Property Brothers starting to feel at home in Vegas

The Property Brothers are back. And this time it’s personal.

HGTV personalities Drew and Jonathan Scott have sold and renovated strangers’ homes for six seasons of “Property Brothers” and three seasons of “Buying and Selling.” Now, the 36-year-old Las Vegans finally have taken the time to refurbish their own dwelling on “Property Brothers At Home” (9 p.m. Wednesday, HGTV).

“It’s what the fans have been asking for for a long time,” says real estate agent Drew. “What we would do with our own place.”

Contractor/designer Jonathan moved to Las Vegas seven years ago to renovate foreclosures and further his secondary career as a magician. Drew followed two years later. In 2011, they sold their individual houses and bought a 4,000-square-foot home on a half-acre lot in the southwest valley.

The Vancouver, British Columbia, natives, featured in People’s 2013 Sexiest Man Alive issue, have made quite the splash since then. They have their own home furnishing line, and their shows can be seen in more than 100 countries. So that their house was still “as is” all those years later was a bit of an embarrassment. Or at least as much of an embarrassment as is possible, considering many of us would harvest a stranger’s kidneys to call that home our own.

“It’s a nice house. It was built in 2008. It was just boring,” Jonathan clarifies. “Nothing had ever been done to it. The yard was all dirt. So for the last three years, we’ve been fixing up everybody else’s homes and never had a chance to do anything to our own.”

When they finally got that chance, they weren’t about to waste it. Among the additions the twins make during the four-episode series are an infinity pool, a two-bedroom casita for their visiting parents and 24-foot-tall built-in shelving. They even commissioned a tailored suit of armor.

“The budgets are very restricted, so we really stretch them and do as much as we can,” Jonathan says of their other HGTV shows, including the “Brother vs. Brother” competition series. “But you can’t really get away with doing any over-the-top, extremely grand things.”

With their own home, though, they were able to splurge on luxuries such as the two-story commercial-grade water slide that the brothers say is a first for a Las Vegas neighborhood.

“First, I didn’t like the idea. I thought it was expensive, and he’s going to use it once, and it was a waste of money,” Drew says of the high-end ride. “But when you see it in there, it is actually pretty awesome. People will love that when they come over.”

“For the record, I will point out that I’ve used it twice already,” Jonathan jokes. “So it’s already a good investment.”

That was one of several disagreements the bickering brothers faced on the massive project, which was stalled for nearly 18 months while they waited for the proper permits.

“Jonathan and I have very different ideas for what we wanted for some of the spaces,” Drew reveals. “The biggest difference was with the yard, where he wanted more of it for his dogs to run around. His dogs are, like, a combined 10 pounds. So I said to him, ‘I’m over 20 times the size of your dogs. I think I need more space for me. And I’m paying for it.’ So I ended up getting my basketball court and the putting green.”

“We definitely did not agree on a couple of things,” Jonathan confirms. “At the end of the day, we decided to allocate certain areas of the house to each other and just allow that person to run with it. There’s no one right way to do anything. It’s just generally my way is the better way.”

“Property Brothers At Home” marks the first time HGTV has turned the designer mahogany tables on the Scotts. While filming the series, the brothers decided they wanted to be treated just like the homeowners on their other shows. That meant keeping the cameras rolling even when their sibling rivalry escalated beyond the standard filial one-upmanship. (Think the Smothers Brothers, minus the folk music and yo-yos.)

“People say to us all the time, ‘Are the homeowners as annoying as they look like they are? They’re always whining and complaining and never believing you can do it,’ ” Drew says. “Well, actually, there was no difference on our own project, because Jonathan was just as whiny and complainy.”

It’s taken them this long to renovate their Las Vegas home because, even when they aren’t filming — the brothers called from Toronto between reveals on “Buying and Selling” and “Property Brothers” — they’re busy traveling. Jonathan says he tries to get home at least twice a month, but he’s been back only twice since June. Drew usually only manages two or three weeks here a year.

“Our friends and our family have actually gotten more use out of the house than we have,” Jonathan says.

But having a hub for their family to come together was always their goal. The house is fully automated, so wherever they are in the world, they can unlock the doors and turn on the television, stereo, hot tub, even the water for the water slide, for guests. And the security system sends them a snapshot whenever their older brother, J.D., who also calls Las Vegas home, sneaks over with friends.

Now that they’ve finally put their personal touches on the property, the Scotts are making more of an effort to spend time here, having carved out mid-December until March for their adopted hometown.

“We’re proud to live in Las Vegas,” Jonathan says. “The funny thing is, a lot of people don’t realize we live in Las Vegas. I think it’s because we are on the road all the time. … So spending more time at home is definitely my New Year’s resolution this year.”

Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4567.