Who pays for the renovations on the Discovery Channel’s Homestead Rescue?
Introduction
Everyone loves a good home improvement show—which is why the Discovery Channel’s Homestead Rescue has been such a major runaway success.
Fans and followers of Homestead Rescue—and its spin-off sister series, Homestead Rescue: Raney Ranch—have a lot of reasons to love the Discovery Channel favorite.
For one, the cast is engaging and loves sharing their expertise with fellow homesteaders across the US.
It gives the rest of us folk a glimpse into a whole other lifestyle.
It is inspiring.
And finally, it just makes darned good viewing.
There is one question that always comes up in a conversation about Homestead Rescue, though:
Who is paying for the renovations on Homestead Rescue?
If that question has been on your mind, welcome to the club.
Fortunately, we’ve got the answer to that, and many other questions about your favorite homestead makeover show.
How did Homestead Rescue start?
The original Homestead Rescue premiered on Discovery on June 17, 2016.
The show followed Marty Raney and two of his kids—son Matt and daughter Misty—as they gallivanted across the US to help fellow Americans who had committed to living off-grid.
The show was a major hit, and eleven—yes, eleven—seasons later, it is still going strong.
With Marty and his family still at the helm, 2020 brought about the spin-off series, Homestead Rescue: Raney Ranch.
Who are the Raneys?
Even with everything else Homestead Rescue has to offer, one thing is clear: everyone loves the Raneys.
Patriarch Marty Raney was raised off-grid in the Ozark Mountains, growing up in Mt Sherman as part of a homesteader family that had been in the area since the 1890s.
Marty Raney & Barton Seaver – @Getty
Doubling down on the isolation, Marty quit school at 16 years of age and headed for Alaska.
In interviews, Raney has said that Alaska had a lot of appeal for him as a rebellious teenager who wanted to experience some stuff.
No other place on earth, according to Marty, had that “intrigue, mystique, or adventure.”
Life could be pretty tough, but Marty was committed—he worked as a logger, with his first home being aboard a floating logging camp on Prince of Wales Island.
It was during this time that Marty met his future wife, Mollee.
The pair relocated to Haines, hunkering down at a 160-acre homestead some hundred-odd miles from the nearest town.
From there, it was off to another logging camp close to Sitka, where the pair began raising a family of their own.
Marty and Mollee raised their brood—Matthew, Miles, Misty, and Melanie—to be independent. All their kids could build, fish, hunt, and provide for themselves and their families.
All of them could build a life without relying on modern creature comforts like electricity, indoor plumbing, or central heating.
Eventually, the Raney family moved into a different kind of business: construction.
The Alaska Stone & Log Company built homes from natural materials—quarried stones, peeled logs, and the like—while Mollee held down the administration and accounts end.
How did the Raneys end up on television?
As it turns out, Marty Raney wasn’t just an off-grid survivalist—he was a mountaineer.
In 1986 he climbed North America’s highest mountain peak, and other climbers hired him for his expertise in the area.
He was in such hot demand, in fact, that the 1997 documentary film, Alaska: Spirit of the Wild, featured Marty as the expedition guide.
The documentary was narrated by Hollywood icon Charlton Heston and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject.
Marty also featured in 1999’s Climb Against the Odds, and 2011’s An Idiot Abroad, starring Ricky Gervais.
In 2013, Marty was joined by his son, Matt, for National Geographic’s Ultimate Survival Alaska television series.
How did the Raneys end up on Homestead Rescue?
Having already been in front of the camera, it made sense when the Discovery Channel came calling with their own idea.
This one—by the producers of the hit show, Gold Rush—was “some kid of survival show,” as far as Marty could tell.
Marty couldn’t believe his luck.
“I was like, man, this is too good to be true: I get to build, I get to help people, real people, with real needs.”
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Who pays for the renovations on Homestead Rescue?
So, who pays for Homestead Rescue projects? This one is surprisingly simple: the Discovery Channel pays. With some caveats. For example, Marty and his kids are expected to repurpose as much of the original materials as possible, to save money and make a more authentic show.
The homesteaders will scour the property to find what they can to improve the place, resulting in what Marty calls some “very ingenious things that happened.”
After that, Marty needs to convince the execs at Discovery if he needs cash for something.
The budget is made available to the crew to bring back homesteads from the brink of disaster.
Note – Marty Raney has a net worth of $1.5 million.
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I am Bulgarea Candin Stefan, and I founded FamousPeopleToday.com in 2018. I’m using my bachelor’s degree in economics and 9 years of experience in blogging to guide millions of people through the incredibly complex world of celebrity net worths.
Eleanor Redmond
Friday 4th of November 2022
I learn so much from this show! The Raneys think outside the ..:grid! Very creative. Do they have engineers, contractors and experts in different fields or have they just had so much experience? If they have counselors, would their support people be willing to take calls from strangers? I know it would be hard for them to know who can safely be given advice. From my perspective I can’t even trust workmen who come to my house and look me in the face to know what they are talking about. I really appreciate when one of the Raney’s ideas fails. They don’t give up, just shift gears and keep working.2
Debra Cline
Saturday 15th of October 2022
I love the Raneys & look fwd to watching them every Saturday, i also watch all of the episodes playing every Saturday, sometimes its only 2-3, other days i sit & watch for 6-7 episodes & love it! Unfortunately I live on SS a fixed income & can only watch them on cable which is very expensive & w/o a roommate I wouldn't have cable tv at all. That's the way it is & i love this family. The Raney's spend time away from their own families to help others is selfless & also should be encouraging to others. It's sad that the younger generation know nothing about what hard work really is & I was a single mom working 3 jobs & had zero days off in one year. I decided to quit one job & worked two jobs. My daughter's saw me work days, evenings, nights until early morning hours but I made sure to be at most of their school events & as many meals together as we could. My youngest put herself through college which started when she was 16 & still in high school. I admire the hard work & spending weeks if not months away from their family to help others. There are some episodes that I've seen a few times & will gladly watch every day while I also look fwd to the new episodes as well. I remember when Marty made a comment abt not liking foul language & it touched me because when i hear someone throwing curse words around out of frustra or anger its ineffective! I also love the manners in which Marty, Matt & Misty use during work, I hear please & thank you. I think any of this family would be a pleasure to work for! I see tears of happiness from homesteaders & see them gain skills from the Raney family, skills that will not only last a lifetime but can be improved upon. When i see the families eyes well up with tears, my eyes fill with tears. Not only is the Raney family rescuing homesteads they are rescuing ppl, families & a way of life! I love Misty & Matt, it's obvious that the Raney family are hard workers & willing to share their skills with others, but the Raney's are giving more than just rebuilding or fixing something that's broken, they are doing this from their heart & telling them, yes you can do this! I could write so much more & then I'd just be rambling, it would be a pleasure to know them & the rest of the family & I can honestly say that if I were a neighbor or friend I think that it would be a life-long friendship. I would love to see Marty's wife & other children. These ppl are the real deal. Until next Saturday, I'll see them again.
Larry Smith
Sunday 9th of October 2022
I like to watch the show now and then, I find good old Marty a bit of a show-boat though and a back slapper....his back!
Dale Barnett
Saturday 8th of October 2022
My wife are in a similar boat we to are on a fixed income the first thing to go would be the cable most everything we have is paid off we've already started to cut cost
Patricia McNally
Tuesday 27th of September 2022
Is there a way to apply for the Raney's and Discovery Channel to help a family build where there was a homestead and now just a young couple on 300 acres have only established tiny house in the Ozarks, Yellville.
Winter is coming soon . They have goats and want to have cows. Thankyou