Once the taxes went up. I would've sold the house quick and walked with a fat bank account.

Moral of this story, if you ever get a free home makeover, sell it as fast as you can.

This actually happens to a lot of families who've had their house redone by this show.

She could have just filed for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. They take all of your debt and past mortage payments and put it into a 3-5 year repayment plan. you get to keep the house AND you get to pay off your debt interest free

She should have sold that house quicker than it took for the new paint to dry.

How can you give such a luxury house to someone who struggles to raise her 3 children? If someone ever gifted me a Ferrari I would sell it within 24 hours.

Oh man, I remember that episode, I was about 8 years old and felt super happy for them. I hope they're safe, together, and making ends meet. I used to move a lot so I understand how hard it is to say goodbye to a home especially one with a ton of memories.

This is exactly why I don’t show updated photos of my home on real estate sites from the inside and backyard, they’ll just update the home assessment and charge me more in property taxes. Why should I have to pay more per month for a home I’m trying to pay off just because I want it to look nicer? Screw that.

This show was heavily criticized for the whole concept of going big without considering how the hell homeowners could afford it moving forward.

Mommy always said, "Try not paying your property tax and you'll find out very quickly exactly WHO owns your home!"

She bought a house that needed work and was probably barely worth the 30 grand they paid for it back in the day. As a result of the show and her neighbors coming through for her, they quadrupled the value of that property, now the bank gets to reap the rewards. They didn't want to work with her because it was more profitable not to. Greed is the root of mankind's worst aspects.

Losing her home had nothing to do with the show “Extreme Makeover”. Also, by law, she had approximately 90 days to remove personal items, furniture & furnishings from the home before the sheriff would take any action. This took place in Michigan. I live in Michigan.

It seems like this show leaves the family with more problems than they originally had.

Land: Exists for millions of years. Govt: Wait that's taxable

I can't understand why she didn't sell the house, when she knew she was getting into trouble? She left it until things got to the point that she was so far behind, she couldn't come up with the money to pay. This is so sad, and she seems to be seriously depressed, which would account for her not dealing with the issue. So sad for her, and her sons. What a horrible outcome.

She made the decision to not sold her house, she was held accountable for her lack of judgement. It was a makeover, she still had to pay her mortgage.

For some reason I thought these home makeovers were gifted to these families?... Wow...really sad

The mortgage company Didn't want to help her because they wanted the house. Mafia style.

Sad that she lost her husband, but let’s be real. That’s a giant house…she could down size

Sensationalism. She was there for 9 years and was evicted after failed payments. She had extra equity for a few years and could have sold the house to buy something smaller. There were likely a few options she did not take and that got her into this mess.

I would've just sold the house once the taxes went up and moved to a smaller house with less taxes on it. They always find a way to get you. Government is so corrupt and evil

When you fix up your house, they raise the value and then the taxes go up. This should be built into the reno's/TV show contract.

A lot of people do not know that the bigger your house and land is then the more taxes you have to pay. All the Banks do not care about your situation. They only care about getting their money. Also , since your neighbors and community were on TV and helping for free , they will not give up any of their money to help you get back on your feet. This happens every where. Because your neighbors or friends rather go on vacation then give a dine to help you out. So so sad 😭

This actually happened to many of the Extreme Makeover homes. The homes were built in lower income areas, where the old house stood making them hard to sell. Then the owners were hit with property taxes were very high and many of the people who got the makeovers were having a hard time making it to begin with. It was a recipe for failure from the start.

why is everyone blaming the show? she had 9 years to figure out she couldnt afford the taxes and sell it . they gift you a house theyre not life coaches

Kinda feel like this interview is poorly timed considering she literally just said if the sheriff shows up we have to leave what's here

Heartbreaking. I know all too well how she must feel.

I remember that show did a house in Irvington, NJ. I believe the town tax adjuster made a special ordinance to not raise the taxes as long as the family stayed in the house.

My grandma always told me don’t take things just because it’s free, understand the totality of the circumstances.

Why didn't she sell the house and move into one with lower property tax?

Remember, just because you do not owe money to a bank does not mean you own property. Uncle sam is a terrible landlord.

A Damn shame!! So hurtful!! I know this feeling as we lost our home too!!

I used to watch every episode of this show. My dad always said if these people couldn't afford their old house there's no way they'd be able to afford an increase in property taxes on a brand new house. I would have sold that house and bought something cheaper.

I thought the houses were paid for?! I mean these families needed help, not higher payments!

