The 'Sweet Home Sextuplets' Family Could Be Raking In A Decent Paycheck

The only thing that could possibly put a damper on Courtney and Eric Waldrop finding out they were going to have six babies instead of one was probably the realization that actually taking care of six more kids was going to cost them each an arm and a leg. Luckily, TLC swooped in to give them a show of their own to share their family of 11 with the world, but you have to wonder if the Sweet Home Sextuplets family get paid for the show. That’s a topic of conversation that comes up any time you have new reality TV stars in the making and, in most cases, subjects of reality shows make at least something per episode or season.

Unfortunately, there hasn't been confirmation about what the Waldrops make or if they are indeed paid for their time, but given the fact that other TLC stars are paid for their own shows, it would make sense that the Sweet Home Sextuplets family also get paid for their own show. The salaries for stars on TLC shows can range from the lower thousands all the way up to as much as $40,000 per episode each season. But it all boils down to how successful the show is and how much staying power the stars have on TLC.

Reality TV producer Terence Michael, who has worked on shows like Duck Dynasty and Auction Hunters, told E! News that families on reality TV shows typically earn around 10% of the series’ budget per episode. So if Sweet Home Sextuplets’ budget is anywhere near the projected $250,000 budget of the former 19 Kids and Counting, then the Waldrop family could be making close to $40,000 per episode. I don't think they are quite there yet, but since the show was renewed for a second season, it shows that TLC does have faith in the family of 11 and they have the potential to be another long lasting TLC family docuseries staple.

The casts of smaller scale TLC reality shows like 90 Day Fiancé make $1,000-$1,500 per episode each season, which adds up to a paltry sum when compared to the salaries of other bigger TLC shows out there. Although it is still unclear how much the Sweet Home Sextuplets family gets paid, if at all, from TLC, I think it is likely a bit more than $1,500 per episode, especially since they are the sole subjects of their own series.

Outside of the show, Eric co-owns his own landscaping business and the family lives on a sheep farm. Courtney used to be a first grade teacher, but she spends most of her time these days taking care of their three older children and running after six growing toddlers. They were likely doing fine well before Sweet Home Sextuplets came along, but when you suddenly have six more tiny mouths to feed, one income just isn't going to cut it.

According to CNN, it costs between $12,350 and $14,000 per year to raise one child. Courtney and Eric have nine kids, so they could be looking at a possible price tag of $117,000 total per year for their entire family. Eric might be lucky enough to run his own business and own a home on several acres of land, but something tells me they wouldn't be doing Sweet Home Sextuplets if there wasn't some kind of paycheck in it for them to help with the daily costs of raising such a large family.

The show might need to be around for a little while longer before the family’s salaries are released, but it’s safe to say that the Sweet Home Sextuplets family is more than likely being fairly compensated for sharing their adventures with the world.