Judge orders Denise Richards, estranged husband evicted from luxury home after $84K rent dispute
A judge quietly ordered the eviction of reality TV star Denise Richards and her estranged husband, Aaron Phypers, from their California home after the two failed to respond to their landlord's lawsuit.
Landlord John Karan sued the estranged couple in November, accusing the pair of failing to pay $84,000 in rent.
Richards and Phypers lost their Calabasas home in the simplest way possible – by not showing up. Richards and Phypers were properly served but failed to answer or appear within the legal deadline, leading the court to award exclusive possession of the home to Karan.
According to the lawsuit, the couple was seven months behind on payments for a luxury Calabasas home they leased in 2020. Phypers and Richards signed a lease for the six-bedroom, 6,985-square-foot home for $12,000 a month.
Karan initially asked the judge to evict the former couple and order daily damages of $400 until the home was vacated and the keys were returned.
Richards has not lived at the property since 2023, after moving into her own residence.
However, the reality TV star reportedly continued to pay the bills while Phypers and his family remained in the home.
Phypers has allegedly been begging friends for money as he attempts to navigate the financial distress. "My financial situation gets worse by the day," he wrote in the documents filed in his divorce from Richards. "My pickup truck, which is now my only vehicle, is subject to repossession. I am in danger of eviction at any time. I am begging friends for money to have food to eat."
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Richards and Phypers have been locked in their own legal battle as the pair are on their way to finalizing a divorce. Phypers filed for divorce from Richards on July 7. He cited irreconcilable differences and is seeking spousal support from the "Real Housewives" star. Ten days later, Richards' initial request for a temporary restraining order was granted.
The "Melrose Place" star's request for a permanent restraining order was granted in November.
The permanent restraining order expires on Nov. 7, 2030. Richards requested the permanent restraining order against her estranged husband after he allegedly shared private text messages and photos of the former "Real Housewives" star online.
"It's pretty classic domestic violence from my perspective," the judge said while handing down the ruling. "I think that it's really pretty clear that you can't take private things and throw them out into the world like that without potential consequences. There can't possibly be a defense that her peace can't be disturbed because she had an OF page and did Playboy. That’s not a defense."
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Phypers was also arrested in court on spousal abuse charges stemming from two separate incidents in 2017 and 2022, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
Fox News Digital was in court when Phypers was handcuffed.
Fox News Digital's Tracy Wright contributed to this report.