Get to Know Barbara Corcoran's Best Investment to Date
Barbara Corcoran is as rich in love as she is in money. The Queen of New York real-estate has been married to husband Bill Higgins, a retired Navy captain and former FBI agent, since 1988.
“Marriage is awfully tough for some of us and we should get a medal for running the race,” she wrote on Instagram in 2022, marking the 34-year anniversary of their engagement. “I know I have a good man, a great father, and a guy that totally drives me absolutely nuts every day of my life. I’m sure I drive him just as crazy.”
Read more about Barbara Corcoran and Bill Higgins’ long-lasting romance below.
Is Barbara Corcoran married?
Yes, and very much in love! The Shark Tank star has been married to husband Bill Higgins for more than three decades. They wed in 1988, about 15 years after Corcoran famously founded the residential real-estate company The Corcoran Group with just $1,000.
“We both have stick-to-itiveness,” Corcoran has said of why their marriage has lasted. “I think tenacity keeps us happy."
Who is Barbara Corcoran's husband?
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Bill Higgins is a former FBI agent and retired Navy captain who served in the Gulf War. Corcoran recently admitted to hiring an ex-FBI agent to follow her husband after a psychic told her he was cheating, noting the irony of the situation.
"My husband used to be an FBI agent himself. So, I had an FBI agent following around an FBI agent," she said on Instagram.
The private investigator trailed Higgins 24/7 and discovered that he wasn't having an affair, but rather spending his afternoons shopping at a Barnes and Noble in Circuit City on Route 4 in Paramus, New Jersey. "He buys books and electronics and brings them back to his office on Park Avenue," the P.I. told Corcoran.
Her response? "I took all of his credit cards away and signed him up for shoppers anonymous," she quipped.
Related: Barbara Corcoran Reveals Her Most Lucrative Shark Tank Investment to Date
How did Barbara Corcoran and her husband, Bill Higgins, meet?
Barbara Corcoran met her future husband at a New York City conference in 1981, when she was already a widely successful and well respected businesswoman.
In an interview with Yahoo! Life, Higgins recalls his future wife having “a whole entourage of people with her" at the time. "Everybody wanted to meet her," he said. Rather than “being obnoxious and interrupting everybody,” Higgins said he waited until Corcoran was alone to introduce himself. From there, the couple played a game of cat-and-mouse for about six months—until, finally, they went all in.
When did Barbara Corcoran and her husband Bill Higgins get married?
Corcoran and Higgins exchanged vows in 1988, seven years after their first encounter. In a sentimental social media post, Corcoran told followers it’s important to focus on the “good s--t” when looking for a partner to spend the rest of your life with.
“My husband Bill! What I thought I wanted when I married Bill 35 years ago was an exciting, sexy guy to travel the world with! Now long into our marriage, I realize I’ve got the important stuff,” Corcoran wrote on Instagram. “A rock solid guy, a close friend, and a great father to our children.”
Related: Barbara Corcoran Gives Tour of Her $1 Million Mobile Home
Do Barbara Corcoran and her husband, Bill Higgins, have kids?
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Barbara Corcoran and Bill Higgins share two children: a son named Tom, born via in vitro fertilization (and with the help of Corcoran's sister, who donated an egg) in 1994, when Corcoran was 46; and a daughter named Kate, whom they adopted in 2005, when Corcoran was 56. Corcoran is also stepmom to Higgins' four oldest children, whom he shares with his first wife.
Corcoran has been open about how having children later in life allowed her to be such a successful businesswoman.
"I had from 22 to 46 to hyper-focus on building one thing, not a family, but my business," Corcoran said in 2018. "I worked like an animal, 24-7, long hours. Nothing interfered with my thoughts of where I wanted to go."
On "having it all," the mom of two offered, "You can have it all, but I don't believe it's possible to build a huge business and at the same time be a doting mother without the guilt and with the satisfaction of raising the child. I’m the most organized person I've ever met and, if I couldn't do it, I'm wondering who could do it."
Who else did Barbara Corcoran date before getting married?
Corcoran presumably dated a handful of men before getting married, but one ex in particular stands out: Ramone Simone, the boyfriend who put down the $1,000 Corcoran famously used to start The Corcoran Group (then called the Corcoran-Simone company).
According to Corcoran’s retelling, she and Simone met at a diner where she was waitressing at the time. He convinced her to enter real-estate, which she did, then suggested they start a company of their own, which they did (Corcoran owned 49 percent of the business and Simone owned 51 percent).
Their company grew quickly, but with success came heartbreak. One random day, Simone told Corcoran that he was leaving her for their receptionist. Corcoran split off part of the business into The Corcoran Group, and sold that company for $66 million in 2001. How's that for payback?