Love It Or List It Vancouver: 14 Facts About The HGTV Series
As the name implies, "Love It Or List It Vancouver" is a reality series that focuses on residents in Vancouver, British Columbia, who are at a crossroads with their living situation. Jillian Harris and Todd Talbot, the show's co-hosts, engage their clients in a refreshingly entertaining tug-of-war. Harris uses her interior decor prowess to get homeowners to reconnect, renovate, and keep living in their homes. On the other hand, Todd Talbot makes the right moves to ensure the homeowners view new properties, guiding them every step of the way with his real estate knowledge so that they will be incentivized to list their homes.
The show is also called "Love It Or List It Too" in the United States market. It began in 2013 as a spin-off of the Toronto-based show "Love It Or List It." Since the beginning of the series, when it first aired on W TV, executive producers Maria Armstrong and Catherine Fogarty have successfully offered up 5 seasons to dedicated fans of the show (via Tonight). Their hard work was rewarded when the show won a Leo award in 2016 and received nominations in 2018. All this being said, there is still a lot more information surrounding "Love It or List It Vancouver” which most viewers do not know. Keep reading to discover a few little-known facts we've uncovered.
All episodes are actually not filmed in Vancouver
"Love It Or List It Vancouver ” is indeed the name of the show, therefore you would automatically expect all episodes to be filmed in Vancouver. However, this is not the case. Seasons 1 to 4 showcase residents in different parts of Vancouver. However, Jillian Harris, the show's female co-host, got pregnant after Season 4 wrapped up. She realized that she could not continue the tedious commute from her home base of Kelowna to Vancouver, every time the cast and crew needed to film.
Speaking to Global News, she says, "We had an opportunity to pick up the last part of our season, but this is home for me and I knew I was pregnant at the time we started...I just begged and pleaded and said, 'Kelowna's a beautiful place. There's so many houses that need renovating.' And they said 'Ok we'll give it a shot.'" Todd Talbot further confirms the stress surrounding filming schedules as he says in his blog: "Unlike most shows, we shoot year round and have been filming consistently for the past 5 years. This is a rarity in any TV gig. The good news is we film year round and the bad news is we film year round... Finding time for family and other shows has been tricky."
Luckily, the team took her suggestion on board, which speaks to the ease of the crew and gives more context to the interview Harris had with DH News when she said, "I will say that my general experience on this show is that I am very spoiled. I am so lucky because we have such an amazing team that takes care of us." Some of the specific areas that the producers considered when filming the fifth season were; Lower Mainland Kelowna, West Kelowna, and surrounding areas (via Kelowna Now).
Jillian has been on two reality shows prior to this
In case you didn't know, " Love It Or List It Vancouver" is not Harris' first television stint. Before signing her HGTV contract, Harris graced the screens of ABC's "The Bachelor" (where she finished as the third runner-up). In addition to this, she was also cast as "The Bachelorette," an enviable position which more often than not goes to a runner-up from the previous "The Bachelor" show. After "The Bachelorette," "Jilly" as she calls herself, then snagged a steady spot on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (via She Knows).
Out of all the roles she played before "Love It Or List It Vancouver," "The Bachelorette" may possibly be the major stand-out role that most people remember her from. Sadly, all memories surrounding this point in her life were not pleasant for her because things did not last with her beau. Nevertheless, Harris was determined to get over this and start showing her professional side to the world by doing a few more appearances on home renovation shows before HGTV producers reached out to try her out as a co-host. Another one of those shows is "Canada's Handyman Challenge" (via The Times Colonist).
When asked about her past gigs on television before "Love It or List It Vancouver," Jillian is honest and open, as she owes the drama she endured courtesy of the ABC shows to her success in snagging her current HGTV gig. Speaking to US Magazine, she counts her blessings, saying, "It's also hard not to connect my current career situation to 'The Bachelor'...I also was able to stick in the television industry with my role on Love it Or List it Too, which is also a dream. ... I have a ton to be grateful for and I owe a slice of that to the Bachelor family and experience!"
