Transcript of Rewriting Your Money Story After a Major Life Shift with Aurora Culpo

I love hosting on Airbnb. It's a great way to bring in some extra cash, but I totally get it that it might sound overwhelming to start or even too complicated if, say, you want to put your summer home in Maine on Airbnb, but you live full-time in San Francisco and you can't go to Maine every time you need to change sheets for your guests or something like that. If thoughts like these have been holding you back, I have great news for you. Airbnb has launched a co-host network, which is a network of high-quality local co-hosts with Airbnb experience that can take care of your home and your guests. Co-hosts. Co-hosts can do what you don't have time for, like managing your reservations, messaging your guests, giving support at the property, or even create your listing for you. I always want to line up a reservation for my house when I'm traveling for work, but sometimes I just don't get around to it because getting ready to travel always feels like a scramble, so I don't end up making time to make my house look guest friendly. I guess that's the best way to put it.

But I'm matching with a co-host so I can still make that extra cash while also making it easy on myself. Find a co-host at airbnb. Com/host. Money Rehabbers, Let's talk about planning for a second, because I know you want to hit those big financial goals, whether it's buying a home, funding your dream, investing in your future, or just feeling more confident about your financial picture. You need more than a 'set it and forget it' approach. You need a creative plan. And Yeah, I mean that literally. Creative Planning is a wealth management firm that is all about turning your big dreams into step-by-step plans, and then a reality. I am such a big fan of Creative Planning that I actually join their team as a financial education advocate. And before you ask, Ask, Yes, Creative Planning's wealth managers are fiduciaries, which you know from money rehab, is a must-have for financial planning. With Creative Planning, you get a comprehensive strategy for all the big pieces of your life: investing, taxes, estate planning, even retirement. So if you're ready to turn those what ifs into, Heck, yes, I did that? Check out Creative Planning. Go to creativeplanning.

Com/ Nicole, where you can fill out a form to schedule a free 15-minute conversation with a member of the Creative Planning team who can talk to you about your needs and financial names, and then connect you with a wealth manager. Your financial future starts today at creativeplanning. Com/nicole. I'm Nicole Lappin, the only financial expert you don't need a dictionary to understand. It's time for some money rehab.

So I hate, hate, hate clichés.

You know this about me by now, but there are a few that are actually true. And one of those true clichés is the only constant is change. Once we feel like we have a good grasp on what's going on around us, things change. And sometimes those changes mean we need to adapt our financial pictures, too. Today, I'm talking to Aurora Culpo about some of those big transitions in her life and how she adjusted her financial behaviors and her mindset. Aurora, who you might know from her show, The Culpo Sisters, that she did with her sister Sophia and Olivia Kolpo. Olivia, of course, who won Ms. Universe back in 2012. We talk about the big transitions in her life: getting married, becoming a mom, getting divorced, living alone for the first time, starting a podcast, which is called Barely Filtered, and definitely check it out, it's in the show notes, and changing careers. We talk about how these life events changed her financial picture, but even more importantly, how she changed her mindset to get through some of those harder times. And she has some great advice for anyone who's struggling to adapt to one of those big life changes.

Here she is.

Ruric Hulpo, welcome to Money Rehab.

Thank you so much. How did you know that I needed this?

Everybody needs this. Have you needed money rehab in your life?

I don't think I've needed rehab. I think I've played it safe, which is nice because I feel like I've never been in dangerous debt, but I've also never really known what to do. I feel like my financial situation has gone from the powers of my father to the powers of my ex-husband. And now I'm a year divorced. So now I'm like, Well, I guess nobody's coming to save me. I should have a plan. What's my plan?

Yeah, now the powers are with you.

Yeah, which is exciting. It's exciting. I play it safe. I don't overspend, but I also don't invest.

Do you want to start investing?

I probably should, right? If I ever want to get rich.

It's nice to make your money work for you because you work really hard for your money.

Yes. I guess I don't fully believe that that's possible. Why not? I don't know. I feel like it's always a risk to do something with your money. And I guess I'm afraid because I don't feel like I know enough about how to do it right.

Well, you're in the right place, sister.

Okay. And that's why I'm here.

