Pay up! Flip or Flop star Tarek El Moussa is seeking spousal support from his estranged wife, Christina El Moussa, TMZ reported on Tuesday, January 10, citing court documents.
Tarek filed for divorce from Christina on Monday, January 9, a month after the couple announced they had separated following seven years of marriage. In the divorce papers, Tarek cites irreconcilable differences as his reason for ending the union, TMZ reported.
According to the site, Tarek is asking for joint custody of the former couple’s two children, daughter Taylor, 6, and son Brayden, 16 months. He is also reportedly asking Christina to pay him spousal support and has asked the judge to block her from collecting money from him.
Despite the reported request, a source told TMZ the real estate agents plan to continue their HGTV reality series, saying, “It’s civilized, or as best it can be under the circumstances. They have to make it work if they want to continue monetizing what they do.”
As previously reported, Tarek and Christina confirmed their separation in a statement to Us Weekly in December. “Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage,” they said. “We had an unfortunate misunderstanding about six months ago, and the police were called to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence and no charges were filed. We chose to get counseling to sort out our relationship. Together, we have decided to separate while we reevaluate the future of our marriage. During this process, we are committed to our kids and being the best parents we can be. We will continue to work through this process civilly and cooperatively, and plan to continue our professional life together.”
The statement came after Orange County authorities were called to the pair’s home in May 2016 in response to a “possibly suicidal male with a gun.” Christina’s friend told police she saw Tarek grab a handgun from his safe before heading outside toward nearby hiking trails. He claimed he took the weapon as a precautionary measure to protect himself from “mountain lions and rattlesnakes.”
Since their separation, Tarek and Christina have been coparenting their kids and started dating other people. Christina has been linked to a family contractor, while Tarek had a brief fling with their former nanny.
