Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin - Save Yourself From a Nightmare Divorce with Brandi Glanville

Episode Date: January 13, 2023

Brandi Glanville survived a divorce that will go down in the Hall of Fame of nasty divorces. Despite it almost destroying her financially and emotionally, she came out the other side and has advice that anyone who values their financial freedom needs to hear. Today, she shares that advice with Nicole. Plus, for all the Housewives fans: Brandi reveals who she thinks is the next Jen Shah.

One of the most stressful periods of my life was when I was in credit card debt. I got to a point where I just knew that I had to get it under control for my financial future and also for my mental health. We've all hit a point where we've realized it was time to make some serious money moves. So take control of your finances by using a Chime checking account with features like no maintenance fees, fee-free overdraft up to $200, or getting paid up to two days early with direct deposit. Learn more at Chime.com slash MNN. When you check out Chime, you'll see that you can overdraft up to $200 with no fees. If you're an OG listener, you know about my infamous $35 overdraft fee that

I got from buying a $7 latte and how I am still very fired up about it. If I had Chime back then, that wouldn't even be a story. Make your fall finances a little greener by working toward your financial goals with Chime. Open your account in just two minutes at Chime.com slash MNN. That's Chime.com slash MNN. Chime. Feels like progress. Banking services and debit card provided by the Bancorp Bank N.A. or Stride Bank N.A. Members FDIC. SpotMe eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply. Boosts are available to eligible Chime members enrolled in SpotMe and are subject to monthly limits. Terms and conditions apply. Go to Chime.com slash disclosures for details.

I'm Nicole Lappin, the only financial expert you don't need a dictionary to understand. It's time for some money rehab. Today's episode might confuse you. I have said many times on this show that I don't watch The Real Housewives of any city. And now I've had two former guests on the show in two weeks. Confusing. I know. But as I mentioned last week when Kelly Ben former guests on the show in two weeks. Confusing. I know. But as I mentioned last week when Kelly Ben Simone was on the pod, I am really deep down the rabbit hole of the financial scandals on the housewives. Most recently, Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah,

you might have seen in the headlines, was sentenced to six and a half years in prison for fraud. I'm not going to stop now. I need answers. And my guest today, Brandi Glanville, doesn't disappoint. Brandi was on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills franchise and will be back on Bravo for season four of the Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip. And she knows all the housewives tea. But my conversation with Brandi went so much further than the housewives. In this conversation, we talk about divorce,

prenups, and how women should protect their financial future. Here it is. Brandy Glanville. Hello. Welcome to Money Rehab. Oh, I mean, I needed to be here for quite some time. And rocking the red lip. Thank you for that. Midday red lip. I was just feeling it. And what kind of money rehab would you need? Well, I think it's interesting because coming out of a divorce at 36, I didn't have any credit at all. I mean, it wasn't bad. I just didn't have any. And since then, I've obviously made some money because I do work a lot. But everyone just assumes you're rich because you're on TV. But I haven't gotten to that level where I'm not worried yet.

I don't know if anyone ever gets to that level. I certainly don't think I will, no matter what. I think we all have financial traumas too. Did you grow up with money? No, my parents were very lower middle class. We all had jobs since we were 12. So our work ethic, my brother and sister and I, you know, we've always worked. Amen, sister. I think that anyone

who doesn't grow up with money necessarily will always feel some of that uncertainty. So I don't think you ever necessarily get there. When you started making money, you're alluding to being on Housewives. Yes. You know, it wasn't a lot in the beginning, but it was enough, you know, to pay the bills. And I was doing, you know, stage paparazzi things for, you know, money here and there. And I really didn't have any, I'd never saved money before. I had modeled and basically what I made, I spent. And then I met my ex-husband and I had a credit card with my name on it. And I put everything on that credit card and I was, I trusted him. I was madly in love. And I never questioned anything. And I signed

everything that was put in front of me. And I think that happens to a lot of trusting wives and partners. And I came out of the divorce with nothing. Unfortunately, that's the case for a lot of women. And I think that's actually the impetus when women want to get their financial lives together because they have to. You have another choice. Your husband dies. Yeah. They get a divorce. What kind of papers did you sign? I wish I knew. No, I signed my name off of our house right before he filed for divorce, like six months prior. It was like Christmas. He's like putting all these things in front of me. And I trusted him. And I think that happens like

