Family who used to live on £57 a week have QUADRUPLED their income thanks to Rich House, Poor House

A couple who appeared on Rich House, Poor House have revealed how they turned their life around after the show, going from surviving on just £57 a week to now investing their first ‘fixer-upper’ property.

Demi and Ben Gowland-Jeffries, from County Durham starred on the Channel 5 docuseries in 2019 and swapped lives and budget with millionaires Steve and Gemma Green, who lived in Redcar, North Yorkshire and had £1,600 a week to live on after bills. 

Ben was working zero hour contract as a roofer and Demi struggled to leave her daughter Lily, three, at home to work. 

Meanwhile, property developers Steve and Gemma, lived with daughter Sadie, ten, and granddaughter Ariana, two,  in a five-bedroom home while living a life of luxury. 

In Rich House Poor House Changed My Life, airing this Sunday at 9pm on Channel 5, Ben and Demi revealed how their new millionaire friends helped them build their own businesses, quadrupling their income in just a year. 

However, things haven’t looked as bright for Steve and Gemma who revealed the coronavirus pandemic had hit them hard financially, making them lose £41,000 a month in income due to cancelled events and halted building works. 

Ben and Demi Gowland, from County Durham, revealed how appearing on Rich House Poor House on Channel 5 in 2019 changed their life. The couple used to live on £57 a week, but have now quadrupled their income, are owners to two booming businesses, moved houses, and are looking to get on the property ladder

One of the biggest changes for Ben and Demi was to incorporate fitness into their routine, something they learned during the show. 

On the second day of the experiment they were woken up before sunrise by Steve and Gemma’s personal trainer, who put them through a session. 

The couple kept with the good habit, going for a jog the day after the show stopped filming, and continuing on for themselves.  

‘I think I’ve lost a stone since the last show,’ Demi said, ‘you just feel so much better.’

‘It was all systems go then, we starting working on changing ourselves from the get go and have done that continuously every day,’ Demi said. 

Ben, who goes for a run everyday now, said ‘it’s a big help to give you that focus and clarity on your journey and where you want to go’.

North Yorkshire millionaires Steve and Gemma Green, pictured, from Recar, swapped lives with Ben and Demi for the show. They then offered them £30,000 worth of training to help them start their own businesses

North Yorkshire millionaires Steve and Gemma Green, pictured, from Recar, swapped lives with Ben and Demi for the show. They then offered them £30,000 worth of training to help them start their own businesses

He explained he had started to put on weight before the show, and that jogging had been ‘a very big inspiration.’ 

But the biggest turning point for Ben and Demi was to hear about how ex-soldier  Steve and Gemma had built their business from scratch

 ‘We kinda thought “if they can do it, why can’t we?”,’ Ben said. 

Their experience on the show, and £30,000 in training offered by Gemma and Steve put Demi and Ben on track to bounce back from their financial worries. 

Demi and Ben got a taste of the high life whilst living in Steve and Gemma's shoes on the show, and decided to apply themselves to their career to access a similar lifestyle

Demi and Ben got a taste of the high life whilst living in Steve and Gemma’s shoes on the show, and decided to apply themselves to their career to access a similar lifestyle 

Inspired by Steve’s journey, Ben decided to quit his roofer job, and start his own business. 

‘I kinda had the realisation that I’d been doing all of this stuff for other people and I could do it myself so I texted my boss, told him to find someone else ans that I was starting my own business,’ Ben said. 

Quickly, and with advice from Steve, Ben’s business exploded, getting him fully booked. 

Meanwhile, Demi revealed that after the show, she took a part-time job in order to fund a beauty qualification that allowed her to offer treatments at home. 

The couple moved to a bigger and better house, where they set up a ‘beauty room’ for Demi to treat her clients. 

The couple used to live in a rented home they were doing up in County Durham, but it was full of damp. They now have moved to a bigger house, and are looking to buy another house for £60,000 as an investment

The couple used to live in a rented home they were doing up in County Durham, but it was full of damp. They now have moved to a bigger house, and are looking to buy another house for £60,000 as an investment 

A year on, Demi revealed the business was prospering, and said she was extremely thankful for the Greens’ help. 

‘How will we ever repay them, honestly,’ she said. 

Ben said: ‘they were teaching us how to fish so we can feed ourselves for the rest of your lives.’

He also admitted that if the Greens had offered them a £30,000 handout as opposed to the training course, they would have spent the money in a month.  

Gemma, who provided Demi with advice on how to set up her business, said she was happy she got to see her grow. 

Steve and Gemma, who lived with their daughter Sadie, ten, and granddaughter Ariana, two, pictured, started their own business from nothing 20 years ago

Steve and Gemma, who lived with their daughter Sadie, ten, and granddaughter Ariana, two, pictured, started their own business from nothing 20 years ago

‘It wasn’t just a case of giving money to somebody, but it was actually being on the journey of their growth and see how far they’ve come right now and the wonderful things they’re doing,’ she said. 

Steve, who admitted he had a very ‘black and white’ approach to life, said: ‘I see people struggling because a lot of people don’t have to live a life like we do.

‘If Ben and Demi had the right attitude I was willing to show them how to move away from that lifestyle,’ he added. 

The couple went one step further in helping the Gowlands, by offering Ben a job as a sales and marketing exec in their professional training business. 

‘I’ve got a message of Steve, saying “look Ben, Gemma and I had a chat, we think you’d be perfect for the role of sales, marketing type thing,’ Ben said. 

During the 2019 episode, after splashing almost their whole weekly budget on one shop, the couple took their daughter out with them to pick up odd jobs in the neighbourhood, and managed to get paid for doing some gardening

During the 2019 episode, after splashing almost their whole weekly budget on one shop, the couple took their daughter out with them to pick up odd jobs in the neighbourhood, and managed to get paid for doing some gardening

Steve admitted the couple wanted to take a chance on Ben, and told him ‘Let’s just test it, if it doesn’t work, you can just jump back into what you’re doing.’

Ben took the chance, which he claimed quadrupled his income, and set him and Demi on a ‘upwards path.’  

‘It’s a massive relief to know that the bills are paid every month. But not only are the bills paid, we have cash for the things we want to do and get Lily the treats she wants.’ 

Now, the couple are looking to buy a £60,000 fixer-upper as a property investment which would finally put them on the property ladder, the last unchecked item on a list of goals they made for themselves after appearing on the show.   

But while Ben and Demi went from strength to strength, the Greens admitted their businesses were really affected due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Steve and Gemma have build up a  £6million property portfolio. Pictured is their newly-renovated home in Redcar

Steve and Gemma have build up a  £6million property portfolio. Pictured is their newly-renovated home in Redcar

They had to cancel £20,000 worth in seminars and events due to the lockdowms. 

‘We had to shut the doors on our sites and we’re losing £21,000 a month, we were hit very, very hard,’ Steve added. 

In spite of their hurdles, they refused to let Ben go.  

‘We could have taken the easy option and let Ben go at that point but we’ve held our nerves on that process ans stuck with Ben and he just great, he got stronger and stronger,’ the couple said. 

The Gowlands said doing the show helped them to get motivated enough to follow their dreams.

‘Doing the job has put me on that track and helped me find myself again,’ Demi said. 

‘This is not just a financial opportunity that they’ve given up, they’ve completely changed our lifestyle, she added. 

‘This has personally for me changed my life,’ the mother-of-one said. 

‘It’s not about money anymore for us, it’s happiness,’ Ben said. 

Rich House Poor House Changed My Life airs on Sunday at 9pm on Channel 5.