The Bank of Ellen DeGeneres: How TV host is playing mortgage lender to family to solidify own real estate empire
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Well-known television host Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia de Rossi have been playing mortgage lender to their family, per Daily Mail .
The comedian has apparently been generous in helping out family members who are desperate to get on the property ladder.
Ellen DeGeneres is playing mortgage lender to family to solidify own real estate empire
The 66-year-old, who gave up her long-running daytime talk show to focus full-time on her real estate enterprise, has gained some knowledge of the housing market in the two years since.
Forbes says that DeGeneres' net worth at $450 million. She is well-known in Hollywood for being among the highest earners from house flips, and these days, she's even lending money to family members who wish to become part of the real estate elite.
According to deeds and mortgage documents obtained by DailyMail, Ellen and her 51-year-old wife have given their respective brothers millions of dollars so they can purchase opulent properties in California. The comedian assisted her only sibling, the 69-year-old comedian, actor, and musician Vance DeGeneres, in 2015.
Vance and his wife Joanna purchased a three-bed, four-bath house in Sherman Oaks, LA, for $1,439,000 in October that year.
Additionally, records show that the couple obtained a loan from Ellen and Portia in full to secure the house. The rate and duration of the loan are not disclosed, but public documents indicate that the couple agreed to repay the mortgage with interest. There is a clause in the contract that says they would "maintain said property in good shape and repair."
Ellen is well-known to have a tight relationship with her brother, who publicly defended her in 2020 when Ellen was accused of creating a "toxic" work atmosphere on her talk show.
Ellen DeGeneres is among 'smartest Hollywood home flippers'
Last month, in an interview with The US Sun, real estate expert Stacey Franklin named Ellen among the 'smartest Hollywood home flippers',. She has transformed and sold over 50 houses in 20 years.
Her most recent buys include a $22.5 million Spanish-style villa in Montecito, her home base, in July, and two adjacent seaside parcels in Carpinteria, valued at a combined $70 million in 2022. Documents indicate that it's the most costly property in the Santa Barbara region ever.
She told The RIV Magazine last year, "I don't really travel a lot. So, house flipping is my version of travel. With house flipping, the scenery changes though I stay in the same general area. Only in a new place and from a new perspective."