There are some ways to invest that are principle-protected, which is very cool. So it means you won't lose money. If you invest in bonds or CDs, then you get a return learn, but you also get your original investment back.

Yeah. I don't know why I don't do that. Let's do it. Yeah. Today's the day. Today's the day. I thought you were going to be like, Invest in crypto. No. Absolutely not.

There's one of the sweatshirts there that says, Told you so, Crypto Oh, my God.

I need to wear that. We're going to give it to him. When I see my ex-husband tomorrow, I'm going to be like, Told you so, Crypto Bro.

Is he a crypto guy?

He's definitely one of those. It feels like he's on the leading edge of something, but it really scares me. But it always ends up working out okay for him. I don't know what happened with his crypto stuff. That's the other thing, when you go through a divorce with the finances. The crypto is just... You can't really do much for it. I don't even think a court can order somebody to show their crypto.

Oh, really? Yeah. So when you were going through it, what did- I just didn't ask, and we didn't touch it, and that was it.

That was that.

So you didn't get any of it?

No, I didn't get any cryptos. But do I want them? I don't think that they're there anymore anyway.

Some kinds of crypto, maybe. Maybe.

Do you know what kind? Bitcoin? It was Bitcoin and Ethereum. Yeah, you might want some. Yeah, maybe. I don't know. That's done with. He can have his fake money.

Yeah, that's right. So I've been binging your podcast. We are loving it around here. Barely filtered. You talk really openly and honestly about your divorce and this transition time in your life. So what was that like? You started the podcast in 2023. So it's been a year and a half. And so how has that transition been?

The transition has been... It's such a learning experience. I think you get better the more you do something. I did have a co-host in the beginning of my podcast, so that was nice for somebody to be there to help the conversation along. And then just with my Divorce. I mean, I guess it's two separate subjects, but it paralleled that. When I started my podcast was actually when I also first moved into a place by myself. So it was like just the season of Becoming very independent. And I think that's scary, but also it builds a certain self-esteem that I think you can't do when you have a partner, whether it's a co-host or a husband. So I think I've become a little bit stronger along the way. It sounds like you've had to be. Yeah, for sure. Not really an option.

So at the time your divorce was being finalized, you were out looking for a house for the very first time?

Yes.

You always lived with somebody?

Yes. I never didn't have a roommate. I was never afraid to live alone. First of all, why would you live alone when you're a young girl and you can split rent with somebody else? So I just always had a roommate, and then I met my ex and I lived with him. We were together for nine years. So we We bought a house together when we were married. He bought me out of that, and then now I'm renting. And next year, I think I want to buy, but it just feels like such a weird time to buy. I feel, especially in Southern California, it's like what you can get, I don't know, because the mortgage interest because the interest rates are so high, and it just feels like a scary time to buy. So I've been renting. And also because when you move out of a house for the first time, I needed to move somewhere. And so I didn't want to pull the trigger and buy something. And then maybe it was going to work, maybe it wasn't.

But it sounds like you're thinking about renting like it's defeat.

Well, I hate the idea of the money being thrown away every month, but it's true. It seems like it's been the best option for me right now. Do you feel like renting is good for some people?

I think it is.

You do? Okay.

Because throwing money away is also applied to interest payments that you never get back. That's true. And property taxes, insurance, all the stuff you have to do to upkeep the house. And so if you're able to rent but then use a lump sum and invest it, which we're starting today, best day ever, then it can really work out and you can yield a lot more in the long term.

Yeah, I don't know. I think I have this old school idea of property being the only way to invest. Where did that come from? Probably my dad. He was one of those people who bought up a bunch in 2008, bought a bunch of property and made a lot.

What a great time when stuff is on sale.

Yeah, I know. That's the only way that I've learned is a safe way to invest your money.

And so renting now, do you still feel like things are overpriced?

I do feel like it's overpriced because what I pay for rent and what, for instance, my sister pays the same amount in a mortgage, and her house is five times the size of mine. Rent is just... And we live in comparable neighborhoods in Southern California. But she bought her house a couple of years ago. I just started renting last year. I think I got screwed with the rental market a little bit. It's just really high for what you get.