in the Teresa Giudice situation and a lot of these things that we're seeing play out in the media. I think a lot of times women can be naive because we have love goggles on and trust goggles on. Not that we're stupid by any means, but we're fooled by love. We sure are. I wish somebody would have shipped me. Yeah, that's a big reason I wrote Miss Independent is because a lot of women unfortunately stay in abusive relationships or bad situations because they don't think that they can afford to take care of themselves. Well, I mean, if they look at the numbers, they can't really, you know. And I think that we watch shows like The Bachelor and a lot of these naive young girls come on and

they're like, oh, I want the picket fence and the husband to take care of me. And all I think is when I watch that, oh my God, you're going to get a divorce and have no credit. Yeah. I mean, oftentimes like either your credit is screwed or you don't have credit because the ex screws up the credit and it becomes a whole disaster. Did you have a prenup? We did not. So I thought it was going to be great for me not to have a prenup. Unfortunately, when I didn't know about our finances and we were pretty much mortgaged to, you know. Yeah. Yeah. Extreme. So there was nothing to even get, which I, of course, I didn't know. So, and I thought everyone's like, you're so lucky. I'm like, what? I'm going to get part of his debt? Great.

You unfortunately get debt too. You can, yes. Did you take on any of that? We did not. We had an apartment building I didn't even know about that we sold and it covered the divorce expenses and lots of secrets, lots of secrets. Tell me more about those secrets. Did you find out through the divorce proceedings?

Yes. So I hired a forensic accountant, which was very expensive because I really thought there was a lot of money. I did. I'm like, he's hiding it. We live this lifestyle. We have this house. We have these cars.

You know, I'm driving my Range Rover everywhere and like living the life. Like there's no way we don't have any money. And, you know, $12,000 later, we don't have any money and I still have to pay the forensic accountant. So. So you found, it sounds like, more secrets of debt. Yes. That you didn't know about. So you got child support or alimony or both?

I got alimony for four years because we were married for eight. And it sucked actually because if he was working, I would get it based on what he was making. And for a lot of the four years, he wasn't working. So I wouldn't get anything for my alimony. Child support was different. It was always varying. Never great. And even now when he told me he was taking, you know, cutting it in half, I was like,

all right. Like I got this. But it's also just kind of like, ladies out there, no, they will not take care of you forever. Even if you're the mother of their children, you have to take care of yourself. He can just unilaterally decide to cut it in half. Doesn't that go through the courts? Well, after 18, he's no longer considered a child. And I am not paying for any more expensive lawyers. That's another thing. Lawyers, if you can work it out without them, I say try because all the money we did have went

to our lawyers. Right. I was going to say like you got a forensic accountant and all that stuff and there was no money, but then how was there money to even pay alimony or child support? Well, we sold our house and I guess there was a little bit of like $200,000. That covered our divorce. And then he got a job and it was great, but then he got fired. And for him, it was okay because he was living with someone who was very wealthy. And for me, everyone's like, aren't you happy you lost a job? I'm like, no, you guys don't understand. It affects my life. I want him to work constantly and get great money.

And I was never rooting against him because I knew it would hurt us. But a lot of my friends were actually more mad than I was about the whole thing. So it would just, you know, fluctuate. And it is… What percentage of it? Or like what kind of percent? What do you mean? A percent of what he made?

Yeah. So my child support was based, and Alimony was based on what he was making at the time. So if he's making nothing and not working, I'm getting nothing. So if he's making $80,000 an episode, it's going to be pretty good. But unfortunately, he was fired and he blames me for it because of a public divorce and me not shutting up. But I don't see how that could be possible. But it's not 50% of what he's making.

No. If we had been married for 10 years. Oh. Yeah. Okay. It's very – and each state is different. Yeah. So it's very confusing.