After watching this video, I remember a family from Oklahoma was on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in 2007 or 2008. I think one of their children was ill, therefore Ty Pennington and crew came to remodel the home. I wonder how that family from Oklahoma is doing now.

This is so sad. I am close to tears.

Most people can’t afford a large house like this, unfortunately. Smaller is always better.

Why didn't she pack her belongings before her move out date?

Imagine someone else living in your dream home because you fail to do your part

I wish I could help but I'm struggling as well. I hope everything gets better for her and her kids!♥️

She should have sold the house before it got that far.

The bank couldn’t wait to get their hands on that house

It’s scary how you can pay for your home for your whole entire life but as soon as you miss one payment you risk losing everything that fast . All it takes is one thing

the minute the mortgage company saw that house, they planned to take it from her.

She should have sold that house 12 months after the renovations.

Dont forget to take the Light fixtures and all appliances, take the Cabinets out. Just take everything.

I am so happy for her and thanks for all the people they have a good heart to help hair in her kids🙏

I don’t think we’re getting the whole story here. Any halfway productive adult - even with three boys - should be able to afford a $30k mortgage. Her Ford Flex and tons of stuff that she had to pack tells me the money was going everywhere except the mortgage. Don’t blame the TV show - they did something good and gave the woman an opportunity to turn it into something.

Wow. I remember watching this exact episode when it came out. Even as a young kid, I wondered how these types of families afforded stuff after their dream houses were made..

She only had a 30k mortgage? Hmmm. Sounds like a predatory eviction. Someone else was eyeing the profits they could get from that house. Sad and shady.

Wow, I am so sorry for the loss of your husband and then dream home.😢 I pray all is well since the taping. May God bless you all.💝

Getting that extensive renovation severely inflates your home value so fast and co ti uses to appreciate to the point that your property taxes become unaffordable. Many of these homeowners come from dire situations and can not afford the aftermath.

That 30k mortgage will turn to 1mil mortgage real quick, that’s why they wouldn’t let her work it out. She brought the value up on that property, they were biding their time waiting for her to fall short!

I bet that mortgage company has been itching to repossess the house and resell it for a profit ever since they were on Extreme Makeover 👀

Unfortunately, the same thing happens to a lot of senior citizens who bought their homes 50 years earlier, now retired and their property taxes keep going up. In my neighborhood, it's nothing for the property taxes to run into 100K per year and more. Imagine having your home paid for, living on your retirement income and over the years, the taxes (annually) amount to more than your income is. Criminal, is what it is.

This is heartbreaking 💔

This is so sad 😔 . I didn't realize people getting those houses could lose them ...that's awful. I am a single mom it's so hard my heart breaks for them .

Congratulations to the mortgage company. You guys have done it again.

This is heartbreaking

I owned a duplex in a major city. When property values began to increase, the rent for my tenant on the other side of the duplex stayed the same because that’s all you could charge back then for rent, a pittance! My property taxes went so high, I had to sell it and move to a cheaper city some miles away! Moral of the story, if you fix up your house, the value increases along with the taxes! You never truly own anything! The tax man does!

If she didn't have time to pack everything, how come she had time for an interview? Who called the TV station?

Her tax value went up astronomically when they made over her house? She couldn’t sell it. You can’t sell a 300 thousand dollar home in the middle of a neighborhood full of 75 thousand dollar homes. No one who can afford it would want to live in that neighborhood when they could be surrounded with more upscale homes of the same value as that one. It should be against the law to tax people out of their homes! 😡

Big problem with many of these home makeover programs is they redo the house so much with massive improvements it increases the property taxes for that house as well as sometimes the whole neighborhood due to the one home being hugely upgraded. After watching the 'Extreme Makeover' series for a few years, it seemed like each home they worked on got bigger and bigger improvements from what started as smaller improvements, and in some cases the original home was completely knocked down and a new home built on the same spot.... all while knocking the home owner out of the tax bracket they could afford. Lots of worthy families in need of makeovers on those shows, but the producers needed to be more conservative on their homeowner selections to keep in tax range. If your home property taxes go up, you can often fight it and often win... if there have been no significant improvements to the home and/or neighborhood. But not with the improvements these homes have had. Very sad indeed.

Let this be a lesson. If you can't afford a home, sell it before you lose everything. Don't fall into debt over something you can downsize.

My dad died 42 years ago. My mom raised us all by herself and never remarried. She made the ultimate sacrifice without ever having a savings or or backup plan. We never went without our necessities. We all got our education and now we care for her after she fell and suffered traumatic brain injury. I could never do what she was able to do for us, all by herself.

