The 24 year-old Olsen Twins may be richer than small countries with their merchandising deals and fashion line but they’re not spreading the wealth to their dad. The National Enquirer reports this week that the father of the uber-rich ragamuffins, David Olsen, has filed for bankruptcy. David divorced Mary Kate and Ashley’s mom in 1996 to marry his then-secretary, with whom he has two children, Taylor, 14, and Jake, 12. Things don’t seem to be working out for David financially. Daddy Olsen’s home is in foreclosure to the tune of 2.2 million, and he’s had to resort to bankruptcy to settle his debt with the bank.
Despite his twin daughters’ billion-dollar empire, the father of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen has filed for bankruptcy, the Enquirer has learned exclusively.
Shocking legal documents show David Olsen and his wife McKenzie have a home in foreclosure, which is scheduled to be auctioned off next months.
The papers, obtained by The Enquirer, reveal the stars’ dad owes the bank a whopping $2,195,281.54 on his Tarzana, CA home.
“Unless his mega-rich daughters come to the rescure, their father and their stepmother will lose their home on July 9,” a family friend told The Enquirer…
“David almost lost his home in 2009 because he had several tax liens but managed to borrow enough money to cover them. But he’s behind on mortgage payments and won’t be able to stop the auction unless he gets his hands on two million dollars.”
[From The National Enquirer, print edition, July 5, 2010]
In 2007, Forbes estimated that Mary Kate and Ashley were worth $100 million, and that’s undoubtedly increased. The two have their own company, started in 1993 (when they were 7), through which they put out merchandise. They currently have a girls’ clothing and makeup line with Walmart along with a juniors’ line at JcPenney and two higher end women’s fashion lines called Elizabeth and James and The Row.
Compared to many of their contemporaries, Ashley and Mary-Kate are doing very well for themselves both financially and in their personal lives, although you wouldn’t know from looking at them. It’s refreshing to hear about child stars who were allowed to take control of their wealth and who haven’t gone off the rails. On the other hand it’s strange that that their dad is struggling and they haven’t bailed him out. We don’t know much of the background there and maybe he doesn’t want their help.
I don’t think they were 17 in 1993…
@Jaisy – you’re right they were 7! I’ll fix that typo.
JaisyMaisy, you’re right, they were were 17 in 2003.
As far as Dad is concerned, he left their mother to marry the secretary. Apparently, the twins did not attend the wedding.
Betcha anything there’s a history of sexual abuse there.
they’re team mom.
And so it goes. His kids are worth about a billion, but the small business people and taxpayers will be left holding the bag for his financial irresponsibility.
You think maybe the daughters would feel some obligation to cover his debt and not leave it to the rest of us?
They are businesspeople and taxpayers too, so they pay for it as well, I reckon.
Besides, their father is a grown man who should be able to face his own problems and I don’t see how it’s their obligation to cover his debt when they are not close.
I was going to comment how great they looked in that top photo, and how it was the first time in a long time they didn’t looked like hobos. …..Then I realized it was from 1994.
They are such cute girls, I wish they would get that sour look off their faces…. and some eye makeup remover.
if he were being held responsible, fine. But he’s not. Current bankruptcy laws provide an actual incentive to claim bankruptcy. The main victims of the current laws are the people who’ve done business with the debtor, and secondarily the general public.
Remember JFK’s inspirational words: “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.”
The point is, this country has been kind to the Olsen kids….what about them stepping up? It doesn’t mean they’re on his team, just that they don’t allow an unfair burden to be heaped on nameless, faceless folks who simply cannot afford more debts to cover.
Would you want to financially support your father if he abandoned your family? He was an adult before they were and now he is paying the consequences!
Those girls are kooky and have some issues, but for the most part, they seem OK.
Since their parents are the ones who started their careers and made them worth what they are, I could see helping their dad out, even if things are bad between them. Or who knows, maybe they’ve given him money in the past and he just blows it? Or maybe he completely abandoned the whole family and they’re done with him.
I remember reading something about his wedding way back when. He was grumbling something about the twins having to “stay at home and babysit their mother” – or some other snide remark – instead of attending the wedding.
