Extreme Home Makeover Disney Peeps

[Disneykidder]

About 2 years ago a house was done about 30 minutes from my house. The man lost his wife and had 3 kids to raise. He was also a fireman. Well, last year he sold the house because of the bills that came with the house. There was even a local collection for him and still wasn't enough. He also said he sold the place because he couldn't bear to live in lavish without his beloved.

 

[WildLodgeFan]

You are actually incorrect,the taxes do not go higher.We have worked on 4 EMHE houses,and we asked that question.Abc gets an exemption for the homes that were currently on the properties that keeps the property tax at the same amount.This is partially,but majorly due to the fact that all the materials to build the homes are donated or paid for by the sponsers. If the tax were based on the value of the homes,most were above $750,000.Just to give you an idea on the total value of the homes once finished including the furniture,appliances and everything else seen in the episodes so far.We were told the cheapest built to date was worth $1,300,000.

I did read at one time on Newsweek online via MSNBC that there is some question about the tax loopholes ABC is using may come into question. Apparently they rent the house from the family for $50,000 a day for the week (paid in furnishings) and by doing this that there is not taxes they have to pay on the gift. However I guess several accountants had reviewed the paperwork given to one family (a soldier's family) and each were concerned about the validity of the it.

 

[Sam02]

The families tax bill will increase, maybe not the year it happened though. Houses get reassessed periodically, if it wasn't so we would all be paying taxes on house values from previous years. (I for one would love to pay the tax bill that my house probably had when it was first built). When the new home is reassessed the "value" of the house will increase. The loophole that ABC is using is based on the fact that "renters" can do whatever they want to a house as long as it is considered an improvement. ABC then "rents" the house it will be doing a makeover on. The problem is that come the next reassassement the assessor has to assess the house that is there, not the house that was there previously. What I have seen is that some cities (KC to be exact) wants to reassess immediately after the makeover is done and apply that new assessment to the current year tax bill instead of what was standing Jan 1st. The first makeover done here (there have been 3 in the KC metro area) had that problem and the owner was fighting the tax bill because of it.

This is why you see so much money raised to help offset increased utilities and taxes. Local companies have donated a lot to also help offset the building costs.

It is amazing how generous people can be. It is also amazying how dumb people can be as well. The first home had to put a "No Tours" sign on their front door. This was due to a lady just entering the home and giving herselp a tour while the family was in the back yard. The dad came in to find a stranger in his home! :brick:

 

[fosse76]

I have no knowledge of what new expenses the family has to deal with, but logically I just can't imagine ABC (let alone Disney) would go to all that trouble to help a family in dire need by building them a house, only to leave them with a morbid future of increased expenses that they can't handle. Doesn't make sense to me. I can't help but think that they would have already thought of that and took the proper steps to make sure that it wouldn't be a problem for the family.

I believe originally when all these makeover shows started no one thought about the potential tax liability. All additions to the home cost money which is provided by the shows. The IRS considers that income (since it isn't a "gift" from a family member). As such, the families' income taxes increase. Second, the value of the home appreciates, sometimes significantly, which increases the property taxes. From what I understand, these shows are now limiting the makeovers they give to families that can demonstrate they can cover the new tax liability, and in extreme cases the show supplements the cost of the makeover to include enough extra money to cover the taxes. I vividly remember the fallout from the Oprah car givaway, when she gave everyone in her audience a car. A year later there were news reports that people owed around $7000 in additional taxes because of the new "income." The IRS is pure greed.

 

[fosse76]

I did read at one time on Newsweek online via MSNBC that there is some question about the tax loopholes ABC is using may come into question. Apparently they rent the house from the family for $50,000 a day for the week (paid in furnishings) and by doing this that there is not taxes they have to pay on the gift. However I guess several accountants had reviewed the paperwork given to one family (a soldier's family) and each were concerned about the validity of the it.

I JUST now read that in an article. The concern is that the IRS does not define the terms for rental of property, and that if it ever went to court that the contestant's would be in serious trouble, since the rental rate must be at face value (in other words, if your mortgage is $1000 per month, than anything more that is taxable). It's an interesting dilemma.

