Despite earning some hefty paychecks from MTV over the years, Catelynn Lowell and Tyler Baltierra have reportedly amassed more than $800,000 in tax debt.
According to The Sun, Cate and Tyler were slapped with the first of two federal tax liens in November 2019 (for the tax years of 2016 and 2017) in the amount of $535,010.97. The pair received the second federal tax lien the following month (for the tax year of 2018) in the amount of $321,789.06.
(For those of you who come from schools that “are not well,” that brings their their total to $856,800!)
(Cate reportedly received yet another tax lien in the amount of $36,422 in July 2019; however, a clerk confirmed to The Sun that particular debt has been paid off.)
What is a federal tax lien?
According to the IRS website, “a federal tax lien is the government’s legal claim against your property when you neglect or fail to pay a tax debt. The lien protects the government’s interest in all your property, including real estate, personal property and financial assets.”
Before getting to the point of having a federal tax lien placed against them, Cate and Ty would have received a bill from the IRS showing what they owed, but failed to or refused to pay it.
The next step is the IRS filing a Notice of Federal Tax Lien which alerts creditors “that the government has a legal right to your property.”
The lien basically allows the government to attach to all of their property, assets and business properties. (Hold on to those Tierra Reign leggings, guys!) To date, it does not appear that the Baltierras have a levy against them, which would allow the government to seize their property to help settle their tax debt.
“If you don’t pay or make arrangements to settle your tax debt, the IRS can levy, seize and sell any type of real or personal property that you own or have an interest in,” the website reads.
Currently, Tyler and Catelynn live in a 15-acre farmhouse that they purchased in 2017. The property’s estimated worth is around $258,000….much less than what the couple owes the IRS at this point. (From what The Ashley can tell from scouring public records, Cate and Ty are up-to-date on their property taxes, as of 2018, so there’s that…)
As The Ashley previously told you, the Teen Mom OG girls make way over $300,000 a season at this point, and Tyler— being one of the few dads who have appeared on the show from its start— makes the same amount as Catelynn. (The dads who have come to the show in later years make less money.)
“The girls [and the original guys, like Tyler] are each paid per episode,” one behind-the-scenes source tells The Ashley. “If they appear in an episode, they receive their episodic pay. No taxes are taken out of that pay, though. They get the full earned sum.”
As The Ashley has explained, because the ‘Teen Mom’ cast members are considered “independent contractors” of Viacom and not employees, they are responsible for paying their taxes quarterly, just like all independent contractors and self-employed people.
Of course, a large chunk of the ‘Teen Mom’ franchise cast hasn’t quite grasped that concept, and many have failed to pay their income and/or property taxes for years and ran into trouble with the IRS because of it.
Let’s take a look back, shall we?
In 2016, Amber Portwood was hit with a federal tax lien for the $134,919.21 she owed to the IRS.
In 2013, Kail Lowry found herself in a similar situation. She was forced to postpone her wedding to now-ex-husband Javi Marrioquin in order to pay back the thousands she owed in back taxes. (Kail has since stated that she has since hired a financial adviser and an accountant in order to avoid future tax troubles.)
Maci Bookout has also been chased down by the IRS multiple times since she started on ‘Teen Mom.’ In 2013, she was hit with a lien of $78,308, only to receive another lien in 2015 for $5,249 and a third in 2017 for $12,569.
In 2018, Maci’s ex Ryan Edwards followed her lead, reportedly owing $119,416 to the IRS.
Earlier this month, Tyler opened up about the money his daughters have made from appearing on the show. Tyler stated that he and Catelynn have trusts for each of their children, and these trusts hold the kids’ ‘Teen Mom’ earnings.
“As far as [the kids] getting compensated for the show, my kids are totally set, they’re totally set up for life,” Tyler said during an interview with the Awesome Dad show. “They’re great. College is paid for. That was mine and Catelynn’s main thing; that each of our children have trust funds that their [MTV] money goes into and they can’t touch.”
As The Ashley has previously told you, the ‘Teen Mom’ kids are paid independently from their parents, and their money is handled in different ways, based on the laws of the state each cast member lives in. Despite what many fans may think, the Coogan Act/Laws, which protect the earnings of child entertainers, is not applicable here. (The Ashley explained this in more detail in this 2015 story; scroll to the middle of the story to read about the kids’ accounts and laws.)