I cannot help but love the Olsen twins. I know they are considered little dirty hobo trolls by a lot of people, especially in the US. But they’ve got some great style that just doesn’t suit their petite frames very well (euphemism) from time to time (euphemism bis).
Their fashion lines sell very well and are of great quality and well cut. They’ve expanded and even included a jewellery collection.
deedee: the top picture of them posing with their father is not from 1994 but from 2004 (I might be off a year, it could be 2005) when they received a Walk of Fame star (or whatever those stars in the pavement are called). It was then that Mary-Kate hit her absolute low regarding her weight. It took her quite some years to fight off anorexia but both twins seem very healthy now.
As for their father, I’m not sure they’re very close with him and it wouldn’t surprise me if they didn’t. The cliché “dad ran off with his secretary” family story is not really one that ensures great longlasting father-children relationships.
He might not even have asked them for help.
I’m not sure I’d feel obligated to pay off my father’s debt when he’d been cheating on my mother and had 2 kids with another woman. Could be I’d feel a bit bitter.
I think the top picture is from 2004 when they got their star on the Walk of Fame. That was also when everyone realized that Mary-Kate had gotten really really thin.
Those mona lisa smiles are creepy.
why should they have to “step up” for something they had nothing to do with? i see no reason for them to bail out a cheating scumbag who left their mother just so some “average joe” can feel better about paying taxes…lol too funny.
How is this possible? His daughter’s are billionaires. If it were my dad, I’d bail him out, even if he did dump my mom. C’mon let’s face it, that’s chump change to them. Life goes on, he’s your father for God’s sake.
Wow. I guess personal responsibility is no longer in fashion in the United States. So many people ready to lynch adult children for refusing to financially cover the craptastic behavior of the parent.
No adult child is responsible for the debts of a parent or vice versa. This is an obvious piece of information.
I also wonder why it is a wealthy child’s responsibility to have to pay any parent out of debt.
Did the parent purposely spent money they knew they did not have?
Nearly everyone of these stories have the same background. And normally the adult child is giving the parent a substantial amount of cash yearly to the parent. One can call it a “allowance”.
I would be curious if they already paid him out many times and decided this time he is on his own. And you have to realize there must be ungodly amount of money owed on credit cards too.
Look at what is happening in the whole Micheal Jackson issue. He had a Father that felt that he was owed a free ride by his adult child. And for that matter so did all of Micheal’s brothers.
When did it become mandatory for a wealthy relative to be the sole money earner and become financially responsible to maintain the wealth of the entire family.
I recall just a year or so ago Oprah Winfrey’s Mother had a 100K debt to a dress shop. That the dress shop was having to sue her to try to recover the debt. A debt the Mother had ran up in less than 12 months.
So no I don’t believe the Olsen’s, in their horrible fitting clothes, should be responsible for his debt. He is old enough to know cash management skills and purposely over spent. His problem.
I wonder what he does for a living that would enable him to live in a 2.2 million dollar mansion in the first place??? I have a feeling they may have helped him out at some point. I agree with Mighty Mouse..he is an adult and they have no responsibility to bail him out. If the story was that he needed money for medical reasons or something like that it would be different. Maybe it is time the guy moved into a house he can afford.
Once again today Gatsby, you’ve said what I’ve thought all along—I, too think there was some sort of sexual abuse; not necessarily by the father but by someone. MK shows some of the classic symptoms of it, including the anorexia and wearing clothing that is unflattering and too big, as if to hide her body. Of course I could be wrong, but I really don’t think I am.
About their father; if MY dad had left my mom for the secretary and he had the nerve to make snide remarks about my missing the wedding to hold my mother’s hand? I’d probably go to the auction, buy the house and burn it down.
Something tells me their father isn’t exactly the most upstanding person and they aren’t close. For all we know, he’s squandered money they gave him. Eh, he’s an adult, should be responsible for his own problems and not expect a free ride, yes, like Michael Jackson’s dad. THERE’s a piece of work. So sad that Micheal’s wishes aren’t being respected. He so clearly did not want his father to have anything or be a part of anything of his.
