David Bromstad's Net Worth: How Much Is The HGTV Host Really Worth?
David Bromstad is a past winner of HGTV's "Design Star" and host of shows like "My Lottery Dream Home," and he's worth around $2 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
He basically won the lottery. Well, not the actual lottery, but he won it in a metaphorical sense. These days, Bromstad is well known for projects like "Beach Flip" and "Color Splash," but even that level of success was a bit of a surprise.
As a creative, Bromstad is all about art and functionality, which is how he snagged a role at Disney after college. Soon enough, it became clear to Bromstad that he didn't want to be an animator and eventually realized he'd rather focus on furniture and interior design. To make a long story short, he landed on the first season of "Design Star."
Aside from being a gifted artist, Bromstad has a mind for business. He was able to translate his "Design Star" win into a handful of successful ventures. So, how exactly did he earn his impressive net worth? Let's investigate, shall we?
David Bromstad started in a surprising place
Given his massively successful design empire, it would follow that David Bromstad had his eye set on interiors from day one, but that's not necessarily true. While he definitely found his niche, his path to success was anything but straight. Bromstad has always had a creative streak — particularly for drawing — so, right out of high school, he enrolled in the prestigious Ringling College of Art and Design in Florida. There he studied animation with hopes of working for Disney one day, per HGTV. "Disney pulled directly from their illustrators, and so that's what my major was," he explained in an interview with The List, adding that the dream was short-lived. "I realized about six months into my college education that I didn't want to do animation."
While it's where he cut his teeth, and the skills he learned were definitely invaluable, it wasn't necessarily his dream job. Bromstad bounced around from department to department at Disney after landing the role. Finally, he found his niche in the sculpting department, which led to his love of design. Eventually, though, he took a chance and applied to be on HGTV's newest series "Design Star" (well, new for 2006, anyway).
He runs his own business
So, you already know David Bromstad from his stint on HGTV, but what you may not have known is that he also runs his own business. Yep, Bromstad has been at the helm of the aptly named David Bromstad Studio since he came to fame for winning "Design Star" back in 2006. So, what exactly does Bromstad Studios specialize in? Well, you name it, he probably does it.
It goes without saying that for a hefty price, you can book Bromstad for an interior design consultation. According to his website, Bromstad and his team at David Bromstad Studio will assist their clients with color suggestions and furniture placement and deliver the final idea in a little 3D model so that the client really gets the full idea.
The company doesn't just specialize in interior design, though. They also provide custom furniture design and larger-scale design consultations. Then the fun stuff starts. On his website, you can purchase wallpapers and prints designed by Bromstad himself.
David Bromstad won big on Design Star
After years of work at Disney, Bromstad turned his attention to design, and boy, did that turn out to be a good call. Soon enough, Bromstad landed a spot on the first-ever season of "Design Star," and well, of course, he won, per HGTV. How much did he end up taking home? A cool $250,000.
Sure, the prize winnings were nice and helped him invest and start his design firm, but the real value came from the name recognition. Without that, he wouldn't have been able to score those lucrative brand deals, gain all those Instagram followers, or be asked to host so many HGTV shows. Bromstad is well aware of how major that win was, and thus it remains his favorite moment from his time on HGTV. "Of course, if you ask any 'Design Star' winner what their favorite moment is, it would be when they won," he told Entertainment Weekly. "It wasn't like I was a little kid thinking, I want to be famous! The only goal I had for myself when I was younger was that I wanted to be well-known for my craft. I guess I got my wish."
David Bromstad makes a lot from HGTV shows
David Bromstad's time on HGTV didn't stop with design star Season 1. No, he became so popular that fans couldn't wait to see more of him. After some negotiating, Bromstad eventually landed at HGTV, where he hosted a variety of shows, including "My Lottery Dream Home" — for which he reportedly earns a $500,000 salary (via One World Information).
On "My Lottery Dream Home," Bromstad plays host and patiently guides recent lottery winners through the process of finding and financing their dream homes with their winnings. Sure the pay is good, but for Bromstad, it's about a lot more than just the paycheck. He genuinely loves the work, meeting new people, and helping them find happiness. "All my winners are wonderful," he told The List in 2021.
However, even though he loves meeting winners and helping people find the house they've always dreamed of, learning to use his design skill and expertise on a TV show was a bit of a learning curve. "Designing for TV and designing for reality is very different," he explained to the outlet, adding that he eventually got the hang of it. "I knew we're very, very good at what we do and yeah."
David Bromstad invests in real estate
Anyone who is rich enough to end up on a "net worth" list will tell you the best investment is real estate. David Bromstad is no different. After years of helping others make their own dream-worthy and perfect, Bromstad used his winnings and HGTV earnings to invest in a nice condo in Miami. It turned out to be a pretty good investment. After paying extensive detail to the decor (it's David Bromstad, after all), he listed it for a cool $650,000 in 2016, per Curbed. Since then, Bromstad has reportedly moved to Orlando, where his parents and close friends live.
Does Bromstad have any other advice about landing on a net worth list? Yes, he does, and it's not to waste your money on silly things — like lottery tickets. "I'm too cheap," he told the Orlando Sentinel. "I'd rather buy a pair of shoes than a Lotto ticket."
The HGTV star earns a living from his art
Not only is David Bromstad helping people live out their dreams (or at least live in their dream houses), but he's also living his own dream by translating his art into monetary success. The fact that he can sniff out a good deal on a house shouldn't surprise you, so you know that he can also sign a killer deal with a brand.
Rather than painting or designing one-off art for purchase at a very high price, Bromstad has cleverly opted to sell lots of mass-produced art to lots of people. Back in 2011, Bromstad signed a publishing deal with Penny Lane Publishing to sell his prints, per David Bromstad. Bromstad has also launched other brand deals — including his own furniture brand, which premiered at Art Basel in 2011. More recently, though, he's been selling art through collaboration with Grandin Road – a deal that likely earns Bromstad a handsome check.
David Bromstad has a side hustle
When he isn't busy designing, dreaming up ideas for Disney, hosting HGTV shows, or finding the perfect home for himself, David Bromstad is hard at work making a killing on Instagram. A quick peek at his Instagram will reveal that Bromstad knows a thing or two about cashing in on the influencers craze.
So exactly how much does that add to his net worth? Without his actual tax returns or a statement on the subject from the reality star, it's impossible to say; however, based on his massive number of followers, we can guess that it's a lot. Influencers make money from their social posts based on how many followers they have and how much their posts are interacted with online. As of this reporting, Bromstad has more than 300,000 followers on Instagram. According to some estimates, that means he could be pulling in more than $10,000 per post, per The Things.