Mike Holmes


Michael James Holmes is a Canadian builder/contractor, businessman, investor, television host, and philanthropist. In his first television series, Holmes on Homes, he rescues homeowners from renovations gone wrong. He usually discovers more serious problems, such as dangerous wiring, asbestos, mold, inadequate insulation, structural damage and more, concealed behind pristine surfaces. He and his team promise to "Make It Right," even if it means stripping a house down to its bones. He has continued in several successor TV series; the most recent one is Holmes and Holmes.

Background

Mike Holmes learned his craft from his father, who started teaching him construction work when he was 6 years old. By the time he was 19, Holmes had started his first contracting company with a crew of 13 employees. At 21, Holmes founded his own renovation company. He has run two companies during his 20-year contracting career. He has three children: Amanda, Sherry, and Mike Jr., who have all appeared and worked on his shows.
In 2006, Holmes started The Holmes Foundation after seeing a renovation that was so poorly done that he felt it was necessary for him to tear the house down and start again rather than try to repair the damage. The purpose of The Holmes Foundation is to encourage young people to enter the building trades as well as to assist those who have been impoverished by bad renovations. Holmes works with SOS Children's Villages.
In 2006, Mike Holmes was recognized in the House of Commons of Canada for his promotion of skilled trades and for his advocacy for improved building standards. He was acknowledged as an "extraordinary craftsperson" and "an accomplished master builder with a social conscience".
Holmes is the author of two successful books: the national bestseller Home Renovation with Canada’s Most Trusted Contractor and Holmes Inspection: Everything you Need to Know Before You Buy or Sell Your Home, as well as a weekly newspaper column.
He is the national spokesperson for Skills/Compétences Canada and for WorldSkills Calgary 2009, and is often invited to speak by professional organizations, such as the Canadian Safety Association of Ontario, the Ontario Building Inspectors Association, and the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors.
In May 2010, Reader's Digest's second annual survey named Holmes as the second most widely trusted person in Canada behind David Suzuki.

Television career

HGTV Canada

Mike Holmes' first starring series was Holmes on Homes, which premiered in 2003, on Corus Entertainment's HGTV Canada.

Bell Media

In June 2019, Bell Media announced a new development deal with Holmes, ending his relationship with HGTV Canada. His library programming moved airing to Gusto, which was rebranded as CTV Life Channel, and two new series were announced, including Holmes 911, and the Holmes Family Rescue for CTV in 2020.

Television series

Holmes on Homes

Broadcast on HGTV Canada, Holmes on Homes first started in 2001. Holmes on Homes was first conceived when Holmes approached the producers of the Just Ask Jon Eakes home improvement show on HGTV with the idea for a new kind of home improvement show. Although there were few submissions to the show initially, their number had ballooned by the fourth season. In one fourth-season episode, Holmes stated that he received hundreds of e-mails a week from people asking him for help. As the show evolved, it generally focused on bad renovations and the results of bad contractors.
In Canada, Holmes on Homes airs on HGTV Canada, BBC Canada, and Casa for the French version. It airs in the US on HGTV and DIY Network, in New Zealand on The Living Channel, in Australia on Lifestyle Home, in the United Kingdom on Discovery Shed, in Germany on DMAX, and in South Africa on the Home Channel.

Holmes in New Orleans

Between the end of Holmes on Homes and the start of Holmes Inspection, Mike Holmes starred in a one-season series, Holmes in New Orleans, on the construction of a new home in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, to replace one destroyed during Hurricane Katrina.

Holmes Inspection

Holmes began a new series in 2009 called Holmes Inspection that profiles home inspections gone wrong. The series started airing in fall 2009 on HGTV Canada. In the United States, the series debuted on HGTV on Sunday, December 19, 2010.

Best of Holmes on Homes

Best of Holmes on Homes is a 2012 remix TV series featuring clips from Holmes on Homes, brought together on a common theme, to illustrate home problems. Holmes narrates the show.

Holmes Makes It Right

Holmes started a new series for 2012 called Holmes Makes It Right, that profiles disaster-stricken homes, and renovates them. The series focuses on natural disasters and bad home inspections or bad contractor work. The name of the series revolves around Holmes's personal motto, "Make It Right".

