The Production team from Homestead Rescue recently hosted a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything), giving fans rare insights into the inner workings of the show. From production logistics to the truth about homesteaders, safety concerns, and even Marty Raney’s loyalty, the Q&A session uncovered fascinating details that viewers never knew.
Question: Some of these homesteaders seem wholly unprepared for what they were getting themselves into. Did it seem that way to you while working with them, or is that TV editing for drama?
Answer:
Some of the homesteaders inherited their properties, some bought out of desperation, some bought out of curiosity and wanting to go back to working for themselves and living what feels like a free life. There was one episode i worked on where the parents were not active at all, and their children were about too young to understand the jobs at hand. I also went to many episodes where they just need extra structure and support that the Raneys were able to provide. Depends on the episode. There were some places we went where they had nooo idea what they were doing, and the extra fun work (like Misty or Matt’s projects) might’ve just added to their workload, if they continued to homestead after we left. A lot of them were hard workers though, and the fact that we bring in experts on the land and animals helped the ‘steaders be more prepared for the future.
Question: The first couple of episodes they didn’t have an excavator, but now they always have one. Do the homesteaders have to pay for that rental?
What advice would you have for someone considering reaching out to be on the show? Basically what are things that most homesteaders don’t realize when going into the show?
Answer:
They try to pick a family with or couple with friends to work for, the more the merrier, and that way each Rainey sorta hones in on a job with a ‘steader.
The excavator is in the show budget. They get one every episode now. They’re incredibly useful tools on a very large scale. If you personally need a lot of dirt moved around, hire a days worth of contracted Ex work and youll have a whole new landscape to work with.
If you want to be on the show as a PA or Contractor, they cast out hiring if you’re in the area of their next build.
Question:
Are all the donated materials just for advertising exposure and how is that facilitated? Is there a traveling work crew or are those all recruited local volunteers? I see so many background people working.
When not near a town (most of the time) do the Rainey’s travel with their own trailers for living/sleeping?
Answer:
Great questions!! For materials, its seriously a mix. They do have a few sponsors here n there, but sometimes if the Rainey’s are out and about in town close to their work site, they’ll meet people who know or have EXACTLY what they need (as if God put it in their laps!!) and they love the show so they donate.
For crew: as i mentioned in another comment, they each have their own contractor they prefer, so they ship them out. But a lot of the extra workers they hire are locals!!! So they boost the local economy wherever they go!
And no. They stay in the closest main town, since the crew is large enough and we as humans have needs, we want places to eat and shopping for basic goods and such. Sometimes the drive to the homestead can be as long as 2 hours one way!!
Question: We know Marty is a beast of a man, but if he got to a point where he couldn’t do the show anymore physically would the show continue with Matt and Misty alone?
Answer:
Great question. I unfortunately don’t have the answer to that. I think it would be fun to see Misty do her own show if anything were to happen on a big scale: she is so much fun and has great tv personality, and a great voice. Otherwise, who knows!!!
Question: Do the Raneys make the bad dad jokes off camera too or is that a bit?
Answer:
Spending any time with the Raineys you find out they only want to have a good time and make people laugh! The jokes are endless!!!!
There was an episode in colorado where the wind just BLEW. i dont like dealing with the wind so thats my pick, but everyone has their own threshold of what they can and cant handle. Someone mentioned not having water, some people dont like the cold. It really depends on the person.
Question: Is it really just the Raineys and the homesteaders or is there an actual team of people that does the renovations (aside from digging wells etc)
Answer:
yes!!! Each of the Raineys has one main contractor that helps them, and then they add 3-5 workers overall that help do anything from building, cleaning, collecting supplies etc. The whole crew works so hard. The raineys are the ones who call the shots on the builds, and the extra workers help to do whats needed to get the job done.
Question: What is preproduction like when assessing future homesteaders for upcoming seasons? How far in advance do they plan?
Answer:
Lets just say the season that is being shown right now was filmed last year around this time. Id say to make a whole season, it takes a years worth of work, from finding the right homestead, scouting the area and neughborhood, calling out for workers and supplies. And one episode typically takes 12 days to film, but there are so many other factors than just showing up and doing the job.
Question: Prior to arrival does production stop by and assess homesteads or do they just base it off the homestead applications only?
Answer:
Yes, this is called Scouting. They scout the homestead, take drone pics and use maps to see what the land is like. What they will do with each area, for Misty Marty or Matts project. The scouting isnt just for the job itself, either. They factor in where theyre going to park all the vehicles for crew, where they will set up production gear, lunch tent. Things of that matter. A great deal of planning goes into it. The build managers and producers work their butts off to get everything set up so filming is swift and doesnt waste any time!
Question: What time of the year do they usually schedule production?
Answer:
The show is basically constantly being filmed and worked on. They have block scheduling for showing up to the homestead and making the show but there is also the planning and editing and getting any special features and CGI (like when they show computer graphs of what the build will look like).
Question: has there been any times that it just didn’t work out and you guys just couldn’t make it happen?
Answer:
If its not going to work out, they would cut the plans before they head over. There have been some instances of not getting along with one of the homesteaders, but that is rare. If this is the case, we won’t involve them with filming.
I wouldnt be surprised if some of the homesteaders dont keep up with the work that the raineys do, but they usually have rainey returns so you can see for yourself what theyve been up to!
