Jessica Simpson and husband Eric Johnson have announced that they are taking some time apart.
In an exclusive with People, the singer and actress commented, โEric and I have been living separately navigating a painful situation in our marriage. Our children come first, and we are focusing on what is best for them. We are grateful for all of the love and support that has been coming our way, and appreciate privacy right now as we work through this as a family.โ
Reports have also suggested the pair are in serious financial trouble, having taken out as many as four mortgages on their Los Angeles mansion.
The coupleโs palatial pad in the gated community of Hidden Hills was purchased in 2013 from Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne for a cool $17.6 million for their growing family โ which consists of three children โ Maxwell, 12, Ace, 11, and Birdie, five.
But with 44-year-old Jessicaโs โbillion-dollar brandโ the Jessica Simpson Collection, which she founded with her mum Tina in 2005, on the brink of going bust in 2002, she admitted during an interview on The Real that she โdrained her bank accountโ to save it.
NOTHING BUT A MONEY PIT
![Jessica Simpson's mansion in Hidden Hills, Los Angeles.](https://api.photon.aremedia.net.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/11/HORIZONTAL-HOME.jpg?resize=1200%2C1001)
Documents show that, in 2015, Jess and Eric, 45, took out a $11.3 million mortgage on the property.
Just two years later, they took out an additional $12.3 million loan. Further mortgages โ for $5.6 million and $4.6 million โ were also documented.
After acquiring a major stake in her business in 2015, Sequential Brands Group Inc. filed for bankruptcy in 2021 โ and Jess used a mix of bank loans and family help to buy it back for $99.8 million.
โJessicaโs up to her eyeballs in debts,โ an insider tells Womanโs Day.
โShe and her mum took out a huge loan to buy back her company three years ago and since then itโs been nothing but a money pit.โ
โItโs quite unbelievable for the woman who at one point was top of Forbesโ list every year, but no oneโs surprised to see her dipping into her home to get by.โ
โWhatโs even more complicated is the fact that if she goes ahead with this divorce, that ainโt cheap either. But at this stage, not many of her friends think the marriage is salvageable.โ
SOURCE OF FRUSTRATION
![Jessica Simpson.](https://api.photon.aremedia.net.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/11/VERTICAL-JESSICA-CREDIT-BACKGRID.jpg?resize=1200%2C1430)
Once a pro-footballer with a successful NFL career, Eric hasnโt really worked in years, which has been a big bone of contention for the pair โ particularly during this time of financial stress.
โEric has become nothing but a disappointment for Jessica,โ the insider adds.
โHis fiscal shortcomings have only become more obvious when the whole familyโs going through struggles.โ
โHeโs been a source of frustration for the entire Simpson family since this all started.โ