Todd Talbot is a thorough thespian
Harris is not the only star to have graced our screens before taking up the hosting position on "Love It Or List It Vancouver." In fact, Todd Talbot, (Harris' co-host), not only enjoyed his fair share of limelight on various TV shows, but he's actually been in the entertainment industry, perhaps even longer than Harris. According to IMDB, Talbot is a former child actor best known for his role as Matt Walker on the teenage soap opera "Fifteen" under the Nickelodeon network. Throughout his acting career, he appeared in episodes of "Smallville" and "Dark Angel."
Talbot is also a trained dancer and a well-known thespian who has made a name for himself in the world of theater. He appeared as a dancer both on stage and in films like "Josie and the Pussy Cats." But, regardless of his extreme fondness for acting and dance, Talbot clearly has a penchant for home renovation shows. He also appeared in two seasons of "Game of Homes" and several episodes of "HGTV Insider."
Jillian and co host Todd were not always besties
Yes, you read that right! Often times with co-hosts who have an awesome level of on-screen chemistry, it is easy to believe that they are the best of friends, who've known each other for years. This could not be any further from the case with Talbot and Harris who (believe it or not), had never met or heard of each other until the trial filming day.
If we back up the timeline a bit to the year 2012, it was Jillian Harris who was announced to the world as some sort of sure pick for the job, way before Todd had even been discovered as a possible candidate. When the news broke on Vancouver City News, the statement from the article clearly alluded to the fact that Jillian (and the rest of the world) would have to wait for the new co-host to be revealed.
Forget the fact that at the time, both of them were West Coast natives who were super passionate about the real estate industry in Canada. Todd Talbot mentions that he laid eyes on her on the same day they were to do a trial recording. He refers to her as "a lady named Jillian" when he writes on his eponymous blog about the very first time they met. He explains that the pair "came from really different worlds" but it seems like they both wanted the same thing. We are guessing that "same thing," is a relaxed, exciting approach to the show because that is what they both offer to the series that we have all come to love!
Homeowners shell out a whole lot of cash for the renovations
Both Harris and Talbot have confirmed that money has to change hands for any homeowner to enjoy their services and the services of the network. Harris went further to dish on the Times Colonist, about the ease with which some homeowners are able to hand over hefty chunks of money for her to work magic on their homes, quoting figures such as $100,000 as an average amount which she could be offered for renovations. This piece of information confirms that the renovations done on the show are in no way at all, free.
Further proof that details the amount of money "Love It Or List It Vancouver" homeowners have to have before they could even be considered as potential candidates can be found within the casting call details. It clearly states that any hopeful wishing to come on the show MUST "have a renovation budget or can access renovation financing" (per Kelowna Now).
The unwritten part of that casting call information is the fact that homeowners would have to leave their homes vacant so the "Love It Or List It Vancouver" crew can work their magic. Therefore, part of that home renovation fund may include the funds for their temporary living situation when they exit their homes because this is not covered by production expenses. There has been no confirmation of this extra financial burden on the homeowner, but since this is the case for the original show, we can only deduce that it is also the case for the West Coast spin-off (per Greensboro).
Homeowners still enjoy freebies courtesy of the show
When Harris sat with Daily Hive she opened up about the freebies that homeowners who come on the show get to enjoy. "... People do have to pay for their own renovations but there are major perks, some of those are in terms of free cabinetry or free furniture. Not to mention, there are no renovations that can get done in a month! ... I think you can see for yourself that these are high-end renovations, with good detail and good finishing... our spaces are gorgeous."
Asides from Harris' testament to the freebies she gives away, Harris, who has worked in the interior decor field for so long, is also offering the gift of her expertise. Naturally, she may have forged iron-clad bonds with top-tier decor companies who tend to pitch in to make her job easier. Some of the brands featured on the show and that have been used in the homes include Westwood Fine Cabinetry which offers stellar kitchen renovation designs, in addition to Cosentino, the Silestone island tabletop vendors.
Jillian's current partner was also on the show
Harris is in a committed relationship with the father of her kids, Justin Pasutto, who snagged a role on "Love It Or List it Vancouver" right beside her! Most people know him as an ex-pro athlete, but Pasutto also boasts skills in the world of construction, project management, and development. His Instagram bio reads: "Creator, Investor, Dad, Developer ▪️justin@pasuttomedia.com ♥️ @jillian.harris." Garnering a role on the HGTV series most likely would not have happened if Harris did not suggest the Kelowna move for Season 5 of the show. As the renovation queen, she always has a trusty project manager on site who would look through the house and give the green light on ideas that will work and those that will not work.
