Scott McGillivray and Bryan Baeumler Can't Wait for You to Watch 'Renovation Resort Showdown' Season 3

No one knows how to make bickering look good the way Bryan Baeumler and Scott McGillivray do. The dynamic hosts of Renovation Resort Showdown are back for Season 3 on HGTV — airing Wednesday nights at 9|8c — and we can't wait to watch them get after it for a third time. This season, four teams of two go head-to-head to see who can build the best lake home rental. Ahead, Scott and Bryan sit down with HGTV to discuss all the Season 3 details, their favorite moments from filming and more.

Scott: The biggest difference is the level of competition. Every season, the contestants seem to get stronger, which means the judging gets tougher. That's a great problem to have. We also really leveled up the prizes this season, so there was a lot on the line for these duos who had taken time away from their families and their businesses. We definitely made it worth their while.

Bryan: I agree. The bar keeps getting higher, and this season the competitors came in ready to prove something. What surprised me most was how quickly they found their footing under pressure this time around. You think you know what people are capable of, and then they pull something off that makes Scott and I look at each other like, “OK, now we have a competition.”

Scott: We started things with a challenge that threw them right into the deep end. We didn't exactly ease anyone into the competition; you'll just have to tune in to see how they handled it.

Bryan: That first challenge really set the tone. There was no warm-up, just straight into the reality of what this competition demands. It told us a lot very quickly about how each team thinks, how they handle stress and how they work.

Scott: Bryan and I have known each other for years, unfortunately, so the banter comes pretty naturally. We usually agree on the big things … it's the little details we like to debate. I let him think he wins every now and then.

Bryan: Scott is very generous that way. He lets me think I win, and then I actually do. But in all seriousness, we’ve known each other a long time, and that history makes the show a lot of fun. We can challenge each other, joke around and debate the details without taking it too seriously.

Scott: Competing gets your heart racing; judging gets your brain racing. Having been in the competitors' shoes, I know exactly how stressful it is, which makes judging tougher than people think. That said, judging does have one big advantage: I don't have to paint until 2 a.m. I will say, though, I was shocked by how nervous I got to be on the competitor side of things again (on Rock the Block Season 7).

Bryan: Judging is definitely easier on the knees. But Scott’s right: Once you’ve been on the competition side, you have a lot more respect for what these teams are going through. You know how quickly plans change, how tired everyone gets and how hard it is to make good decisions under pressure.

Scott: Honestly? Judging isn't the hard part. It's explaining to Bryan why I'm right afterward. Jokes aside, knowing someone's going home is never easy. Everyone puts everything they have into the competition and they've spent long days on the job site, again, away from their families and lives back home, which makes it tough.

Bryan: Yeah, these teams invest so much of themselves into every space. You see the long hours, the tough calls, the mistakes they recover from and the moments where they really shine. At the end of the day, we have to be fair, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

Scott: My biggest piece of advice? Stop designing for yourself. Your guests don't care that your faucet came from a boutique showroom. They care about a comfortable bed, a great shower, reliable Wi-Fi and a memorable stay. Spend your money where people actually notice it, and they'll keep coming back.

Bryan: Exactly. A great rental has to be durable, functional and memorable. People want to walk in and feel like they’re somewhere special, but it still needs to make sense. Storage matters. Lighting matters. Layout matters. And everything needs to stand up to real use.