Kenya Moore, current “cast” member of Real Housewives of Atlanta, is embroiled in some serious legal disputes with her landlord over a recent eviction from her six-bedroom, six-bathroom Georgia mansion.
I was so mad when I heard this! Being evicted is pretty bad, but I was HORRIFIED when I heard that Kenya Moore—former Miss USA, producer, actress, author, and model— was still renting, not owning her home. She currently pays $3,999 in rent and to date has paid her landlord nearly $52,000 and $6,000 for a security deposit.
The landlord claims that Kenya was short over $800 in her most recent payment.
I think one of the big lessons here is that we, as women, need to get smart about our financial decisions and priorities. Fifty-eight thousand dollars has gone through Kenya’s hands and at the end of the day, she has nothing to show for it. She does not own her home, has no equity in the mansion, and has to essentially rely on someone else to put a roof over her head. (Wendy Williams, in her frenemy style, even offered to write Kenya a check for the outstanding balance.)
Maybe it’s the frugalista and Antiguan in me, but all I was thinking was that this woman could have used that money toward home ownership; instead she has spent a sizable amount of her resources enriching (literally) someone else’s life.
Even if renting is not her thing, does coming up short on her $3,999 rent reveal that Kenya is living beyond her means?
With all of the success and money that this business woman has amassed, I wonder how Kenya financially views herself from the inside out. Does her money mindset, despite the concrete success, tell her that all she can be is a renter, not an owner? a short-term player not a long-term thinker? Who has been her financial role model prior to garnering wealth, fame, and success?
I am hoping that Kenya begins to claim her right to abundance and her right to create a reality that places her financial and emotional well being at the core of all decisions that she makes.
Frugalistas: Are you living a Kenya Moore Rent-A-Center model? What are your thoughts on the cost of the rent and her alleged inability to pay it?
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Hi Kara,
I think something important to point out here is that Kenya might have consciously made a decision to not own her own home – something that a lot of people do do. Perhaps because of lifestyle, because of shifting about a lot for work, for various reasons. Don’t discount that – that a lot of people consciously don’t (ever) want to own their own houses and as long as there are people with houses to rent, there will be people who rent them. She might just be one of them. And then after that, have managed her money badly :/
Hi Devika,
You make an excellent point. I think I may have alluded to that (homeownership not being for everyone) briefly in the post.
I am new to your blog and am enjoying it. I understand why she rented the home because she does not live in Atlanta. She only lived in Atlanta for a few months to film RHOA and went back to LA. If she lived in Atlanta full-time, then I would question her financial literacy as to why she is renting (and not buying).
Welcome to the Fab and Frugal Fam, Lady Davis! That is also a good point. But if RHOA it were a full-time gig for her,meaning she would be tapping several seasons over the next couple of years, I would consider buying since I knew I would be living there for portion of the year. People buy homes for seasonal purposes (i.e. summer homes) so it would not be a stretch. This, of course, is assuming that Kenya wants to buy.
I think what I was trying to get at was that if she COULDN”T afford the rent and, as a result, was kicked out of the rental, that it was definitely a sign that Kenya needed some financial regrouping because that was a sign of poor financial foresight.
If she is living in Atlanta temporarily there are a ton of lovely homes that are a hell of a lot cheaper than the one she is renting. Also, not only does she pay rent on that property she is paying for a lifestyle. Which would explain why she was short on her rent. Finally, I have to agree with being confused by her not owning a property. Why wouldn’t she purchase a home in Atlanta, housing is cheaper in Atlanta than in other big cities, properties are now appreciating, and then sell it later? She would also get the tax write off. Property is the cornerstone of wealth. I pay less in my mortgage than I would in rent and I am building equity. I love it! I am my own landlord and I like putting money back in my own pocket.