 

[Mercy]

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20080507__Too_much_house_.html

A heartbreaking story about a recent recipient:

"Victor Marrero had his house on the market at half a million dollars for just 1 day. Today he took it off. He says it was a hasty decision made because he's felt overwhelmed by the high cost of keeping this house built for his family last summer.
Victor Marrero says the dream house built for him and his 5 sons last August by ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition is becoming unaffordable.
Last August the Marrero family moved into their new home on Federal Street in Pennsauken. In addition, the builder J.S. Hovnanian of Mount Laurel set aside $59,000 to help with bills according to Marrero. But celebrity can have its down side, and Marrero says he started getting bills he never knew he owed from years ago.
Marrero explains, "As soon as I moved in here, within a month a got bills way back from 1994 when I had my bypass. And they were saying they were going to put a lien on the house, so most of that money went to paying bills."
Marrero says it's an expensive home to operate and gas and electricity bills run between $700and $1200 a month. Property taxes are over $6,000. The nest egg, he says, is gone.
Marrero, who is on disability, says 3 of his 5 sons are now working to help out."

 

[tigsmom]

I have read an article or two of families struggling after the makeover, thought not the local folks (KC has had 2 makeovers done in recent years), so I wondered how it did work for most of the people dealing with extra expenses. I think it's wonderful to watch and I definitely think it's great if doesn't add any additional burden to the families - which probably in most cases, it doesn't.

I have heard of people struggling to make the new tax payments and I think thats why now you see so many people have their mortgages forgiven or trust funds, etc set up by the participants in the show.

When they first started out they were there to help people in need, they did the renovations and got them back on their feet. Now it seems that everything has to be scrapped and many people get more than they need or asked for...way over the top.

There is a local young man who was wounded in the war and his family needed help getting the place ready for him to come home. All they asked for was some ramps, doors widened...nothing that major, no new home with all sorts of gadgets...they were turned down because they had "done enough soldier shows". :brick:

I've stopped watching the show because, IMHO, they have gotten away from the original spirit of the show. I'm not saying they don't still do good, but it just seems to commercial now for my tastes. I like Deserving Design much better.

 

[Master Yoda]

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20080507__Too_much_house_.html

A heartbreaking story about a recent recipient:

"Victor Marrero had his house on the market at half a million dollars for just 1 day. Today he took it off. He says it was a hasty decision made because he's felt overwhelmed by the high cost of keeping this house built for his family last summer.
Victor Marrero says the dream house built for him and his 5 sons last August by ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition is becoming unaffordable.
Last August the Marrero family moved into their new home on Federal Street in Pennsauken. In addition, the builder J.S. Hovnanian of Mount Laurel set aside $59,000 to help with bills according to Marrero. But celebrity can have its down side, and Marrero says he started getting bills he never knew he owed from years ago.
Marrero explains, "As soon as I moved in here, within a month a got bills way back from 1994 when I had my bypass. And they were saying they were going to put a lien on the house, so most of that money went to paying bills."
Marrero says it's an expensive home to operate and gas and electricity bills run between $700and $1200 a month. Property taxes are over $6,000. The nest egg, he says, is gone.
Marrero, who is on disability, says 3 of his 5 sons are now working to help out."

This is a big "x" factor in this story. From what I have read it sounds like he just did not pay those bills in the past because he did not have the money to and the hospital just filed it away because he had no assets to go after. It is the old getting blood from a stone adage. Once he got that new house the hospital had something to go after and they did. It was a pretty crappy move on part of the hospital but they are a business just like any other and they were just trying to collect on a debt. Paying that debt sucked up the majority of his savings. Had he filed for bankruptcy before he got the new house and had the debt discharged they could not have done this.

I do agree though, Extreme makeover goes way over the top on these houses for the sake of the show at the expense of the people they should be helping. On the flip side you would think our wonderful government would be inclined to cut these people a little slack.

 

[MouseMadness]

I have heard of people struggling to make the new tax payments and I think thats why now you see so many people have their mortgages forgiven or trust funds, etc set up by the participants in the show.

When they first started out they were there to help people in need, they did the renovations and got them back on their feet. Now it seems that everything has to be scrapped and many people get more than they need or asked for...way over the top.

There is a local young man who was wounded in the war and his family needed help getting the place ready for him to come home. All they asked for was some ramps, doors widened...nothing that major, no new home with all sorts of gadgets...they were turned down because they had "done enough soldier shows". :brick:

I've stopped watching the show because, IMHO, they have gotten away from the original spirit of the show. I'm not saying they don't still do good, but it just seems to commercial now for my tastes. I like Deserving Design much better.