Like their parents, though, the kids on the shows are considered independent contractors and are responsible for paying quarterly taxes on their earned income as well.
Anyway, Catelynn and Tyler have yet to comment publicly on their newly exposed tax troubles.
RELATED STORY: Tyler Baltierra Talks About the Money His Kids Have Made From Appearing on ‘Teen Mom OG’ & Letting Them Choose to Film for the Show
(Photos: MTV; Instagram)
53 Responses
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Well, it’s not like these two have been responsible in the past. Why would anyone be surprised about this?
So….What happened to their kids clothing line? Im guessing it didn’t do well.
Soo 600k to lay around on the couch…damn i should have gotten knocked up at 16
I am just appalled. The entitlement extends far beyond anything explainable. They truly couldn’t be bothered to be financially responsible on top of having no other responsibilities in life other than couch sitting, rehabbing and vacationing. They should be ashamed of themselves. They flaunt around their undeserved lifestyle, while claiming to have worked for it all and not paying a dime in taxes. Who is lying to these kids and making them feel like nothing is expected of them? I remember Leah boasting about how hard she’s ‘worked’ to give her girls a life she didn’t have. Leah, you won the lottery and have never worked a week in your life and also newsflash- your children already have the shit life you did. Give me a break and pull this shit off the air already.
I am just appalled. The entitlement extends far beyond anything explainable. They truly couldn’t be bothered to be financially responsible on top of having no other responsibilities in life other than couch sitting, rehabbing and vacationing. They should be ashamed of themselves. They flaunt around their undeserved lifestyle, while claiming to have worked for it all and not paying a dime in taxes. Who is lying to these kids and making them feel like nothing is expected of them? I remember Leah boasting about how hard she’s ‘worked’ to give her girls a life she didn’t have. Leah, you won the lottery and have never worked a week in your life and also newsflash- your children already have the shit life you did.
I don’t foresee teen mom lasting much longer. They better hurry up and pay it off
I think the idiots honestly believe they’ll be able to leverage their “experience” in reality TV into getting other TV jobs. Tyler especially seems like he thinks he could be some kind of director or whatever.
Sorry, getting knocked up as teenagers and having your drama everywhere for the world to see doesn’t exactly set you up for actual careers.
They are absolutely screwed when this series ends. I assume they managed to pay their taxes the rest of the last 10 years but now suddenly they’re surprised they have to pay them?
Similar to Jenelle, she can’t get a job anywhere and most likely probably can’t get a job at even some place like either McDonald’s or Walmart. And every sponsorship she had leaves her/doesn’t want to be associated with her. When people like that in the spotlight there is a possible chance the future employer will see them and their actions.It’s like when this show is over and done with what are these woman going to do? How will they afford the mortgages for these million dollar houses,plus you have car payments, etc. The ratings aren’t looking as good as they used to. And don’t forget, they’ll be no more MTV helping them with their legal issues or condoning their behavior. Reality will finally set in and who knows how what that’ll do.
Uh-oh, they better put Butch to work and have him do some TikTok videos, so he can start paying them back what he owes them!
Seriously, though, stop paying for the various leeches in your life to bum around and pay your taxes! (The only stable, working role model either of them ever had was Kim.)
D-List celebrities still serve jail time for tax evasion, just ask Mike Sorrentino.
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Unbelievable! They make a TON of money and don’t pay taxes like the rest of us????? They keep buying homes, remodeling, buying new cars/trucks, take vacations but don’t pay their taxes…….
I’m just shocked that home is only worth 258K…here in MD my neighbor is about to sell her townhome for just around 250…if they have such a low mortgage and have made that much money, the IRS better rip them a new one. But it’s not like any of us expected these two gutter trashlings to do anything smart with their money. Oh wait, they rolled out overpriced shitty clothing and asked their viewers to buy them. Sadly the kids will pay the price.
” Gutter Trashlings” LMAO. I can’t believe how cheap their weird house/ farm is. You can’t even buy a studio apartment for that price where I live.
So…these 2 know they are on MTV right? They have to have heard of Mike ‘the Situation’s current tax issues and his prison time over it, right? MTV has made it the storyline of 3 seasons of Jersey Shore Family Reunion at this point.