Girls, look up your law. Like, California is a no-fault state. So it doesn't matter what he did if he cheated if he did horrible things doesn't matter you split it down the middle but each state is different and i'm not going to pretend to be a lawyer because i don't know what all of them are but i know some states if you cheat like it's it's you know you can get more money not the person that's cheated on would get more money. Don't live in California. Yes, that's a community property state. We had Rebecca Minkoff on the show who I absolutely

love. She had a floozy clause with her husband. She spelled out that if she dies and her husband remarries, the money from her estate can't go to the new wife or any kids that he has with the future floozy wife. Oh, all right. I didn't think of that. She's angry from the grave. I wonder what she's like for real. I know. I've heard she's lovely.

But, yeah. I mean, I think that's a little aggressive. I do feel like it is not fair. This is some things that are not fair. Like if my ex-husband is living this life, right, his lifestyle, and I said this to him the other day, he is living in a mansion, you know, in Hidden Hills where the Kardashians live and they have all these cars and they travel first class. And, you know, he's calling me saying, times are tough, like going

to have to cut the child support. I'm like, what are you fucking talking about? Like you live the life. Are you insane? And I do feel like it should be more of if he's remarried and it should be their double income. It should be what his lifestyle is that what is, you know, what are they making per month or, you know, to take away to see what I should get. Because it's, I feel like it's just

not fair that he's living this great life and not having to work. So I get nothing. And it's almost like a fuck you. And I don't, I don't know if that's, I don't know if anyone would agree with me, but I feel like it should be, you know, we should be living in a similar lifestyle to what we had or for, you know, those four years or, you know, at least what he's living now. So you feel screwed. Oh, yeah. But I also feel like, fuck him because I make my own money now, which I couldn't say that for a long time. And now I'm like, oh, really? Okay. Got this. I'm good. Because I think it gives you more confidence. It does, but I don't want him to

know I'm making money. Okay. So we'll block him from listening to this somehow. No. No. I mean, obviously he knows I'm making money because he knows where I live. He knows what I pay for my rent and he knows like what he gives me is like gas money. So he knows there's money there, you know? And that, you know, we, we have a nice lifestyle, but not like his at all. And, and I still worry, you know, all of our bills went to another address. So even if I wanted to, and at a point I wanted to check his phone bill, I couldn't. And for some reason, I was okay with it. I just was madly, blindly in love. Do you feel like that's financial infidelity? Yes, absolutely. It's wrong on so many levels. And it's almost like it's preconceived. Like they know that at a point

they may be getting out and they're protecting themselves. And that to me, that's worse than a prenup. Honestly, like I would rather have a prenup and know what I get at the end of it than having someone always planning for when it's over. That hurts. And then, you know, when I left the situation, I had to ask my dad to co-sign on a car for me at 36 years old I was so embarrassed I couldn't even lease a house without my parents co-signing and it was horrible and embarrassing and I at that moment I'm like I am working on my credit like I did I went and saw like a credit counselor and like, I started doing everything I was supposed to do to get my credit better. And right now I have great credit, but you know, it's still very expensive to live here and it's still a struggle.

Would you get married again? No. Seriously? No. Like period, end of story. Yeah, no. Only because it was so hard to get out of the marriage that it doesn't – it was like the worst few years of my life and it stole my soul in a way. I was so angry all of the time and not living to my fullest potential. And so I would love to love again and I kind of do a little bit right now. Ooh. Do you have a boyfriend? Maybe. It's something.

A situation shift? Yeah. Okay. But it's nice to know that I'm not dead inside and that I can actually have feelings for someone. And I wouldn't mind cohabitating. I am used to my own space at this point, though. Yeah. But I don't see the reason. I think marriage is a little bit antiquated, the idea of it. Would you tell other women to get a prenup or a postnup? Do you

advocate for this? I do. I mean, I know a lot of women that have, they were upset about it. And I told them my story. I said, listen, I didn't have one and everyone thought I was going to be great. And I left with nothing, no credit, no money. Like we were living out of my range over the back of my car for like couch surfing on my friend's couches, me and two little babies. It was, it was, I can't even tell you, I'll cry about it if I think about it. But what was the question again? How long did you live out of

your car we it was a few months because you know i didn't have credit we had to find a place near their school um and eddie and i were fighting he didn't care it was more about the fight we had divorce brings out the worst in everyone i've like the person you love the most can treat you worse than your worst enemy and then you feel that way on top of it. It's just, I would never want to go through that again. So like I can be in love and live with you and then when it's over, bye. Yeah. How did that even work? Were the kids in middle school at that point? Oh no, they were, I had a two-year-old and a six-year-old. And so Jakey was in diapers and it was just, yeah, he had moved in with the person he was cheating with, sold the house and I was just trying to figure it out. And it was almost like, do you care about, you're punishing me, but you're actually punishing your children.

