The Baeumlers Worked Their Way Up to Their Multimillion-Dollar ‘Renovation Island’

Considering Sarah and Bryan Baeumler have a reported net worth of $20 million, HGTV fans might be curious about how the Baeumlers made their money. After all, this is a family that had the means to purchase and rehabilitate a resort on the show Renovation Island.

As Forbes reported in 2020, the couple spent about $2 million on a defunct resort in 2017, thinking they would spend $4 million to spruce up the oceanfront property on Andros Island in the Bahamas. Instead, they had spent more than $10 million on the renovation by the time they were finished.

So, what's the Baeumler's secret? Where did the money for the resort renovations come from? Keep reading to find out!

According to his personal website, Bryan grew up learning “tricks of the trade” from his aircraft engineer father, and he started a handyman business when he was 14 years old. After college, Bryan set his sights on a law career but soon had a change of heart and instead founded a contracting company called Baeumler Quality Construction.

That company has launched multiple others, including Baeumler Approved, Baeumler Productions, and Baeumler Media.

Along the way, Bryan has become a TV star on HGTV and HGTV Canada. His show Disaster DIY aired from 2007 to 2011, House of Bryan ran from 2010 to 2015, Leave It to Bryan aired from 2012 to 2017, Bryan Inc. (called Renovation, Inc. in the United States) started airing in 2016 in Canada, and Island of Bryan (called Renovation Island in the U.S.) premiered in 2019.

Bryan is also a published author: HarperCollins released his book Measure Twice: Tips and Tricks from the Pros to Help You Avoid the Most Common DIY Disasters in 2015.

Another source of income for Bryan and Sarah? The couple—who met in high school and married in 2004, according to TRNTO — went into business with the Royal Bank of Canada in 2018. And they renewed their promotional deal with the bank in 2021, reports Media in Canada.

Through that collaboration, Bryan and Sarah have been dispensing financial advice, including tips they would give their younger selves. In an RBC feature, Bryan recommended thinking about the goals you might have in the future, even if you don’t have those goals at the moment. “You may not be thinking about home and children now, but why not plan for this scenario so that the options are there for you?” he said. “One day you may want to go down a different path.”

Meanwhile, Sarah said that she wishes she and Bryan had started to save earlier, and she advised talking to a professional about working toward financial goals. “It’s a great idea to talk to an advisor long before you need something. Just say to them, ‘Hey, in the next five years I might want to do this,’” she added. “That way, when you’re actually ready to do it, you’ve learned something, you’ve nurtured the relationship, and taking action is a lot easier.”

The concept behind Renovation Island was so intriguing, HGTV decided to renew it for five seasons. Although the network hasn’t announced whether it will continue the series, the stars of the show appear in another HGTV production, Rock the Block.

The Season 4, six-episode series aired on March 6, 2023 and also features Jonathan Knight and Kristina Crestin from Farmhouse Fixer and Michel Smith Boyd and Anthony Elle from Luxe for Less. Page Turner and Mitch Glew from Fix My Flip are also on the show.