For the first four seasons, the main project manager working alongside Harris was the man and the legend known as Kenny Gemmil. However, because Gemmil and the majority of his staff were based closer to Vancouver, the spot opened for a new Kelowna-based project manager to take the reins and replace him when they began renovating the homes in Kelowna. The replacement news remained under wraps until the first episode of Season 5 aired and Jillian dished all to her loyal blog audience saying, "you'll get to see Justin on all of our Kelowna renovations as he's our Okanagan Project Manager!!" (via Jillian Harris).
According to IMDB, Pasutto starred in all 11 episodes of the show between 2018-2019, when the current season aired. This will make "Love It Or List It Vancouver" the second show Pasutto and Harris have worked on together from the W Network. They also have "Jillian & Justin," a docu-series chronicling their second try at parenthood, produced by the same company that produces "Love It Or List It Vancouver" (via Real Screen).
They've faced nasty legal suits
According to CBC, Jeanine Almeida and Norman Waine are a couple who were led to believe that the man and the legend, Kenny Gemmil, would be the project manager working alongside Harris to handle their home renovation. Unfortunately, for reasons best known to the production team, someone else was brought onto their home site to handle what would have been Gemmil's job. The couple was infuriated at this move from the "Love It Or List It Vancouver" team and claimed that the result was a mold-infested home that was suffering from water damage. In turn, the show was faced with a nasty legal suit.
Granted, Kenny Gemmil has his accolades, so it's no surprise that the couple may have truly banked on his expertise. Even Jillian attested to how much people love him saying on her blog about her husband temporarily replacing him for the episodes with Kelowna homes, 'But don't worry, for those die-hard Kenny fans, he's still here too! Kenny will be managing the Vancouver homes!!"
News Beezer reports that the production company responded with court documents in which they denied any foul work. They stated that "Plaintiffs have assumed no liability for any renovation work after the [on-air] disclosure."
Majority of viewers feel the show is scripted
One disappointed reviewer wrote on IMDB about the show saying; "The homeowners are real and so are their houses. Having said that, the rest is scripted for gawd sake...the fact that they (the renovation team) often know in advance where some of these surprises might be and they make it seem like they found it in the middle of the reno for the dramatic effect. That's show biz." Another reviewer wrote; "I think the show is great but tired that there are always significant construction errors on all houses that is not realistic nor true! The entire show is just fake – annoying."
But Harris has refuted these claims of the show being scripted, and the fact that her team pretends to find nasty surprises along the way for dramatic effect. When speaking to Daily Hive, she says, "The show is committed to making sure the homeowners are happy...a lot of time homeowners have issues with their home that they fail to mention or hadn't thought through, so they give you a bunch of money and you go for it and then they have no siding on the side of their house and there is a huge leak and I have to fix it. You can only do so much research because they need these projects done in 6-8 weeks and we rely on the homeowners to communicate with us."
Why Jillian decided to leave the show
Jillian Harris was the interior designer on "Love It or List It Vancouver" until 2019. According to Jillian Harris, she decided to leave the show for a few different reasons. One of those reasons is that after filming in 2019, she gave birth to her daughter, Annie. The commute from her home in Kelowna to Vancouver to film episodes was too time-consuming to keep up with, especially while trying to balance caring for her new baby. She didn't want to miss out on all her important milestones and wanted to be present for those sweet early childhood years.
In addition to wanting more time to spend with her family, Jillian also desired more time to devote to her own business. She considers herself an entrepreneur and is always coming up with new business ideas. While she enjoyed filming "Love It or List It Vancouver," she just didn't have enough time to evolve her enterprise. She was also simply ready to move on to something else after having spent seven years of her professional career designing homes with HGTV.
Todd came up with the term 'right-sizing'
According to HGTV Canada, Todd started using the term "right-sizing" instead of downsizing. He said he made this change in his vocabulary because so many people think about making sacrifices when they are downsizing. He wanted to encourage clients and viewers to think about their ideal lifestyle when choosing a home. Bigger isn't always better. Sustainability, affordability, and finding something that matches an individual's or family's needs should be the priority.
