'I have no one': Tarek El Moussa on why filming his new show 'Flipping 101' without ex-wife Christina Anstead was not easy
Tarek El Moussa is a trusted name in the real estate world and he brings with him years of experience, top-notch design sense and financially-sane advice, more of which we'll get to see in his solo show 'Flipping 101 w/ Tarek El Moussa'.
This is a fresh diversion from the kind of content he has been creating for 'Flip or Flop,' an HGTV home renovation show that he co-hosts with ex-wife Christina Anstead.
'Flip or Flop' put Tarek on the reality TV scene, gave him fame and name. The show has been running successfully since April 2013 and is set to return for its ninth season in August 2020.
For 'Flipping 101,' Tarek will be on board as a mentor for novice flippers, help them navigate their way through construction, budgeting and selling homes. It's not going to be an easy ride because this time he doesn't have a partner by his side.
However, there's definitely a lot to learn from someone who has 500 successful flips to his credit. "I’m going to show them how to take the worst of the worst and make a mountain of money turning their homes into the best on the block," he told HGTV.
However, the pressure of filming without Christina was quite a bit and what made it more difficult were the newbies who had limited experience with regard to being on the screen.
"Well you know, on 'Flip or Flop' I had my costar, my ex-wife Christina, and we really got each other [and] helped each other. We have on-screen chemistry and we've worked together for a very long time. Then I go to 'Flipping 101' and I have no one and I have no partners," House Beautiful quoted the reality TV star as saying.
Tarek and Christina had filed for divorce in 2016 and officially split by 2018 ending their marriage of seven years. The former couple shares two kids — nine-year-old Taylor and four-year-old Brayden.
Even though they have moved on from their marriage, the children keep them and their friendship together and that explains how they have managed to seamlessly work on 'Flip or Flop'.
However, that doesn't mean it was easy for both of them. Tarek said he cried every day and credited Taylor, his daughter, for helping him tide over it.
"She would just hold me and hug me, and she reminded me everything was going to be OK. And she was right, everything's OK," he told US Weekly. Meanwhile, Christina moved from Yorba Linda to Newport Beach just to be closer with the kids.
In other news, Tarek has been dating Heather Rae Young since the summer of 2018 and has even introduced her to his kids. Christina too has moved on to the next chapter of her life with Ant Anstead in December 2018 when the couple officially married in a secret wedding in Newport Beach.
'Flipping 101 w/ Tarek El Moussa' premieres on March 5 at 9 pm/8c on HGTV.