The problem is they didn’t makeover her home, they did a make over on the banks home

My grandma once taught me nothing in life is free that rings true here

So sorry this has happened. Ppl don’t understand how easy this becomes reality.

The real question here is. When do you sell your new remodeled home for a profit and then go on to buying a newer cheaper home paid in full?

The show made a home for a family in my town, literally 5 minutes from my house. The dad was widowed with 3 kids. The same thing happened to them. Couldn’t afford it after awhile, and had to move. If that show really wanted to help these people in need, they should have at least paid the mortgage. The family would still have to pay rising property taxes, but at least they’d have a shot for a better life for their kids.

I had to sell mine because it became too much for me after the kids all left I couldn’t afford all that goes along with it But it will remains in my heart and the memories we shared. The house did what it was supposed to do for 12 years, to raise my children in a beautiful environment a beautiful home.

A mom of 3? Who the hell needs a 3.3k square foot home!?

The cost to of living is too high. This is one greedy housing market.

I would of rented the house out and collected some income lol

Unfortunately this is very common in the USA one or two unexpected health emergencies and you can lose it all. It happened to me but I was lucky I didn’t have kids to worry about I’m working my way back from nothing I sympathize with her family. These financial institutions get bailout’s while the average Family in the USA gets screwed.

Never buy a home that's too big for you. At the end of the day, you can only be in one room at a time. Never live above your means. That is the number 1 rule.

This is not the first time this has happened. Since this show several people have been in foreclosure. The problem is they forget many of these people have no money or low income and some couldn't afford the utility bills. One couple who won an HGTV home in a up scale area along the coast couldn't afford the property taxes, maintenance of the landscaping or the heating. They sold the house. It is all very well and good giving a family a home, but you really have to make sure they can afford it. It makes no sense to go to all this work with the help of neighbors and friends knowing this woman didn't have much money in the first place. Either give them the house without the mortgage or don't bother at all.

Should've moved and rented the house

This is horrible...feel bad for the single mom of 3 this shouldn't have happened...hope things move along better for you and your kids in the future🙏

How could you not afford to pay a $30,000 dollar mortgage. That should be cheap AF. The monthly payment should be less than most peoples rent on section 8. I'm missing something.

I think taxing a house that is already bought is stupid. It's already paid for why keep making payments other than utilities?

She probably should've planned ahead and sold the home the moment she realized that she wouldn't be able to afford keeping it. Sure it sucks, but it's better than going bankrupt.

30k mortgage over how many years? Over 30 years which is common, depending on the interest rate, it’s no more than 200 a month. Why didn’t she sell the house, pay the mortgage off and buy another with cash? Or just pay it off and rent? There is more to this story than is being told.

A 30k mortgage is like really cheap. If you can't pay a 30k mortgage you can't pay any mortgage, renting a 3 bedroom apartment is more expensive than that.

Yes people.. this is life. Looks real happy and dreamy on tv until the real world hits you. We went through a similar situation with our mortgage. Thank god we had money saved up. Hopefully her family makes it through this

I mean if a show is gonna spend all that money on remodeling a house why not pay the damn thing off as well?

Moral: What has been given can be easily taken away again.

Not sure of the point of airing her business for the world to see... Was she thinking somebody was gonna step in and pay her debt so she could keep the house and fall behind again in a few years? 🤷‍♂️

She should have sold it and moved into a smaller more affordable home when she started struggling. You need to be proactive in these types of situations as hard as it is.

Majority of those families loose their home bc they can’t afford the upkeep and taxes. That show sets them up for failure

I don’t understand how this works - She owns a modest house, some people renovate it for free, and suddenly it’s as if she bought a bigger house? If she didn’t own the house to begin with, how did they get away with doing a makeover? And why would the original terms of her contract not be respected?

Cant take the memories away

Why didn’t she sell it? With the renovations she could make a profit

Failure to pay property taxes should never result in the loss of one's property: failure to pay a mortgage? Yes. However, property taxes? No. If a property owner gets behind then they should be forced to be put on a payment plan or even a lien without loss of property as the consequence. This makes property "ownership" in America a scam as you never own it if someone (the govt) can come along and take it at a specified time.

nothing lasts forever. Hope they have a more affordable home now.

Damn property taxes - worst kind of taxation

“Everything must go, even photos of her late husband” well yea I don’t think she would just leave them for the next people that more in to enjoy.

“They can take the house but not the memories” That’s... just heartbreaking to hear.

this is so sad, actually shameful, if they had just built her a normal house, she would still be there.

This has happened to so many people that got a house from Extreme Makeovers