Honestly, walking into a house and finding a bathroom door where the ceiling should be is enough to make anyone rethink their life choices. That was the reality for Retta in Ugliest House in America season 3. While HGTV has a long history of "before and afters," this specific season felt like a fever dream. It wasn't just about bad wallpaper or a leaky roof. No. We’re talking about houses that looked like they were designed by people who had never actually seen a house before.
The House That Actually Won (and Why)
People still argue about the finale. Was the "Collage Barrage" in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, truly the ugliest? Or was it just the one that designer Alison Victoria could actually fix for $150,000?
The winner, Leandre Mays, bought her four-bedroom home for $184,000. It was a chaotic masterpiece. Imagine a giant 42-square-foot kitchen island covered in coins and currency from around the world, all sealed in thick epoxy. Now, add a mural of children in a submarine on the front porch. Inside, the ceilings were a literal collage of maps. It was a lot.
Retta’s reaction to the "drop ceiling" made of a literal door was priceless. But the real kicker? A grill bolted to the second-story exterior that you could only reach through a window. That is the kind of design choice that stays with you.
What the $150,000 actually bought
Alison Victoria had her work cut out for her. The renovation wasn't just a "coat of paint" situation, though a lot of white paint was involved.
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- The Kitchen Flip: She swapped the living room and kitchen locations.
- Pink Everything: The refrigerator and oven hood were painted a bold pink.
- The Secret Speakeasy: The sunroom became a hidden lounge with flamingo wallpaper.
- The Hidden Cost: An electrician found a live service cable inside the house that should have been outside. That’s a $10,000 "surprise" right off the bat.
Why Season 3 Felt Different
The show usually moves fast. Six episodes. Five regions. One winner.
In Ugliest House in America season 3, the variety of "ugly" reached a peak. We saw a cylindrical house that looked like a stack of paper towels. There was a former bank where you had to go into the vault to use the bathroom. And don't forget the "disco deathtrap" in the South that was basically a liability in high heels.
Critics—mostly the vocal ones on Reddit—often complain that the show picks the "most fixable" house rather than the truly ugliest. For example, the "Mirror House" or the house with a 24-foot-long couch often get cited as "robbed." But when you only have $150,000 and a tight filming schedule, you can't exactly rebuild a collapsing structure or remove 5,000 square feet of mirrors without losing the entire budget.
The Retta Factor
Let’s be real: we aren't watching for the drywall. We’re watching for Retta. Her ability to walk into a room filled with wall-to-wall shag carpeting—including the drapes—and maintain her sanity is impressive. Her "hot takes" are the engine of the show. In season 3, she seemed particularly baffled by the Midwest entries, including a house with "mural monstrosities" that made the rooms feel like they were closing in.
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Breaking Down the Regional Nightmares
The season was structured into five distinct battles before the "Ugly No More" finale.
- Northeast Nightmares: This is where we met the Upper Darby winner. It beat out a Victorian house obsessed with cherubs.
- Midwest Monstrosities: A house with murals in every single room. It was exhausting just looking at it.
- The North: Featured an Earth-home fit for a hobbit and a terrifying Mardi Gras-themed house.
- Ugly Out West: A tiny triangle house that felt like a claustrophobic trap.
- Ugly Down South: The aforementioned disco deathtrap.
What You Can Learn From These Design Disasters
If you're looking at your own home and thinking it might qualify for season 3, it probably doesn't. Most "ugly" houses on the show suffer from a lack of edited personality. The owners often love the "funk," but the funk has become a safety hazard or a functional nightmare.
Don't paint your brick. This is a massive point of contention in the HGTV community. Alison Victoria loves a white-painted brick, but many enthusiasts argue it ruins the house's "breathability" and original character. In the Upper Darby renovation, they painted the exterior brick white but left the little knick-knacks embedded in the mortar as a nod to the home's history. It’s a compromise.
Function over "Vibe." If your kitchen island takes up 70% of your kitchen, it doesn't matter how many cool coins are glued to it. You can't cook. The season 3 winner succeeded because the bones of the house—the hardwood floors and the massive square footage—were actually good. It just needed someone to peel back the layers of map-covered ceilings and underwater murals.
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How to watch it now
If you missed the chaos when it first aired around New Year's 2023, you can still find it. It's streaming on Max (formerly HBO Max) and Discovery+. It’s a quick binge—most episodes are only about 22 minutes, except for the hour-long finale.
Actionable Insights for Homeowners
If you are worried your home is heading toward "Ugly" territory, start by evaluating your "permanent" choices. Trends like epoxy coin floors or carpeted walls are incredibly expensive to undo. If you want to experiment, do it with furniture and art, not the foundation. For those looking to renovate, always keep a $10,000 "surprise fund" ready. As we saw in the season 3 finale, even the experts get hit with hidden electrical issues the moment they open up a wall.
Check your local listings or streaming apps to see the full transformation of the "Collage Barrage" and decide for yourself if it deserved the title.