VPR’s Ariana Madix Reveals She Was Down to Her Last $2,000 Before Scandoval Broke
Vanderpump Rules star Ariana Madix revealed she was down to her last $2,000 when Tom Sandoval's cheating scandal broke in March 2023, which turned out to be a financial windfall for her.
In a preview clip for the Tuesday, March 12, episode, Ariana, 38, is seen talking to pals Katie Maloney, Scheana Shay, Lala Kent and Ally Lewber. She explained, "I remember emailing my agent and my manager and being, like, 'Guys, let's really start trying to do some s--t because I am not in a good place financially. "
"When I first started making decent money, we decided we wanted to buy a house," Ariana explained in a confessional. She and Tom, 40, purchased a $2 million home in Los Angeles' Valley Village area in 2019.
"Then I was playing catchup all the way up until Katie and I found a great location for our sandwich shop. Then, a bunch of my money went toward that," Ariana continued about her yet-to-open Something About Her.
"And now, I was at a point where in March (2023), I was literally on my last $2,000, I'm not kidding," Ariana revealed.
The Bravolebrity revealed why she didn't move out of the home she shares with Tom when on March 1, 2023, she discovered he'd been having an affair with her VPR costar and close friend, Rachel "Raquel" Leviss.
“The internet thinks I’ve made millions of dollars. That is not true, and it’s like, on March 1st (2023), was I financially prepared to move? No,” she explained.
She told her costars of Tom, "He created this situation, and now, I’m f--king scrambling, trying to get my f--king s--t together to be able to, in a financially responsible way, move on to the next step."
While Ariana and Tom are living under the same roof more than a year later in a stalemate over selling the home, her finances have improved dramatically.
When Scandoval broke, Ariana had a net worth of $1 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. As of 2024, the sum as doubled, as she's worth $2 million, according to the site.
Ariana got a tremendous outpouring of support while Tom became publicly loathed after his seven-month affair with Rachel, 29, caused the demise of this nine-year relationship with the former SUR employee.
The aspiring actress quickly landed a role in the Lifetime movie Buying Back My Daughter. Ariana went on to sign subsequent sponsorship deals with Bic razors, T-Mobile, Uber 1, Bloomingdales and Lay's.
Ariana landed a spot on season 32 of ABC's Dancing With the Stars, where she made it to the finals. That led to her scoring a role Broadway, playing Roxie Hart in Chicago.
“I want to make enough money to be able to take care of my mom and my brother and any other family members who may or may not need it,” Ariana told Glamour in June 2023. “I never want to worry about it ever, ever, ever. So I will work as much as possible to not have to.”
