Who Pays for Your TV Show Home Remodel?

photo: Jerone2

While working at This Old House one of the most often asked questions was, "Will you remodel my home?" which was quickly followed up with "I don't have to pay for it, do I?" These questions and more are answered in their FAQ section but to save you a click the answer is, YES! If your home is selected by This Old House you do pay for the cost of the renovation.

I think many folks are under the false assumption that home improvement shows will pay for house projects. An exception to this seems to be ABC's Extreme Home Makeover. We recently heard an unfortunate story about a family who had their house "done" by the show and soon after refinanced their home (multiple times) but still couldn't make payments and like thousands of other Americans are now facing foreclosure.

I'm curious as to how much value is added to these homes after a 7-day remodel that many times looks almost like a tear-down/rebuild. Has anyone out there bought one of these homes or seen them listed?