HGTV Couples Whose Relationships Are Full Of Glaring Red Flags

HGTV is primarily known for two things: endless entertainment centered on everything home related, and standout couples who know how to not just renovate a house, but take viewers on a ride. Not every program on HGTV is hosted by a romantic couple — Hilary Farr and David Visentin hosted "Love It or List It" for a whopping 19 seasons — but if someone out there is looking for an extra slice of love and adoration with their wholesome reality show, HGTV has plenty of it.

As they say, however, everything is not always how it seems. Despite how in love the most popular HGTV couples look on or off camera, and regardless of how they may talk about one another to the press, there always seems to come a time when the hard reality of maintaining a relationship starts to seep through. These still-going romantic duos seem like they've got it all together for the most part, but under closer examination, their relationships are certainly eyebrow-raising.

Chip and Joanna Gaines are an iconic HGTV couple, and for good reason. From 2013 to 2018, the duo hosted "Fixer Upper" and quickly became household names for their unique designs and undeniable charisma. "Fixer Upper" became a full-fledged franchise, and the Gaineses established a huge overarching company, Magnolia. The Gaineses share five children and have been married since 2003.

As iconic as the Gaineses are, there's no denying the red flags in their relationship over the years. Chip and Joanna didn't just work together constantly during the first years of their union, but also had children quickly. The couple have been extremely open about how hard their marriage can be because their work-life balance is usually out of whack. "I think the challenge is it's hard to shut off," Joanna told People in March 2023. "Sometimes there's no clocking out." When it comes to mixing business and romance, attempts to intertwine the two can end in disaster. "The biggest red flag I see in Chip and Joanna Gaines' marriage is the need to refocus on the romantic partnership," relationship expert Susan Winter told Glam. 

Over the years, the Gaineses have been the subject of several divorce rumors. After over 20 years of marriage, however, the couple told People in July 2025 that they were looking to rekindle the excitement in their relationship through new hobbies like dance. Chip, in particular, is adamant that they'll never get divorced. "Divorce or leaving one another is not really an option for us. ... We're in it forever," he told Access Hollywood in 2021.

Ben and Erin Napier have made quite a name for themselves on HGTV, introducing viewers to Laurel, Mississippi, with their show "Home Town." The Napiers have been married since 2008 and have two children. They've also hosted several more series under the "Home Town" umbrella. As far as their love bubble goes, the Napiers' seems impenetrable. In 2020, Erin revealed to People: "Every day he's up before me, and he writes me a letter."

The Napiers may be a sweet couple, but they each seem unable to do anything without the other. This glaring red flag not only affects their work-life balance, but also their children, something that the pair have stated multiple times. "Date nights are planned six months in advance. They happen once or twice a year," Erin told Us Weekly in March 2025. Erin also explained that although she had complete faith and trust in Ben, her mind gets "creative" when something new (no matter how mundane) arises, such as Ben taking a shower at a different time of day than normal. A few months earlier in 2024, Ben also revealed to TV Insider that their children aren't used to both of their parents not being around, in a testament to their seeming co-dependency. "Our girls don't act the normal way they act when it's just one of us. They act out," Ben said. 

Chelsea DeBoer has come a long way since her days on "Teen Mom 2," especially since her marriage to Cole DeBoer in 2016. The DeBoers quit "Teen Mom 2" in 2020 to protect their childrens' privacy — they share four children, including Aubree, Chelsea's child with ex Adam Lind — but then quickly found a place on HGTV. The duo have hosted "Down Home Fab" since 2023.

The early days of the DeBoers' relationship are a bit eyebrow-raising. According to their own account, Chelsea and Cole met at a gas station in August 2014. Cole met Aubree in September 2014; by 2015, the trio were living together. "Teen Mom 2" didn't just document how fast these two moved their relationship along, but how quickly Aubree took to calling Cole her dad. Scores of Reddit users agreed with this in a thread from 2022, with opinions that still hold up today. "[Y]eah it worked out for her but every other mom gets dragged to hell and back for introducing men to their kids on the exact same timeline as Chelsea did," one now-deleted user wrote. 

The DeBoers spent years locked in a $4 million lawsuit against Envy, a consulting company that sued them in 2020 for alleged breach of contract. The DeBoers countersued later that year and denied Envy's allegations; the case eventually went to trial when both parties refused to settle. The lawsuit was eventually dismissed in 2014 (via The Ashley's Reality Roundup). For a couple that continuously boasts about having a fantastic relationship, this red flag indicates that things between the two may not be so smooth sailing after all. 

