How bad are geriatrics with money?

Hey-O!!

he should just tell his lenders that his check from publishers' clearinghouse is in the mail and he is an instant millionaire!

Except no. Super-rich former celebrities have money problems all the time, this is nothing new.

"...McMahon fell and broke his neck about 18 months ago and has been unable to work since."

I think his lack of income for the last year and a half is why he's losing an insanely expensive house. Also apparently he took out a number of gigantic loans. So, just like shark attacks, this seems like The News reaching to make up trends that don't really exist.

I heard he is having a hard time selling his house because it is in the same neighborhood as Britney Spears. Although I'm not sure why that would make a huge difference - I still was able to sell my house and I lived next to the crazy cat lady.

4.8 million in mortgage loans sounds like a bad idea at any time.

@4

"this seems like The News reaching to make up trends that don't really exist."

Yeah, in reality the economy is doing swimmingly. What mortgage crisis?

Maybe he can bunk with the new host of the Today show? I think he has a spare 3500 square foot guest quarters over one of his garages ...

Unless his mortgages were some sort of exotic products -- or Ed McMahon depended on mortage-backed securities for his income -- it's not clear to me how this is related to the mortgage/credit crisis.

The principle is the same at all levels of overmortgaging. A $500K Seattle shitbox condo mortgage is no less risky for a $40K earner than the $4.8M mansion mortgage has been to Ed. It all depends on the borrower's ability to pay the bank its monthly rent on the nut. Get behind in payments to learn who really owns your home.

How sad is it that an 85 year old still hasn't payed off his mortgage?

@11 That made me laugh. Pretty sad I guess.

@4, Really, by 85, especially with his kind of income, he should not have to work to keep his house.

@10, Thats not so much a problem with overmortgaging, but a problem of having a mortgage/rent payment at all. Unless your one of the few who can own a place to live outright, your ability to stay in your home is contingent upon you having the income or savings to make the payments.

A lot of older folks got caught up in this. Easy home equity loans, refinancings to travel/supplement diminishing pensions/pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses. It's tough to spot them sometimes, since it's so shameful to get caught like this when you supposedly are older, wiser and more responsible.

If you have good relations with homeowning family elders, keep an eye peeled to see if they drastically cut back on usual expenses, especially medical needs. Could be an early warning sign that a teaser refinance mortgage is resetting, or that the bank's shut down their home equity line.

Sounds like McMahon's been getting some tragically stupid financial advice. He should have millions in the bank; he earned enough. He shouldn't be working at 85, and he shouldn't be holding any multimillion dollar notes, either.

Crisis or stupidity? I do not fell bad for him one bit. If you cannot front the cash for your multi-million dollar home then you deserve what is going to you. I bust my ass every day to afford my crappy Capitol Hill studio that just posted notices it to is going condo and I have 90 days to find something smaller for twice the price. So yeah boo fucking hoo to those who choose to live the lifestyle instead of living their life.

I hope he isn't reduced to dining on Alpo.