# Burn my mortage



## jamesbe (May 8, 2010)

Anyone else see this? Overspending at its finest!

http://wnetwork.com/Shows/BurnMyMortgage.aspx


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## Jungle (Feb 17, 2010)

Interesting how all these money shows are coming out now. Honestly it's really simple. Look at how much of an impact extra payments make on an amortization schedule. I wonder if most people with mortgages realize the potential. 

They give you $5G if you do the challenges. I tried to apply, but I don't qualify. From the website:

We Are Looking For Families

•With children 10 years of age or older. 
•Who live in the GTA. 
•Who have a mortgage of $250,000 or more. 
•Who have an amortization period of 25 years or more. 
•Who have an interest rate of around 3% or more. 
•Who want to receive up to $5000.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Yeah I made some extra pmts along the way as I was able to. Especially in the 1st year. Of course, I sold the place a few years later well before it was paid off so I question if the impact to my short term cash flow was really worth it. Water under the bridge now, but I do understand the math that justifies this.

Jungle, I think we're seeing growth in money topics (even look at all the threads in CMF compared to a year or two ago!) being shown on TV because of the record amounts of mortgage and personal debt being held by Canadians. Some unfortunate souls from the unemployment lines are paying dearly for their previous financial mismanagement and laissez-fair (sp) attitudes towards money. CDNs would be well served to observe what's happening to average people in the US and use that as foreshadowing of possible things to come here. Even on a personal level, with high debts and monthly obligations and no rainy day savings, people can suffer dire consequences in very short order.

Protect yourself from the worst.


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## dilbert789 (Apr 20, 2010)

I love the concept of the show, but I hate that it always seems to be some family that spends $25k / year on stupid crap, has a gigantic mortgage, and make a ton of money. 

"If you spend $1000 instead of your current $3000 at the strippers, you'll have $24,000 to put down on your mortgage a year and can save $100,000 in interest on your $500,000 mortgage! OMG!!!"

How about the family that spends on average more than $1000 a month partying, because they have people over and provide all the alcohol... I wish I had friends like that!

I'd like to see it for a more normal, 200k mortgage, 4-5% interest, family makes $100k / year combined. When you don't have some crazy spending area's to cherry pick from, the concept becomes much harder...


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## Jungle (Feb 17, 2010)

I think they do that for the entertainment value. Sometimes I wonder if some of it's staged, like in the show Rich Bride, Poor Bride. Some scenes are pretty crazy..hmmm


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## Berubeland (Sep 6, 2009)

Ha... I'd like to see them come here and tell me how to save money lol 

I think so many of these shows are totally stupid and so far off the mark it isn't funny.

Hey lady, don't buy a 3 Louis Vuitton purses invest in one great Chanel bag instead and save a $1000. How these companies even stay in business is beyond me. 

Or how about... hey you can't afford car payments on the Benz, lease a Toyota instead. Uhmmm how about buy a car that you can pay for, instead of spending your life making payments? 

I get really cranky when I watch these shows.


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## jamesbe (May 8, 2010)

I was blown away the family paid $17k on sport equipment? And Something like $12000 a year on take-out? ZAH? Yeah I challenge them the same to see my budget and reduce it to help me pay my mortgage down. I'm not perfect but I certainly don't blow $30k a year on random junk.

That family must be making $300k+


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## Dana (Nov 17, 2009)

Something about this show rubs me the wrong way. $5k is not a lot of money in exchange for some of the humiliating challenges that they do. It's also not enough money to allow yourself to be portrayed as a financial simpleton. In re-runs. Forever. 

I felt myself getting angry when the hosts told the contestants what the total interest cost of their mortgage would be with no extra payments (near the beginning of the show). These people were genuinely shocked and amazed. Really??? That figure is in your mortgage documentation!!! Don't they read what they sign at the bank? Or again at the lawyer's office??

Hopefully this show is not representative of the population as a whole.

That being said, it is like watching a train wreck and I have tuned in almost every week to satisfy my inner financial voyeur.


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## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

Haven't seen it, but it sounds like "Til Debt Do Us Part" - financially clueless morons who are deep in debt.

Seems silly, but it's entertaining.


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## hystat (Jun 18, 2010)

burn my TV


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## sprocket1200 (Aug 21, 2009)

how about this for reality. our neighbour spends nearly $2500 a month on food for the same size family we do. our cost is about $1,000 and we have a live-in nanny eating too!

the reason? easy, she is buying all that organic crap and putting her family in the poor house. hubby is already working 12 hrs a day. she really should switch to pesticide free and grow it in her own back yard like we do...


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## Ben (Apr 3, 2009)

I watched the 1st episode of "Burn my Mortgage". I want my 20 minutes back.


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