Hold on to your wallets. Money Rehab will be right back. One of the most stressful periods of my life was when I was in credit card debt. I got to a point where I just knew that I had to get it under control for my financial future and also for my mental health. We've all hit a point where we've realized it was time to make some serious money moves. So take control of your finances by using a Chime checking account with features like no maintenance fees, fee-free overdraft up to $200, or getting paid up to two days early with direct deposit. Learn more at Chime.com slash MNN. When you check out Chime, you'll see that you can overdraft up to $200 with no fees. If you're an OG listener,

you know about my infamous $35 overdraft fee that I got from buying a $7 latte and how I am still very fired up about it. If I had Chime back then, that wouldn't even be a story. Make your fall finances a little greener by working toward your financial goals with Chime. Open your account in just two minutes at Chime.com slash MNN. That's Chime.com slash MNN. Chime. Feels like progress. Banking services and debit card provided by the Bank Corp Bank N.A. or Stride Bank N.A. Members FDIC. SpotMe eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply.

Boosts are available to eligible Chime members enrolled in SpotMe and are subject to monthly limits. Terms and conditions apply. Go to Chime. Terms and conditions apply. Go to chime.com slash disclosures for details. And now for some more money rehab. So how did Housewives happen? So my divorce was extremely public and I would not shut up. I was like, if they called me, if like Us Weekly called me, I'd be like, yeah, I have a comment, you know, because I was mad. And the producers of Housewives saw me always commenting and always having something to say

and was going back and forth in the media and I wasn't shutting up about it. I wasn't going to sweep it under the rug and be embarrassed. And Eddie knew that. He knew who he married. I'm very feisty. So they saw that and they reached out to me and I'm like, yeah, whatever you want. It was honestly like I felt God was just like, he was saving me in that moment because I really, you know, I didn't have an education. I didn't go to college. I modeled after high school for six years. And, you know, when you don't have a skill set and no credit and you're trying to

find a place to live, it's hard. And when Housewives started, you were a guest star? I was like a friend of how they do, you know, they have like these friend dives. They had interviewed me and done all of these things. They saw my house and they were like, oh, you know, because they do. They come and they want to see your lifestyle. And then they started shooting. And then one day I got a call. I'd broken my leg. And I was, you know, stressed to the max, still going through the divorce process because it was a long process. And they're like, do you want to come to a party? He's like, absolutely. I didn't tell them I broke my leg, because I was afraid they would be like,

oh, no, no, it's fine, because I just didn't know. So I put on my wedge and my crutches and my little dress, and I'm like, let's do this. And then what happened? Then it just – they were like, we love you. I feel like I worked more than anyone that season, my first season. And it was hard. I was like, this is terrible.

I cried a lot. I was like, I felt like mean girls in high school a little bit. And then I started, you know, they called me back for the next season. And they gave me way more pay and like substantial pay where you can, you know, not have to worry about doing set up shots with paparazzi and all of that. And then so it begins. I mean, I've done 14 reality shows altogether. I have one coming out in January. I'm shooting another one at the end of January. Damn, girl. I just feel very blessed. So you were on Howard Stern, I think, and said that you made $16,000 when you were starting as the friend of? I don't remember. Okay. The internet told us this. I got very much

in trouble for that interview because, yeah, I think it was $14,000. It was one of those two. You know what I mean? But not as much as people would think. Oh, gosh, no. But the platform itself, then people are reaching out to you and saying, hey, you want to do an interview for, you know, so and so much money and or do this. So it did give me other options. But the second, you know, the second season, they're like, okay, we're going to, we're the first time we're bumping any friend up to an actual housewife. And it was substantial for me. I would say, I'm not going to say what it was because you probably already saw Howard Stern.

