Extreme Makeover: Fucked Edition

[JasunStrikesBack]

Americans love to punish the poor.. especially poor people who suddenly get something for "free." Fame, notoriety and money always end up with the "winner" being worse off than before.

Rich people... well, they fund Tea Party protests to look after their special rights and tax breaks... they do very little work themselves, they just pay for big protests to make it look like the over-taxed common folk are demonstrating for the good of the oil industry and the very rich.

It's kinda sad.

 

[bankside]

I think you should study up on real estate before making such statements. A property is worth only what someone is willing to pay for it. Transporting a crappy house to Holland Park in London doesn't suddenly make it worth millions. It's still a crappy house.

And building a mansion for $15 million in the midst of $200,000 homes doesn't mean the mansion will sell for $15 million.

Real estate doesn't work that way.

A crappy house in Holland Park? That's not what's at issue. My example was offered to help you realize you were trying to have it both ways.

You're trying to claim that these people are being shortchanged when ABC builds them a free house, but at least ABC owes it to them to build that house in a neighbourhood where they can sell it for your theoretical optimum profit.

You're the one saying ABC is picking the wrong neighbourhoods to do these people any good.

Nonsense. A free house is a free house. Tax it, sell it, downsize, whatever. It is a good thing for these people and they should make the most of the opportunity. That opportunity may require them to sell. So?

 

[Lefty]

bankie.....you are crankie.

Neil and I often butt heads and even get into pissing matches but

he is so right here it hurts. Not saying you are wrong...there are

degrees of right in everything....here, he is on full broil. He is not

picking an argument...this is not the Crap Extort and Poop forum.

The posters here don't always have to be the rightest. Now, hunker

down and enjoy.

 

[bankside]

Actually there is nothing right about lamenting the fate of someone who is given a free house.

The proper and decent approach, with all the complications, with all the property taxes, with all the income taxes, with all the disruption to someone's life, is to say either "Yes, I'm ready for that challenge," or "No thank you. Please give someone else a free house."

Sorry, Lefty, but not only is the stove not on, but we're waiting for Ty to take out this broken one and replace it with one that works. Preferably the induction cooktop please. And yeah, I'll pay tax on that.

 

[turtle_5731]

Sorry but I'm confused by this. Doesn't the show give the family title to the house? If so they are the owners of the house. A bank can only foreclose when the bank still owns the title and the family is still paying off the mortgage. Once they have paid it off, the family owns the house free and clear and there is no foreclosure possible.

(Yes, there are cases where the governmental body that collects property tax can force the sale of the house, if the property tax isn't paid. But that's a different story.)

In this show, doesn't the family featured become the owners of the house at the end of the show? If not, then what does the family get? Nothing. So what's the point of the show if the family actually gets nothing? But if the family does get ownership of the house, then how can they be foreclosed on? I'm confused.

The problem is that they are being taxed on that house as it is being considered a winning, and the families can't afford to pay those taxes because most of them were too poor to pay for what they had before the show came along

 

[Lefty]

You are not confused bw. they have been giving the the deed plus the fornishing and the vehicle all with 'clear title'.

Thats when the BS starts. and Mr. Bankside, thats the pleasure of this forum..all are entitled to an opinion. Ty is not one of my people, he is a drunk driving drug abuser with an absolutely abysmal lack of acting ability or charisma. It is only
my opinion but I think his niche is a payback for something.

I know my dislike for him colours my opinion so I avoided mentioning him. BTW,
the drug and drunk stuff is documeted in several different non Perez Hilton locales.
I can't go farther because at this point I go from fgact to conjecture and rumour.

Not an area I care to be in unless playing with buddys. have a good night.

 

[gsdx]

Nonsense. A free house is a free house. Tax it, sell it, downsize, whatever. It is a good thing for these people and they should make the most of the opportunity. That opportunity may require them to sell. So?

It's not a free house by any means.

The people pay big money, even if they're lucky enough to get some company or store shopping for free advertising to pay off their old mortgage. If they couldn't afford to pay for the upkeep of their old homes, how in hell are they supposed to pay for the upkeep of one 3 times bigger? The property taxes alone would be enough to drain their bank accounts.

Have you seen the show and what goes into the the homes? It's nonsense for the most part and nothing more than a one hour commercial break. The family goes away for a vacation and come home to a money pit.

 

[turtle_5731]

Recipients of extravagant new homes on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition are thrilled at their luck, but after months or years of trying to keep up with a lavish new house and an significantly higher mortgage, many of these struggling families are facing foreclosure. With the economic downturn and the housing market in disarray, many of the families featured on the ABC reality show are fighting hard to save their homes from being taken from them. Keep reading for more details on the families facing foreclosure and what show producers intend to do about it…


In its seven-season run, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has taken do-gooding to a whole new level. Ty Pennington and the crew find families in need and provide them with an amazing new home to help them overcome life’s challenges. The episodes are emotionally charged, uplifting, and moving but in the end, many of these families continue to suffer. With such a lavish new home, their mortgages are adjusted accordingly and several of the families can’t keep up with the payments. As a result, many of those featured on the ABC reality show are now facing foreclosure.