Me too! I agree that the rebuilds that each try to outdo the last are just ridiculously over the top. Give the family a nice, livable home, sure, but don't end up actually screwing them over in the end :brick:

 

[mkt]

Yo. Just wanted to ask a question of the folks out here. Last night while extreme home makeover was on, once again they went to Walt Disney World. Does anyone know if these folks are waited on hand and foot while there? Do they get all inclusives like Dining Plan and Concierge sweets etc? Or just treated like us regular folk?

your avatar is absolutely amazing.

 

[doombuggie]

I have no knowledge of what new expenses the family has to deal with, but logically I just can't imagine ABC (let alone Disney) would go to all that trouble to help a family in dire need by building them a house, only to leave them with a morbid future of increased expenses that they can't handle. Doesn't make sense to me. I can't help but think that they would have already thought of that and took the proper steps to make sure that it wouldn't be a problem for the family.

the answer is none....they work an agreement out with the city (my mother is the city clerk for Warwick where the latest episode took place) that the mortgage and taxes are taken and paid for by a sponsor (in theis case CVS)

so it is no additional burden to the families...

 

[wdwmomof3]

The house may be free, but many people forget that their taxes go through the roof. I haven't heard anything specific about Home Makeover families, but I know that some other similar programs that have given houses to people who need them have been unable to keep the house once the tax bill came in the next year. All these people who went from a 1000 sq ft house to a 3000 sq ft house can't always afford to pay triple the tax. Esp the ones who are/were having money problems. Hence one of the reasons why alot of times they raise money for the families.

I know, it's really sad for the families to have had such a hard time and then get hit again with taxes and what not. I just don't understand why they can't build a nice house with out going so far over the top, that it ends up hurting the families.

 

[doombuggie]

I know, it's really sad for the families to have had such a hard time and then get hit again with taxes and what not. I just don't understand why they can't build a nice house with out going so far over the top, that it ends up hurting the families.

did you NOT read my post??

it has NO negative bearing on the families...dont you think they thought of this problem before they started the program?:hammer:

 

[tigsmom]

did you NOT read my post??

it has NO negative bearing on the families...dont you think they thought of this problem before they started the program?:hammer:

Before you jump all over people you should do some research. The paying off of mortgages and setting up funds for taxes is something new that has been added. If you do a bit of research you will see that there has been a problem in the past with people facing foreclosure because they could not meet the new expenses. This was not a problem when the show first started, but developed after they started building the super homes. They now work with sponsors to try to avoid this problem.

This story was just published today...

http://www.komoradio.com/news/16383191.html


Here is another story...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1815102/posts

 

[wdwmomof3]

did you NOT read my post??

it has NO negative bearing on the families...dont you think they thought of this problem before they started the program?:hammer:

Sorry, I was responding to someone else.:animwink:

 

[Mercy]

This story was just published today...

http://www.komoradio.com/news/16383191.html


Here is another story...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1815102/posts

That is so sad!!! So many of them are on the brink of losing their homes. It doesn't sound like this experiment in humanity has been very successful.

 

[doombuggie]

im also sorry...didnt mean for it to sound like i was jumping on anyone...it was more joking..hence the guy hitting himself ni the head with a goofy look...(smiley)

 

[tigsmom]

That is so sad!!! So many of them are on the brink of losing their homes. It doesn't sound like this experiment in humanity has been very successful.

I do not doubt their desire to help people for one minute, its just that they have become a victim of their own success. What they do is wonderful, getting communities to come together to help those in need, I just think they may have lost sight of the fact that these people are in need for a reason and just giving them a brand new house full of wonderful things is not always the answer. If a person is unable to work, giving them a house that is 5 times larger than their original - along with the increase in taxes and related expenses - is not going to make their life easier in the long run.

 

[tigsmom]

im also sorry...didnt mean for it to sound like i was jumping on anyone...it was more joking..hence the guy hitting himself ni the head with a goofy look...(smiley)

Maybe I took it the wrong way, but to me this guy - :hammer: means somebody did or said something stupid. This guy - is the goofy one.

:shrug:

 

[doombuggie]

haha...gotcha!