Tyler and Cath are definitely not paying attention to the amount of TM members who have already dealt with tax issues of less money and now Mike and his prison time. They really can’t claim they had no idea they needed to pay at this point.
Y’all better figure it out or call Mike to get federal prison tips ’cause the IRS will get their money and y’all might still end up in prison.
You won’t end up in prison for not paying taxes. Maybe way down the line but Mike the situation was different. He and his brother tried to defraud the irs and filed fake tax returns.
Yeah, in this situation they will Willie Nelson them. The IRS will take anything and everything until the debt is paid. And with the stimulus package that’s going out right now, the government is gonna need to get that money back and they will be coming for it HARD in any level way they can. These two need to pay or they will lose EVERYTHING in short order. Bad time to default on your taxes. The pandemic is gonna screw them if they want to be lazy about paying that money back…like they are in every other aspect of their lives. Who wants to bet that Catelynn ends up needing a ‘rehab’ trip because she’s been forced to self isolate with her own children?
It’s always so strange to me when people with contract-based roles with traditional employers claim they didn’t know they needed to file taxes at all. Even if they didn’t feel comfortable with investments and stuff, their bank or any H&R Block style retail tax service could have set them up. I wonder if the bulk of their debt is tied to their businesses? I wouldn’t be surprised if they had found some sort of tax “loophole” and they were really just not paying their taxes.
Watch- they’re going to file for bankruptcy in 3…2…1….
They maybe ignorant enough to try that , they can’t file against owed taxes. Owning taxes even takes precedence over a foreclosure, meaning the government steps in and tells the bank sorry, this belongs to us first. The IRS can seize EVERYTHING from these two, house, cars, auction off their furniture, the horses, they can be incarcerated for this..makes one wonder how they could be so stupid to ignore it.
They can’t say they didn’t know about this. I owed like $700 once 15 years ago and I got letters in the mail every week it seemed like. I can’t imagine what your letters look like when you owe over half a million dollars!! Just irresponsible. Catelynn better start selling her horse among other things. My guess is these two help out way too many people.
Not that Catelynn and Tyler are blameless here, but this is just another way that MTV has failed these kids (and I mean the entire cast, not just these two). They’ve handed them millions of dollars over the years, knowing most of them come from nothing, and some of them have hugely dysfunctional families. They should have a stipulation in their contracts requiring that they attend mandatory therapy and financial counseling; prepare them for what they entered into. But that wouldn’t make for interesting TV.
I can see your POV but at the same time, as terrible as MTV is, it’s not their job to raise somebody else’s children, their parents failed them.
Oh no, I totally get it, and these two are more than old enough that they should know better, and they’ve been on the show long enough to know better, also. I just feel like MTV has made a lot of money off of these dysfunctional families, and the greatest gift they could give people like Tyler and Cate, or even Kailyn or Leah for that matter, would have been getting them the therapy that they need to become stable adults, since their parents all failed them in one way or another. Instead, they’ve just thrown millions of dollars their way, and watched the shit show ensue.
they are not kids
How do these morons who grew up without much not hire a financial advisor almost immediately? They don’t know how to handle money, their parents don’t know how to handle money, HIRE SOMEONE WHO DOES! These people could be set for life if they had a bit of direction, but instead they throw money around, don’t pay their taxes, and end up with nothing. Stupid.
For as long as they’ve been on this show making this kind of money, you would think they would have some sort of a financial adviser. They’re almost a MILLION in debt. Yikes! They better figure it out soon.
Oh you silly ding dong teen moms. There are only two guarantees in life-paying taxes and death. The government will get their money.
This is what happens when you give money to trash for the simple fact they can breed.
All that money and they didn’t further their education or anything lasting.
They are in for a rude awakening when this show is over. And it is going to be nasty due to current world events and plenty of people with work experience and a good work ethic also vying for jobs.
OMG!!!!!!
How TF does that happen?!!!
WOWWWW. Money rich, asset poor for sure.
How are the ratings these days?? I stopped watching a couple seasons back… I got sick of Amber’s pretend tears, furrowed eyebrows and whining cry voice…
WOW! They can forget about any new credit lines credit increases, any liens on your credit ( especially government) dings your credit scores drastically. As everyone has pointed out, it will be interesting to see what will become of them should the show end and they have no income and no credit. Cate will be in need of therapy.. locally.