What’s interesting about all of this is that the Olsen’s relative stability (for child stars) has always been credited to their parents having raised them as normally as possible. At least when they were very young, they had allowances, bedtimes, limited TV, etc. They didn’t have access to their millions. Funny how their parents managed to instill responsibility in these children under such extreme circumstances, and yet can be completely irresponsible in their own dealings!
I don’t really have an opinion on whether they should bail him out. I tend to agree with those who have suggested that it was only through their support that he got a $2.2 mm house in the first place. Maybe they bought it for him and he mortgaged it to pay taxes, other debts – if I GAVE someone a $2.2mm house, I sure as hell wouldn’t want to pay $4mm for it in the end.
Usually people who can’t manage money or live within their means don’t learn anything if someone else bails them out. They go right back to over spending and are back in the same boat within a year or two. Maybe if he has to deal with this himself he will hopefully learn his lesson and start being responsible.
yeah man, hes an adult. they’re his financial problems, not theirs. its not on them in the least. I would have skipped my dads cliche wedding to the secretary too….lame.
Hmm maybe theres a Lindsay-Michael Lohan feud between the girls and their dad. I wouldnt imagine them not helping them out unless they have a reason. Overall, I love the Olsen Twins. They’re not attention whores and just beautiful! I hope they do more acting.
I think it’s good the Olsens don’t put their private life out there for public consumption. No Ones buisness.
When I bought my house they said I qualified for way more than I wanted to pay. I knew what I could afford in monthly payments & stuck with it. If I had gone bigger like they suggested I’d no longer have my home.
We’re talking 2.2 MILLION DOLLARS. I don’t care how much money I had, if my parent needed that much money for anything other than a life-saving treatment, I wouldn’t give it to them.
I’d be embarrassed if I were them.
if you do the math, sounds like the secretary was pregnant when they got married. hmm.
it’s not the olsen’s job to bail their dad out. if he almost faced foreclosure before, he should’ve done something like downsize to prevent it from happening again.
To the people who think they need to bail him out–are you the same people who grumble over parents taking advantage of their child stars’ money, and the only reason any of those parents have anything is cuz of their kids?
Their dad has money, and they have theirs. He’s a grown man and should know something about handling his finances. I almost wanna give him props for NOT asking them for help…shows that he knows its HIS mistake and he’s not gonna pressure his children to help him. I’m sure they’ll help him if all he needs is 2mil…2% of their net worth? I don’t think they’re that heartless to leave him out to suffer
It’s always sad when a famous child cuts off a parent’s allowance. 😀
I have waited on Mary Kate many times in the past when they were living in NYC, and she is a horrible little troll with no connection to what normal people would consider reality. I suppose that’s to be expected, considering that their lives have never had much contact with relaity in general.
But, what’s really odd about Mary Kate being such a gremlin, is that her sister was always fairly nice. Also, although Ashely is skinny too, she never looked like a walking skeleton the way Mary Kate did.
Mary Kate used to regularly place orders through a body guard or assistant, even though I could hear her relay the order just fine myself. No joke. She would be three feet away from me and tell the assistant “tell the girl I want my latte with skim milk”.
I have no doubt these girls went through some trauma when they were younger, especially Mary Kate. She was always coming in with men who were much older than she was and always seemed completely detached from real life. If I didn’t have so many memories of wanting to slap her, I would almost feel sorry for her.
Definitely NOT saying they should or shouldn’t help their dad, but he did manage their earlier career and it was his friend that later became the girls manager. I guess that would make their dad at least a little responsible for their careers.
I don’t know what their relationship is with their dad, but if it was at least decent, I would help.
He is (was?) a mortgage banker. Being broke may not have been because he was frivilous….
You think maybe the daughters would feel some obligation to cover his debt and not leave it to the rest of us?
____________
Why? I’m reading that some people are saying that he in part managed their careers for a bit. Well then, he reaped the benefits of that at that time. He’s not entitled to anything from his daughters at this stage.