Tarek and Heather Rae (née Young) El Moussa are another prolific HGTV couple who co-hosted "The Flipping El Moussas" for two seasons; their home renovation series was canceled in July 2025. Before they tied the knot in 2021, Tarek was already a seasoned HGTV star, while Heather was a cast member on Netflix's "Selling Sunset." As far as PDA goes, the El Moussas are pros with endless photos, videos, and trends showcasing their love story, such as an Instagram clip showcasing their "obsession" with one another in January 2026. 

Despite how loved-up the couple acts, they've displayed some rather prominent red flags over the years. The El Moussas stirred up some controversy in February 2021, for example, when Heather revealed her Valentine's Day present for Tarek: a backside tattoo reading, "Yes sir, Mr. El Moussa." The photo was swiftly deleted (although it's still up on E! News), but not before internet users overwhelmingly professed their surprise, shock, and disgust. This red flag really speaks for itself, although the El Moussas attempted to explain why the tattoo was so great. 

Aside from the permanent ink, Tarek and Heather showed cracks in their relationship when they got into a screaming match on an episode of "The Flipping El Moussas." While getting into the nooks and crannies of a renovation project with Heather's sister and her sister's boyfriend, a conversation the El Moussas were having about shower tile quickly descended into a full-on argument. The tensions were so high that Tarek walked off, and filming was temporarily halted, although they eventually reconciled and continued (via Realtor).

Bryan and Sarah Baeumler are quite the busy bees. The HGTV stars have co-hosted more than one program over the years, although they're best known for their debut series, "Renovation Island." The Baeumlers, who have four children, married in 2004 and are still going strong as of this writing. The Canadian duo originally met all the way back in high school, and fate ended up bringing them back together. "In 2001, we were both copied on an email from a mutual friend, which was the catalyst for us to begin talking again," Sarah told Streets of Toronto in 2022. 

When it comes to the Baeumlers, their biggest red flag is the way they interact with one another on HGTV. With lots of bickering and clashes of opinion, they don't give off the vibe that everything is rainbows between them. In one example during an episode of "Renovation Island" (via YouTube), Bryan and Sarah clash over potential shower designs. Many people just watch HGTV to see some nice houses, not to witness an argument. "[D]on't even get me started on the way they speak to one another. I appreciate snark and sarcasm but they're sometimes downright mean to each other," one Reddit user said in a post concerning the Baeumlers. "I keep expecting to see the headline 'Baeumlers Divorce,'" another user replied.

While the Baeumlers have proved to be a couple who bicker, the Marrses have seemed to be the opposite. Since 2019, Dave and Jenny Marrs have won over droves of HGTV fans with their Arkansas-based renovation series "Fixer to Fabulous." Dave, the constructor, and Jenny, the designer, have been married since 2005 and share five children, including a daughter they adopted in 2013 from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Jenny frequently shares their adoption journey on Instagram; their daughter turned 14 years old in January 2016.

Despite their good intentions and wide popularity, not everything is peachy with this couple. One big red flag for the Marrses is that they have been hit with some pretty serious legal issues over the years, because that alone indicates that things are not exactly peachy keen with how they operate as a duo. The couple's first lawsuit was filed against them in 2021, with the plaintiffs alleging breach of contract and unfilled repairs; the suit was settled in 2022. Dave and Jenny were sued by different plaintiffs for the exact same reason in 2023, with the second lawsuit dismissed in January 2025 (via People). Two lawsuits under extremely similar circumstances for anyone, let alone HGTV stars, are certainly worth a second look.

Brett and Jasmine Roth are recent Utah residents after moving from California in 2024; the couple have been married since 2013 and have two children. Jasmine, an interior designer who won Season 2 of "Rock the Block," has hosted two shows for HGTV: "Hidden Potential" and "Help! I Wrecked My House!" If there's one thing the Roths like to do, it's have fun, something that this hilarious January 2026 Instagram post instantly proves. 

When it comes to this duo, there are certainly some interesting red flags, although they aren't nearly as egregious as the others on this list. The couple generally stay out of the line of controversy, although Jasmine stirred debate in a May 2025 Instagram post, writing, "Brett thinks it's gross that I let [our kids] lay on the airport floor." Brett is also noticeably absent from "Hidden Potential," even though partners are almost always included on HGTV. "He's running a business — a big business — and I'm doing my own thing," Jasmine explained to Country Living Magazine in 2018. 

