This series took place in Kaiapoi , a satellite town of Christchurch which was badly affected by the 2010 Canterbury earthquake and the subsequent 2011 Christchurch earthquake . After four years off the air Mitre 10 Dream Home returned in July 2013 , with Simon Barnett replacing Jayne Kiely as host . Unlike the previous series , the six finalist families were announced early in 2013 and the public were given a chance to vote for their favourite with the top voted family securing a spot on the show . The other family was picked by the judges . The 2013 series saw the show 's first same sex couple . Due to changes in the building code post-earthquake , especially concerning foundations ( the land the houses are being built on is classified TC2 " green-yellow " , requiring more specialised foundations ) , the teams could no longer renovate a relocatable house instead the teams were required to design and build a house from scratch
2010 Canterbury earthquake
2010 Canterbury earthquake
Mitre 10 Dream Home