Melody Teh

News

Mon, 30 Jul, 2018

The winners of House Rules 2018 revealed

The winners of House Rules 2018 revealed

NSW dairy farmers Toad and Mandy have won House Rules, beating Queensland married go-getters Mel and Dave by just one point.

The engaged couple took out the ultimate cash prize of $355,000 in the home renovation show and are planning to spend their winnings on their wedding, Now To Love report.

“We just need to pick a date and obviously contact the people and see if we can book it,” Mandy, 28, told the publication.

Mandy added that they'd start planning their nuptials “tomorrow” now that they had the money and didn’t need to save up.

For beauty therapist Mandy, the money will also help her achieve her dream to open a salon.

"It's just like the wedding," Mandy says. "I'll be able to get into planning and building the salon a bit sooner."

Toad, 33, added they're going to be smart with the money they've won.

"We won't just blow the money. We might blow a little bit on a boat or something like that, but we've done a long haul to get to where we are and we were away from our businesses and our kids and family for a long time. It's about the future and just staying strong,” he said.

The couple, who are parents to one-year-old twins, Lenny and Layla, said they never expected to win.

"I didn't think we'd get through the first week, to be honest with you," Toad admits. "I've never built anything in my life, really. I didn't know that Amanda could design as well as she can. She used to put the cushions on the lounge and I'd have to throw them off to have a sleep at lunchtime, but I didn't know she had quite the eye."

Hailing from Candelo, in the Bega Valley Shire of NSW, a town of just 300 people, Toad and Mandy believe their victory is also a win for country folks.

"It goes to show that just because you don't have all the big shops around you, you can still have that eye for design and the will to go away from your kids and family for so long, and still do a really good job,” Toad said.

"We come from a town of 300 people and we're bloody celebrities here now. But we didn't do it for celebrity status. We did it so we could have a better life together and with our kids."

Congratulations to Toad and Mandy!

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