Easy come.......easy go.

[Peter2]

'Extreme Makeover' house faces foreclosure - MSN TV News

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[andviv]

nice find.
This sounds just like the stories of ruin for lottery winners. What a coincidence!

 

[kimberland]

Giving people a healthy net worth
doesn't mean they can maintain it.

 

[8 SNAKE]

Simply incredible. :bgh:

As I understand the story, these "victims" of the foreclosure "crisis" thought it would be wise to take out a loan against their new house to start a construction business. And these same people were previously living in a dump that was so bad it had to be torn down. Exactly where was all of this construction expertise being used while living in the first house??

Some people simply can't be saved from themselves.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[AroundTheWorld]

Simply incredible. :bgh:

As I understand the story, these "victims" of the foreclosure "crisis" thought it would be wise to take out a loan against their new house to start a construction business.

I actually don't see a problem with that. However. . . . it does not take $450K to start a construction business. It seems apparent to me that they spent the money elsewhere - - - at least most of it.

The part in the article that I found most interesting was this:

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.

Huh? If I gave anyone that much money - - - I most certainly would make their financial matters - or at least their financial education my business.

This highlights - exactly - the problem with "helping" people in a way that is actually enabling rather than uplifting. You can't change people's lives with handouts. You change their lives with financial education.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Disgusting story. Here's a pic..

Wow, the house looks huge for $450K ... is this what $450K buys in ATL?

Several years ago, Patricia and Milton Harper lost their two-year-old son when he choked on his food. At the time, the family was living in the projects in Brooklyn, New York. Sadly, the paramedics couldn't get to the child in time to save his life.

Life for them in the projects was tough enough, but the tragedy of their son's death prompted the couple to work even harder and get their family out of there. After putting in long hours and saving up every penny they had, the Harpers packed up their kids and bought their first home, a 1400 square-foot, four-bedroom ranch house just outside Atlanta.

What these first-time homeowners didn't know was they had just bought a big dump -- literally. Unaware of any problems when they purchased the home, the Harpers soon found themselves knee-high in raw sewage! Every time it rained hard -- which was often -- their septic tank would back up and human waste actually flooded their suburban home. The Harpers have been living in and out of their minivan because of bacteria in the house, not to mention the horrible stench that has damaged their possessions. Their furniture, clothes and even their dreams have all been ruined. Recently their minivan was in an accident, so even that shelter was taken from them. They tried to fix up a couple of the rooms in their house to live in, but were dealt yet another blow when another rainstorm produced a gaping hole in the ceiling of one of those rooms.

No doubt the cash was spent on things other than a business. It doesn't take $450K to open a construction business unless you're buying heavy equipment assets which we know, they didn't.

 

[Russ H]

What always fascinated me when they did the show was the check they gave the homeowners at the end-- presumably to pay the property taxes for the next bunch of years. I thought it was a really, really good idea-- did you know virtually all the winners of the HGTV dream homes have HAD to sell them, since they couldn't afford the prop taxes?

Given how many of Extreme Makeovers they've done (perhaps 100 by now?), I'm guessing that many of them have had substantial financial counseling and constant follow up w/the show.

But you can't force someone to be smart, or change their bad habits to good, if they're not willing to change.

-Russ H.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[hakrjak]

You can take the kid out of the trailer park, but you can't take the trailer park out of the kid

-C

 

[bizboy]

No doubt the cash was spent on things other than a business. It doesn't take $450K to open a construction business unless you're buying heavy equipment assets which we know, they didn't.

No need to buy heavy equipment, you could easily rent.

 

[NoMoneyDown]

What always fascinated me when they did the show was the check they gave the homeowners at the end-- presumably to pay the property taxes for the next bunch of years. I thought it was a really, really good idea-- did you know virtually all the winners of the HGTV dream homes have HAD to sell them, since they couldn't afford the prop taxes?

Given how many of Extreme Makeovers they've done (perhaps 100 by now?), I'm guessing that many of them have had substantial financial counseling and constant follow up w/the show.

But you can't force someone to be smart, or change their bad habits to good, if they're not willing to change.

-Russ H.

Exactly. Same reason why multi-million dollar lottery winners lose most if not all of their winnings within a few years. Sometimes they're in worst shape than before they won due to all their spending habits.

Case in point, my sister had a friend who won a lawsuit against a company and was awarded something close of $1M. He bought a few cars, gave a lot of the money to friends (most of whom don't even associate with him now), and so on. When I met him, he was driving a rust bucket and working two jobs as he had already burned through the money within two years.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[8 SNAKE]

I actually don't see a problem with that.

