Tyler Perry to donate $2.5M to older homeowners in Atlanta who are at risk of losing their homes

Billionaire filmmaker and philanthropist Tyler Perry will be donating $2.75 million to elderly Atlanta homeowners in an effort to prevent them from losing their homes, The Associated Press reported.

Perry, 53, contacted Atlanta Mayor Andrew Dickens some weeks back to express his intention of providing funds for homeowners who are on fixed incomes and could end up losing their properties because of skyrocketing real estate taxes, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Some 300 low-income elderly Atlanta homeowners who owe back property taxes will benefit from the Madea actor’s good gesture. The funds will also pay city, county and school taxes. And for the next 20 years, Perry will foot the bill for any tax increases for 100 elderly low-income homeowners. 

The award-winning actor has since made a $750,000 donation for the initial year. The funds will be used to pay for taxes and any rise in property taxes, The Associated Press reported. Perry has also promised to set aside $500,000 annually for the next four years to prevent residents from having to pay such taxes.

The announcement of the donation comes after Perry became the first Black entertainer to make Forbes’ world’s ten highest-paid entertainers for the second time in a row. According to Forbes, Perry, in 2022, raked in $175 million from his films, BET TV shows, and his production lot in Atlanta. He sits third on the highest-paid entertainers list compiled by Forbes.

The premier magazine reported that this year’s biggest earners hauled in $1.35 billion, almost half as much as last year’s top 10, which included Jay-Z, “Ye” West, and Bruce Springsteen. Meanwhile, Perry and South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone were the only two people from last year’s list to appear again this year.