It sounds like for you, housing is more than just a place to sleep, right? It's safety, it's security.

Right. Well, it's also where I work most of the time, too, because a lot of the content that I shoot is at my house. I record at my house sometimes, my podcast. So I spend a lot of time there.

Makes sense. Yeah. But do you feel like you will be happy once you get into a house? Do you play this game with yourself, like this psychological game? I'll be happy when I buy a house.

I'm a control freak about my space. I love home decor. I've flipped houses before, and I love designing. I've done that a few times with my ex. And so it drives me crazy that I don't own my space. I think that's the psychological part that drives me a little crazy.

I've rented, and I've gone to town with the decor. I think we get in this cycle, especially women. I'll be happy when I get something. And then when you get that thing, there's always another thing to get. And then you never get your brain to the other side of happiness.

It's so true. And I think I realized that when I was married, too, because we bought my dream house, and I renovated it exactly how I wanted it. And I got my perfect sink that I loved from Italy and all. And then I still was like, I thought I'd feel different. And I don't. You have your kids, you get the babies. I don't want to spoil or alert anything for you, but they really don't complete you. If anything, they are a mirror to everything that you really still need to work on in yourself. And I think that's another thing I thought with kids, too, that it was going to be like, My heart will be whole and complete. It's like, No, you're just going to be really tired and madly in love with these things that you have no control over. And now a piece of your heart lives outside of you, and you could be worried about them for the rest of your life.

So you feel like, yeah, you constantly change the goalpost on yourself. So you thought, When I get married, when I have kids, I'll be happy. But you weren't happy.

Yeah, I was never going to be happy in that situation. We weren't meant to be lifelong partners.

When did How did you figure that out?

I think in a way, I really wanted to be a mom more than anything. And this is my boyfriend that I had been with for a long time who I really loved. I still really love him. He is a super independent person who really told me pretty much from the start in many ways that he was never going to be a family man. He never really wanted to be married. He still doesn't. And I forced it. I was like, I think I thought that once we have the kids, he's going to change his mind. And once we're married, he's going to change his mind. But he really just never did. He was never really the partner that I wanted, somebody who really wanted to do things together and be real partners. That showed up in more ways than one. Then I couldn't really ignore it anymore. It was a hard decision to make. And my parents were not behind it. I still have friends who are like, You guys should just get back together. And honestly, sometimes in the dating world, I'm like, He wasn't that bad, actually. This was a journey I was meant to be on because I think I really do...

I never would be happy unless I proved to myself that I could do it alone. I think that's part of my journey.

Did you feel like you also weren't financially compatible? When you started You started dating. You were a teacher, right?

Yes.

And so then you started making more money. Yeah. Did that change with that? Totally. And do you feel like that gave you more leverage, more power within the relationship to make the decisions that were right for you because you knew you'd be okay financially?

Oh, yes. Yeah, in that way, for sure. One of the things that I feel so deeply about is that women should never be stuck in a situation because they can't financially afford to live independently or be divorced. I can't imagine not having had that as an option. My situation wasn't... I wasn't in a domestic abuse situation or anything that was life-threatening, but there's really women all the time who can't leave dangerous situations because they literally can't afford it.

It was one of the reasons I wrote my last book, Ms. Independent, is because a lot of women who are in these controlling financial abuse situations, domestic abuse often goes with financial abuse, too. They can't leave because they don't have the money, they don't have the resources, they're scared of making their own money. They don't know where the money is. And so it's often used as control. But it sounds like when you talked about your divorce, you had a lot more options because you had money of your own. Definitely. When you talked about it on your show, it sounds like you really felt for women who weren't able to do that.

Yeah. It's so empowering having your own money because it's your own freedom. And I worry for women who are putting all their hope in a man not building a career of their own and staying home with kids. I like that idea, but it makes me worried because you don't have a backup plan, and you're really counting on this man just staying with you forever. And statistics just don't support that.