You don't? From the description of their first house, these people didn't have the slightest clue about anything related to construction. I see a huge problem with them starting a construction biz. They might as well have purchased $450k in lotto tickets. They weren't investing, they were gambling.

 

[I85]

No doubt the cash was spent on things other than a business. It doesn't take $450K to open a construction business unless you're buying heavy equipment assets which we know, they didn't.

Did they pull a Tyrone and have them a $450K crack party?(anyone seen The Chappelle Show?).


"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."


How much more money could they need? :bgh: Hope they still have their kids college $.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

You don't? From the description of their first house, these people didn't have the slightest clue about anything related to construction. I see a huge problem with them starting a construction biz. They might as well have purchased $450k in lotto tickets. They weren't investing, they were gambling.

LOL. I'll clarify my statement.

I don't see a problem (in general) with using a HELOC to start a business. It can be a great way to get started.

However, as we all know, starting a business isn't just about raising capital.

So, I do have a problem with starting a business but:

• Failing to Self Educate
• Failing to put basic money management skills to use
• etc.

And, as already has been mentioned more than once in this thread .... it is highly unlikely that they spent 450K on this business. The money was likely squandered elsewhere.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[8 SNAKE]

ATW -

Yes, I think we can both agree on your last post. Leveraging money wisely through a HELOC can help spring-board someone into the fast lane. I'm all for it. Unfortunately, these people weren't even slow lane to begin with. I don't think they could even find the buggy tracks with both hands and a well-trained mule if they tried.

I also completely agree with you that these shows could do a better job of enabling people instead of giving them hand-outs. The same money would go so much farther! Sadly, enabling someone takes a lot longer and isn't nearly as exciting to watch on television. You can't pull a bus out in front of a diploma and have people cheer wildly when it moves out of the way.

 

[Kung Fu Steve]

So all said and done, about a half of a million dollars...

You know how easy it would be to double that money???

I think the sayin goes:
"You don't know what you don't know!"

Why open a construction business if you don't know anything about construction????

 

[Z5 FILMS]

"Three years later, the reality TV show's most ambitious project at the time has become the latest victim of the foreclosure crisis."


Ummm.....these people are not victims of any foreclosure crisis. They are victims of their own home neglect and stupidity. I don't feel sorry for them the least bit. They should be forced to live back in their sewage infested house until the debts are paid off.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[yveskleinsky]

Here's the way I see it:

Let's say you see a group of people sitting around having drinks. You notice that two of the people in the group have no coffee in their cups, while others seem to have a never ending amount to drink. The people without coffee are complaining that they have none. You give them some of yours. Next thing you know, you look over and they are out of coffee again- and they are in extreme pain from having hot coffee all over their lap. You are stumped. Where did the coffee go? Why is it in their lap and all over the floor? You fill up their cup again, and again, the coffee is gone in record time and is all over their lap- causing them serious pain, and the coffee on the floor is making a dangerous situation for those around them. Upon further inspection you notice that the lack of coffee is just a symptom of the problem. The real problem is that they are drinking out of a dribble glass that also has a hole in the bottom. They will never be able to have a full cup as long as they are drinking out of that same cup- so giving them more coffee is not a solution- they need to change the cup.

The problem is two fold: 1. Our personal "coffee cups" are invisible to most people except our banker and 2.Society teaches that we make money to spend it.

I am always surprised to see people who have no experience with money handle it well. ...It's a learned skill.

 

[PEERless]

L-O-friggin'-L! So funny!

Who's headed over to Clayton County to grab it?

 

[EasyMoney_in_NC]

No need to buy heavy equipment, you could easily rent.

Not that its relevant here, but I thought I'd mention I have a friend who sells heavy construction equipment.............let me tell you, for what you pay in lease fee's you could own one quickly! Leasing is not cheap, in fact they try to get people to buy the equipment once its leased for a while and like homes, apply what they've paid towards the purchase.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Talkintoy]

I think some of it is just for Reality TV show and somewhat helping these people. It was mainly to show advertisement for Lowe's, Sears etc... Showing help in others just makes other people think they care and off course buy more of the products and items that was donated due to kindness? Advertisements etc... sells very well on national TV.

 

[hatterasguy]

As my Grandfather used to say, poor people are poor because of the way they think and act. These people had $700k that they blew in three years, thats insane.

People who come from money know how to handle it, people who don't simply can't. Thats why you see a lot of lotto winners and celebrities financialy implode after coming into a lot of money; usualy in an orgy of fast cars, girls, and drugs.