As real-estate consultants who work as property whisperers on Unsellable Houses, Leslie Davis and Lyndsay Lamb are no strangers to coaxing every last dollar of resale value (and every last bit of potential-buyer-wowing appeal) from ho-hum homes. As second-time Rock the Block competitors denied victory in Season 3, they’re approaching this round of renovations with hard-won experience and more determination than ever. “We’ve learned so much, [and] we’ve grown so much since we left the block,” Leslie said. “We’ve opened a design studio. We’ve leveled up. We’re ready this time to take it all and redeem our name! I feel like Rocky!” (Fitting, since the twins would spend six weeks running up and down stairs in their three-story renovation site.)

The twins weren’t the only duo returning for redemption on this season of Rock the Block. They faced Fix My Flip’s Page Turner and Mitch Glew (Season 4); Renovation Island’s Sarah and Bryan Baeumler (Season 4); and Bargain Block’s Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas (Season 3), all of whom arrived in Treasure Island, Florida, ready to see their names on the victors’ street sign at the end of the competition. Another twist: Season 5 features the series' first-ever waterfront properties. The three-story, attached homes on Boca Ciega Bay boast 3,600 square feet of living space and starting values of $1.7 million. With $250,000 and six weeks to apply everything they’d learned, who would emerge with the victory they waited two seasons to earn?

Tasked in the first week with creating a kitchen and dining room on their home’s main floor, the twins made a beeline for the dazzling bay views at the rear of the house. “This has to be the entertaining side,” Lyndsay said. “We know this is our money shot,” Leslie agreed. They planned to whisk away the diminutive exterior doors and replace them with generous glass that would offer much more access to that spectacular waterfront. To counteract the undifferentiated space’s blank, white boxiness, they decided to add wood to the floor and ceiling.

Budgeting a whopping $70,000 for the week, Lyndsay and Leslie invested in a luxurious kitchen that would set the mood for their entire house. “It is a mood, it is a vibe, it is relaxation — but still high-end,” Lyndsay noted. Knotty alder wood on the custom cabinetry contrasts with the paler planks on the floating shelves, floor and ceiling. Jade green paint accents the island’s fluted base and complements the vivid range hood. “We’re designing for Florida, [and] we’re designing a tropical retreat, so we feel like this space calls for a lot of wood tones to kind of ground it with the outdoors,” Lyndsay added.