Hold on to your wallets. Moneyrehab will be right back. I love hosting on Airbnb. It's a great way to bring in some extra cash, but I totally get it that it might sound overwhelming to start or even too complicated if, say, you want to put your summer home in Maine on Airbnb, but you live full-time in San Francisco and you can't go to Maine every time you need to change sheets for your guests or something like that. If thoughts like these have been holding you back, I have great news for you. Airbnb has launched a co-host network, which is a network of high-quality local co-hosts with Airbnb experience that can take care of your home and your guests. Co-hosts can do what you don't have time for, like managing your reservations, messaging your guests, giving support at the property, or even create your listening traveling for you. I always want to line up a reservation for my house when I'm traveling for work, but sometimes I just don't get around to it because getting ready to travel always feels like a scramble, so I don't end up making time to make my house look guest friendly.

I guess that's the best way to put it. But I'm matching with a co-host so I still make that extra cash while also making it easy on myself. Find a co-host at airbnb. Com/host. Let's be real. Your financial goals deserve more than just a quick boilerplate plan. That's where creative planning comes in. Creative planning is a wealth management firm that is all about personalized investing strategies designed to tackle your goals, not just one size fits all advice. Creative Planning can help you with your financial dreams, whether it's investing in your future, tax strategies to optimize your wealth, making a dream money retirement plan, whatever it is Creative Planning has you covered. I am such a big fan of theirs that I proudly join their team as a financial education advocate. So if you're ready to get serious about turning your financial dreams into real actionable steps, give creative planning a try. Go to creativeplanning. Com/nicole, where you fill out a form and schedule a free 15 minute conversation with a member of the creative planning team who can talk to you about your specific needs and financial dreams, and then connect you with a wealth manager.

Get started and invest in your future at creativeplanning. Com/nicole. And now for some more money rehab.

And when you were going through a divorce, it took two years? Yeah. How was it to untangle all the finances?

Oh, it was brutal. It was a nightmare. It was... Because now you're at the whim of lawyers also who... I mean, the billing situation, to me, it's criminal. They can charge whatever they want. You don't really know what's going on. And there's this discovery process where you need to wait for everybody to basically show all their cards and then eventually go in front of a judge if you don't figure it out through some. We ended up mediating, mostly because I didn't want to pay for lawyers anymore.

What was your lawyer bill?

It was at least all said and done, close to $100,000.

Damn. Yeah. And his, too?

No.

His? His I don't know why his was so much cheaper. I think maybe because he wasn't really asking questions. I do think I got screwed with my lawyers. Actually, I had one lawyer, and then all of a sudden, there was just this automated response that she had left the firm, and they gave me somebody new. What? Yeah. It was so frustrating.

I've been hearing some friends going through divorce right now are using a coach to ask questions to you or to vent to you because sometimes when you vent to lawyers or you ask them questions, it's on the clock.

It's on the clock. And sometimes they'll try to act like they're your friend, like you're having a conversation, and they almost are taking advantage of you during this very vulnerable time. They're billing you for that. Or sometimes it's an emotional time. You have an emotional response to a lot of these things, questions that you're being asked. And they are just so deadpan. They don't have... They do this every day, and they're not a therapist. They shouldn't be. They expect it to be one. But I don't know. I had a really bad experience.

They can help it at that point because you're emotional, and the whole thing is emotional, and you don't think you're on the clock.

I had a bad experience with lawyers. Sorry.

Yeah. And during the divorce agreement, I was reading that some of the settlement changes based on how much money you make?

Oh, yeah, yeah. That is true, actually. If I make over a certain amount of money, then he pays... Because we didn't do a normal child support situation. So basically, if I make over a certain amount, then what he has to give me in child support goes down a little bit. It's not very much anyway because our earnings are almost equal. And I was fine to sign off on that because I'm like, If you don't need to pay me, then I don't want your money. And some of the deal, I'm like, I just wanted to be done, and I signed off on something that I'm not thrilled about. So when I got bought out of the house, it's overtime without interest, monthly. But it's what he could do, and I wanted to be done. That was annoying.

For sure, because then you could have made it. Invest.

Yes. Yes. No, I know. And then my dad was like, That's the stupidest thing in the world that you sign that. But I needed to be done.

I needed to be out. It makes total sense. Not all of it is about money. Did you guys have a prenup?

We did not have a prenup.

Do you wish he did? No.