But for me, it was, I was like, I can't breathe. Why did you get in trouble for this interview? Well, we're not really allowed to say what we make. Okay. So it was reported, allegedly, it was $136,000. Allegedly. But I think for some people, they think that it's, you know, in the millions. It can be.

Oh, really? Don't get me wrong. It depends on the person? Depends on how long you're on. Okay. And how much you're bringing to the table. And does it work like the paparazzi shots where you go to a party or something and you get paid for that episode?

No. Well, it's different now. I can't really like – it used to be you have your salary and then girls would stop showing up because they're like, I'm not going to that party. I don't want to go. But if you don't show up, you shouldn't get paid. But we're on salary. So now a lot of the production companies, I can't going to that party. I don't want to go. But if you don't show up, you shouldn't get paid. But we're on salary. So now a lot of the production companies, I can't speak for all of them, but it's pay

for play. So you have to show up to make your salary. Otherwise, they deduct, like, if you don't come to a party or you're going on vacation, you don't make your shoots. And I think that's really good because a lot of people are like, I'm just not going to that. And it's like, well, you have to at your job. Right.

No, a lot of people, they get big book advances too. If they get like a million bucks for their book advance or like, whatever, I don't want to promote it. I'm never going to make it. A lot of books later. It's a beautiful home. Thank you. Why did you leave Housewives? I was fired. Oh. Yeah. Okay. I left because I said get out. Why were you fired? Well, I was having a really rough go of – a lot of it had to do with social media. I was very depressed and I was really obsessed with social media at the time. Twitter was kind of new and I was on it every day. Every single thing affected me.

Every mean comment affected me. Like I was super depressed. I was on an antidepressant already. I was drinking too much. The show was so stressful. I mean, I wrote one time on like a big, I'm not filming today and stuck it on my door because, you know, people don't realize how stressful it is to go in. And I had a lot of anxiety and I was unhappy and I was spiraling out and I think that, you know, everyone saw that. And I don't think anyone wants to watch that. I don't want to watch that. I want to watch some fun drunkness, but I don't want to watch,

like, my dad wasn't talking to me. My dog had disappeared. I was super depressed. It wasn't fun anymore. And I think, and I did tell everyone to fuck off in a giant email oh including there's that all of them which and they are close friends and I think that he appreciates that I'm not an ass kisser yes yeah so I think he also knows at that point I was just I had hit rock bottom I couldn't do it anymore and know, it's not what they leave on camera. It's a lot of the stuff that happens off camera that's also super stressful. And, you know, I got fired. I have to be honest.

I've literally never seen a single episode of any of the Housewives. You and Ryan, my producer, he doesn't watch any reality TV. I know. I'm the only person on the planet. You're not. You're good. So you have to help me untangle what I've tried to study and read about the drama. Like I need a whiteboard

just for that. We need to connect the dots. We're going to need the whole house. Right. Because there's a lot and there's a lot of tangled webs and whatnot. But why do you think a lot of the housewives like Erica Jane and Sonia Morgan, Jen Shaw have all had financial scandals and issues? I mean, I can't speak. I mean, they're all so separate. But I truly believe that a lot of the people that go on the show, they want to show this lifestyle that they don't actually have. Like you see these giant mansions and they're renting them. I mean, I'm talking more about Jen Shah right now. And then she's dressed like $12,000 a day. I know my designers. They're dripping. No one can dress like that. Where

is this money coming from? But you can't buy a house. So I think they want fame so badly, they're willing to put themselves out there. And like, I mean, this is why they're all getting caught. I think with Erica, she honestly was one of those people like me that would sign whatever was put in front of her and didn't care what was happening as long as she had her lifestyle. I don't think she was like Jen Shaw who was like in, you know, in the office doing all of the things. So with Erica, when she joined, you weren't on full time. No. And I guess her, can you help explain this?

