My Lottery Dream Home Episodes That Didn't Land With HGTV Fans

HGTV is home to some of the most beloved home design shows on television — as well as some of the shows we love to hate. For many of its viewers, escapism is the appeal of the network's most popular shows. And in a world where homeownership increasingly feels like a pipe dream, watching people on TV buy a home can be the next best thing. There are several shows on HGTV that scratch this itch, but none promise escapism quite like "My Lottery Dream Home." The hit show featured lottery winners spending their new cash on lavish homes. Delivering on that promise, however, is another thing entirely.

The premise makes it sound like "My Lottery Dream Home" will follow lottery winners as they spend millions on elaborate mansions. While that does happen, most episodes show working-class people buying modest homes with their earnings. Responsible, yes, but it doesn't exactly result in riveting television. On the other hand, too much luxury can leave fans of the show unimpressed.

Looking at episode ratings on IMDb, it's clear the show doesn't always strike the right balance with its audience. After combing through Reddit and discussion forums, we compiled fans' thoughts on which episodes didn't live up to the hype.

Most people would agree that coming into any amount of money is a good thing. When it comes to "My Lottery Dream Home," however, episodes where new homeowners win less than $1 million are usually, well, a bust. So when lottery winner Nick announced he had won $100,000, one S8 episode was an all-time stinker.

Thanks to his low budget, fans were already prepared to find the episode boring. But Nick and his family would go on to commit another crime in the eyes of the show's fans: being creepy. In a Reddit post created by a user who has since deleted their account, fans shared how they find Nick and his significant other "weird." Reasons included downsizing their home despite their winnings and three young children, the couple's insistence on a house with a 3-car garage, and just seeming "off."

At 5.4, "Bangor or Bust" has the worst ratings on IMDb out of any episode on the show. Bad ratings might not mean fans universally hate an episode, but this is one time IMDB got it right. "Bangor or Bust" is a certified bust with fans.

HGTV eventually learned that lottery winners who want to appear on TV are a finite resource. Instead of cancelling "My Lottery Dream Home," the powers that be decided to make qualifying easier and began allowing anyone who came into money to appear on the show. Like Joe, who "won" $500,000 and was looking to spend some of it on a home in Fresno, California.

Surprisingly, the relatively low windfall (not that we'd say no to an extra $500,000) wasn't what upset viewers; it was Joe's secrecy about where the money came from. "This was so cryptic," wrote one Reddit user of the episode. Since he didn't share, others speculated how Joe got this money in the first place, with theories ranging from probable to criminal.

Given his secrecy, the most agreed-upon theory was a settlement that necessitated an NDA. "He did say he made the best of an unfortunate time," commented one Reddit user. Others guessed he inherited the money, while others exercised their imaginations and wondered if he had a background in organized crime. Everyone is so creative!

"A Home on the Cape" from S2 has a 7.6 rating on IMDb, but that wasn't high enough to stop fans from voicing their complaints online. Namely, as with most episodes where the lottery winner won under $1 million, viewers weren't happy that the woman who won was spending $300,000 on her new home. "Even I could buy a house costing that without winning a million dollars," one fan complained in the show's discussion board on Primetimer.

Still, not everyone thought the episode was a wash. Some thought the budget was responsible given the amount left over after taxes, while others loved the dynamic between the winner and her daughters, one even comparing it to "Gilmore Girls." And while the episode's reception was mixed, one of the daughters graciously popped into the Primetimer board to answer questions about the show.

She shared that her family had signed contracts which prevented them from sharing what HGTV doesn't want people to know about "My Lottery Dream Home," but did share that her mother took about $650,000 home after taxes. Not too shabby, but it's definitely a far cry from spending millions on a home like the show's previews make it look.

Most fans of "My Lottery Dream Home" watch the show for a luxurious escape from reality. But even an episode where the lottery winners do buy a more expensive house isn't guaranteed to land with audiences. In this S1 episode, lottery winners Cameron and Donna won $20 million and wanted to spend a chunk of it on an upgraded home in the Hamptons. So far, so good, right? 

