House Rules NZ

House Rules NZ is a New Zealand reality television series based on the Australian series which broadcast on 10 September 2023 on Three. The series follows teams of two who renovate each other's homes, with the team receiving the highest score winning $100,000 off their home loan.

The series was announced in December 2022 due the postponement of The Block NZ 2024 series after the former season homes struggled to sell in a struggling house market. On 6 August 2023, the series confirmed its host, judges and five teams and premiered on 10 September 2023 on Three.

Contestant Teams

House Rules introduced five new teams all from across New Zealand.

Elimination history

Competition details

Phase 1: Interior Renovation

The five teams travel to different cities in the country to completely renovate each other's home. Every week, one team hands over their house to their opponents for a complete interior transformation. The teams are given 5½ days and a set of rules from the owners known as the 'House rules' which need to be followed to gain high scores from the judges and the homeowner team.

Glen Eden: Jemma & Alvaro

• Episodes 1 to 3
• Airdate — 10 to 12 September 2023
• Description — Jemma & Alvaro from Glen Eden are the first team to hand over their keys for renovation.

Ōtāhuhu: Martinique & Andre

• Episodes 4 to 6
• Airdate — 17 to 19 September 2023
• Description — Martinique & Andre from Ōtāhuhu are the second team to hand over their keys for renovation. One of the bedrooms belong to their toddler children.

New Lynn: Jarrad & Theresa

• Episodes 7 to 9
• Airdate — 24 to 26 September 2023
• Description — Jarrad & Theresa are the third team to hand over their keys for Jarrad’s house renovation in New Lynn. Two of the bedrooms belong to Jarrad’s teenage sons.
  • House 1 winner's advantage: Martinique & Andre — Both can leave site separately
  • Previous winner's advantage: Char & Violet — 5 minute call with the homeowners

Notes

*^1 Sherwen & Nikita received a bonus point for having the best statement piece of the week, which was added to their weekly score.

Howick: Sherwen & Nikita

• Episodes 10 to 12
• Airdate — 1 to 3 October 2023
• Description — Sherwen & Nikita are the fourth team to hand over their keys for their house renovation in Howick. Two of the bedrooms belong to their children. This renovation introduced the bonus room, where in if the homeowners like it and pass it the team who has it receives 3 points, however if it’s a fail they lose 3 points.

Notes

*^2 Due to draw of a hat, Char & Violet had the power of the bonus room to keep it or give it to another team, they decided to keep it. The bonus room was the Dining Room. Nikita & Sherwen judged it as a pass and the team gained 3 points, which is added to their final score.

Murrays Bay: Char & Violet

• Episodes 13 to 16
• Airdate — 8 to 15 October 2023
• Description — Char & Violet are the fifth and final team to hand over their keys for their interior house renovation in Murrays Bay. Three of the bedrooms belong to Char’s children. The two teams with the lowest overall score of all renovations will be eliminated.
  • House 3 winner's advantage: Sherwen & Nikita — received a bonus house rule which they can keep for themselves or share with the other teams
  • Previous winner's advantage: Char & Violet — As the winners of the previous renovation, they were given the power to allocated zones, however, due to overspending the budget on the last renovation, they lost this advantage.

Notes

*^3 Due to draw of a hat, Martinique & Andre had the power of the bonus room to keep it or give it to another team, they decided to keep it. The bonus room was the Rumpus Room. Unlike the previous bonus room, this one is worth 5 points instead of 3. Char & Violet judged it as a fail and the team lost 5 points, which is taken from their final score.

Phase 2

Re-do Room

• Episode 16 to 18
• Airdate — 15 to 17 October 2023
• Description — The remaining three teams head back to their own homes and must fix and redo one of the rooms in 3 days. All teams received the same set of five rules for the challenge. The lowest scoring team will be eliminated. This phase included guest judge, winner of The Block NZ 2014, Alex Walls.
  • Semi-finalist advantages: Each team received bonus money on top of their budget in order of how the resulted in Phase 1:
    • Char & Violet: $1,300
    • Jemma & Alvaro: $700
    • Martinique & Andre: $500

Grand Finale

• Episode 19 to 21
• Airdate — 22 to 24 October
• Description — The final 2 teams have to renovate their opponent's front yard exterior and gardens. The team that received the highest score wins the season (thus becoming first House Rules NZ champions) and received $100,000 off their mortgage.
  • Along with their budget, both teams received $20,000 to spend at Palmers.
    • Halfway through renovation, both teams received an extra $5,000 toward their renovation.

Notes

*^4 As winners of the series, Jemma & Alvaro received $100,000 off their mortgage, however, they decided to give $20,000 to Martinique & Andre.

Episodes

References