So her soon to be ex-husband, Tom, he's in a lot of trouble, financial, legal trouble. And recently it was said that he embezzled millions of dollars from these victims of Lion Air crash. She says she didn't know about Tom's crimes. Right. Can you believe her? I do. I think she probably didn't want to know. I really feel like I know her enough to know, like, as long as she had her planes and her cars and things that like she

didn't care where the money came from as long as it was coming in. Like why ask questions? But I only know like about – I mean I know Erica, but I know what I read in the media and what I see on TV just like you. I have no inside knowledge. Totally. But you feel like what happened with you where you just signed things when you were married and not really

reading them, I guess, or knowing. I mean, thank God he wasn't a criminal because I could be in the same situation. I mean, I think that's exactly what happened to Teresa because she's super sweet and she was madly in love with her husband and she was signing whatever, you know, people put in front of her. So what is the takeaway from that for, I guess, the real, real housewives who, you know, probably also have papers that they sign without reading and things like that? What would you say to them? Learn from my mistakes and, you know, learn from what you're seeing on TV as all of these people are actually going to jail, like the Chrisleys. I don't know if you know about that. They're a reality family. I've watched them for years. They're going to serve hard time for bank fraud.

11 years? Yes. Hard time. And they're this Christian family. I would say if you're a criminal, don't put yourself on TV. Number one. Smart advice. And I do feel like there's more coming on the Salt Lake City situation because we're all asking how they all have their money. So I just, I feel like the narcissism in them wants to be so famous that they don't realize what they're actually doing. But with, you know, the average normal housewife, I would say, yeah, love is great. But honestly, like you have to look at every single

thing you sign. You have to have your own bank account. Even if he knows about it, it doesn't have to be secret. I would say be upfront. Like I, like this is a relationship. Relationships evolve, we evolve and we might not evolve together. So let's make sure that, you know, whether it's an allowance from your husband if you're not working. Like staying home with kids is the hardest job in the world. So I think you should be paid for it, honestly. So you think a lot of the financial issues and struggles, whether criminal or just, you know, personal bankruptcy or other issues, comes from trying to keep up with this, just getting sucked into it. Well, to show that you're living this extravagant lifestyle that a lot of them actually can't afford. And, you know, you're looking at – I mean, I could name, like,

five people right now that you're like, oh, your house is in foreclosure. And, you know, it's like – I'm not going to lie. I love Salt Lake City, but I do wonder where a lot of these people get their money. And I was just thinking, like, it's a house of cards. It's going to come crashing down. Who do you think is next to come crashing down? I think Whitney and her husband. Yeah.

You don't watch it, but if you watch it, you'd know what I mean. Okay. I don't want that for them, honestly. But, you know, there's a lot of, like, so where do you get your money to have this house? No one really says what they do. Those are the questions that go through my mind when I look at it. We end the show with a piece of advice or a tip you can take straight to the bank. What would your one piece of money advice be to listeners today?

Or how can they not make one of the same mistakes you did? Well, I think in the beginning, credit card debt, like credit card debt for me because I didn't have money and I got a bunch of credit cards because that's how we were living. And that was really stupid. And the interest rates were so high. And finally, I made enough. I could just pay them off. And I had a credit counselor telling me, like, why did you do this?

This is like you're paying like double what you're spending just to have these credit cards. On interest. Yeah, exactly. And so I think that was a mistake that if anyone can't, if you can help it, don't, don't do that. When are we doing money rehab? I mean, right now, please. I have, I have some jobs coming up. I might need a little help with that negotiation. Personal money rehab. I'm coming over. What are we going to work on first? What do I do with my money that's just sitting there? Okay, we're going to put it to work.

Yeah. Like the risk factor makes me scared. But I know, you know, you have to make risks to make money. So, you know, because that awesome force of compound interest that screwed you with credit cards can actually be used in your favor and you can make money by taking advantage of the force of compound interest with investing. So it's really just like using that same thing that's been used against you, but you then wield the power. Money Rehab is a production of Money News Network. I'm your host, Nicole Lappin. Our executive producer is Morgan Lavoie. Do you need some money rehab? And let's be honest, we all do. So email us your money

questions at moneyrehabatmoneynewsnetwork.com to have your question answered on the show, or even have a one-on-one intervention with me. And follow us on Instagram at Money News and TikTok at Money News Network for exclusive video content. And lastly, thank you. Seriously, thank you for listening and investing in yourself, which is the most important investment you can make. Thank you. you