Extreme Makeover Homes for Sale!

The HGTV Greenhome near Plymouth, MA has just been put on the sweepstakes block at HGTV. It is a smaller "cottage" home - only two bedrooms - and is quite diminutive and compact when compared to some homes built in the last several years. A new GMC Terrain and $100,000.00 complete the prize package. My sister was excited about the house and planned to live there if she won. I asked her if she read the "rules" section of the sweepstakes - to which she said, "what rules? You win a house, a car and $100,000.00. That 's good enough for me!" But is it?

The rules clearly state that the 'winner' is responsible for all taxes, insurance and any other monetary fees associated with the transfer of the house and car upon receipt of the prize. That $100,000.00 will cover those expenses - for the first year. Unless you already live in town and are gainfully employed there - you will have to move and obtain employment. Have you looked at the employment rate in town and the surrounding area? Does your employment skill match up to anything that is advertised for employment need?

The truth is, most people trying to win the home will: a.) have a family size larger than can comfortably fit in the home; b.) not be able to afford the upkeep of the home after using the prize money to cover the taxes and fees/costs of accepting the home; and c.) will almost immediately have to sell the home because (given the current economy) they will have no employment in the area to support the home past the one year mark. In example: My brother-in-law is a well driller by trade and makes a good living in CT. He works for his uncle. Can he gain employment in MA? Maybe - although his business is dwindling in CT as new home buiding and sales have dropped dramatically. Is it realistic to think that my sister and brother-in-law can move their family to a new home and immediately gain employment, in this economy, that will support the "prize" of this home? Not likely.

The best my sister can do is to win the home and hope the entire family wants to join together to keep the home as a vacation home which each family can rent out for a week or two at a time. We have a good, close family - hopefully it would remain so if everyone decided to pitch in for a 'family' vaca. home-assuming everyone wants to vaca. in MA. But even then, she would still have to be able to have a caretaker for the lawn and yard maintenance, someone to check on the house periodically during the downtime of not being rented, and the ability to pay all the expenses on the home - insurance, taxes, heat, etc. With all this to consider - Can she really "afford" to win the prize?

KAL of CT 10:29AM April 29, 2010