Extreme Home Makeover Foreclosure

[Kodeysmom]

Not exactly what you think though. Looks like this is the families fault. Per article house was free and clear. Still pretty sad.

'Extreme Makeover' house faces foreclosure

Mon Jul 28, 2:32 PM ET

LAKE CITY, Ga. - More than 1,800 people showed up to help ABC's "Extreme Makeover" team demolish a family's decrepit home and replace it with a sparkling, four-bedroom mini-mansion in 2005.
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Three years later, the reality TV show's most ambitious project at the time has become the latest victim of the foreclosure crisis.

After the Harper family used the two-story home as collateral for a $450,000 loan, it's set to go to auction on the steps of the Clayton County Courthouse Aug. 5. The couple did not return phone calls Monday, but told WSB-TV they received the loan for a construction business that failed.

The house was built in January 2005, after Atlanta-based Beazer Homes USA and ABC's "Extreme Makeover" demolished their old home and its faulty septic system. Within six days, construction crews and hoards of volunteers had completed work on the largest home that the television program had yet built.

The finished product was a four-bedroom house with decorative rock walls and a three-car garage that towered over ranch and split-level homes in their Clayton County neighborhood. The home's door opened into a lobby that featured four fireplaces, a solarium, a music room and a plush new office.

Materials and labor were donated for the home, which would have cost about $450,000 to build. Beazer Homes' employees and company partners also raised $250,000 in contributions for the family, including scholarships for the couple's three children and a home maintenance fund.

ABC said in a statement that it advises each family to consult a financial planner after they get their new home. "Ultimately, financial matters are personal, and we work to respect the privacy of the families," the network said.

Some of the volunteers who helped build the home were less than thrilled about the family's financial decisions.

"It's aggravating. It just makes you mad. You do that much work, and they just squander it," Lake City Mayor Willie Oswalt, who helped vault a massive beam into place in the Harper's living room, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

 

[PampMomof3]

Wow! That is sad. I betcha they're wishing they didn't try their new biz venture after all. Could you imagine moving out of one of those homes?

 

[quiltchef]

The stories are always touching and the results heartwarming. But all along I have wondered--how do the families maintain the homes--usually much bigger homes with higher electric bills, etc. Plus I wonder what the gift taxes are for these lovely homes.
Very sad...

 

[colegrovet]

to be given such a gift as the home.. and then taking a home loan out on it afterwards was very foolish. I could see a small one to pay the gift taxes an stuff but dang they did 100% of the value of the home... Start with nothing, get everything handed to them (so to speak) and then end with nothing..

 

[DessertDivaFL]

to be given such a gift as the home.. and then taking a home loan out on it afterwards was very foolish. I could see a small one to pay the gift taxes an stuff but dang they did 100% of the value of the home... Start with nothing, get everything handed to them (so to speak) and then end with nothing..

I agree. What they should have done is spoke with a financial planner. Some people are not good money managers (like me) and I always need help. When I try to do things myself, I always end up "paying" for it.

 

[Jessamary]

It's like what Dr. Phil always said. (Or used to always say...he's getting a little to "Jerry Springer"-ish for me lately.)

"You don't solve money problems with money."

 

[pampered.chris]

How awful. The people that volunteered their time and materials to help make someone's family "better" and to have this happen. I would be upset too.

 

[ChefBeckyD]

to be given such a gift as the home.. and then taking a home loan out on it afterwards was very foolish. I could see a small one to pay the gift taxes an stuff but dang they did 100% of the value of the home... Start with nothing, get everything handed to them (so to speak) and then end with nothing..

You've hit the nail on the head!


I have a group of women who host shows for me - they all have Habitat Houses. Every time I am with them, they are all talking about what they are doing on their houses and yards...and what they are saving for to add to the house. There is so much pride in owning their own home, and they are all proud of what they learned, and the skills they've acquired in the process of helping to build their home.

That pride, and feeling of ownership just isn't there if it's all handed to you.

 

[Kitchen2u]

While I think it's a great concept (building a gift), and I love the show, I still feel they go WAY overboard with these houses. Personally, I'm surprised there aren't more of these cases since these folks have dilapidated small homes and end up with mansions!

My feeling is instead of building one huge mansion...why not MORE smaller homes and help out MORE families in need?

$450,000? That's only the house, doesn't include the furniture, landscaping, etc. Makes me wonder ~ $250,000 cash AND the $450,000 home value? Wow....

 

[colegrovet]

You've hit the nail on the head!


I have a group of women who host shows for me - they all have Habitat Houses. Every time I am with them, they are all talking about what they are doing on their houses and yards...and what they are saving for to add to the house. There is so much pride in owning their own home, and they are all proud of what they learned, and the skills they've acquired in the process of helping to build their home.

That pride, and feeling of ownership just isn't there if it's all handed to you.

AMEN! Just like a spoiled kid..

 

[Kitchen2u]

You've hit the nail on the head!


I have a group of women who host shows for me - they all have Habitat Houses. Every time I am with them, they are all talking about what they are doing on their houses and yards...and what they are saving for to add to the house. There is so much pride in owning their own home, and they are all proud of what they learned, and the skills they've acquired in the process of helping to build their home.

That pride, and feeling of ownership just isn't there if it's all handed to you.

