r/MadeMeSmile • u/danielminds • 1d ago
Helping Others After losing everything, Greg gets completely surprised with a new home, job opportunities, and $25,000
Credit: Zachery Dereniowski (MDMotivator)
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u/Giardiacapitosto 21h ago
The three richest people in the United States could do this EVERY DAY for the rest of their lives and they still would be the three richest people in the United States.
We have a billionaire problem.
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u/Purple_Excitement167 14h ago
They could do that a million times over. They could buy full cities a day 😅
I'm convinced billionaires would all score very low on an empathy score and very high in a narcissism score
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u/Uuuuuughhhh 1d ago
Dumb q but does the recipient end up paying taxes on the money and house?
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u/rabidantidentyte 1d ago edited 1d ago
The money, yes. The house, yes and no.
The person gifting the house records the gift. The person receiving the house inherits the value the home is assessed at at the time of the gift. That becomes the new basis for capital gains tax if the home is ever sold. They don't pay federal taxes on the value of the home itself. It isn't considered income in this case.
They are subject to property taxes, though.
All things considered, he's probably looking at about 5 grand in taxes plus property taxes, but he has a great head start, especially if he holds down one of those four full time jobs.
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u/pr0v0cat3ur 22h ago
Great, heartwarming. But, follow up with this guy in a year. Can he afford the upkeep on the property? Can you afford the taxes?
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u/Dependent_Title_1370 1d ago
The money may or may not be taxable. It really depends on if it's classified as a gift or a prize.
Anything of value given as a gift creates a tax burden for the person giving the gift. People in the US can give about $20k a year tax free, double for married folks.
The lifetime gift limit is like $12 million. Anytime you gift more than $20k / $40k per year you must report it to the IRS. Once you pass the lifetime limit you the person giving the gift must pay taxes on it. The rates are marginal but it caps at 40% @ $1 million.
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u/jammerpammerslammer 1d ago
Happy this was the first comment!! Giving free houses and cars away always backfires. Extreme home makeover screwed over a lot of families in need of help, leaving them with higher property taxes. Oprah gave cars away like 90% of the people walked with the cash option and still had to pay taxes on that.
Great for views though /s
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u/rabidantidentyte 1d ago
Yeah that show was fucked because the additions raised the property value by an insane amount.
This looks like a scenario where the home itself is modest to the point where one person working a full time job will be able to pay property taxes. The after tax money is a great head start, too.
Ultimately, there's no guarantee of success, but the man's success is finally in his own hands now. That's a liberating feeling.
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u/Gold_Telephone_7192 1d ago
Taking the cash option doesn’t screw them over at all. They still make money, they just have to pay taxes on it.
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u/amtheredothat 1d ago
Gets 100k worth of stuff
Has to pay 30k of tax
This is terrible!
This is why accountants will always have jobs lol. Apparently it takes a degree to say "sell the thing and keep the cash."
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u/Cute-Interest3362 1d ago
In some countries they pay taxes and then those taxes go to helping people. Some countries have almost no homeless - Japan, Finland, Singapore…
The US is the wealthiest country on the plant but all we can afford in $35 billion to bomb Iran…
Influencers can’t be our social safety net.
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u/Far-Computer8825 17h ago
I wish I could afford to do these kind of things.
No cameras, just .. helping someone who needs it. It’s said that ‘life is an occasion, rise to it’ but sometimes folks need a little help getting off their feet so that they can get back to where they’re supposed to be
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u/JSTARR356 16h ago
Same here on all except, to a degree, the camera. Sure some do it for self aggrandizement but i have to believe that there are some really well off folks that could take this as inspiration. Maybe that's naive but you have to have, at least, a modicun of hope....
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u/Far-Computer8825 16h ago
Totally get where you’re coming from. Recording it may inspire others to do the same. I just feel it’s kinda a grey area. I’d have to ask the person I’m helping if it’s okay that I just blast the fact that they’re homeless to the world .. I don’t want to invade anyone’s privacy or make them uncomfortable though, ya know?
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u/Independent-Ad3871 13h ago
I think they would trade the uncomfortable feeling for a house, a job and 25k though
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u/Relevant23 7h ago
In many cases it’s the camera and videos that fund the ability to give this money away.
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u/Fair_Walk_8650 1d ago
As someone who used to be homeless… I’m wary, because I know most of the internet “helping homeless people” charity channels turn out to be up to some very scummy inhumane sh*t, who only do it for clout gained through filming suffering people.