PRUUUUUUUUNE
Where did all this talk of sexual abuse come from?! First i’ve heard of it. Anorexia and hobo inspired clothing are not grounds for sexual abuse accusations.
@detriotgirl – If I were waiting on her she would not be getting skim milk, not unless she requested it to my face!
If he filed for bankruptcy protection, he’s not going to lose his house on July 9th (the “family friend” notwithstanding). The lender has to get approval from the court to foreclose, which takes many months.
Growing up, they all lived in a fairly modest place in Sherman Oaks, west of Coldwater.
I never really like these twins and I think their behavior is completely selfish.
Their father brought them into this world and no matter what happened between him and their mom, they should help him out.
Let the twins buy the house at auction where they will save quite a bit. Then RENT it back to their dad. Now he will be under their thumb, the tax payers will save money and the Banks will finally get some of their dog doo back.
@ Aspie
Correction- their mother who bore them and carried them enabled them to be in this world. Hence, you can see why they sided with their mother who was cheated on by the dad who was just the donor.
First – did dad buy the house valued at 2.2M right after he left the girls or yrs later when they gained control of their money – second – did dad get the loan off the “girls” name hoping they would be there for him if needed. I lived next to a father of a pro football player in our modest homes (son didn’t buy him anything after he left to let mom raise him) which is how it should be. He wasn’t responsible back then why are they responsible for him now.
There is an old saying, “He made his bed, now lie in it!” Why should his daughters bail him out? BE real! His daughters have no obligation to his debts that he and his secretary accumulated! If they enable him again he will repeat the process, guaranteed!
Well, I had my comment all ready – but Ronaldo nailed it!
I fail to understand why it’s the twins’ responsibility or obligation to bail their father out (regardless of family issues) when he creates his own financial mess? Ronaldo’s right – if they bail him out, he’ll just keep living above his means expecting a handout.
Not helping doesn’t make them mean, it shows that they have common sense, business sense, and understand the value of a dollar and the way moochers live.
DetRiotgirl, I really enjoyed your post. How people treat waitstaff is an indication of their true character. I would have wanted to slap MK too for that kind of behavior.
MONEY is more important than family!! this fucking hell we live in!!
They may be rich…
But they look like the Gruesome Twosome.
No one NEEDS a multi million dollar home.
Time to downsize daddy, and see if your secretary stays with you without your first abandoned family’s paychecks.
The dad has more issues than these waifs.
I find it funny you are forgetting the money he earned over the years from them. They (both their parents) took a percentage of all their earnings for eighteen years. They had the right to use the money they couldn’t take that was put in a trust to buy things they deemed necessary for the children.
They were entitled to 15 percent of their wealth and then the explained concessions. If you look at the houses they had you can see where the money went. The ‘family holidays’ they had in addition when they would go to expensive hotels at their expense.
You are also forgetting they sold shares in the company when they turned 18. They would have generated income from those shares in addition to the 15 percent they could take from the children. They received 18 million for the sales of the share each. This was in 2004 so how can someone spend 18 million plus rack up 2 million in debt in six years. Five years is the true period if the story a year ago is correct.
He must of had tens is not hundreds of millions from them over his life time. The year he left their family they made a film which they were paid a million plus that was nearly twenty years ago. They also got $150,000 an episode for full house in the final few series. So you are talking about an income for him of $11,250 per episode twenty times four or so. Just with that one series not including the shows and the adverts and the videos he would have earned one or two million and that would be like four or five now. They did other series and films. They would have had an income for years of millions for nothing. Also they were only getting scale pay the first series because they got a lawyer to bump it up. They were to dumb to make sure they got more money themselves.
He must of had one or two hundred million over the years (look at the parents houses, the holidays, the cars etc). That does not include the increase in property value over period and the interest on earnings. The thing you have to ask is how could someone who did nothing to earn the money spend so much in such a short period of time.
I don’t think I could spend that much. Even if he spent loads of money if he just left some of it in the bank he would have generated interest (enough for ten households to live off). He must have spent it as soon as he got it.
It is just unbelievable.