Is Extreme Makeover hurting or helping homeowners?
Filed under: Borrowing, Real Estate, Recession
At the very least, Pennington and his producers would teach a good object lesson on why the whole system went south, despite the good intentions of most of those involved -- and the greed and malice of some, and the ineptitude of others and the bad luck of some. If a good-natured reality show couldn't make it work, how could one have ever expected Countrywide to do it? I say put these guys on the hot seat and let them explain, rather than just keep rolling out episodes featuring ever-more-safe subjects who have been grilled endlessly by the network's lawyers, and who probably will be receiving extended assistance so more bad news doesn't keep leaking out.
Celebrity Foreclosures
Sadie Holmes, of Altamonte Springs, poses along a wall in her neighborhood across from her house, June 25, 2008. Holmes had her home made over two years ago on 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,' but now could lose it if she can't pay a $29,000 county lien placed on the property after months of code violations racked up. (Hilda M. Perez/Orlando Sentinel/MCT)
Hilda M. Perez, Orlando Sentinel / MCT
'Extreme Makeover' House
The Harper family home in Georgia, which was rebuilt on an episode of ABC's "Extreme Makeover" in 2005, went into foreclosure this summer after the family used the house as collateral for a $450,000 loan and couldn't meet the payments.
Michael Buckner, Getty Images
Damon Dash
Foreclosure proceedings have begun against hip-hop mogul Damon Dash over unpaid mortgages on two Manhattan apartments. Eastern Savings Bank says the Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder and his wife owe more than $7 million on the properties.
Gary Gershoff, Wire Image
Former "Tonight Show" personality Ed McMahon makes "a confidential deal" to sell his Beverly Hills home after falling behind on payments. But one thing is clear. It's not Donald Trump who recently offered to buy the home.
Matt Sayles, AP
Scott Storch
Hip-hop producer Scott Storch went into foreclosure in July on his $10 million Miami mansion, according to The Palm Beach Post. He also had his Ferrari Scaglietti and his prized motorcycle, a Bones Bike, repossessed.
Wilfredo Lee, AP
Vin Baker
Former NBA player Vin Baker has also been stung by the wave of foreclosures sweeping the U.S. Baker's 9,300-square-foot Georgian brick colonial Durham home, which has six bedrooms, a two-lane bowling alley, basketball court, guest house and pool was auctioned for $2.5 million.
Charles Krupa, AP
Ernestine Anderson
The jazz vocalist sings the National Anthem at a Seattle Seahawks game. But Jackson may not be singing now as she faces a foreclosure on her Seattle home. Public records show that she is more than $30,000 in arrears in payments and penalties.
Jonathan Ferrey, Getty Images
Adam 'Pacman' Jones
The home of Cowboys cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones will was recently put up for auction, attracting a $1.1 million offer --significantly less than the $1.4 million he owned on his home. Jones is one of the latest sports stars to run into issues with money management.
Ray Tamarra, Getty Images
The Mount, author Edith Wharton's estate in Lenox, Mass., needs to raise $6 million by the end of October to avoid foreclosure. Since February, $900,000 has been donated, but fundraisers need another $2.1 million in order to secure a pledged matching donation.
AP (2)
The trust overseeing Mark Twain's House and Museum in Hartford, Conn., still owes $4.9 million on a bank loan and is trying to meet its $2.9 million annual budget. The Twain House's executive director says an ambitious $19 million visitor center which opened in 2003 set the site's finances back.
AP (2)
That's about sums it up -- for the mortgage crisis, the stock market roller coaster and our general financial situation in this country at the moment. And TV is no escape from reality in this instance, but instead is contributing to the problem.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
10-17-2008 @ 10:27PM
reno said...
This story does not have enough meat on it. You have 21 pictures and only two of them discuss Home Improvement show.
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10-18-2008 @ 11:32AM
Scott said...
I'm very interested in this subject, but I too have to say this is a very poorly written article. It has almost no facts in it and the 21 pictures simply are a waste of time, since they don't go with the article. The author should be ashamed of themselves for putting out an article with this little in it. But who's got 90% of the blame, in my mind is the unnamed editor who let this low quality work get published.
I quit watching Extreme Home Makeover after only viewing a few episodes, as the house I live in is worse than most of the 'bad' homes they've remade - and there are worse homes than mine in my neighborhood.
The worst I've personally ever seen in housing was the Celilo village on the Columbia river in Oregon. It was horrible conditions, clearly visible from the freeway. Over the last two years someone - and I don't know who - built a whole village of temporary housing, moved everyone into it, tore down their old houses, and built all new ones, and then moved them back. It's been a long process for them, and it sure looks great now. How about a story about them?
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10-19-2008 @ 4:54PM
Prem Yogini said...
Hey Scott...I was watching CNN last night and they interviewed one of their 10 heroes which people had nominated. This one was a lady and her husband from the NE who actually moved to New Orleans to help construct homes for the people in St. Bernard parish who'd lost their homes to Katrina. Each home costs about $12k to make...and since this woman got $25k just for being nominated, she gave the money to her project so they'd be able to construct two more homes. I think she's responsible for over 100 homes right now. That's what we should be talking about instead of stuff like Extreme Home Makeover...the positive things people are doing to make a difference in a lot of people's life. Thanks for your blog because it jarred my memory.
10-18-2008 @ 12:08PM
Mikey D said...
The show's name no longer fits. They started out with 'extreme' remodelling projects to existing houses. Then they found one home to be so 'bad' they simply demolished it and built a new one. Now, they no longer even consider remodelling, always demolishing and building new, bigger and better homes. I still watch the show for ideas...but the premise is all wrong. They are tearing down some perfectly good houses, simply because they don't suit the current occupants, people who could sell and move to a more appropriate house, but don't. And many times the new house is so much bigger and better, that it no longer belongs in the old neighborhood. I loved the show when it began, but now I think it's too big for its own britches.
