Park City family shines in HGTV’s “Help! I Wrecked My House” remodel

Park City residents Max Doilney and Joanna Kahn film a scene for HGTV’s Help! I Wrecked My House outside their renovated home. The couple’s episode highlights their home transformation and the community connections that shaped their experience. Photo: Joanna Kahn

PARK CITY, Utah — When Max Doilney’s mother sent him a link to an HGTV casting call last summer, he laughed it off. Then he looked around his house.

“She said, ‘You’ve wrecked your house,'” Doilney recalled. “So I grabbed my phone, spun around, and said, ‘My mom says I wrecked my house. We’ve got two kitchens, two stairwells, seven kinds of flooring—maybe she’s right.'”

What started as a lighthearted comment turned into a full-scale renovation and a life-changing experience for Doilney, a local real estate agent and longtime owner of The Corner Store, and his wife, Joanna Kahn, owner of Personal PT, a physical therapy clinic in Park City. The couple was featured earlier this season on HGTV’s Help! I Wrecked My House, hosted by designer Jasmine Roth.

A House with Identity Issues

Doilney purchased the property in 2007, but its problems predated him by decades. The house had been converted back and forth between a duplex and a single-family residence multiple times, leaving behind mismatched floor plans and a confusing layout. “We’d use the front of the house as a rental before we had kids,” Kahn said. “But after one uncomfortable experience, we stopped renting and didn’t know what to do with that half of the house.”

For years, the couple attempted DIY fixes—piecing together flooring, bathrooms, and kitchens. But the indecision lingered. Their children’s bedrooms remained disconnected from the main living area, hallways felt disjointed, and renovations had stalled. “We knew we couldn’t keep patching things together,” Kahn said. “It just wasn’t working for how our family lived.”

Within weeks of applying to the show, they received a response. They were ready to hand over the reins.

Reality TV, Reality Check

Inviting a national television crew into their home proved both thrilling and surreal. “It’s funny—you think reality TV is all spontaneous,” Doilney said. “But they sometimes have to shoot scenes twice so you can see both sides of someone walking through a door without seeing a camera crew.”

Kahn described the experience as “super fun and slightly terrifying.”

“You really don’t know what they’re going to put in your house,” she said. “You don’t get to pick tiles or paint colors. You’re just handing your life—and your loan—over to someone else.”

But the trust paid off. Kahn, who describes herself as “a feeler,” found unexpected relief in relinquishing control. “It was a blessing and a curse to let go, but also a relief,” she said. “There’s a peace in not having to make every decision.”

Designer with Intuition

The couple praised Roth’s design instincts as “spot-on.”

“She was thoughtful,” Doilney said. “Even when she second-guessed decisions, she recalibrated with heart and intuition. She listened to our stories—Joanna’s Vermont roots and our family’s needs—and made choices that reflected that.”

Kahn agreed. “Sometimes she knew us better than we knew ourselves. I never would have put all those elements together, but it just feels warmer and more alive than I could’ve imagined.”

More Than Cosmetic Changes

The renovation transformed more than aesthetics. Before the show, the house had two kitchens, two fireplaces, and two staircases. Roth opened the floor plan and connected the family’s private spaces for the first time.

“The biggest change was linking our son Kaleb’s room to ours,” Doilney said. “He used to have to walk through his sister’s room and a laundry room to get to us. Now he feels safe and connected.”

The remodel also sparked unexpected decluttering. “We realized how much we didn’t need,” Doilney said. “I kept asking, ‘Would you buy this today?’ If the answer was no, we let it go.”

Their children embraced the lesson. “Now, when we say no to buying something, they get it,” Kahn said. “They’ve become less consumer-driven, and that’s one of the best long-term outcomes.”

The Reveal

When the family walked back into their finished home, Kahn felt an instant sense of relief. “She nailed the color,” she said. “Even the little details—like coat hooks by the door—were perfect. It just felt like home.”

For Doilney, the best part was watching his family’s reaction. “The biggest relief was that Joanna was happy. Our son sleeps better, our daughter has her own space, and the whole house functions so well.”

Lessons Beyond the Walls

The experience changed more than their house—it changed their perspective. “This went from DIY to YDI—you do it,” Doilney said, laughing. “I realized I’m capable of making things functional but not beautiful. Now I’m okay with letting professionals handle it.”

For Kahn, the shift went deeper. “Max used to build everything himself—the deck, the porch, the greenhouse. But it takes a toll. Now we choose how to use our energy. We still love doing things ourselves, just not everything.”

During filming and construction, the family moved multiple times—first to Doilney’s father’s house, then to a rental near City Park. What could have been stressful became unexpectedly grounding. “The kids got to live with their granddad and experience Park City in a new way,” Doilney said. “They rode the city bus, walked to breakfast, and listened to live music in the park. It deepened their sense of community.”

Kahn agreed. “We felt closer to the pulse of Park City—watching people roller-skate, seeing firefighters barbecuing, and just observing daily life. We were lucky to have that experience, and we don’t take it for granted.”

What Matters Most

As the couple reflects on their journey, what stands out most isn’t the design or furniture—it’s the relationships. “Things are just things,” Doilney said. “The relationships we built—with Jasmine, the producers, our kids, our friends, our community—those are far more valuable than anything inside the house.”

Kahn added, “Our home feels warm and calm now, and the process taught all of us resilience, gratitude, and how to find beauty in the in-between.”

Episodes featuring their home are now streaming on HGTV and Discovery+.