Not really. Some fans were turned off by the amount they were spending. "I figured they'd be broke in 10 years and turned off the show after 20 minutes," wrote one fan on the Primetimer forum. Others found Cameron's insistence that his new home have more bathrooms than people a little strange. "Maybe use part of those lottery winnings to see a doctor?" commented one "concerned" viewer.

Still, with a 7.7 rating on IMDb, it's clear this episode is far from universally disliked. Despite the criticisms it received, there's a lot to like: Cameron and Donna have good chemistry with "My Lottery Dream Home" host David Bromstad, the houses they tour are fun to watch, and they have an impressive budget. The episode's mixed reception does have us wondering what the right balance between responsible spending and extravagant escapism is.

Every fan of reality shows knows that some episodes are more exciting than others. The S2 episode "A Little Piece of Quiet in Indiana" isn't an exciting one. Lottery winner Craig seems like a nice enough guy, and the story of how he won $1 million collecting used scratch-off tickets is interesting. But the houses he tours, while perfectly fine to live in, just aren't the most inspiring.

As fans of the show love to point out, winning $1 million does not mean taking home that full amount. Realistically, Craig was not going to be looking at McMansions during his house-buying journey with the money he won. In the episode, he had an affordable budget for the area, but as one viewer eloquently put it in the show's Primetimer forum, "If I want to watch people buying a house for $115,000, I could videotape myself doing it."

On paper, this episode does meet the show's criteria. Lottery winner? Check. Dream home? Craig was certainly happy with his purchase, so check. But the people who watch "My Lottery Dream Home" want to watch something more removed from their daily lives. This episode isn't that.

While some episodes inspire awe or invoke rage, some come and go with a whisper. One such episode is S12's "Millionaire Mama," which no one could be bothered to even rate on IMDb. This lack of a rating indicates how indifferent the show's fans are to the episode, but that didn't stop some from airing their grievances online.

The episode follows lottery winner Stephanie as she searches for a larger home in Miami after years of living in apartments. The first strike against Stephanie was that she "only" won $1 million and would not be looking at extravagant homes as a result. The second strike was that viewers found the homes she toured boring at best. The final strike, and probably the most hurtful to Stephanie, is that the show's audience didn't like her or her daughter's personality.

"The women were over the top annoying, had dreadful fashion sense, and I didn't like any of the homes," one commenter shared on Primetimer as to why the episode fell off. Not content to only critique the lottery winner and her family, they wrote that David Bromstad "seemed much less annoying and loud than usual by comparison." Harsh.

Powerball winner Carla could never have predicted that she would win $1 million off of a ticket she bought on a whim while visiting her sister in Kansas City. She also probably didn't predict that people would go online to complain that the homes she toured on "My Lottery Dream Home" were "underwhelming," and yet, that happened too. You can't win them all.

Viewers flocked to the show's discussion board on Primetimer to say they found the homes David showed Carla lackluster. Complaints ranged from too much carpet to bad locations, like directly off a highway. Of course, as is tradition with people who win "smaller" amounts on this show, fans were unimpressed with the lower-priced homes Carla viewed. "I saw 15 homes that cost more before renovations [on another show] than most of the lottery homes," one viewer complained.

Still, viewers couldn't help but compliment Carla's responsible choice of a more affordable home. Given that she bought her winning ticket in another state, she would have to pay more taxes than if she had won in Nebraska. While not as exciting as buying a mansion worth millions, Carla was able to purchase the home she wanted without breaking the bank.

This episode from S1 of "My Lottery Dream Home" features a financially strapped California couple who scored a $1 million lottery win. If you expected the show's fans to be understanding about their circumstances, you would be wrong. But if you expected them to get judgmental, well, you might want to try your own luck at the lottery.

With a 6.8 rating on IMDb, "Scratch Me Lucky California Dream Home" has the lowest review score of any episode in S1. The odds of fans enjoying it were already low since Scott and Peggy only won $1 million. But the fact that the couple had to move in with Scott's mother after struggling to find work before their lottery win led viewers to assume they would quickly blow through the money.

