Home renovators and real-life couple Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas are continuing their mission to restore Detroit’s most iconic neighborhoods, one house at a time. The third season of their hit HGTV series, Bargain Block, premiered in August.
With the help of longtime realtor Shea Hicks-Whitfield, the pair buy multiple rundown, abandoned, or dilapidated properties on a single block. Instead of building new homes from scratch, they strip them down to the studs and create affordable, stylish, and fully furnished starter homes that are ideal for first-time home buyers.
Bargain Block attracted more than 18 million viewers during it’s second season, and the couple’s efforts in transforming these diamonds in the rough have led to the beautification of many neighborhoods in the Motor City.
This season, Bynum and Thomas take on larger homes, as well as explore Detroit and the surrounding area to find inspiration and materials for themed home renovations. Some of their ventures include visiting iconic Detroit sites to get ideas for the Classic Detroit house, camping to find unique ways to incorporate nature into the Forrest House, and spending a day at an amusement park to spark ingenuity for the Physics House.
Bynum and Thomas, who have been together 10 years and engaged for five, moved to Michigan from Colorado after learning of widespread revitalization efforts. Plus, they finally found a community that celebrated and respected them as a proud, gay couple. This was especially true for Bynum, who grew up in Texas and endured years of homophobia in both his personal and professional life.
Instinct recently caught up with the pair to talk more about the new season of Bargain Block, the show’s origins, and how they discovered their passion for home renovation. They also touch on which room is their favorite to design, their upcoming wedding nuptials, and bringing LGBTQ representation to the world of construction.
Check out the full video interview below.
Keith Bynum & Evan Thomas…
Follow Bynum: Instagram
Follow Thomas: Instagram
Love this show. Creative design and not like other shows that feature same flavor of the month stuff. Love their laughter ; we need more laughter in the world !
We watch this show every week too! Like that the designs are all different and not the “in at the moment” sameness all the other design shows feature. Love the laughter they share. We NEED smiles. Love to see creativity.
I love the show and their style and imagination is wonderful.
I watch this show every week. Definitely one of me & my husbands favorite. Happy HGTV is giving us gay representation.