Have you all heard this?

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/ar....html?ref=arts

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Dont go through life,
GROW through life

Real eyes...realize...real lies.

Hard to feel sorry for him. You know he's made plenty of money over the years.

You know, I think its unrealistic for an 80 something year old man to think he could pay a mortgage at that age of that amount. I know he broke his neck or something, and cant work, but your eighties are a crap shoot, he could have been downed by any number of maladies...
I also think of all the years he spent sailing, golfing, eating in fine restaurants and living the hivgh life, apparently without making any smart investments, or perhaps living in a smaller, paid in full home as he got older.
I dont think he is a bad person, but he is a perfect example of living just within your means or above it, and something happens.
The true key to happiness and financial freedom is to live below your means, because you will always have more than what you need.

I just don't understand not saving. When these movie stars (and sports stars) declare bankruptcy and face financial difficulty, I always wonder why they didn't invest and save? I know why - because they are so caught up in themselves and living large, they don't want to. They never stop to think that their "15 minutes" will be over soon.

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

"The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything;
they just make the best of everything they have."

So if he reduced the price of this mansion to 6 million, and is then able to pay off what's left of the 4.8 million, wouldn't he be left with about a million to buy a house?

I'm sure $1,000,000 doesn't grant him the kind of life he's led all these years, but nobody's going to be homeless or hungry on it, either.

I would rather have downsized to something affordable, in a more affordable part of the country, than have my name in the headlines for this. It's just a sad way to go out, and likely very unnecessary.

I really didn't understand this one. This man has been working in a high-paying industry for decades. Granted, he most likely wasn't making 20 mil a year, but still far above the average man.

Most entertainers come from normal, if not humble backgrounds. You'd think that would instill in them the need to prepare for the future and make sure you and your family is taken care of.

I don't feel sorry for him, but I do hope he's able to sell his home.

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I felt the same way as many of you when I read this. This man has had a long career...working a lot for a man his age...up until his accident.

He obviously either had bad investments or none at all or no savings to be out of money after working as much as he did.

It is sad

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Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.

E. Roosevelt

Who would want to buy his house after his mold problem was made so prominent in the media?


"In the midst of trying to sell this property, there were a lot of distractions," Davis said, citing paparazzi who have converged around the nearby home of Britney Spears.

"When we were trying to sell the house one time, there were about 100 paparazzi there," he said.

Another difficulty for the area has been a mold contamination that has plagued a number of homes, including McMahon's and one purchased for the director of the Getty Museum.

McMahon won a $7.2-million insurance settlement after claiming that mold in his house killed his dog Muffin and sickened him and his wife.

According to a lawsuit he filed, the trouble began when a pipe broke and water flooded a den. Mold was later discovered throughout the house. McMahon and his wife, Pamela, blamed faulty cleanup.

"When your family loses its health and your home is a wasteland, that's a colossal disaster," McMahon said at the time.

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Living well IS the best revenge!!

I saw a clip from Ed & his wife on Larry King last night. He made the comment as if it was no big deal, "That's what happens when you spend more than you make."

Now Evander Holyfield is in foreclosure! They're going to auction off his "54,000-square-foot home — located on Evander Holyfield Highway — has 109 rooms, including 17 bathrooms, three kitchens and a bowling alley."

Developments : A Knock Out: Evander Holyfield Facing Foreclosure

I don't feel sorry for any of them!

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

"The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything;
they just make the best of everything they have."

At least Ed's house was a normal "big" house,,,,105 rooms for Holyfield....just greed and gluttony....and no class

__________________
Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.

E. Roosevelt

When I first read this story, I was shaking my head in disbelief. This man should be a multi-millionaire with The Tonight Show all those years, Star Search, and writing a book or two. He is 85 and still needs to make money in order to pay the mortgage? Sad. I read that he purchased the house in 1990, and I would think he should at least get twice what he paid for it, but apparently not.

Has he been divorced a couple of times and had to pay up? Only thing I can think of as to why he doesn't have any money.

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I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!

I think that even if these celebrities aren't living beyond their means (which some clearly are) it's kinda sad that anyone age 85 is paying a mortgage...why would he still have a mortgage at that age kwim, he's had many years to pay for a home and have it paid for and certainly made millions in his life. By the time I'm in my 80s that is the last thing I want to worry about, I plan to have my house paid off in my 40s not my 80s...just doesn't make any sense to me to have a big mortgage left at that age when he surely had alternatives to pay off a house over the last 50-60 years or so-

I thought the same thing. Who has a mortgage at 85? And with one of the longest careers in Hollywood it should have been smooth sailing for him 20 years ago!!! I'll never understand how these mega millionaires end up like that. There has to be either greed or horrible investment advice for years and years. I guess you reap what you soe (sow?)

That's a really good point!

__________________
@@@
l/ l/ l/
Dont go through life,
GROW through life

Real eyes...realize...real lies.

He probably took out the equity (sp?) on his home. 18 years ago he might have only paid 1 million. I think a lot of people got in trouble doing the same thing. They never thought the price would go down but here in CA (like many other places) prices are going down, down, down.

Where did he spend the 7.1 million settlement he got for the mold?? Too bad he didnt pay down the house then..
Makes me kinda glad to have my own little cape cod home, and an acre than belongs to DH and I, not some bank. As long as we pay our taxes and maintain it, its ours.