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10-18-2008 @ 1:44PM
bill said...
While these homes are being renovated the home owners should be going thru a crash course on how to keep it . Instead of goin on some crazy beach filled vacation they should show them how to manage thier money/ finances and the potential money proble,s inthe future. The poor woman with the code violations should have all her fees covered by the show. She was not responsible for the product nor how it was installed or used. The city or the villagehall should also take on some of that blame for allowing it to continue being constructed. There is such a thing as a "Stop work order".
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10-19-2008 @ 2:20PM
shelly said...
If you would read the link in the story that is highlighted you would realize that this woman is not losing her house because of the house itself but because of fines she has accrued herself. She has a 29,000 dollar lien on her property because of violation codes that she violated after the fact. This article leads the public to believe that the show and the new home has caused her the grief when in turn she has caused it herself.
10-19-2008 @ 2:36PM
Mike said...
I think she had received enough from the show the code violations may be she has not cut the grass, I am very sure that the house was built and turn over to her up to code. This is something she has let happen. And for the ones that go get a big loan on the home and the lose it should lose it. Thye were stupid for getting the loan they knew they could not pay back to start with.
10-19-2008 @ 2:37PM
Carolyn said...
I agree with Shelly. Everybody should read the link. The violations were not the result of the house but what she kept on the premises.
10-19-2008 @ 7:35PM
Janet LaCava said...
I agree with you. Very well said.
10-19-2008 @ 4:59PM
NaniKai said...
I agree with Bill, the stop work order is there and this poor worman should not be left holding the bag. I've seen others have to suffer after Extreme Makeover has built their homes but I wonder if the $450,000.00 loan was for the code violation payments or for another personal use. This article doesn't tell us what the loan was for. If it was for the code violations and then she couldn't repay the loan because the payments were so high, Extreme Makeover and Ty Pennington should step in and assist her in paying for the code violations and help her keep this home.
I also do not understand why they just bulldoze some homes sometimes instead of improving them. Some really need bulldozed while others improvements are in order. Everyone in the United States cannot be candidates for this program but if someone out there feels that they would be a candidate for the show the producers do invite homeowners to "try out" for the program. They at least invite people from every walk of life, it's up to the homeowners to come forward.
10-18-2008 @ 5:14PM
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10-19-2008 @ 2:27PM
Share said...
Sure is easy to blame Pres. BUsh even tho he has a democratic senate and house....PLUS if you read all the accurate accounts of what is really going on with the economy -- you would know its not Bush...its been going on for nearly a decade BEFORE the current President even got into office. So I don't believe you are so accurate. DO your homeowrk.
10-18-2008 @ 5:22PM
neuticles said...
There's a reason these people on Extreme Makeover live in squallers- they are dirt poor and cannot afford any better. For a show to come in and 'make it over' - addiing hundreds of thousands in its' value- the property taxes increase as does maintainance and related expenses.
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10-18-2008 @ 5:29PM
Mike said...
It doesn't say what the code violations are. People are assuming it has to do with the building of the home, however it was built two years ago. The violations started adding up over months. I would assume the violations are for something else but that wouldn't fit the article the way they wanted to write it. It is clearly written to point the finger at the show instead of the homeowner.
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10-19-2008 @ 5:13PM
Sally said...
The article can be linked to inside this story. I read it and it does show what the violations are. They are: porta potties on the property, abandoned vehicles and an oversized truck. With a 5000 square foot house and a 2000 square foot office, why would she need outside potties. Those kinds of violtions wouldn't fly in any neighborhood here - no matter what the hood looked like.
10-19-2008 @ 6:23PM
Deb said...
I believe the people who took out the loan against their house of $450,000 have embezeled the money. Just like stealing the money from the bank. They clearly did it on purpose to squander the money for their own greed.
10-18-2008 @ 6:33PM
Stephen Brisbois said...
Ive watched the show where the staff say that the loan or note on the house was completely paid so theres no mortgage. As one of the other posters pointed out...... there incresed taxes and maintenance utilitys and upkeep on a big home. These folks dont have any extra income just aquired more bills.
Example... I lived in a 100 yr old house in Florida. It was nice and had its share of problems. I sold the house and built a larger brand new house with the monies from the sale.The new house is nice but stuff still breaks,there still major up keep cost and I pay more in taxes. I should of stayed where I was. id have been better off.
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10-19-2008 @ 2:13PM
Allyson said...
Who cares about all of these celebrities and their fortunes? There are 21 photos and only 2 of them have anything to do with the show.
This article was terrible and almost pointless. It's sad because I have actually wondered about this topic before and was interested in learning more, but this article is very choppy and less informative than I thought.
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10-19-2008 @ 2:14PM
getwau said...
I would assume that if the house is worth $400K and is paid off that she could obtain a HELOC to cover the lien. It's about time the financial/banking industry starts correcting its wrongs. When it comes to loans, people will sign anything because they believe the bank is doing them a favor. Banks sell a product - MONEY. CASH! Piles of cold hard cash is the best way to weather the current economic situation. I discovered one of the best books you'll ever find about finance, "How to Become Filthy Rich on Your Current Income" at www.how-to-become-rich.com. If people read books like this one we wouldn’t have the current situation we do.
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10-19-2008 @ 4:49PM
DonaG said...
You can bet she has spent every bit of equity in that house and now can't afford to pay the $29,000 in fines. Watch the movie American Gangster and you'll see what happens when people become so greedy!