The Vancouver Real Estate Podcast shares that Todd invented the term 'right-sizing' when his son was young. As his son was focusing on how many presents he would be getting for Christmas, Todd and his wife didn't like how materialistic he sounded. After reevaluating their own priorities, they decided to make some changes. For five months, no one in the family made any purchases that were not completely necessary. They also evaluated all the items they owned and prioritized what they needed to keep. After making all of these modifications to their lifestyle, they discovered that their home was much larger than what was actually necessary. The family sold their large home and purchased a smaller one. Thus, the term "right-sizing" was born, as Todd and his wife made decisions based on what was right for their family.
Was Love It or List It Vancouver canceled?
According to Premier Date, "Love It or List It Vancouver" has been canceled. The series first premiered on January 7, 2013, and the final episode was aired on December 23, 2019. Since the show has ended, the two stars of the series — Jillian Harris and Todd Talbot — have moved on to other ventures.
As mentioned earlier, Todd Talbot is an actor who has played many roles over the years. Once "Love It or List It Vancouver" was canceled, he continued on in his dancing and acting career. After leaving "Love It or List It Vancouver," Jillian Harris gained the time she wanted to dedicate to other pursuits. In addition to spending more time with her family, Harris shares that she also founded and created her website, JillianHarris.com. She also runs her Instagram account, @jillian.harris. Through these ventures, she is able to make money through collaborations, partnerships, and affiliate sales, helping give her more freedom to do what she loves.
Jillian Harris created both an online academy and subscription box
Harris has continued to put time and effort into her ventures as an entrepreneur. The Jilly Academy marks Harris's foray into becoming a business educator. Launched in 2021, the online masterclasses teach audiences about marketing, content creation, brand strategy, and more. Harris explains in The Jilly Academy's intro video, "I've done it all over the past 25 years. Washing hair, driving a beer cart, launching a cleaning business, working in the restaurant industry, [being a] former TV host." In describing her path to becoming the CEO of her businesses, she continues, "This course is a reflection of my experience and what has worked so well for us at team Jilly."
The course bundle is still available online, but according to an Instagram post from September of 2023, Harris is no longer active on the Jilly Academy Instagram profile or social forums. She writes that she decided to step back from the project to dedicate more time to her other brands and her personal life. As a result, the course and its companion materials are now offered at an extremely reduced price.
Unlike the academy, The Jilly Box remains an active venture for Harris. Founded in 2019 with her agent, Tyler Evans, The Jilly Box is a quarterly subscription box. Subscribers receive curated seasonal products across different lifestyle categories like beauty, wellness, home decor, and fashion. The service is committed to environmental sustainability and waste reduction, as well as supporting small and burgeoning businesses. While subscriptions can sell out, you can shop individually for each box's items (including custom-made products) at the Jilly Box Market online.
Todd Talbot has shifted his focus back to dance and theater
In late 2019, it was announced that Talbot (alongside his wife, Rabecca) would star in the dance-heavy, lead role of the musical "Crazy For You." The show was set to open in the spring of 2020, but due to pandemic restrictions, it was postponed. Three years later, in spring 2023, Talbot was finally able to make his return to the stage. When rehearsals booted back up, preparing for the show's intense choreography was no easy feat. He and Rabecca took on the task together by committing to dance every single day. That dedication, which included some challenging Zumba classes, prepared them for the athleticism the show demands. Talbot remarked to Vancouver culture and arts publication Stir, "While I try to keep in shape to a certain degree, dancing is such a specific group of muscles... and when they decided to bring [the production] back again, I became keenly aware that I really needed to kick my own ass."
Talbot's background in tap and jazz dance brought him theater opportunities prior to joining "Love It or List It." And, they brought him those opportunities again after the show's run. He also appeared in "Everybody's Talking About Jamie" and "An American in Paris – The Musical." With regard to falling back on his talents, he recalls a piece of advice he received from performer Jeff Hyslop: "Don't tell people that you dance. Just keep it in your back pocket, and then just pull it out when you need it."