Abandon House! How to Survive a Home Repair Fiasco

Down came the rain…and with it, a team of licensed catastrophists.

When Isaac and his Planet Eden crew arrive to perform what’s been generously labeled a “discovery process,” Kenny and Shari watch their functioning kitchen get stripped to the studs in record time - no signed contract, no clear scope, and no guarantee anything will ever be put back. Cabinets vanish. Appliances hide in plain sight (right where the car is supposed to be in the garage). A plastic zipper wall turns the kitchen into a private demolition club, and the Rudolphs are not on the gues...

What do you do when the pirates are quiet, the castaways are safe, and Christmas is finally over? You open the mailbag.

In this special bonus holiday episode of Abandon House! Kenny and Shari Rudolph answer listener questions sent in from around the world - letters to the Rudolphs, if you will - reflecting on love, loss, creativity, homeownership…and how a home repair disaster became a three-book series, a podcast, and even a theme song.

Kenny, Shari, and their producer, Jess Schmidt, discuss:

After weeks of wrangling with Overlord Surety Bond, Rounders Insurance, and Swizzle Stick Claims Management (yes, all names have been changed to protect the innocent and the incompetent), Kenny and Shari decide to bring in Borg of Clydesdale Construction as their Bigfoot contractor to finish the job. Borg promises superhero-level expertise, industry muscle, and negotiation skills that will free them from the administrative doom-loop they’ve been living in. And to kick things off…Borg no-shows their first meeting.

When he finally appears, he brings Chuck - a man who actually seems to know what he’s doing...

After weeks of wrangling with Overlord Surety Bond, Rounders Insurance, and Swizzle Stick Claims Management (yes, all names have been changed to protect the innocent and the incompetent), Kenny and Shari decide to bring in Borg of Clydesdale Construction as their Bigfoot contractor to finish the job. Borg promises superhero-level expertise, industry muscle, and negotiation skills that will free them from the administrative doom-loop they’ve been living in. And to kick things off…Borg no-shows their first meeting.

When he finally appears, he brings Chuck - a man who actually seems to know what he’s doing...

Spring 2020 brings rain, leaks, and a new level of chaos to the Rudolph house as Shari and Kenny continue their fight to fix their sinking California castle. In this episode, the couple faces a fresh wave of insurance pirates, robotic adjusters, and legal run-around as COVID restrictions complicate everything. But amid the absurdity, a new hero emerges: they let rip their new lawyer, Rip.

Then: a breath of fresh, competent air. The Rudolphs sit down with Zach Ogden, co-founder and lead project manager at HiveMind Construction, a Philadelphia-based construction cooperative known for transparent and ethical practices. Zach...

As Kenny and Shari recount their eighth - yes, EIGHTH! - failed repair attempt by Brady Windows, they reveal how frustration, fatigue, and a global pandemic finally pushed them to take back control. From the tyranny of lifetime guarantees to the power shift that comes from saying “You just bought our house!” the Rudolphs dive deep into what happens when good intentions meet bad workmanship - and what it takes to stand up for yourself as a homeowner. We also hear from Karalynn Cromeens, a construction attorney, author, and host of the Quit Getting Screwed podcast who brings legal clar...

What begins as a long-awaited home repair turns into a comedy of errors, a masterclass in patience, and a crash course in the perils of “lifetime guarantees.” In this chapter of the Rudolphs’ ongoing home-repair odyssey, Kenny and Shari finally hire a contractor to fix their leaky sky wall (Halleluja! It has a name!!) What follows: multiple failed repair attempts, shattered windows, leaking warranties, and an ever-expanding cast of contractors - each with their own excuses and a new kind of goo. Along the way, life keeps rolling (sometimes literally), from mountain-bike collisions to big career moves and family health...

After their first storm damage claim turned into a comedy of leaks - combatted only by our heroes’ bravery and their pots-and-pan ballet - Kenny and Shari finally receive their insurance settlement check for just over $4,000. Relief is short-lived, though, as they realize the payout is meaningless if they don’t have a contractor to actually do the work…and that the cheque might not be enough.

Enter Doug Quinn, an insurance-industry-insider turned consumer advocate, who joins the show to explain what really happens when a claim gets adjusted, why so many homeowners end up underpaid, and how to...

It all started with a drip.

In this very first episode of Abandon House: How to Survive a Home Repair Fiasco, Kenny and Shari Rudolph take us back to February 17, 2017 when a rare Southern California storm turns their dream “castle” on a hill into a battleground: against the elements, and a slew of pirate foes in the forms of contractors, crews, and insurance agents. Their leaking kitchen window (or is it a sky light? maybe a sky wall, or an atrium?) was combatted with the first of many renditions of what would come to be known as the...

Welcome to Abandon House! How to Survive a Home Repair Fiasco, where Kenny and Sherry Rudolph share their harrowing five-year journey through the half a trillion dollar home repair industry. A companion to Kenny's 3-part memoir of the same name, this 10-part limited series will bring you practical advice (from more seasoned experts than us, even), laugh-out-loud moments amid the chaos (our first insurance adjuster really did ask us for our fish taco recommendation), and a story that at the end of the day reminds you to hold those you love close (hey, if we can get through this...

Join Kenny and Shari Rudolph as they recount their five-year home repair fiasco, battling insurance bandits, unreliable contractors, and a whole slew of home repair pirates who did their level best to capsize their house - and bring their relationship down with it. Each episode of this 10-part limited series will include essential do's and don'ts from their experiences, expert insights, and exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpses into Kenny's 3-part Abandoned House: How to Survive a Home Repair Fiasco book series. Subscribe now to share the tears, laughter, and knowledge dropping onto the feed in fall 2025.