Backed By The Bros: The Million-Dollar Fixer-Upper

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Last week on Backed By The Bros, Drew and Jonathan met with John, a 21-year-old entrepreneur who just bought his first property and needs help navigating his million-dollar fixer-upper in Venice Beach, California. The young investor purchased a $1.35M beach house and has already sunk $150K into renovations to bring the building up to code before the Brothers even got there. But the project is still a long way from finished. On episode 9 of Backed By The Bros this week, we get to see this renovation come to life, with all of the ups and downs along the way.

John has lofty goals for the property, and the Brothers are trying to talk him down off the ledge so he doesn’t end up overspending to the point that he has no return on this investment. But from waterfall features with a bridge that mimics the Venice canals to going tens of thousands of dollars over-budget to finish the project, John was defiant against many of the Brothers’ recommendations and advice. Would it all be worth it once the renovations stop and the short-term rental listing goes up?

When they began the project, Drew and Jonathan came into the house to discuss potential changes with John. John wanted to turn the one-story property into a two-story, but the Brothers advised against it since it would most likely eat up the budget without having much of an impact on his return. John wants the property to be a luxurious, premium short-term rental, and he and the Bros made plans to make the home upscale without going overboard on budget and timeline. However, John ended up getting a little carried away once the Brothers left.

John put in almost 15 work order changes that amounted to nearly $90K in overages and an extra month’s worth of renovations. That brings his total renovation cost to almost $570K and 21 weeks of labor. “He’s so focused on making this the best property that anyone has ever seen, he’s not even paying attention to the stress that he’s causing us and our trades and everybody who’s trying to make this happen,” Drew says.

“He’s definitely got his blinders on and he’s focused on something that he gets in his head,” Jonathan says. “Not every good idea is a good idea.”

But, the Brothers say, John isn’t lazy—he just has so many ideas and wants to incorporate all of them all at once. The finished property does look fantastic, Drew and Jonathan say, but the costly expenses he’s made might mean it’ll take some time for John to reap a reward. He’ll find out in the end whether it was worth it to go over-budget and over-schedule in order to include everything he wants into the space.

Before and Afters

The Main Living and Kitchen Area

The open-air kitchen and living room are complete with light finishes and pops of color. The white couch features a stain-resistant fabric and the red steel Z frame below the countertop signifies the name of the property: “The Zen-ice Beach House.”

The Primary Bedroom

The primary bedroom feels luxurious (sans the micro-closet on the opposite wall). Bright light fills the room, and changing the fireplace’s facade into a more sleek design makes the room feel both modern and cozy.

The Guest House Living Room

The guest house is just as extravagant as the main house, with automatic blinds, a modern Murphy bed, bar area, and bespoke lighting. It’s a great spot to unwind and relax at night, or for extra guests to sleep.

The Outdoor Space

Almost every door and window in the space either opens up to the backyard or features large glass windows, which exudes that luxury feel. Both the guest house and the main house have large sliding glass doors that blend the interior space with the exterior space seamlessly.

The Backyard Sauna

John included a cold plunge, hot tub, sauna, and fire pit into the backyard, so whatever his renters are feeling like that day, they can take to the backyard and find it there. This backyard retreat was costly, but it makes for a very upscale experience.

Click here to see all of the items featured in this episode!

Tune in next week to watch the final episode of the season, at 9:00pm ET on Wednesday, August 7 on MAX and HGTV.

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