“A lot of people think when you get the house you get the mortgage,” Extreme Makeover: Home Edition contestant Brian Wofford says. ”Well, you don’t.” Wofford is a widowed father of eight children who has spent two years attempting to get his mortgage loan adjusted after it jumped to an unreasonable rate.


Eric Hebert was given a new home on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition after he adopted his deceased sister’s twins. The Idaho resident is the first contestant to officially foreclose after his loan grew unmanageable. In addition to Hebert and Wofford, four other families from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition are in danger of foreclosure. The Georgia-based Harper family, Arizona-based Okvaths, and Oregon-based Byers are all families fighting to keep their extravagant homes. As these families and more struggle to avoid foreclosure, producers from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition are making some changes to the show’s format.


Future homes that are built on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition will be considerably smaller than homes built in the past. Swimming pools are no longer standard, unless they aid in lowering water costs, and expensive landscaping will no longer be included, opting for more natural and affordable designs instead. The show’s producers deny that these changes are in direct response to the foreclosures, instead attributing it to the economic downturn.
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has always strived along with our volunteer builders to create not only ‘extreme’ homes, but homes that work for the owners for years to come,” a spokesperson for the show said. “As always, we are striving to build greener, more affordable and environmentally responsible homes, and redoubling those efforts for years to come.”


http://realitytvmagazine.sheknows.c...akeover-home-edition-houses-face-foreclosure/

 

[wooffy]

I'm reminded of a local news story from a few years ago. I don't remember the specifics or how it became news, but it was a feature on a poor single-mother family and included a reference to her "having" to quit her job because her car went belly-up.

The owner of a car dealership read that story, and gave her a car. Great free advertising, but my reaction was "WTF?"

You are giving a poor person a motor vehicle, with its insurance, fuel, and maintenance costs likely to be in the thousands of dollars per year? Isn't this like giving free donuts to a diabetic?

If you want to help her and her family, why not give her an annual bus pass? Or if she lives in an area under-served by public transit, why not donate use of a moving van for a day, and help her find a new place? There are many things that might actually help her, instead the "generous" car dealership owner saddling her with expenses.

There is this illusion of the norm - house in the suburbs, 2.5 kids, 2 cars, etc. - and so many people think that moving someone to that "norm" will help them. They don't grasp that the norm is a burden not only on society, but often also on the individuals involved.

 

[gsdx]

Future homes that are built on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition will be considerably smaller than homes built in the past. Swimming pools are no longer standard, unless they aid in lowering water costs, and expensive landscaping will no longer be included, opting for more natural and affordable designs instead. The show’s producers deny that these changes are in direct response to the foreclosures, instead attributing it to the economic downturn.

Uh huh. Yeah, right. Pull the other leg, ABC. It plays Jingle Bells.

 

[MoltenRock III]

Sorry but I'm confused by this. Doesn't the show give the family title to the house? If so they are the owners of the house. A bank can only foreclose when the bank still owns the title and the family is still paying off the mortgage. Once they have paid it off, the family owns the house free and clear and there is no foreclosure possible.

Most of the morons on that show end up using the house as a piggy bank. They take out mortgages to buy things they've wanted forever. One family, borrowed $350,000 against the house to fund the husband's "idea" to open small business, a restaurant of all things. They also then loaned their fellow deadbeat family over $100,000 for stomach stapling surgery and some other nonsense.

Here's a few more stories of poor decision makers doing what comes naturally to them (spend like drunks):

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304871704575160312975375930.html

 

[Callum]

Are they not allowed to sell the homes? The people don't honestly...live in the built houses, do they? Jesus Christ. Sounds moronic.

Just sell the fucking thing. Resale value won't be high, of course, since most of these homes are in shitholes, but they'll be in the green after their mortgage and debts are paid.

 

[MoltenRock III]

Are they not allowed to sell the homes? The people don't honestly...live in the built houses, do they? Jesus Christ. Sounds moronic.

Just sell the fucking thing. Resale value won't be high, of course, since most of these homes are in shitholes, but they'll be in the green after their mortgage and debts are paid.

Dude! Of course they do! But by the time these people get their "gifts" they move in, get used to living in a luxury home with granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, hot tubs, pool, a literal home theater w/ stadium seating, surround sound in every room in the house, new computers, and furnished to the hilt, they think they can afford / deserve that lifestyle.

Once the cameras are gone, and all the self-backpatting is concluded, these poor people make poor choices. (Go figure!) These people go out, get a mortgage on the property for $300,000 or $400,000 or more and think that's more money than god. They soon realize that $300K or $400K isn't all that much money.

The best investment would be to give each of the winning families $10,000 in legal / financial advice and handling. Although, my guess is that they would blow off anyone telling them to save money, live simply, and be frugal. They feel like they've won the lottery and live in an amazing home with a brand new $35,000 vehicle. As I said, being poor is more than a condition it is a mindset. People with a poor person mindset will always be poor no matter what. It's what 50% or more of America suffers with.