Have you ever watched a movie, tv show, or witnessed something in person that just makes you stop and think “are you serious?” I had one of those moments recently, while watching the documentary ‘The Queen of Versailles‘. You have to watch that train wreck {it’s on Netflix!}  I am addicted to documentaries by the way, especially finance-related.

I often complain about money problems. We never have enough. We live paycheck to paycheck. Food is expensive. Yadda yadda yadda! The reality is, we’re very fortunate to have what we do. I know this. I’m very thankful to be in the home we are in right now and not the old one in an unsafe neighborhood. I’m thankful I have a job that pays, even if I’m unhappy with it at the moment. Could things be better? Absolutely.

Back to the documentary, it was eye opening. The film is about a billionaire couple, Jackie & David Siegel. Owners of Westgate Resorts and timeshares. The filmmaker set out to document the building of America’s largest home, a whopping 90,000 square foot replica of The Palace of Versailles in France. The Siegels were building their dream home. Then the market crashed in 2008 and the recession hit this poor, unfortunate family quite hard by lenders tightening credit requirements. As a result, it was much harder to get people to purchase a timeshare they couldn’t really afford in the first place. {They also go in to detail about the ‘types’ of people they take advantage of during timeshare presentations.}

The couple seemed to have no idea how to function without endless amounts of money or hired help. They had to let go of several housekeepers. As a result, their home became a disaster, and even innocent, helpless animals suffered and died as a result. They couldn’t give their own pets food, and/or water! They whined about money being tight and having to sell off art, private jets, yachts, and sell their unfinished dream home.  Yet they had a 35,000 square foot paid off roof over their heads.

The mother even commented that if she had known she couldn’t have hired help to raise their seven kids, she wouldn’t have had so many. My jaw literally dropped at that point. The father was just a grumpy old man. By the end, the director asked him what his goals in life are. The guy said “to have my yacht back” or something along those lines. WOW! Healthy, happy family? Nah. Just gimme a yacht!

By the end of the film they were no longer billionaires. They were only millionaires. It’s amazing to me what too much money can can seem to do to people. I wish I could switch places with these people for a month!  Surprisingly I found Jackie Siegel relatively likable, but her husband…not so much.  There was no real dose of reality for this couple, as of June 30th, 2012 this article states that the Siegels have resumed building their “American Versailles” amid booming business.  How nice, maybe they can rehire the folks to keep their kids and animals alive.  End rant!