The filing also contains details of the huge cost of her divorce and other expenses. The scale of her spending over the past 18 months is staggering. She paid Belafonte $422,500 in spousal support and contributions to his legal fees in 2017. She also paid $58,339 on a private investigator, $63,325 on meals and entertainment, $49,162 on medical bills, and $120,805.87 on travel expenses. The upkeep on her Hollywood home cost $42,549 in 2017 and a bit over $21,000 for the first half of 2018. She has paid nearly $1.1 million on lawyer fees so far and still owes almost $800,000 to several attorneys and forensic accountants. She owes her current attorney and accountant a combined $184,000. The 43-year-old also has $100,000 of credit card debt. She also pays $9,072 a month on school for her kids, $5,000 for her oldest daughter’s rent, $5,544 on childcare costs, and gives $3,217 a month to charitable causes. Mel B. spent $12,2447 on cars and $5,918 on flowers. Mel and Belafonte also owe the IRS $838,854 in back taxes for 2016. Her 2017 tax liability is estimated to be $1 million. The filing reveals that the California Franchise Tax Board is set to garnish her wages for the 2016 back taxes. The FTB has also filed a lien against her Hollywood home due to nonpayment. Mel estimates her current earnings are $250,269 a month—this includes investment income and income from her company, Purple Owl, Inc. However, 2017 tells a different story where her income is concerned. In her profit and loss statement from 2017, Mel says she made $26,445 from her company and that for the first six months of 2018, she has made $11,181,54. Her biggest source of income for 2017 was the $250,000 she received in child support from Eddie Murphy. She’s received $125,000 from him for the first half of 2018. Mel claims that she finished 2017 in debt. Her total expenses were $3,510,292. She earned $276,445. That leaves her more than $3.2 million in the red. Mel’s current assets include nearly $76,000 in the bank and the $6.5 million Hollywood house she owns with Belafonte. The former couple still owes $3.1 million on the house, so if it sells at the asking price, they would get nearly $3.4 million. Mel divulged her financial woes to the court after Belafonte asked the court to force her to pay him more than $1 million towards his legal fees, accountant fees, and child support. Mel did not hold back in her declaration. She called out Belafonte for not supporting himself, writing: Mel pays all of the bills on their Hollywood Hills home. In her declaration, she also wrote: Belafonte also filed his own income and expense declaration. He claims to make no money at all other than the $15,000 he receives in spousal support. His monthly expenses are $18,000, which includes $2,000 on entertainment, gifts, and vacation, $1,500 on eating out, and $1,500 on clothes. He has spent nearly $225,000 on lawyer fees and still owes $701,000 to his legal team and $70,000 to a forensic accountant. The former couple’s house is on the market. Selling it will alleviate some debt. However, they will owe about $800,000 in capital gains taxes when the house sells. The former couple has no agreement in place on who is going to pay those taxes. Pre-nups are a good thing, people.
