How do the winners on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" afford the property taxes on their new mansions?

Question

Not to mention the high utility bills and potentially expensive upkeep...

Not to mention the income tax, utility bills, and upkeep.

Answer 1

The producers of the show provide extra funds to defer the costs of income and property taxes for a time. That money is taxable income in and of itself.

After that, it's up to the winner to pay the tax bills that result. With a bit of luck, it's their only bill aside from utilities. The homes should be farily energy efficient so utility costs should be relatively reasonable.

Answer 2

Perhaps they could take out a mortgage and use the proceeds to pay those bills. In most cases they have had rent or other housing expenses in the past and this new "burden" should not exceed those expenses.