"I've found that people who have bad financial 'luck' ... never manage money well," wrote one viewer who repeatedly posted about their dislike of the episode on Primetimer. An IMDb user gave the episode one star and suggested that the couple would have to "auction that house to the highest bidder" if they hadn't prepared to pay taxes on the winnings. Hopefully, life cut them more slack than the show's viewers.

"I love a big budget," gushes host David Bromstad at the beginning of this S6 episode. When lottery winner Rita revealed she had won $5 million, it looked like he would get that budget he wanted. Unfortunately for Bromstad and the show's viewers, Rita set her budget for a vacation home in the Adirondacks at a measly $200,000.

"Why go on the show?" one viewer wondered on the show's Primetimer discussion board. Others agreed, though begrudgingly admitted there are other things a lottery winner might want to spend their millions on than a vacation home. Like a second one, as Rita suggested when Bromstad was skeptical of her low budget.

Fans were not impressed with the options Bromstad presented to the winner, including the one she picked. Calling the home "a total fixer," one fan wondered if Rita planned on renovating her new place rather than buying a perfect vacation home. If so, she should consider giving the show's host another call, as Bromstad is an expert in head-turning transformations.

In this S7 episode, Bromstad helps a family find their dream cabin in Montana after winning $1 million. Surprisingly, fans weren't upset about the smaller budget. They simply felt the episode was "off."

One viewer noted that Bromstad felt "unusually subdued" during the house tours. "IDK, the entire episode just seemed a bit 'off' to me," they wrote in a Primetimer forum post summarizing their thoughts. Other fans agreed that the dynamic between Bromstad and the family felt different than in other episodes, and that the husband and son were less involved than the rest of the family in the house-hunting process. Some fans wondered whether the husband only went on the show to make his wife happy. If true, we could see how that tension could lead to an awkward environment.

Famously a hugger, Bromstad's hands-off approach in this episode was likely a big reason why the vibes were off. Fans theorized reasons for the lack of hugs, ranging from it being flu season to the family being uncomfortable with how fake the HGTV show filming process was. Whatever the reason, this is one of the show's lower-rated episodes with a 6.8 on IMDb.

"Gone With the Win" follows Carmen, a Tennessee woman who won $420.9 million alongside 19 coworkers. When the S3 episode begins, she's nearly $13 million richer and looking for a home with her fiancé and high school sweetheart, James. When the episode ends, however, she's living in a completely different home as a single (but independently wealthy) woman. What happened?

The episode follows the same format as any other: Bromstad listens to the winner's wishlist and then shows them three fabulous homes to choose from. So when he introduced a fourth option, fans took note. "I knew they were gonna go that route or why else bother," wrote one fan on the show's Primetimer discussion board. Alarm bells started ringing when viewers saw that the new option was to build a home on James' own land.

"[I] definitely saw all kinds of red flags with the 'fiancé' wanting her to finance a mansion on his family property," commented another fan in the same forum. Apparently, so did Carmen. In the last minute of the show, the episode ends with her living in a beachfront home in Florida after ending things with James.

Hadleigh is the youngest lottery winner to appear on "My Lottery Dream Home." 22 at the time of her S10 episode, Hadleigh had just won $390,000 in her home state of North Carolina and was ready to buy a house in Charlotte for her family. Strangely, her budget was larger than her winnings at $550,000, and viewers had concerns. "So is this a girl from a family with money who won even more money?" one fan of the show wrote on the Primetimer forums.

Some speculated that she was able to spend more thanks to the money her family made from selling their old home. Others assumed she earned money as an influencer. Fans unearthed an article The Charlotte Observer wrote about her win, seemingly confirming she had some success as a "social media star."

Aside from worrying about Hadleigh's finances, viewers were torn over her fashion sense. "They sure didn't put their winnings in their wardrobe," wrote one Reddit user in a thread about the episode. Other viewers defended the winner and her sister's style as typical of Gen Z fashion. Regardless of how people feel about her fashion and her financial choices, it's hard to knock Hadleigh for buying a house for her family at such a young age.