50. Getting an Extreme Home Makeover
The ABC show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” took participants’ deteriorating, cramped houses and replaced them with beautiful, brand-new, super-sized homes to help them get a new start in life. These were the kind of success stories that offered some ray of hope in the midst of an economic downturn and recovery.
However, these new, larger and improved homes also came with higher costs — for upkeep, taxes and utilities, the Beaufort Gazette reported. A new, higher home value reportedly bumped one family’s tax bill from $750 to $2,500 per year. The electric bill for the new, larger home cost between $500 and $600 per month, up from $200.
There’s a lesson here for even modest renovations: Consider all potential costs when planning a home remodel or expansion. If you can’t cover the costs of keeping up your new home, you risk going broke.
