# Damn you Extreme Makeover Home Edition for making me into a great big pile of Mush! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 20, 2006, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084 "2006-03-20T03:26:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084/21 "2006-03-23T03:20:43Z")
> [@Shayna](#): > > Actually, yes. In fact, an article linked right here on the Straight Dope about this very issue, as well as the monkey business the show is pulling with saddling the homeowners with potentially hugely unaffordable property taxes, is why I quit watching that show. > > [Old thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=287932). > > [Newsweek article](http://msnbc.msn.com/id/4933223/). There was also another article linked in that thread that’s no longer viewable, that exposed some shenanigans about an episode filmed in Bakersfield, where the supposed homeowner wasn’t really the homeowner at all, but her mother-in-law was. And the M-I-L’s house on the adjacent property was shielded from visibility during filming of the show. It might not seem like such an egregious omission, however, the entire premise of that episode was the fear that the widowed mother was in jeopardy of losing the family farm. Only, not. > > Sorry, but I refuse to have my heartstrings manipulated by what may ultimately turn out to be a financial burden for the families, and by stories that stand a chance, however slight, of not even being entirely true. … **Smeghead’s** actual claims were that workmanship on the houses tended to be shoddy, and that thousands of dollars had to be sunk into the houses to make them liveable. Your citations do not prove his allegations, and apart from some bathroom cracks and a car wash shower that doesn’t work, do not show a pattern of shoddy workmanship at all. As for the tax problem, the series has been running for nearly four years now, has it been a problem? ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084/22 "2006-03-23T15:23:34Z")
Are they obligated to stay there, and do they own the house? Could they turn around and sell it to buy a modest nice place? ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084/23 "2006-03-23T20:27:00Z")
I’m sure they could technically sell it, but usually the houses are tailor-made to reflect the interests of the family and would prove to be a pretty tough sell. “Well, it’s got three bedrooms - one is nice, but the other two are themed like a jungle and an inner-city basketball court. Wanna see the huge hockey rink in the back yard?” My sister-in-law works in an upscale furniture store and ended up serving one of the show’s creators. He asked her if she’d seen the store and what she thought. She answered “It’s not bad, but for chrissakes, stop with the waterworks!” He pretty much just said “duly noted.” ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2006, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084/24 "2006-03-23T21:27:57Z")
> [@interface2x](#): > > I’m sure they could technically sell it, but usually the houses are tailor-made to reflect the interests of the family and would prove to be a pretty tough sell. I dunno, I could imagine that there’d be some buyers who’d pay good money for one of those homes just because it was featured on TV. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-you-extreme-makeover-home-edition-for-making-me-into-a-great-big-pile-of-mush/349084.md?page=1)