New Zealand homeowners who are planning renovations based on AI-generated designs and reality-TV style timelines that have little resemblance to real-world building requirements are unnecessarily exposing themselves to significant financial risk, according to a leading construction expert.

Reagan Langeveld, director of Symphony Construction and a Master Builders gold award winner, says digital design apps and media entertainment formats are oversimplifying the building process at a time when homeowners need accurate guidance.

He says AI design tools and renovation reality shows are making the situation worse by presenting versions of the building process that do not reflect compliance requirements or regional differences.

“AI can generate a perfect room but it cannot tell you what is inside your walls or whether your local council sees the work as exempt from resource consents. It has no understanding of load paths, moisture management or plumbing locations and it cannot flag when a design triggers additional compliance in one region but not in another.

“As a result, homeowners are being shown digital concepts and edited television timelines that ignore the complexities of structural planning, waterproofing standards, trades coordination and regulatory obligations.

“Reality TV renovation shows add to the problem by making construction look fast and simple. What you see on screen is the highlight reel. Behind the scenes there are engineers, inspectors and weeks of preparation that never make it to air. None of it reflects the actual process for renovating or building a home,” he says.

Langeveld says the surge in AI home-design tools has created a growing misconception that construction is simply a matter of selecting styles and layouts from a digital catalogue.

“These tools skip the messy parts. They do not know what is structurally possible and don’t factor in how the plumbing and ventilation will actually run through a house. They can show homeowners a flawless visual but they cannot tell them how to build it, how long it will take or what compliance steps sit in the background,” he says.

Langeveld says builders are seeing an increasing number of AI-generated renovation plans that cannot be constructed without significant redesign. That includes layouts that interfere with bracing lines, cabinetry that covers structural fixings, and bathroom concepts that simply do not work with existing plumbing runs.

“Homeowners come to us with beautiful digital images that look achievable at first glance, but once you strip back the layers you find structural conflicts, missing drainage, or design elements that are impossible to deliver safely,” he says.

Langeveld says overseas research shows renovation reality shows compress timelines for television and rely on off-camera labour, subsidised materials and rapid-fire editing that misrepresents what a renovation actually requires.

“When people watch a bathroom or kitchen transformation completed between ad breaks, they naturally assume the real thing should be just as straightforward. They do not see the engineering reviews, the sequencing of trades or the inspections that make up the bulk of a real project.”

He says the combination of AI visuals and TV simplification is creating a “renovation optimism bias” that leaves homeowners unprepared for real pricing, lead times and technical requirements.

“It creates a gap between expectation and reality that always lands on the homeowner. They are basing decisions on a fantasy workflow that does not exist outside of an app or a television set.”

Langeveld is urging homeowners to seek professional advice early, before committing to a design or budget.

“Talk to your builder first. It is the fastest way to understand what is possible, what is compliant and what it will really take to deliver a safe, durable and well-executed renovation.”

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