Mike's Ultimate Garage

For the Fall 2014 TV season, Mike's Ultimate Garage, a mini-series about building a man-cave garage for Holmes Sr. by son Mike Holmes Jr. and daughter Sherry Holmes aired on HGTV Canada. Holmes Sr. guest stars in the series, while it starred Mike Jr. and Sherry.

Holmes and Holmes

For the Fall 2016 TV season, Holmes and Holmes premiered. In this series, Holmes stars with his son Mike Jr. The show premiered on HGTV Canada, produced by Make It Right Productions. Now in its third season, Holmes and Holmes is scheduled to air on the DIY Network in October 2019.

Holmes: Buy It Right

For the Fall 2016 TV season, premiered. In this series Holmes stars as an advisor to new home buyers, showing them how to choose a house. The series premiered on DIY Network.

Holmes Makes It Right: Retooled

Retooled premiered during the Spring 2019 TV season on DIY Network, where Holmes revisits Holmes Makes It Right episodes that have been "retooled", and examines construction issues.

Holmes 911

HOLMES 911 premiered on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2019 on CTV Life, in which Holmes returns and examines the results of unscrupulous contractors, unhealthy homes, and D.I.Y projects gone wrong and is joined by his son Mike Jr. and daughter Sherry. Over 12 one-hour episodes, the Holmes family takes on five different houses, and repairs them.

TV judging and hosting

Handyman Challenge franchise

Holmes was a judge on all seasons of Handyman Superstar Challenge. He was also a judge on All American Handyman. He was a judge on season 1 of Canada's Handyman Challenge.

Home Free

In late April 2015, Fox announced a new eight episode Holmes-hosted show entitled Home Free, which premiered on Wednesday, July 22. The show featured nine couples who spend each week renovating a different dilapidated home. At the end of the week, the couple with the worst handiwork is eliminated, until the final two teams compete for a prize home. Unknown to the contestants as they were competing, each eliminated couple was awarded the home that they were working on in the episode they were eliminated in.
Eight-episode unscripted competition series Home Free premiered Wednesday, July 22, 2015 on Fox. "A home is way more than brick and mortar," says Home Free host Mike Holmes. "So being part of this new series and partnering with Fox is truly exciting for me. I’m ready to break ground with these couples.".

Guest star appearances

Holmes was a guest builder on Home to Win. Guest builders designed and built a room of a renovated home that would be won by a Canadian family who was selected by the show's producers from entries submitted.
Holmes has been a guest on Ellen twice. The first instance led to a two part episode on Holmes on Homes to fix a shoddy renovation in the Los Angeles area, and the second guest spot.
He also made a guest appearance on an episode of the Canadian series Corner Gas as Wanda's ex-boyfriend.

Business activities

The Holmes Group

The Holmes Group is the conglomerate and holding company for Mike Holmes' companies.

Mike Holmes Inspections

In 2009 Holmes launched Mike Holmes Inspections, a residential home inspection company based in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Nova Scotia.

Holmes Approved Homes

Holmes has partnered with several home builders and renovators in Canada and the United States to develop the Holmes Approved Homes program. The goal of the program is to raise the bar for home building to above minimum industry standards. Each home is inspected by Mike Holmes Inspections several times during the building process.

Mike Holmes Approved Products

Holmes has licensed his name and logo for various products, including tools, appliances and work clothes in his Holmes Approved Products.

Make It Right Productions

Make It Right Productions is Holmes's television production company. It has had a hand in the production of his renovations shows.

Other activities

His company is developing "Wind Walk", the first Holmes Community, in southwest Alberta, a community of eco-friendly and sustainable homes with high standards for residential construction and design.
Several magazines branded with Mike Holmes brand and image have appeared on newsstands. Holmes: The Magazine to Make It Right ran for two years, and ended after a dispute between the publisher Dauphin Media Group and the Holmes Group. It had run from 2009 to 2011. Make it Right magazine, a collaboration between publisher TC Media and the Holmes Group was published in 2013.

Endeavours

Holmes Foundation

Mike Holmes founded the Holmes Foundation to improve the education of tradespeople, to prevent shoddy work from lack of knowledge. The foundation grants scholarships and bursaries to students in residential construction studies.

Awards and accolades