A Wimberley resident with a background that spans college football towns, charity, and now national television, Rebecca Franchione’s path into design and renovation wasn’t conventional. It began not with a vision board or a business plan, but with a deeply personal experience five years ago: renovating her childhood home so her father could safely remain there after a fall. She transformed a sunroom into a full bathroom and reworked the entire home for mobility and safety. She didn’t study design or construction; her experience had only been in improving the homes her family lived in as they moved all over the country for her ex-husband’s job as a college football coach.
“It was just instinctive for me,” says Franchione. “And when my father came home from skilled rehab, I saw the joy on his face and tears in his eyes. I realized there was something powerful about helping people stay in their homes and creating spaces that give people comfort, dignity, and sanctuary.” That instinct — equal parts heart, talent, and vision — now defines Franchione’s work across the Texas Hill Country and beyond.
After settling in Wimberley in 2020, Franchione partnered with friend and neighbor Kristy Etheredge and builder and family friend, Roy Salinas, to flip their first property: a cat-overrun home that required excessive cleaning (think ozone machines) before even getting started. It wasn’t glamorous but it was a success. Franchione quickly became a flipping expert, took on new builds, and starred in a design-forward renovation show on A&E.
Over the course of a year, Franchione completed an astonishing 18 homes, including 10 filmed in just five months for the show — all while serving as designer, project manager, and creative lead. Each property was purchased with the help of her trusted realtors Jessica and Janessa Tomberlin, renovated, and sold for a healthy profit.
Her design approach is intuitive and contextual. Rather than imposing a signature style, she thinks it’s important to capture a home’s roots and environment. A river house calls for something different than a mid-century modern in San Antonio or a cabin in the woods. She sketches ideas by hand — “kindergarten drawings,” she jokes — and designs from her head, not AI.
Despite the whirlwind pace of her work and family life and on-camera demands, Franchione has remained grounded in what matters most to her: giving back. Before design ever entered the picture, this mother of three spent years building Angel Tree programs, founding school food initiatives, and co-creating Hays Hope To Go, a backpack food program now serving thousands of students. She’s a longtime supporter of the Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center — a resource for women and children leaving domestic violence situations. And she and “Officer” Tommy Norman recently co-created Alyssa’s Magical Christmas, a charity event in Arkansas that served more than 100 families.
It’s no surprise that her future plans blend renovation with giving. Franchione is currently in early development on new TV concepts, including a show centered on flipping and gifting homes to single mothers — a mission close to her heart as a recently divorced mom herself. Rebecca and her family have always been comfortable in front of the camera, having acted in three Super Bowl commercials, so it’s gratifying to have her home transformations captured on film with these TV opportunities.
Though her schedule leaves little room for private design clients, Franchione happily shares her local resources — from Habitat for Humanity ReStores to local slab yards, outlets, and contractors. “I don’t gatekeep,” she says. And her encouraging advice to any of us considering dipping our toe in the world of flipping? “Dive in! There’s enormous opportunity in Hays County.”
For Franchione, success isn’t measured in profits or fame. It’s measured in personal connections and uplifting homes through thoughtful design — creating spaces that serve as a sanctuary. In her own home, that sanctuary is a beloved velvet couch she bought for her bedroom after her divorce. And she has no plans to let go of her home in Wimberley. “Hays County is the heartbeat of Texas,” she says. “The people, the food, the rivers — it’s magic.”
If the future unfolds as she hopes, that magic is only just beginning.
“I realized there was something powerful about helping people stay in their homes and creating spaces that give people comfort, dignity, and sanctuary.”
“Hays County is the heartbeat of Texas,” she says. “The people, the food, the rivers — it’s magic.”