Taylor Swift’s New Gig: Sophie Turner’s Landlord? And Other Celebrity Real Estate News
In our biweekly breakdown of what’s happening with famous people’s homes: A Barbara Walters estate sale will offer millions in belongings from her Upper East Side apartment, and Drake suggests he’s relocating to a Texas ranch.
For the past two weeks, Taylor Swift has dominated the celebrity (and sports) news headlines. Her recent appearances at two Kansas City Chiefs games have been the subject of countless articles, video clips, NFL commercials, and TikTok explainers. The only story that has come close to giving us a reprieve is that of Sophie Turner’s divorce from Joe Jonas, and, wouldn’t you know, Taylor Swift is involved in that one, too. The pop star made headlines after taking Turner out to dinner in New York City, and is now reportedly letting her stay in her spare apartment. Let’s get into that, and a few other fresh pieces of celebrity home news.
Page Six was the first to report that Sophie Turner is crashing in Swift’s spare Tribeca apartment. The Game of Thrones star will stay there while going through her very public and very contentious divorce from Joe Jonas, accompanied by their two young daughters. Swift, who also previously dated Joe Jonas (it’s fine), owns the apartment as an investment property, and apparently loaned it to Turner after the pair were seen, on a few occasions, dining together in the city. Swift owns multiple properties on the same block in Tribeca (three units in the same building and an adjacent townhouse) and, from the photos, this looks like the one Swift was fined $3,010 for leaving trash outside of over the summer. Seems like she polished it up real nice for Turner, though.
The grizzliest part of the Turner and Jonas divorce is the subject of custody, and where the former spouses are going to raise their children. Jonas wants to keep them in the United States, while Turner says the family always intended to live in the United Kingdom. To support her claim, she submitted to the court a letter Jonas wrote in June to the owner of an estate in Wallingford, Oxford, regarding his hope to purchase their property. "When my wife and I decided we were going to spend more time in the U.K. and search for a permanent home, our daughter expressed three unwavering requirements: having chickens, a pony, and a Wendy house," the letter says in part. "We could tell that your family have truly loved living here and we can envision our children growing up here and making this our forever home." Jonas goes on to praise the home’s "charming blue shutters" and lake access. While it seems pretty clear the family intended to live there full-time, an unnamed People magazine source says—not so fast. "They did not buy the house. The house is in escrow, the sale never closed," the source claims. "They have never been residents of the U.K.... There is no place the family lived for six months or longer other than Florida." Lord, please don’t make this poor woman live in Florida.
Now, onto something not Taylor Swift related, if you can believe such a thing exists. Rumor has it Drake purchased a ranch in Houston, Texas, complete with 10 horses. Whispers started after the Toronto native reportedly posted and deleted an Instagram video showing his followers around what looked like an expansive Texas ranch while driving in a golf cart and speaking in a fake Southern drawl. "The sale is made, for sure," he says in the video, which was later reposted by the X account HipHopDX. A week earlier, Drake made an onstage announcement during his Houston concert: "I finally, finally after all these years, found me a place in Houston, Texas. So, y’all will be seeing me around." But where? The location of the ranch—if he did indeed buy a ranch—is still unknown. According to the Real Deal, however, ranches in that area often go for many millions. YOLO, indeed.
If you’re looking for a ranch-warming gift for Drake, maybe consider something a different celebrity used to own. According to the New York Times, major auction houses are hoping to use the allure of celebrity memorabilia to boost plummeting art sales, with auctions from Elton John and the estate of Barbara Walters, as well as iconic photographs of Madonna. The upcoming Walters estate sale from Bonhams will offer items from the Upper East Side home where she lived for three decades, like cutlery, her engagement ring, and Oscar de la Renta gowns, but also museum-worthy art pieces, like Egyptian Woman (Coin Necklace) from celebrated portrait painter John Singer Sargent. That piece is estimated to sell for around $1.2 to $1.8 million. I think Drake would love it.
To close, I have a question: Are you mourning the death of summer, particularly with regard to your home garden staples—tomatoes and strawberries, and so on? Queer Eye favorite Jonathan Van Ness isn’t. In an Instagram post shared at the end of September, Van Ness gave followers a "gardening gorgosity" update. (For those unaware, these video tours of JVN and husband Mark London’s home garden are a thematic staple of the Fab Five member’s Instagram.) Unfortunately, the couple’s okra has "shit its pants," but their cucumbers, peppers, and tomatillos are still going strong, and the pair are going to add a greenhouse for year-round gardening. A little bit of inspiration for all of the aspiring home micro-farmers out there.
Top photos courtesy (clockwise from top left): Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images; Fairchild Archive/Penske Media via Getty Images; Amy Sussman/Getty Images
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