HGTV ‘What’s Wrong With That House?’ Stars Joe Mazza & Noel Gatts on Disasters, Drama and Their Relationship
Q&A
What’s Wrong With That House? A burning question clients have for Joe Mazza and Noel Gatts during their HGTV series of the same name. The duo brings a one-two punch in every episode as they deal with disasters and drama. First Mazza, a long-time home inspector, goes into a deep-dive investigation to uncover and repair hidden issues inside each home. From leaky pipes to mysterious spots causing ongoing water damage primed, mold sanctuaries and cracked foundations to areas with varying safety concerns, he is determined to get to the bottom of it.
Then once the property is deemed safe, designer Gatts stretches the remaining budget to revitalize spaces that are both functional and stylish. The show was built off the initial series Home Inspector Joe with some tweaks. With the new season in full swing, we caught up with the two to talk about their winning formula.
What were your first impressions of each other when you first met?
Joe Mazza: First impressions were great. We hit it off. When we started filming, I had never done anything like this in my life. Noel made it easy. The chemistry is there. What you see on camera is what you see in real life. There is no drama.
Noel Gatts: It’s a lot of humor. We both have a great sense of humor. That helps a lot. You take things seriously, of course. At the same time, you want to feel relaxed with your clients and each other. Our goal is to support each other and not have conflict. Sometimes that’s not the case with contractors and designers. For us, it’s a team effort. Joe is always the one to bring bad news, but I feel like he does it in a way that makes people want to hear it. They are comfortable because they see a solution. I’m also there to help them through that solution.
How would you say your working relationship has evolved as you’ve gotten to know each other more?
Joe: People love how I come in as Joey Buzzkill telling you about this problem. Then Noel comes in and you see the final product. And then boom, the light shines.
Noel: You’re teaching each other so much. I think a lot of the novelty of the show is that Joe is teaching people things a lot of these other shows don’t have time to teach you. And doing it really quickly. “Here are things to look for that you might not look for when you’re renovating, but I’ll look for because I’m a home inspector.” That’s how he approaches things. It makes my job easier too because I don’t want to build something lovely that is going to collapse. We want to do things with integrity. Just because you’re getting some big news, it’s not always bad news. It’s something you can now fix and improve upon and end up with the best final product.
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How would you compare this season to when you did Home Inspector Joe?
Noel: Now we have the time to talk about one problem. It opened it up to more homes and clients. People who have lived in a house for a while and not just want to buy a house.
Joe: before we had to look at two houses, pick two houses, and then finally get in there and get the work done. Now you do the walkthrough, and you’re rocking. There is more time to focus on what is wrong with the house, how to fix the house, design the house, and hand it over better.
Noel: There are clients who have been in a house for 20 years and lived with problems. Joe is getting down to the issues.
Joe, you have been in the industry for 20 years. What kind of changes have you seen within the building industry to avoid some of these problems homeowners face?
Industry standards many years ago, there were no insulation walls. Energy efficiency was thrown out the window. I think things are better. Now you pay a little more upfront but save more down the road.
Noel, how do manage the growing cost of everything when you’re transforming these homes?
Noel: For me, it’s about making sure they are investing in quality. Spending your money in the right places. Sometimes that means we can’t furnish it as perfectly as they want it furnished, but with the lighting, countertops, and cabinetry, we want to make sure they are spending the right amount of money. Not going all in on something that will break in the future. I have to pull the budget after Joe finds out what he has to fix, which is already a hit. It’s always a hit, but I want to make sure they are not cheaping out just to get more done.
We’re narrowing the scope of work. Maybe we’re not going to be able to do that other room. Maybe just the kitchen and living room because we don’t want to give you cheap materials and make it look cool when it’s done. I would say with the rising cost of things you want to make sure the client is not cheaping out, which can be confusing. Basically, don’t not spend the money where you should just because things are expensive. Just choose the right things to spend the money on.
Is there a particular upcoming episode that stands out this season for you?
Joe: We worked on this Mount Vernon house during [a September 30] episode. There is a scene in there with me. It’s something where I see the worst-case scenario. Put it this way, it was very dramatic just to show how bad it was. I always come across things. Then Noel’s design really takes it over the top in the end. This episode is phenomenal because you see everything that will go wrong in a house in one episode. People are going to get a lot out of this episode. I make people paranoid about their houses now because they can see what is lurking behind the walls. That’s the scary part. I open up these closed walls and woah.
Noel: It’s challenging for us to make sure we are doing things right within these budgets because some of these people are struggling. They are spending their life savings on improving this house. The drama is built in. We don’t have to create it. That’s why you won’t see the whole house being done or renovated because we are real. We are going to fix what we can fix and get the most bang for your buck with the renovation process. We want to help clients realize a lot of their dreams but it won’t be every room touched.
Have you thought about teaming up for one of the HGTV competition shows?
Noel: I am the least competitive person, but I love being challenged. That would be a dream for me.
Joe: Noel and I always talk about doing Rock the Block or something like that. I’m very competitive. Like get out of my way, I’m not here to play.
Noel: He is very competitive, so it would be a good balance. I would be like, “We should share ideas with the other team.” This is why we work well together. We just find this middle ground, but in the push and pull between us is entertainment. It’s all real.
How would you sum up this season in a few words?
Joe: Schedule nightmare. All over the place, but I loved it.
Noel: Challenges and triumphs. Joe and I gave a hundred percent all of the time.
What’s Wrong With That House?, Saturdays, 10 a.m./9c, HGTV
What's Wrong With That House? where to stream
