Chris and Calvin LaMont don’t just talk about teamwork they live it.
But while they’re twins, the LaMont brothers aren’t clones.
Each brings his own passions and unique skillset to the table.
In each episode, the brothers help clients choose and create their dream home.
Football was their first dream career
First, how did you guys get into design and building?
Calvin LaMont:We always wanted to get into real estate.
Growing up, it was athletics and real estate.
Those were the two dreams that Chris and I aspired to.
That’s not how we grew up.
We took that on as we started our water damage and restoration company up here.
We started working with those projects and doing a lot of huge projects.
We were tearing things down, putting them back together, looking at different designs.
By 27, we started doing our own projects, and designing and building all of those.
Chris LaMont:Yeah.
Once we realized that, we wanted to make a pivot.
We were like, “Okay, we want to do real estate.”
We were out of college, so we had those college brains.
“All right, let’s see what we can do to be successful.”
And we thought, “Why not do janitorial and cleaning services or carpet cleaning?”
We wanted to be entrepreneurs from the beginning, so we stayed focused on that.
They’ve always been an inseparable team
Have you guys always worked together?
Calvin:Pretty much.
We’ve always worked together.
That’s always the goal, just like on a TV show.
We’re going back and forth about [whether to] buy or to build it.
I’m the build-it brother, Calvin.
I’m the one that’s saying, “c’mon build this house from scratch.
It’s going to be perfect.”
And Chris is the buyer brother, begging them to buy it.
Chris:I ain’t begging.
I’m just showing them the option.
That’s what we do, every episode.
I’ve heard that twins have a special bond.
How does that help you?
Does that help your dynamic at all when you work together?
We’ve been together for a long time.
We’re not focused on one loss.
We’re focused on the next win.
I know one of you has got this passion for building versus buying.
But how would you describe your differences in skillsets or your design sensibilities?
Calvin:The show is like how we move in real life.
But Chris and I, the one good thing about being twins and growing up together …
I know some twins are different.
We grew up pretty much doing the same thing.
That gave us the same skills.
We learned the same thing.
Chris:Basically, you work for a long time.
You got to be able to adapt, or you get bored.
[It’s the same] in our real life as we’ve been growing up.
Calvin:Don’t worry [about] watching our show.
You see Chris picking out floors [and] designing special tables from scratch with carpenters.
You see me doing demolition and stuff like that.
On this show, you’ll also see Chris and I doing a lot of the same things together.
It’s super cool.
Yeah, that was fun.
Chris:Oh, you saw that?
How did the whole idea of “Buy It or Build It” come about?
How did you come up with the idea?
Chris:“Buy It or Build It” was a team effort.
Us, our production company, JV Productions, and Radical Point we basically came together.
What we do is for TV.
It’s like, “Chris and Cal, you guys been doing remodels when you guys were starting.
Now you guys build homes for entry-level and workforce housing in communities throughout the country.
Why don’t we put that together?
You guys do remodels and buy it.”
One guy champions one, one guy champions the other, and let’s go get it."
So the concept of the show was out there.
I’m not even sure if we had a name for it at first.
The production company and the online grid came up with it.
We didn’t come up with “Buy It or Build It.”
JV Productions or Warner Bros.
I think they came up with the name “Buy It or Build It.”
But the concept of the show changed.
I’m not sure if you know that Chris and I have been working on TV for six years.
It was literally about us and following us around different houses.
In that time, we were building million-dollar houses.
I think that’s what got us the show, because they always loved Chris and I.
They just weren’t 100% on board with the [previous] show concept.
We do a lot of work.
Guys like Elton Johnson and Michael Pounder they came on the team and built with us.
That helps us out.
But even with that, the time actually means something when you’re working on TV.
It is what it is.
We’ll wait, and we’ll do something else or whatever.
On TV, there’s no waiting.
We need to get the show done at a certain time.
We got to go.
We got camera crews.
It is a whole production to get it done.
We had a great production team, though.
We had great showrunners with Steven and Lauren Alvarez, who did “Fixer Upper.”
So you’re working with two separate builds that need to be synced together throughout the whole project.
It’s difficult, but with a good team, we did it, and we’re happy.
I thank God that you guys are liking [it] so far.
We’re having good, positive feedback so far.
[On] Episode 1, my favorite part of the show was the animation.
I was a little jealous, like, “Where’s my pop-out moment with the animation?”
I had to make a call immediately.
“Can I get a pop-out moment?
Can I get one?”
But that was a fun part of the show that I liked.
It’s different, and it engages everyone and really brought me in.
Calvin:They do a great job.
I have a daughter.
She’s in two episodes.
You see in the first episode, [Chris'] oldest son was in it Chris Jr.
In another episode, you’ll see Chris Jr. and his other son, Jayden.
He has two kids, two sons, and I have one daughter.
Seeing them on TV with us is cool.
This interview was edited for clarity.
