House was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida; her father, a physician, is from Canada, and her mother is from Mexico. From early childhood, House showed great interest in fashion, which she claims was spurred by her grandmother, saying in an interview: "I was always in her closet. We would watch TV, read magazines, go to the mall. She taught me about couture and how important it was. A lot of my appreciation came from her." After graduating from Bishop Kenny High School, House attended the University of Florida, majoring in International Relations and Asian Studies. Around this time, House also began to pursue a career in fashion modeling, but found her options limited because she was overweight. She eventually lost 60 pounds after changing her diet and adopting an exercise plan.

In early 2004, after shedding her excess weight, House appeared on Cycle 2 of America's Next Top Model. After reaching the finale with fellow contestant Mercedes Scelba-Shorte, House was named the winner of her season. As the winner of America's Next Top Model, House won a contract with IMG Models, the cover of cosmetics catalog Sephora, and a photo spread in Jane magazine.

House made her debut as a runway model at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in 2004, walking for fashion designers Petro Zillia, Custo Barcelona, Sue Wong, and John Sakalis. Among House's most visible modeling assignments immediately after her win are a commercial for the Declare Yourself voting campaign and the cover of Psychology Today magazine. House became host of The Look for Less (a show about fashion bargains) in 2005, replacing Elisabeth Hasselbeck. In 2006, she was named "the face" of The CW network. She will appear in commercials and web advertisements introducing the network's various media choices. House also has a contract with Careline, an Israeli cosmetics company.

--Wikipedia