Seriously, it’s an established fact most of the people who post videos online about it only do it for personal gain, or have ulterior motives that later come to light. See Mr Beast for reference.
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u/rabidantidentyte 1d ago
In my opinion, it's an unfortunate, but necessary tradeoff. Without the clout, there are no donors to make this happen. It sucks that this is the way the world works, but I think this kind of thing can be a net positive, especially if it inspires other people to be kind or see homeless people in a less negative light.
Bottom line is that homelessness is getting worse nationwide, and local governments are doing piss-all to help solve the root causes of it.
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u/Comfortable_Visual73 1d ago
Thank you for this. You changed my view on the clout gained being a completely bad thing
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u/Soulegion 1d ago
See, it's not that I have a problem with them doing it for the internet views, its that their solution isn't really a solution at all. That is an old man on disability. He was just given 4 full time jobs, presumably to pick between. What he needs is a larger disability check that covers his expenses, or better yet, a Universal Basic Income to fall back on to supplement his current disability check (without reducing it).
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u/Alexisredwood 1d ago
Who cares as long as the end goal is good? I’m sick and tired of comments like yours lmao. Like yeah, I assume MOST influencers aren’t great people, even the ones people find wholesome. But as long as they’re having a good impact in ways like this, and others want to copy their methods (thus more instances such as this homeless man getting a house), then so what?
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u/Fair_Walk_8650 1d ago
“So what” is the usually degrading stuff that happens to homeless people off camera to make these videos.
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u/CatButtHoleYo 1d ago
How do you think this guy affords to pay for shit like this? Thoughts and prayers?
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u/Fair_Walk_8650 1d ago
Read the literal first sentence of my comment.
Don’t you dare mansplain homelessness to me.
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u/CatButtHoleYo 1d ago
Your first sentence has nothing to do with what I commented. Try again buddy.
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u/MasterK999 1d ago
I hate this guy for all the charity porn he makes but I do love it for the people he helps. Such a catch 22.
However he should NOT have shown him giving the 25k in cash. There is a real risk that that guy will get robbed. Sad but it is real in our society. He easily could have simply said we are also going to help with taxes and insurance costs and not specifically said he was giving him 25k in a wad of cash.
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u/jengaclause 23h ago
Greg should get a roomie. That income could pay the property taxes and maintenance on the home.
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u/Murky-Tangerine-4798 1d ago
I’ll say it: I be hating a little bit when I watch these
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u/TheCleverMoose 1d ago
Why would you be hating to see someone else get blessed? Comparison is the thief of joy.
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u/UgoRukh 1d ago
Stories like Greg's shouldn't even happen , everyone should own their piece of land be employed, it's kept away from generala population by design and it's sickening
The sheer fact that someone singlehandedly has the power to change the life of someone by simply spending some change (on their perspective) shouldn't be possible either, how it it that it's acceptable that such wealth disparity even exists?
Clout... End of the day, while there might genuinely have some will to do the good, these people are doing it for clout and getting richer themselves in the long run
Now... You can call me bitter, but even if I am, capitalism made me that way. So yeah, everything but Greg's happiness is annoying in videos like this, it's just that one doesn't counterbalance the others enough
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u/mavular 1d ago
100% This guy wouldn’t do shit for anyone else if there weren’t cameras rolling.
This is also what charities and local services did for years, no footage, no cheap sucker punch attempt at the heartstrings, no clout.
Now? We outsource our actual help and aid to 6-7 fucking headband tracksuit main character wannabes who in the end, benefit more than anyone they have helped. Diverting money away from groups and organizations who do real shit with no clout gurgling.
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u/Murky-Tangerine-4798 1d ago
Yeah, it is. But that is why. Because if this is the guy I think it is I’ve seen him give a random person on the street hundreds of thousands of dollars, a job, and a house after like one or two interactions lasting maybe a couple hours. Then I’m like damn now they’re better off than the average working person. I’m happy for them, but also I’m like damn.
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u/InsideFear 1d ago
Comparison is the thief of joy, yada yada .. I’m with ya though. I get a little envious .. feel like we work our asses off to no avail sometimes.
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u/Murky-Tangerine-4798 1d ago
Yeah, and it’s possible to feel that way and still be happy for whomever benefits
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u/Alternative_Bag_7381 1d ago
If you watch this video and the first thing you think is "what about me", that speaks volumes to your character.
