The final week of My Reno Rules turned into a full-blown pressure cooker as Adrian Portelli returned with another twist before the live finale. Picture: Seven
Emma and Michelle may have lost My Reno Rules on the toss of a coin.
That sounds dramatic, but in a week where Adrian Portelli casually craned swimming pools into the backyards after the rooms had already been chosen, it also felt uncomfortably possible.
The final renovation before the live grand final moved outside, with only two points separating all four teams and the $1m prize still within reach for everyone.
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It should have been simple enough.
One team in each house would take the backyard, while the other would take the front yard and facade.
Nothing about this show has ever stayed simple for more than three minutes.
In House 2, Franky and Isaac made it clear they wanted the backyard, even though Mitch is a landscaper and landscaping week should have been his moment.
But Mitch looked at the scale of the space, the cost of turf, plants and labour, and made the call to take the front instead.
Franky and Isaac could not believe their luck.
House 1 was not so calm.
House 2’s fate came down to a coin toss as Franky and Isaac and Mitch and Shaz battled for control before the final reveal. Picture: Seven
Emma and Michelle were left crushed after their My Reno Rules momentum came undone at the worst possible moment. Picture: Seven
Nathan and Julia wanted the backyard, Emma and Michelle wanted the backyard, and neither team was willing to give up the most obvious final-week showpiece.
Emma and Michelle argued they had Portelli’s $10,000 bonus and could use it to do the bigger space justice.
Julia was not convinced.
After weeks of room battles, kitchen fights and arguments over ceilings, the decision came down to a coin toss.
Tails landed, Nathan and Julia got the backyard, and Emma and Michelle were left with the front yard and facade.
Adrian Portelli returned to My Reno Rules with a game-changing twist that left contestants scrambling before the finale. Picture: Seven
The arrival of the pools added a new layer of chaos as teams raced to finish their My Reno Rules homes. Picture: Seven
“It’s just gut wrenching,” Emma said.
Then Portelli arrived with the kind of surprise that makes half the contestants cheer and the other half quietly reassess every life choice.
“Look what I’ve got, guys,” he said.
What he had was a pair of swimming pools being craned into the backyards.
Adrian Portelli made a very Portelli entrance in a pink car before dropping another surprise on the My Reno Rules contestants. Picture: Seven
Adrian Portelli was ready to shake up My Reno Rules again as the contestants pushed towards the finish line. Picture: Seven
The backyard teams were ecstatic.
Nathan and Julia had suddenly landed the biggest visual weapon of the week, while Franky and Isaac’s Greek-inspired backyard had the missing piece it needed.
For Emma and Michelle, it was a sickening twist.
“We’ve literally signed away that million dollars,” Michelle said.
“Flipped away that million dollars.”
It was hard not to feel for them.
Mitch was forced into serious talks with the builder as House 2’s final My Reno Rules push hit another pressure point. Picture: Seven
A day earlier, they were the comeback queens, fresh off two perfect 10s and the highest score of the season.
Now they were standing in the front yard watching the prize-winning moment they wanted get lowered into someone else’s space by crane.
The pool, however, was not the free kick it first appeared to be.
Nathan and Julia quickly realised it came with compliance costs, fencing issues and a much bigger backyard budget problem than they had expected.
Emma and Michelle were stunned as the final week twist threatened to derail their My Reno Rules comeback. Picture: Seven
Their original plan had everything: a bar, dining area, fire pit, outdoor kitchen, lounge, pergola, sauna and outdoor shower.
The ambition was there.
The money was not.
“We ran out of budget very fast,” Julia said.
So the team that had won the backyard, won the pool and left Emma and Michelle with the front yard then asked Emma and Michelle for extra cash.
“Can you give us some cash?” Julia said.
There are brave questions, and then there is asking the people you beat in a coin toss to help fund the space that could win you $1m.
Emma and Michelle were not interested.
“It’s just the audacity to ask,” Emma said.
“No, thank you.”
That was the correct answer.
Nathan and Julia entered the final My Reno Rules stretch knowing one wrong move could wreck their shot at the top prize. Picture: Seven
While Nathan and Julia searched for savings, including asking builder Harley whether they could cut labour costs by doing some carpentry themselves, the rest of the teams were also starting to crack.
Franky and Isaac hit their first real design fight over a custom firepit bench, which was badly timed given they had spent most of the competition being the fun, easygoing team.
Franky and Isaac’s My Reno Rules partnership hit boiling point as finale pressure turned one disagreement into a major bust-up. Picture: Seven
Franky and Isaac’s visit to yia yia brought an emotional reset before the chaos of the My Reno Rules final reveal. Picture: Seven
A visit to Franky’s Yia Yia for tomato seeds helped steady them, and gave their Greek backyard a bit of heart beyond just the pool and outdoor kitchen.
Mitch and Shaz, meanwhile, had to prove giving away the backyard was not the worst strategic call of the season.
Mitch leaned into his landscaping background with plans for a dramatic front yard featuring crazy paving, copper planters, an architectural arbour and a curved copper and timber fence.
The final My Reno Rules reveal left contestants emotional as weeks of pressure, setbacks and family sacrifice finally caught up with them. Picture: Seven
After Shaz’s kitchen collapse the week before, this was his chance to pull them back into the race.
Emma and Michelle also tried to make the front yard count, planning timber cladding, giant concrete steppers, a feature tree and an electric gate.
Then their concrete arrived in the wrong colour.
With the steppers already setting, Emma made the expensive call to rip them out and start again.
“We got to rip it out,” she said.
Nathan and Julia were forced to cut back as the My Reno Rules clock closed in on the final reveal. Picture: Seven
It was the kind of decision that could either save the whole facade or finish them off completely.
Then Melbourne joined the competition.
A wild storm hit the site, stopping work at exactly the point nobody could afford to stop.
“This is like my worst nightmare,” one contestant said.
By the final day, the teams were not so much renovating as surviving.
The clock was ticking on My Reno Rules as unfinished rooms, pool dramas and Portelli’s latest twist pushed teams to breaking point. Picture: Seven
The finish line was finally in sight on My Reno Rules, but the last stretch proved anything but simple. Picture: Seven
Emma and Michelle were still waiting on their electric gate.
Nathan and Julia were trying to stretch a backyard budget that had been blown apart by the pool.
Franky and Isaac were racing to finish a backyard they believed could win.
Mitch and Shaz were trying to turn a front yard into a comeback.
Then Portelli delivered one last twist before the finale.
Mitch and Shaz faced one final My Reno Rules test as their winning streak, family sacrifice and finale hopes collided. Picture: Seven
First place will still win $1m, second will take home $250,000, third will now get $100,000 and fourth will receive $50,000.
No one will leave empty-handed.
But after a week of coin tosses, surprise pools, budget blowouts, wrong concrete, storms and one very awkward cash request, no one looked particularly comfortable either.
MISSED AN EPISODE? HERE’S ALL OUR MY RENO RULES 2026 RECAPS SO FAR
Episode 1: ‘Manipulator’ exposed as budget blowout sparks early chaos
Episode 2: ‘Hideous’: Brutal verdict rocks Portelli reno show
Episode 3: ‘Fine line’ as Julia calls out rivals in copygate drama
Episode 4: ‘Worst ever’: Portelli’s $1m brutal take-down
Episode 5: Emma snaps as kitchen deal explodes over ceiling fight
Episode 6: Comeback queens stun judges as frontrunners collapse
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