You're right on that one Becky!

 

[Kitchen2u]

With all of those volunteers they had for that house...this family is going to have to move out of town!

 

[ChefBeckyD]

With all of those volunteers they had for that house...this family is going to have to move out of town!

Ginny....I can tell this has touched a nerve with you, too!

 

[jrstephens]

I agree that they go overboard with them. It is just awful that people will squander away their blessings like this.

I am not surprised about it though. A lot that I have seen, didn't look like they would take care of what they are given in the first place. Don't get me wrong, I agree that a lot of them totally deserve what they need (not want but need) but there are some of them though that the way they keep up their current homes, I do not expect cleanliness or responsibility with a new home. No matter your financial shape, you can still tell a lot about a person by the way they take care of and keep what they have. IMHO.

 

[Kitchen2u]

Ginny....I can tell this has touched a nerve with you, too!

Sure did Becky!

 

[GourmetGirl]

I love how this past season they did the makeovers for people that deserved them (not saying the other families before didn't, but these stories were about people who had given back to their communities in some form)!

 

[jrstephens]

I love how this past season they did the makeovers for people that deserved them (not saying the other families before didn't, but these stories were about people who had given back to their communities in some form)!

I think doing it for GOOD reasons like this is the best thing.

 

[PChefPEI]

While I think it's a great concept (building a gift), and I love the show, I still feel they go WAY overboard with these houses. Personally, I'm surprised there aren't more of these cases since these folks have dilapidated small homes and end up with mansions!

My feeling is instead of building one huge mansion...why not MORE smaller homes and help out MORE families in need?

$450,000? That's only the house, doesn't include the furniture, landscaping, etc. Makes me wonder ~ $250,000 cash AND the $450,000 home value? Wow....

Right on! My question is....why do they need FOUR fireplaces??? It's great that this show does this, but I have always wondered as well when they build such large new homes, how are these families to keep up with the bills and maintenance!!

 

[TammyStar]

My DD and I are always saying they should do follow up shows to see how well these houses are being taken care of. Sometimes it seems hard to believe that some of these people would take pride in their home. Here in Gilbert AZ they did a house because a little girl had cancer as as soon as the TV cameras turned off the family took a loan out using the house as collateral to purchase a new BMW for the Mom and a new big truck for the Dad. And the home they did in Las Vegas really went to a very deserving woman, I did her mammogram, she had breast CA and took care of foster kids. But the house sticks out like a sore thumb because of the neighborhood its in. I always wished in her situation they would have helped her get into a better area.
Just my 2 cents on the matter!

 

[pampchefrhondab]

This is why I mentioned on here before that I can't stand to watch this show. You can just tell most of the people are not going to be able to keep the homes! It's crazy!

 

[ChefBeckyD]

DH refuses to watch the show for that reason and because he says (from experience as a builder for 25 years) that he doesn't care how big of a crew is working on the house, there is no way to build a quality structure in one week. That certain things - like the foundation, and the drywall, etc....have to cure, and that you cannot continue to build on top of them immediately.

He says that he would like to see a "Where are they now" show - to show how many of the houses are having to have major repairs done because of shoddy workmanship and things being done too quickly.






It might be helpful to know that DH is somewhat of a perfectionist in his work. We live in Michigan, but our house could probably withstand a hurricane.

 

[chefann]

I can't watch the show because I get nervous about the timeframe. There's no way that concrete, drywall mud or mortar can properly cure in that little time! The people in the homes surely have problems because of that.

 

[SassyCook]

Plus I wonder what the gift taxes are for these lovely homes.

The taxes almost made a family in Armada, MI lose there new house. There was a fundraiser just for the taxes. BTW I'm from Armada.

 

[SassyCook]

I can't watch the show because I get nervous about the time frame. There's no way that concrete, drywall mud or mortar can properly cure in that little time! The people in the homes surely have problems because of that.

There is a lot you don't see going on. They work around the clock and have things to aid in speeding up curing times. But I do wonder.

 

[chefann]

Drying and curing are 2 separate things. You can dry cement quickly, but it takes a week or more to properly cure.

 

[pamperedlinda]

That house isn't too terribly far from where I live. there have been several stories in the local news about it. It's a shame. Kinda like all those people who have won millions in the lottery that have filed for bankruptcy a few years later.

 

[ChefBeckyD]

Drying and curing are 2 separate things. You can dry cement quickly, but it takes a week or more to properly cure.

Exactly! That is what my DH says all the time about this show! Same thing goes for Drywall mud. You can't slap primer and paint on freshly mudded drywall!

 

[buckeyefan08]

THis show makes me a little angry too.

DH works for Kraftmaid. They supply the cabinetry for the homes.(Free of charge) Kraftmaid has had so many problems these last few years. Lay offs, no raises, hiring freezes, we now have to pay for benifits, the usual. I don't have a problem with making a donation but why does one family get $100,000 in cabinets? They could probably help 10 people for the cost of on of those kitchens. Or here is a novel idea, help your employees keep their jobs, that $100,000 would pay 3 people for a year!

 

[pampchefrhondab]

I agree. I know it's called Extreme but they could help more families that could actually keep their homes.

 

[pamperedlinda]

Unfortunatley what these big corporations see is advertising and a tax write-off....