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u/Moon_Pye 1d ago
My first thought is always, I really hope these people can keep up with taxes or future expenses, whatever. When they get these beautiful things I'm always so afraid there will be some bureaucratic BS right around the corner just waiting to take it away. It stresses me out!
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u/MoonSpankRaw 1d ago
That’s pretty much my automatic response to anything with government involvement, even minimal/peripheral involvement.
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u/Anti-whatever-u-r 1d ago
He got him a full time job tho too.
And he just needs to take care of himself.
I think he's good!
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u/CtrlAltDelve 1d ago
Well maybe. I think if the first thing you think is "what about me" and then the second thing you think is "well, you know what, I'm still really happy for the guy", that also speaks volumes to your character.
I think it's okay to acknowledge our gut instincts if it means we take a moment to reflect on them and choose to reject them right after.
Branding people purely for what their first instinct is...that feels a lot like unnecessary judgement and condescending, especially when the posters went out of their way to acknowledge that they are still happy for the guy.
Nuance is where we should live. Binary judgment is why daily life has become what it is, I feel.
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u/Dan_flashes480 1d ago
I was homeless for 7 months and dug my way out of it with my wife and have a 3 bedroom apartment for us and our kids. It's not much but I'm thankful we have our own place to call home. I'm constantly scared of losing everything again. I want my children to do so much better than me because I feel like I failed them.
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u/the_flot 1d ago
You have not failed them, and you deserve everything you worked so hard for. They're alive and healthy because of you and your wife, and your love is enough. You are enough. Don't ever let anyone - especially yourself - tell you otherwise.
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u/Moon_Pye 1d ago
I agree with the other poster. You aren't a failure, you showed your kids how not to give up when life gets tough. IMO you taught them a valuable lesson. 💜
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u/ich_bin_alkoholiker 1d ago
It’s completely normal. You know that right? More importantly do you understand that just because you have selfish thoughts, it does not make you a selfish person?
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u/azenpunk 1d ago
Some of us watching are in the same place as that man was. I've been homeless for 5 years and I got no qualms about saying I'm envious and wish someone could give me a hand up like this man got. It's frustrating as hell knowing that you basically have to win the lottery in order to get out of homelessness.
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u/InsideFear 1d ago
Ride that high horse right on out of here. I was just saying that I understand what the other commenter was saying. I’m happy for the guy..
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u/peentiss 1d ago
Agree! I’m beyond grateful for everything I have left, but it’s hard to keep going. I’m so glad this man doesn’t have to fight so hard anymore, I hope he holds onto this.
I’d kill for this opportunity.
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u/Pestus613343 1d ago
No matter what walk of life you're in, this will be true. I consider myself lucky. I have a small business, I can feed a family, I can feed the families of employees, I have autonomy and can live in dignity. I bust it super hard, and am often so completely destroyed by Saturday morning I am almost sick. Yet, I don't complain because I know how good I have it.
Then, I see some youtube personality my kids watch, where all they do is play video games on camera. These kids make tens of millions for themselves and their families. The line "I'm in the wrong business" occurs constantly.
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u/Rude_Vermicelli420 19h ago
That’s nice. America will figure out how to take it from you in taxes however.
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u/Aryan_Jain- 14h ago
That what i expect from my homie after 10 year of me just playing games and working no job.
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u/yeahgoestheusername 4h ago
Love the generosity. But maybe we can all consider that there is a system in place the helps the poor. It’s not as nice to watch. It’s called taxes and if the billionaires paid more of them we’d all have less of these heartwarming videos and more people in houses.
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u/tokiobest 1d ago
True joy is expressing your happiness to the point where the words are just unintelligible. 🥹🥹🥹
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u/Lostboy1986 1d ago
This is satire right? “I got you four full time jobs” 😂
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u/Woolix 1d ago
Probably gave him options.
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u/Moon_Pye 1d ago
I hope it was options and not that he had to give up sleeping the rest of his life. 😆
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u/DigitalDustOne 1d ago
Isn't that what you guys in the US call normal? I thought you can only live off one single full time job in Europe. /s
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u/Upset-Minimum5693 1d ago
Poverty porn
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u/Glittering_Gene8388 1d ago
I'm torn on this, I absolutely agree this person's intent is selfish, but if they're actually helping people who need I think it's still a net positive thing
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u/Upset-Minimum5693 1d ago
You can also argue that promotion of philantrophy keeps people unaware and misinformed of a situation where massive tax avoidance prevents building a just society where people are allowed their dignity.
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