I don't know. I don't know if it would have changed much. It's changed how I feel about marriage. Because I never in a million years thought that finances would be one of our point of contention. It never was, ever. And that was what I liked about him the most, actually, is that he's very generous and not dingy or weird about money with all his friends and anybody in his life. But then I don't know, divorce makes things hard.

Changes it. Yeah. Does it change how you look at marriage? Would you want to get married again?

I'd want to get married again, but definitely have some agreement.

Pre-up. Pre-up, yeah.

Yeah. Just not because I'm anticipating divorce, but just...

Right. But you have car insurance, not because you're anticipating getting into a car accident. Yeah. Or you have other kinds of insurance. And you have a prenup, essentially, based on what the state says. It's just empowering to take it into your own hands or to own that conversation. I think a lot of women are nervous about having a conversation about a prenup. If you take it back and own it, you have the power, which you already got. So it's just an extension of that. What advice would you give women looking at prenup conversations? We're going through a divorce right now.

Yeah. I think if you're going through a divorce right now, it's important to zoom out your perspective and see what is actually most important. And I don't think it's trying to find that exact dollar amount that would make everything fair. The goal is to move on in your most empowered version of you. And you can't do that if you have lost sleep for a year trying to make everything as fair as possible. And that's the place that I was in. I got obsessed with the deal and what was going to be signed and the numbers, and it just made me miserable. So eventually, when all was said and done and whether... I didn't feel like everything was as equitable as it could have been, but it left me at least with enough sanity left to move forward and just focus on the future. Yeah.

It wasn't about winning anymore. It was about winning your sanity.

Yeah.

Did the process make you think differently about how you could have managed your wealth differently during those years?

Definitely. Because I think a lot of women don't realize that... I guess it's more common than not. So he paid for the mortgage, and he paid for everything that was on the books, and all my money went towards things that we didn't really keep track of, like groceries and kids' stuff. So all my money... I had no record, pretty much, of where all my money had gone. And then he had this record of, Oh, look, I paid for everything for our life for the last however many years. So that made it difficult when trying to convince a court that I had any right to equitable division. Yikes. Yeah.

You said you were dating now, and sometimes your ex looks better than Yeah. Do you remember. How has that been going?

Yeah, that was a joke. Definitely, I won't be going back anytime soon. But my dating life is just... I don't know if it's the pool of men that is just in LA, but there's some hopefuls. I think there's a nice guy out there somewhere for me. I just have not met him yet. And the people that I have met are these Peter Pan syndrome type guys who have never been married, never been in a relationship, really, and are in their There's a lot of them, at least in the West Side of LA. They're the surfer boys. But I think it's also that I'm on Raya, and in order to be on Raya, you have to be considered an artist. And they need to be like a finance guy. App. Do you have one?

I met my husband on Raya, and he's an entrepreneur.

Oh, we took the last one. Sorry.

Do you find that there are a lot of men that you're dating that are intimidated by your success?

There was one. It was really weird. There was one, and he wouldn't let me see his apartment. He wouldn't let me... He left me in a parking garage because he didn't want me to go into his apartment because he was embarrassed that it was so small. That one was bizarre. He was also younger than me. I think it's more intimidating for people that I have two kids and a big girl life rather than that I make money.

Like bigger house is nicer?

Yeah. I don't think that's usually a problem, but I think it's intimidating to people that I take care of two children, and they're alive and well.

That's amazing.

It's a badge of honor. Do you ever split on a first date?

Never. Should I? I don't think so. I don't know.

I didn't.

You know what? Sometimes I will If I don't like the guy, and I just... That's actually probably such a rude thing for me to do. But sometimes in order just to give him the hint that I'm not really into it in that way, I'll offer to pay.

Yeah, it's a way to create a boundary. Yeah. You're in the friend zone.

Yeah, exactly.

You have four siblings.

Yeah.

Who gives the best financial advice?

My sister Olivia thinks she does, and it's so annoying because her finances have... So when she won Miss Universe in 2012, she had a business manager, and she's always had a business manager ever since then. And so she thinks that she is the most financially literate because she's the richest. But no, that's not how it works. She's so annoying. She was like, You shouldn't be renting. You need to buy something. You're just throwing away money every month. I'm like, Yeah, I know that's what you think, but it's actually more complicated than that. When you think about property tax and all of the other money that you're just throwing in interest, my interest alone would probably be what my rent is right now, close to it.

