Tristyn Kalama is the co-host of HGTV's Renovation Aloha, a house-flipping series based in O'ahu, Hawaii. Ahead, learn more about Tristyn, her upbringing, her counseling career, her real estate career, her family life and more.

History and Background

Tristyn was born in Kailua, Oʻahu, Hawaii, on May 17. She graduated from Kalāheo High School in Oʻahu in 2008 and went on to earn her bachelor's and master's degrees in counseling psychology from Chaminade University.

Tristyn’s Counseling Career

After graduating from school, Tristyn became a mental health counselor, following in her parents’ footsteps.

“My first passion was the nonprofit sector and really counseling and helping people,” Tristyn revealed in an interview with MidWeek. “Both my parents were counselors. It was all I knew growing up.” (It was while interning at the counseling facility where her mother was the executive director that Tristyn met her husband, Kamohai.)

Before transitioning to real estate, Tristyn served as the CEO of the nonprofit Kōkua Support Services. She remains on its board of directors today.

Tristyn’s Relationship

Tristyn met Kamohai while he was getting treatment at the center her mother ran. The duo documented the story on their real estate podcast "Deals & Aloha," which first aired on their YouTube channel in 2022. During the episode, Tristyn revealed her mom was the one who assured her Kamohai was a good man.

“I always say our first date wasn’t actually a date,” Tristyn said in an interview with TV Insider. “It was an interview. I think we were both at a point in our lives where we knew exactly what we wanted and what we wanted in a partner. So the expectations and our relationship clicked from the beginning.” The two were married in March 2016.

A fan-favorite topic the couple is often asked about is their height difference. Kamohai is 6'2" and Tristyn is 4'11". “You should have seen us on our first and second dates,” she said during a March 2024 episode of the "Begin With Shaolin" podcast. “I remember, we were walking to the movies … and we were crossing the street, and I'm just talking normal [volume], right? And he's bending down to try and hear what I'm saying because I'm not used to talking up. It was pretty funny."

Tristyn’s Real Estate Career

In 2018, the Kalamas were working hard to make ends meet after their first child was born. They wanted to stay in Hawaii, but the cost of living was steep. Then, Tristyn saw a commercial for a real estate seminar and insisted they attend. This turned out to be the spark that led the Kalamas to where they are today.

“This is our true passion,” Tristyn told MidWeek. “It’s how people can actually utilize real estate and the power of it to create wealth for themselves. We’re proof of that. When we started flipping (homes) and we started investing in real estate, we were renting and we were still struggling. We started buying, renovating and selling in order to get out of debt and then to start creating money for ourselves because we didn’t have money. We were $80,000 in debt.”

Today, the couple continues to dedicate themselves to an industry that honors their community and the land. “We could probably spend a day talking about what real estate means to us,” Tristyn told WFMZ-TV. “We always say [a home is] more than just four walls and a roof. It’s where people have lived life and created memories. For new families coming into those homes, a lot of times it’s the largest purchase anyone will make in their lifetime. It’s a place of refuge … The process is always about paying respect to that and leading design and construction from that place. Especially, when you’re talking about the land relationship here in Hawaii and the cultural impact it has.”

Eventually, Tristyn hopes to combine her passion for real estate with her love of giving back to those in need. “The long-term goal is to figure out how real estate can be combined into the nonprofit and how we can provide vulnerable populations with more housing options,” she told MidWeek.

Tristyn’s HGTV Shows

Tristyn and Kamohai have flipped more than 70 homes since 2018. In doing so, they cemented themselves as Hawaiian real estate pros and captured HGTV’s attention in the process.

“I thought it was a scam, dude,” Tristyn told TV Insider in 2024. “I was like I don’t know. Is this real? I didn’t respond to the message for a while. It was never part of the plan. But God allows the opportunity to be presented. It was our responsibility to walk through that door. And so we did and you can say we felt every type of emotion you can imagine. It was exciting, stressful, hilarious, hard.”

Season 1 of Tristyn and Kamohai’s Hawaiian home-flipping HGTV show, Renovation Aloha, premiered on Tuesday, February 20, 2024. Showcasing impressive real estate transformations in paradise, it’s no surprise the series was a hit. HGTV picked it up for a second season, which aired the following February.

And let it be known: What you see will be authentic. “We hope that our viewers get a more intimate and authentic experience of Hawai‘i,” Tristyn said during an interview with Modern Luxury Hawai’i. “Hawai‘i is full of so many talented people, majestic places, rich history and culture and awesome small businesses. We want to showcase it all from a local perspective.”

The Kalamas were also featured on another popular HGTV series: Season 6 of the competition show Rock the Block. “It’s difficult and sad that we didn’t win, but we’re very, very proud of the spaces that we created,” Tristyn said during the Season 6 finale. “We poured our hearts into these spaces, and we’re glad that we came here and shared this experience with each other.”

Tristyn’s Family Life

The Renovation Aloha hosts have two children: a daughter born in 2018, Yasiel, and a son born in 2020, Vale.

The Kamalas are very family-oriented and deeply value their extended family. (Impressively, Kamohai has 87 first cousins!) In fact, the Kalamas work with dozens of their family members, which can be both fun and chaotic. “I think some days are easier than others, but at the end of the day, family is the backbone,” Tristyn told TV Insider. “Family is the foundation. And family is an unbreakable relationship. You can always count on family. There is nothing more rewarding than being able to work alongside family."

What's Tristyn’s Podcast Called?

Tristyn and Kamohai also have a podcast called "Deals & Aloha," which they created to spread industry knowledge and aloha. In March of this year, the duo dropped the "Deals & Aloha" Flip Tribe Mentorship, where they teach members how to start flipping, wherever they are.

Fun Facts About Tristyn

• Birthday: May 17

• Height: 4'11"

• Ethnicity: Hawaiian

• Hometown: Kailua, Oʻahu, Hawaii

• Matcha Lover: Tristyn prefers matcha and green tea to coffee.

Keep Up With Tristyn

Follow Tristyn and Kamohai's flipping journey on Instagram @kamohaiandtristyn.