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Allow us to “Move that bus!”
and give you a sneak peak at the inner workings of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.”
Designer Rib Hillis told theThe Futon Criticthat he actually hated reality television.
He was an actor and had worked on the show “Model Citizen.”
“As an actor, I didn’t want to do reality TV.
I hate reality TV,” said Hillis.
“It takes away work for actors.
Thankfully, it was the right choice.
Rob Hillis, a former designer for the show, spoke withThe Futon Criticabout the process.
This, unfortunately, did happen, as we’ll get to soon.
Seeing a hardworking family given their dream home feels good to watch.
However, while the house was free to the families, it came at a cost in other ways.
Many of these families were left with giant mansions that required higher taxes, utility bills, and upkeep.
India Dickinson and her family were given abeautiful 4,000 square-foot homebut were barely making ends meet before the show.
Simply owning a home of that size is very expensive.”
Should ABC have given families smaller homes, or should the families have not accepted the mansions?
The home was built for them and the Leomitis family who had taken them in.
The family allegedly used racial slurs, verbal abuse, and physical abuse to drive out the orphans.
“We were promised a new home,” explained oldest sibling Charles Higgins II.
“They broke that promise.”
They have dealt with truly tough circumstances.
A brand-new house can surely change your life, but it can’t fix everything.
However, once the cameras left, Debbie’s children say she went back to her old ways.
Debbie told friends that being on the show took away her family’s privacy.
With her boys' medical problems broadcast on television, they started being picked on at school.
In fact, between 1997 and 2007, local police filed 18 incident reports for the family matriarch.
Yahoo Newsreported that in 2009, Chuck and Terri Cerda were chosen for the show.
When the family was unable to afford the utility bills, they sold the house and moved.
A high school constructed for the show received similar complaints.
That same year, The Washington Post reported that the school had been broken into and vandalized.
“This is the pop in of thing we are working to overcome” (viaNBC4 Washington).
Despite their efforts,Kemah Palms Recoverywas built, where it remains, as of publication.
As of 2022, the family still lives in their 2,300 square-foot home.
Homeowner Linda Riggins showedABC11her favorite room, her writing room, which didn’t make the episode.
“Welcome to my writing room,” she said proudly.
“I’ve always liked reading and writing; that was my safety.”
Interestingly, she didn’t use the room for years.
The 4,000 square-foot house boasts six bedrooms, six bathrooms, and indoor-outdoor waterfalls.
Why did Extreme Makeover: Home Edition come to an end?
One episode from that season, for example, attracted only 5.1 million viewers.
“We always start every design with practicality, organization, and functionality.
Because we want these homes to be something that the families can grow with.
We don’t want anything in the home to become a burden for them.”
However, the same cannot be said for the reboot.
As the web link confirmed toCountry Living, “HGTV doesn’t cover the cost of the mortgage.”
We hope that the new model works out for these deserving homeowners!
Where is the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition cast now?
Since the series' cancellation, Pennington has continued to be an ever-present face on TV.
And, in 2021, the home renovation star got married after a short engagement.