Well, it's usually you pay the same amount of the purchase price and interest over the lifetime of the loan. Yeah.

So I'm not really dying to do that. Unless there's some really great deal, but you're also not getting an amazing value in Southern California for your money. I don't think so. Do you?

I think right now the inventory is really tough. And prices should be lower based on where interest rates are headed, but they're not. So prices have remained high and interest rates have remained high. Usually, they work like a seesaw.

Which means rent is also high because everybody's renting.

I mean, a lot of people also don't want to get rid of their sweet 2% mortgage that they got, and so they're not selling. Yeah. Makes sense. So tricky. So do you go to somebody else for financial advice?

I always call my dad.

That's it.

But maybe I do need to go to somebody else because he has that old-school mentality. I think the way we make money... That was one thing that I really had to get over in my head. He was always like, You build brick by brick and you show up every day, and then you put the money in here, and in 10 years, it's going to look... And the way I started making money was in no way like that at all. It was like when I felt safe in my marriage financially, and I could just take risks. And the most money I ever made on a deal was something that just came easily. It wasn't something that I built brick by brick. So I don't like that mentality.

Maybe it's time. We love dad, but maybe it's time to scoot him out of financial advisor's seat. Yeah.

I'm an independent. I know, but I'm cheap. And I'm like, I don't want to pay you to tell me what to do with my money. Because maybe it's that I don't trust them. Where are these stress issues coming from? I don't know. How much time you got? This is a whole other episode. Probably the divorce situation, all that. Now I just... I don't know. So where should I find a financial advisor who's going to tell me where to win, Beth. We'll tell you.

Okay. We'll give you some recommendations. There's fee-based and then there's flat fee. So either it's a percentage or it's a flat fee based on advice. And ideally, you're going to make more from that advice to cover the fee and then some. Yeah.

Yeah. Okay. It's a win-win. Why not?

Or just take a consultation.

Yeah. Why not? Nothing to lose. Let's do it. Nothing to lose.

Okay. Okay. Or we end our episodes by asking all of our guests for a tip that listeners can take straight to the bank. So it can be anything that you've learned through this crazy divorce process.

I think my one piece of advice would be definitely to have a prenup. And it's not personal. It is empowering, and it's to your financial safety. And then in the marriage, I also think you should be keeping track of who's spending what. Not in a tip-for-tat way, but just have a record of it because you never know.

You never know. Yeah. Have your own back.

Yeah.

Money Rehab is a production of Money News Network. I'm your host, Nicole Lappin. Money Rehab's executive producer My name is Morgan Lavoy. Our researcher is Emily Holmes. Do you need some money rehab? And let's be honest, we all do. So email us your moneyquestions, moneyrehab@moneynewsnetwork. Com, to potentially have your questions answered on the show or even have a one-on-one intervention with me, and follow us on Instagram @moneynews and TikTok @moneynewsnetwork for exclusive video content.

And lastly, thank you.

No, seriously, thank you. Thank you for listening and for investing in yourself, which is the most important investment you can make. I love hosting on Airbnb. It's a great way to bring in some extra cash. But I totally get it that it might sound overwhelming to start or even too complicated if, say, you want to put your summer home in Maine on Airbnb, but you live full-time in San Francisco and you can't go to Maine every time you need to change sheets for your guests or something like If thoughts like these have been holding you back, I have great news for you. Airbnb has launched a co-host network, which is a network of high-quality local co-hosts with Airbnb experience that can take care of your home and your guests. Co-hosts can do what you don't have time for, like managing your reservations, messaging your guests, giving support at the property, or even create your listing for you. I always want to line up a reservation for my house when I'm traveling for work, but sometimes I just don't get around to it because getting ready to travel always feels like a scramble, so I don't end up making time to make my house look guest-friendly.

I guess that's the best way to put it. But I'm matching with a co-host so I can still make that extra cash while also making it easy on myself. Find a co-host at airbnb. Com/host.