The Roths were also platonic roommates in other relationships for a while before they became lovers. Brett and Jasmine met when they moved into the same residence while attending Northeastern University. At the time, they both had other partners, but broke off their respective relationships for one another. "My grandma told me later that she leaned over to my mom and said, 'He's the one,'" Jasmine also told Country Living.

Mike Jackson and Egypt Sherrod aren't just a powerhouse duo, but they're also tremendously interesting people individually. The couple, who married in 2010 after dating for six years, are best known for starring on HGTV's "Married to Real Estate"; the show concluded after four seasons in May 2025. Besides being a contractor, Jackson is also a DJ, while Sherrod is also an author and real estate broker. 

Jackson and Sherrod put up quite the united front online and on-camera, but behind the scenes, their relationship can seem to be on shaky ground. The couple's first attempt to get married fell through after they realized that they weren't ready to say "I do." In 2019, the couple appeared on an episode of Oprah Winfrey Network's "Black Love" and described a toxic relationship Jackson had, at the time, with an ex-wife. "It affected our relationship in a big way," Sherrod explained. "He had to learn how to deal with her on terms where she wasn't dictating when and how and why he would behave, when he could see, and when he could talk to their daughter."

Jackson and Sherrod are also another HGTV couple who do virtually everything together, but unlike some of the other duos, they've had to work extremely hard on their work-life balance. This can be tricky for any relationship, especially when constantly in front of the camera. "When you work together, especially for what we do, it's almost 24/7 ... We have to remind ourselves to turn it off before we get in the house," Jackson told Us Weekly in March 2025. 

Jonathan Scott and his twin brother, Drew Scott, are recognizable to HGTV fans for their long-running home renovation show, "Property Brothers." WhileDrew's first marriage to Linda Phan is still going strong, Jonathan hasn't had the same luck in the love department. Before Scott met his now-fiancée, actor Zooey Deschanel, he was married to Kelsey Ully from 2007 to 2013. Deschanel, on the other hand, has been married twice before.

While Scott and Deschanel make a cute couple, it's hard not to notice some red flags in their relationship. For instance, the duo became boyfriend and girlfriend while Deschanel was still legally married to her second husband, Jacob Pechenik. In September 2019, HollywoodLife reported Pechenik and Deschanel's separation. Just one week later, HollywoodLife published photos of Scott and Deschanel holding hands and smiling for the camera. Scott may not be a textbook rebound, but he sure seems close.

Scott and Deschanel have been engaged since August 2023; engagements lasting several years aren't outside the norm, but because their impending nuptials have been much discussed, one can't help but contemplate the reason for the hold-up. At the time of writing, Scott and Deschanel still do not have a wedding date set. "I'm actually sick and tired of myself not figuring it out yet. We haven't had any progress," Scott told Us Weekly in November 2024. "We've just been having so much fun traveling with the kids and filming this show and stuff," Scott also told People while promoting "Chasing the West" in August 2025. 

Christina Haack is arguably more famous for her personal life than her contributions to HGTV. Haack has been married and divorced three times, and her first marriage to "Flip or Flop" co-star Tarek El Moussa ended with a dramatic divorce in 2018. Haack was married to television presenter Ant Anstead from 2018 to 2021, and then to Joshua Hall from 2021 to 2024. If there's one thing about Haack that has become apparent through her rapid cycling relationships, it's that she doesn't want to be single. 

As of the time of writing, Haack is in a relationship with Christopher Larocca, the CEO of Network Connex. Based on what we know about the couple, there are already some noticeable red flags worth mentioning. For one thing, Haack and Larocca's relationship apparently began in October 2024, right on the heels of Haack's divorce from Hall. This immediate jump into a new relationship is sketchy in and of itself, but according to Larocca's ex-girlfriend Andrea Deanna in an interview with the Daily Mail, the duo allegedly met in June 2024. Considering that Hall didn't file for divorce until July 2024, this timeline is incredibly tight and messy regardless. 

Larocca and Haack have both denied Deanna's claims, although their relationship shows hallmark signs of potential trouble on the horizon. Between the intense lovebombing and Haack's gushing that Larocca has "effortlessly blend[ed] into the blended family" in a November 2025 Instagram post, this couple is moving at the speed of light. Everyone wants to find true and eternal happiness, but hopefully, in Haack's case, her perpetual searching doesn't come around to bite her again.