RHONJ: What We Know About Teresa Giudice's Financial Troubles

With cast members of Bravo's "Real Housewives" franchise, fans get an equal dose of drama and controversy. But while some of these controversies only make good pop culture hot topics, some are more consequential. Since joining the "Real Housewives of New Jersey" as an OG cast member in 2009, Teresa Guidice has continued to make headlines for several reasons. First fans of the show have watched Teresa and her sister-in-law Melissa Gorga's conflict grow over many years. Despite multiple attempts to maintain a cordial relationship, the two women have been unable to see eye-to-eye.

But while her feud with Gorga has taken center stage in recent years, fans have also watched Teresa navigate her love life which formerly consisted of a tumultuous relationship with Joe Giudice whom she was married to from 1999 to 2020. Of course most memorable about Teresa's time with Joe is the legal and financial troubles they faced together for many years. And now, even after her divorce from Joe, the "RHONJ" star's troubles don't seem to be coming to an end soon. Here's everything we know about Teresa's financial woes so far.

Teresa and Joe Guidice filed for bankruptcy with claims of owing over 10 million in debt. According to The New York Post, Teresa and Joe were reported to have accrued over a $100,000 debt across eight credit cards. Subsequently, the couple lost their $279,000 four-bedroom Jersey Shore house and a $200,000 home in New Jersey. Declaring bankruptcy, however, did very little to help Teresa and Joe's legal troubles as they soon found themselves in hot water again.

Four years later, the RHONJ star and her then-husband were charged with 39 counts of fraud associated with a 2001 wire fraud conspiracy believed to have lasted many years. As Forbes reported, the couple repeatedly took out loans and mortgages with fraudulent applications and fake tax documents. "Today is a most difficult day for our family," Teresa said in a statement following the indictment, per E! News. "I am committed to my family and intend to maintain our lives in the best way possible, which includes continuing my career. As a result, I am hopeful that we will resolve this matter with the Government as quickly as possible."

Teresa and Joe would later plead guilty to the multiple charges against them and were subsequently sentenced to 15 and 41 months in prison each. "I have heard you. I need to live to do things for myself ... It's time for me to wake up ... I will make this right no matter what it takes," Teresa said to the court after her sentencing, per Page Six.

In February 2016, two months after ending her prison sentence, Teresa was hit with a tax lien from the Internal Revenue Service after failing to remit $$23,365 in taxes, according to TMZ. Only a few months after that, Joe was also reported to be owing $238,269 in taxes. "We have worked out a re-payment schedule to ensure that every penny owed will be paid in full," the couple's attorney James Leonard Jr. told Us Weekly in response to the tax lien. Still, this was seemingly only the beginning of their trouble with the IRS.

The following year, the "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star was slammed with another tax lien, this time for $73,273, as reported by Radar Online. In the years that have since passed, Teresa has been hit with more tax liens which in 2023 has now come to a total of $1 million. And while Teresa might appear to be doing her best to navigate her dire legal and financial situation, the RHONJ star previously admitted to struggling with the chaos. "I'll be honest, I stress about money all the time," she said during a 2020 episode of the Bravo show (via People). "Like, I should be much further with all my businesses. Like, I built up a lot. And then everything came crashing down because of the legal stuff."