I thought Ty was so smart and business savvy. Should have gone to school like you said you would in the first place dumb-ass. You might have learned something. But you were too cool for school. Loser. What are you going to do when your gravy train ends? Live off your kids’ trust funds?
Dumbasses.
I bet Tylet and Katelyn are banking on more seasons of Teen Mom to pay the bill. Have they seen how bad the ratings are?
All of these Teen Moms are about to get a harsh reality check. Both of the highest paid Teen Moms (Farrah and Jenelle) went broke after they were fired. They were living paycheck to paycheck. This show is so boring. No one wants to watch 30 yr olds raise their preteens. All of the women bought houses like they were Barbie Dream Homes good luck keeping up a $700,000 mortgage with a lower middle class income.
Lololol so much for living within their means… I sure hope that they payed taxes for their daughters’ trust funds, but if Tyler and Cait owe that much, those trust funds will probably be gone so that Cait and Tyler can pay their own debt… the IRS does not play around.
These people make $600,000+ a year. I wouldn’teven know what to do with that kind of money. Well, I would pay my taxes that’s for sure.
The fact that these two accumulated enough wealth to own this much in taxes kind of disgusts me. Also, are you telling me no one from the organization hiring these two mental midgets explained how taxing income works? No more glamorous therapy, horses, new tits for your sister, last minute Hawaii vacations to tell each other they still love each other and Taylor’s not gay.
stay lit
How do you make millions in untaxed income per year and NOT have an accountant?
Clearly affordability isn’t an issue. You’ve had a decade to get your shit together. I know if either I or other people who work multiple jobs to survive had access to this kind of money we wouldn’t be spending it on therapy horses and botched house flippings ?
They are so freaking stupid and entitled to do this for several years with the kind of money they make – it’s criminal. It’s like they haven’t grown/matured a day since TM started. And I agree they had to have known.
Maybe they will realize who they are messing with when Uncle Sam starts garnishing their MTV paychecks. The ignorance of these people is truly astounding.
Side note- there’s no way they didn’t know about this. One year my husband & I filed jointly and they didn’t take enough taxes out. The IRS sent us about 13663 letters saying we owed them and they wanted their money ASAP. I can only imagine the force they use when collecting on over $800k.
This is what happens when you give a lot of money to a bunch of young people. They spend it and don’t understand what it means to paying taxes. None of them will stop filming. It’s like body cares to give their kids privacy and the kids are a few years away from being they age the cast started when they were pregnant. Just sad.
how pathetic cate was all I’m on amber’s side then realizes her friend is an abuser and now its triggering her time for another vacation right cate? same with wamber she knows how bad she screwed up so she “faints” please same old same old she needs to be back in jail
They owe 2(2019 2020) more years. OMFG!!!
Cate and Ty are the only couple that are still together. The only couple making $800,000 WTF have they done with all the money?? I said this multiple times. I don’t understand what they are doing with all the money they’re making. 10 years on this show and they have nothing to show for it.
Who bought million dollar houses?
No sympathy at all for them. Me and everyone reading this make far less than them and work much harder (I’m working from home for now but it’s actual work) and you’d better believe I pay my taxes on time. Theirs is a similar situation to professional athletes who get paid boatloads of money and are broke within two or three years due to their financial immaturity/ignorance. Tyler and Caitlin have at least one new car every single season, they buy houses without even going in them, act like junior Dr. Drew’s by sending folks to all kinds of rehab and in her case going to rehab/therapy at a spa on the other side of the country at the drop of a dime. These two are so ill-equipped for the real world it’s appalling. Without this show they will have no way to support themselves, their kids and the local addict population.
Not surprised one bit. They have never had any idea what there doing. Cancel this show and they are absolutely screwed.
I have a question, if and when the show is cancelled what is going to happen to these women. Every season they’re going on vacation, buying million dollar houses, brand new cars, etc. etc. It’s like what’s going to happen to them as soon as MTV decides to take the show off the air.
They end up like Jenelle, shilling cameos and desperate tiktoks.
Any money Tyler and Kate managed to save will pay their tax debt. I doubt they have saved $800,000 and I doubt Teen Mom OG will get another season. Their rating sucks this season.Even while people are locked in the house we ain’t watching Teen Mom.
Tyler is so obnoxious. If they cancel this show after this season, that’s when the real film worth drama will start.