How long does ‘living the life’ last on Extreme Home Makeover?

Sunday, May 11th, 2008

Apparently, not that long.

The before and after transformations are really impressive that I sometimes wonder when I could get that lucky. Free home makeovers? With everything you need and want from a dream house? It looks even better than what those lucky people have probably dreamed of.  

Or is it?

The reason why these people are rewarded with home makeovers is because they’re not able to financially do this themselves.  They don’t have the means, they can’t even afford a loan. So, everything that we see inside their brand new houses? It’s all sponsored. Except, it’s not a sponsorship for life. And the brand new house’s upkeep doesn’t come cheap. With the jacuzzi in the backyard? A complete working kitchen with all those cool appliances (which I so long to have, by the way!)? 60′ Plasma TV? It’s definitely not cheap.

After the television crews left town and the attention died down, Victor Marrero and his five sons were left with more than a dream home.

Their five-bedroom house, built by an army of volunteers from the hit TV show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, also came with some hefty bills. Living on a small pension and staggering under the weight of old debts and new taxes, Marrero said he panicked this week and briefly listed the house for sale. "I gave up. I gave up out of desperation. I didn’t want to lose the house to the taxes," Marrero said. "I felt like there was a lion coming after me."

(snipped) The Marreros were not the first to win a new house on television only to find they couldn’t afford the place. A Texas family who won a house in a Home and Garden Television sweepstakes were hit with a massive tax bill in 2005. In Kansas City, a family featured on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition had to raise money to keep their house.

(snipped) "I appreciate everything - this house and everyone who helped me," Marrero said. "But it’s too much house."

Which is why I appreciate our 12 year old little house so much more…broken plumbing, fading paint jobs, loose wires and all that.