A Life-Changing Win and a Honeymoon of a Lifetime
After months of hard work, parents Mitch and Shaz won My Reno Rules 2026 and walked away with the life-changing $1 million prize. While Aussies watched them win the prize, little do they know that they were presented with an ultimatum that could have changed everything.
Before they went on the show and won the money, they had their wedding planned, but filming got delayed, which meant their nuptials would be in the middle of production. “And they kind of said to us ‘Well, you need to pick like your wedding or on the show’, and so we had to move our wedding forward and that was the only date that our venue had left and so we took it, so that we could have the wedding and do the show,” Shaz explained.
So, they joked that the show then became their “honeymoon”.
Mitch explained that their loved ones didn’t question them moving the date, and when they explained they were going to be “away” for a couple of months after their wedding, they said it was for a holiday. In the end, it became the ultimate holiday with a prize!
As for their plans with the money? A trip is definitely on the cards, but it also gives them “breathing room”, after living week-to-week before the show. They said it also meant more time and experiences with their son, Lenny.
“As any parent, they always want to set their kids up and give them a life that was always better than their own in a way,” Mitch said. “So just being able to do things and not have to freak out about it or go, ‘We can’t do that right now’, you know’, like it just gives us so much more freedom and and just yeah that breathing room to just live our lives and be as a family and and enjoy it.”
The show was the longest they spent away with their son, and the couple said winning didn’t feel real until Lenny ran over to them to embrace them. “Every single emotion is going through my body. I’m so proud of my parents,” Lenny sobbed during the finale. “They did a really good job throughout the two months they were gone. I was cheering them on from the sidelines.”
It all came down to the judges’ scores, after last week’s results left two points between first and last place. Going into the finale, Julia and Nathan led with 72 points, followed by Emma and Michelle and Franky and Isaac on 71, and Mitch and Shaz with 70 points. It meant that the winners had to make an epic comeback, and that they did.
When the judges saw their front yard, they were instantly blown away. For landscaper Mitch, he threw everything at it.
The Judges’ Reactions
When Julia Green walked in, she gushed that she “died and went to heaven” and told Mitch and Shaz she thought it was “flawless”. Simon also loved the cohesion throughout the yard, with the plant choices and their colours. He even said it was the “proudest moment” of his life! Neale loved all the elements, including the timber arbours, the stone feature wall, and the feature fence. However, he had an issue with the outdoor lighting not matching.
In response to this, Julia explained that it was an oversight on her part, and when she realised, they were already wired, and it was too late.
Franky and Isaac claimed the $250,000 prize for coming second, Emma and Michelle came third and pocketed $100,000 and Julia and Nathan walked away $50,000 richer.
The Epic Giveaway: Million-Dollar Homes or Cash
Adrian Portelli was then in charge of the giveaway, where Aussies had the chance to choose between one of the houses or $2 million of tax-free cash. If they don’t answer the phone in three minutes, another name is drawn.
During the first giveaway, the wheel was spun, and Nathan B was chosen as the first winner. It was an incredibly tense start because the call dropped out. The show kept ringing, and his number kept going to voicemail until he picked up with less than one minute to answer. Initially, he was confused and admitted he was not watching and didn’t know why Adrian was ringing him.
The 42-year-old sales rep from New South Wales’ Central Coast then chose to pocket the cash. Graham C, 75, was the second name drawn, and he answered his phone in 11 seconds. While he admitted that he wasn’t watching the show, his family immediately knew what was happening and screamed in the background. In the end, the Ballarat local chose the $2 million.
Market Insights and Future Plans
While they won life-changing prizes, Adrian did not make any comments on what would happen to the houses. Before the finale, New Idea exclusively spoke with local Real Estate Agent and Senior Consultant Victor Zhang, who works for the Buxton Real Estate Group in Balwyn-Canterbury.
When asked about the housing market in Bulleen, he said it recently “hasn’t been travelling well”. As a local resident, he thinks it’s because of all of the construction of the North East Link freeway network, with one of the tunnels connecting to the suburb. He said it has led to the acquisition of businesses, constant road closures, and construction.
The budget was also a factor, with him explaining that his open listing numbers halved straight away. However, he also said it was one of Melbourne’s “best kept secrets”, and known for its Italian and Greek heritage, and mainly a hub for older generations.
He observed that the suburb has drastically evolved into a multicultural hub, and more families have moved to the area. With promising views of the city, Victor added that he has seen families sell their homes in neighbouring blue-chip suburbs such as Balwyn North and buy in Bulleen for much less.
According to realestate.com.au, the average price of a home in Bulleen is $1.35 million, with Balwyn North being more than $1 million more at $2.3225 million. With all of this in mind, he said he wouldn’t be surprised if the winners chose to pocket the cash during these tough times.
He said if someone chose the house, and then wanted to sell it, given the current state of the market, he said they would be difficult to sell for more than $2 million.
