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From high fashions to her glam squad, The Real Housewives of Atlanta's Kelli Ferrell spares no expense in the name of luxury.
So, when the topic of her recent money-related issues arose during Part 1 of the RHOA Season 16 reunion, host Andy Cohen had to address the elephant in the room.
Reading a viewer-submitted question in the preview clip above, the Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen host names some of Kelli's recent televised expenditures — "extravagant gifts" for 17-year-old daughter Chloe, grooming bills for her dog, Cha Cha, and bodyguard services — before asking, "Are these necessary expenses?"
"All of them are!" Kelly playfully insists, to which Andy responds by asking about her "painting the dog pink," while Porsha Williams chimes in to highlight Cha Cha's "facial massage," as if at least those two things would surely fall outside her consideration of necessity.
They were wrong: "Absolutely!" Kelly insists, joking that she needs to be able to "identify" her Yorkie since Cha Cha had "been stolen" in the past. "She lives the most f–king fabulous life ever."
So, Andy offers Kelli some friendly financial advice, referencing her Nana's Chicken-N-Waffles business. "You should invest your money in the waffles and not the dog," he suggests.
Inside Kelli Ferrell's financial drama
Kelli updates him, however, that "the waffles are good," adding that her Atlanta-area restaurant's second location in Sandy Springs will "definitely" be open this summer, as her RHOA finale end card promised.
RELATED: Divorce Updates & Major Career News: Where the RHOA Cast Stands After Season 16
The reason for the delay, she shares, was that she "had a little lawsuit thing going on."
As the WWHL host explains, Kelli "owed $100,000 in unpaid rent, interest, and late charges" for the restaurant.
After the Season 16 newcomer says that she has since sent the landlord "a good sum of money," Andy asks about the reason for her "holdup in paying the funds."
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"Oh, I just had $200,000 in attorney’s fees," Kelli answers, after already revealing that was the amount she spent her divorce, which she finalized in September 2024, following three years of legal proceedings.
How Kelli Ferrell's divorce impacted her business
In addition to the cost of her legal fees, Kelli's divorce after 11 years or marriage also stalled her business' expansion for another key reason: She previously opened up about how the restaurant was a point of contention in her split during RHOA Season 16, Episode 4.
"He wants the business...We had the business together when we were married," she claimed, referencing her then-estranged husband.
RELATED: Kelli Ferrell Shares a Shocking Statement on Marrying Again Following Her Divorce (EXCLUSIVE)
Kelli elaborated in a confessional, "When I left my husband, I told him, 'You just have your residual income. Allow me to do what I've always done, which is run the businesses.' He specifically told me that he would close everything and I would not have anything without him."
Get a sneak peek at what's still to come on the RHOA Season 16 reunion Parts 2 and 3 here.
