Tyler Cameron Says Renovating His Late Mom’s Old Home Gave Him ‘Closure’ After Her Sudden Death (Exclusive)

The 'Bachelorette' alum lost his mom to a brain aneurysm in 2020, but chose to still remodel her Florida home on his new show 'Going Home with Tyler Cameron'

Tyler Cameron has found healing in hard work on his new home renovation show.

The reality star, 31, is tackling a TV genre he says is far more emotionally grueling than getting his heart broken on The Bachelorette or pushing his body to its limits on Special Forces: home renovation.

On Going Home with Tyler Cameron (streaming on Prime Video April 18), he carves out a new career path, launching his construction business in his hometown of Jupiter, Fla. and tackling his most meaningful project ever: renovating his late mom's home in her honor.

“I was going to surprise her by renovating this house for her," he tells PEOPLE in this week's issue, of his childhood home, where his mother lived until her death at age 55 from a brain aneurysm in 2020. "It definitely broke my heart that we made this beautiful house and couldn't hand her the keys."

Related: Tyler Cameron Says His Mom's Unexpected Death Motivates Him to 'Take Care of My Brothers'

"It was both cathartic and it kind of gave me closure. I think she would've loved it," he adds.

Cameron explains that his mom's presence "always made that house a home. When she was gone, it went back to just being a house." Now that he's lovingly restored it — and even made upgrades that his mom had on her wishlist — it's a place "me and my brothers can always have and share together . . . It will never leave the family."

Making Going Home also marked a major turning point for the star. One he says has helped him grow up and into himself.

“Doing a home renovation show is ten times the feat of going on Bachelorette or even Special Forces, but I honestly love it and it's given me direction. It's given me an outlet and a passion," says the model turned contractor, who spent the time immediately after his first big appearance on the small screen living it up in New York City with his friend and future Bachelor Matt James and grabbing headlines with a whirlwind romance with Gigi Hadid. "If I'm just sitting around with nothing to strive for, I get myself in a little bit of trouble," he admits.

Related: Tyler Cameron Details What He Does — and Doesn't — Miss About Sharing N.Y.C. Apartment with Matt James

He's also showing a side of himself that fans may not have seen in the past. "On this show you see the most authentic version of myself," says Cameron. "Making it was probably the eight hardest months of my life, and I walked away from it saying, ‘All right, give me more.’"

And he promises he's not slowing down: "We're about to start a new home here," he says. "We have another house for sale. We're for real in this business, I'm not just doing this for TV.”

Related: Tyler Cameron Is 'Living the Dream' as He Shows Off His Newly Decorated Florida Home

He hasn't totally let go of his Bachelorette ties in Going Home, however. Viewers will see him reunite with his season's star, Hannah Brown.

“The [client in one episode] is a huge Bachelor fan," he explains of the reunion. When he found himself in a bind needing some last minute design help for the project, he reached out to the woman who made him a runner up on season 15. "I was scared to reach out to her, but she came through," he says. "We had some things we had to work through and you get to see that. I think it was a great thing for us. If you can do a home renovation together, you can get through a lot."

And the collaboration seems to have healed some old wounds for the one-time almost-couple. Adds Cameron, "We were able to let bygones be bygones. Now we chat about everything."

Going Home with Tyler Cameron will be available to stream on Prime Video on April 18.

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