutes and air them on a trial basis. After the show scored number-one ratings for its timeslot, the network picked the show up for distribution in the US.
Premise
Using the expertise of the Scott brothers, prospective homebuyers find a "fixer-upper" and remodel it into their dream home while staying within their budget. The featured families and individuals are often working towards a deadline, like the birth of a child or a special occasion. Historically, each episode started with Drew showing potential homebuyers a house with everything on their wish list, only to later reveal that the house was outside of their reach financially. However, beginning with season 6 (10), Drew began to explain from the start that the home would exceed their budget, and should only serve as inspiration. In either scenario, he and Jonathan then highlight the advantages of purchasing an older home. Afterwards, Drew takes the buyers on a tour of homes that are significantly less ideal, but have renovation potential, and they are asked to narrow their choices down to two. Jonathan then uses computer-generated imagery to reveal his re-imagined vision for the home after significant renovations. The graphics are made by an outside company using Neezo Renders software at a cost of about $10,000 per episode. After the family makes a final decision, Drew leads them through the process of bidding on and purchasing a home. Once a purchase is made, Jonathan and his team begin renovations. After initial demolition, the family is kept away from site, and are brought back at the conclusion for the final reveal.
Production
The show's producers choose cities for filming based a variety of factors including fan interest, proximity to a major airport, and diversity of architecture. As is typical of home improvement shows with an accelerated renovation format, three experienced crews work on the house in tandem to finish within the four to seven week timeline. The brothers hire local design, real estate, and construction companies in the cities where they film. Additionally, building permits are typically ready prior to construction, and their projects take priority with their suppliers. The buyers own the property and pay for the remodeling, but the show is able to provide about $20,000 to $25,000 worth of cash and furnishings. The brothers do not charge for their services. The total budget presented is for the three or four rooms featured on the show; the rest of the renovations are done off-camera on a separate budget and timeline.
Persons interested in appearing on the show must come with a shortlist of homes or a home they plan to buy, though Drew provides additional options, and reserves the right to reject their selection if the home is unsafe. Producers screen applicants for their ability to make quick decisions and their availability to film for at least eight weekdays during the project. Applicants must apply as a couple (whether they be spouses, partners, friends, or family). While financial requirements for prospective couples vary from season to season, the casting call for filming that began in September 2017 required applicants to have a budget of at least $90,000 with an additional contingency for unexpected expenses.
The brothers have maintained that their shows are not contrived or scripted. Homeowners are not provided with storylines or dialog and unforeseen construction challenges are real. Additionally, the homebuyers work with real project budgets, However, the brothers concede that conversations may be re-shot and incidents may be reconstructed due to disruptions on set (e.g. a plane flying overhead), to highlight how protracted problems were resolved, or because the cameras did not capture the real-time shot.
The show started out in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Season 3 (3 and 5) of the show was filmed in Austin, Texas, for half of the year and Toronto for the rest. Part of the reason for the move was the fact that American audiences couldn't relate to the higher market prices in Canada. The brothers returned to their hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia to film in 2013. In 2014, the show filmed several episodes in Atlanta, Georgia and Toronto. Between 2015 and 2016 they filmed in Westchester County, New York. In 2017, they have been filming in Nashville, Tennessee and Toronto.
The show is broadcast in over 150 countries, and is dubbed in many languages. The voices of both brothers is provided by the same voice actor in Spanish.
Presenters
Before going into real estate as a profession, the brothers tried acting, including minor roles in Breaker High, Smallville, and X-Files. Drew aspired to be an actor, while Jonathan sought a career as an illusionist. In 1996, they bought their first house when they were 18-year-old university students and, after renovations, sold it a year later for a $50,000 profit. Jonathan and Drew Scott then began working in the real estate and design fields to financially support themselves as entertainers. In 2004, they founded Scott Real Estate, Inc., a company that oversees the sale and construction of residential and commercial projects, with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, and Las Vegas. While their business did well, after ten years went by with little to no acting jobs, Drew decided to return to acting full-time. In 2009, he was finally approached for what would become Property Brothers. At the show's start, the twins had managed real estate holdings for 15 years.
Both brothers are licensed real estate agents, and Drew continues to be a licensed agent with Keller Williams Elite in British Columbia. Jonathan is also a licensed contractor.
Reception
The show quickly rose to number one and, as of 2017, Property Brothers remains HGTV's highest rated show.. The fifth season viewers attracted more than 10 million US viewers on HGTV in the 24 â€" 54 age demographic, and consistently ranked as a top five cable program among upscale women in the 25 â€" 54 age group. In 2016, the show averaged 1.3 million viewers weekly.
Consumer Reports put it on its list of best home improvement shows, saying, "We all wish Drew and Jonathan were our big brothersâ€"and that they’d help us find our dream home."
Property Brothers has won multiple awards. After being nominated in 2011, Drew and Jonathan won the 2012 Leo Award (the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry) for "Best Host(s) in an Information or Lifestyle Series" for Property Brothers. In 2012, they were nominated for a Rose d'Or award in the lifestyle show category. The show's been nominated for a Cablefax Award and for Outstanding Structured Reality Program at the 2015 Emmy Awards.
The program has had an impact on popular culture, and has been the subject of multiple jokes on Brooklyn 99, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Saturday Night Live.
Episodes
See also
- Love It or List It
- Income Property
- Divine Design
- Fixer Upper
Footnotes
Notes
References
Works cited
- Scott, Drew; Scott, Jonathan (April 2016). Dream Home: The Property Brothers’ Ultimate Guide to Finding & Fixing Your Perfect House. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 0-544715-67-5.Â
- Scott, Jonathan; Scott, Drew (September 5, 2017). It Takes Two: Our Story. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 304. ISBN 1328771474.Â
External links
- The Scott Brothers site
- W Network site
- HGTV site
- Property Brothers on IMDb
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