The Bachelor season 28 ended with Joey Graziadei and Kelsey Anderson getting engaged, but there are signs that he has financial problems that may hurt the relationship. 28-year-old Joey was no stranger to looking for love on national television, as he made his television debut during Charity Lawson's season of The Bachelorette. He made it to the final two, but Charity gave her final rose to Dotun Olubeko, sending a devastated Joey home all alone. Joey didn't have to lick his wounds for very long, because he was soon cast as The Bachelor. After having his heart broken by Charity, he walked into the process with doubts about whether he'd find the right woman. His biggest fear was that he'd fall for someone who didn't reciprocate his feelings.
On night one of The Bachelor season 28, Joey greeted 32 hopeful women, including 26-year-old Kelsey. After a full season of dates and drama, Joey gave his final rose, his heart, and a Neil Lane diamond engagement ring to Kelsey. Then, the pair rode off into the sunset together. Soon after going public with their relationship, the couple ran into financial trouble. Joey was a tennis pro and Kelsey was a junior project manager, but they were both too busy making Bachelor appearances to keep working their jobs. The couple lived on credit cards while growing massive social media followings. These days, Joey and Kelsey are prominent social media influencers with large followings, but there are still signs that Joey may be struggling financially.
Kelsey Wouldn't Let Joey Buy A Harley-Davidson Motorcycle
He Couldn't Afford It
Since cameras stopped rolling after The Bachelor season 28, Joey and Kelsey have been mostly focused on growing their careers as lifestyle social media influencers. They've been busy attending all sorts of glamorous events. In August, Joey and Kelsey attended a St. Jude's charity auction and posted about it on Joey's Instagram account.
" Kelsey wouldn't let me buy the Harley," wrote Joey, followed by a crying-laughing emoji.
Though it's possible that Kelsey stopped Joey from buying the motorcycle because she was worried about his safety, it's just as likely that she didn't want him spending money on a motorcycle. If there's one thing that Joey can be sure of, it's that Kelsey isn't with him for his money. That being said, if he continues to insist on making bad financial decisions, he could lose Kelsey forever.
7Joey Missed A Credit Card Payment
It Hurt His Credit Score
In June 2024, Joey and Kelsey appeared on the Trading Secrets podcast, where Joey revealed he missed a payment on his credit card while filming The Bachelor 28. Joey claimed that he had used one of his credit cards to make a small $100 online purchase, which he simply forgot to pay off. “I was at 730, and I went on the show and I had a payment from a credit card that I didn’t answer for two and a half months,” Joey said.
“I dropped, like, 80 points.”
Joey said that he was shocked to come home after filming The Bachelor 28, to find that his credit score had tanked. “I was like, ‘I can’t even get into an apartment building.’ Jesus.” Joey isn't the first Bachelor franchise contestant to struggle financially while filming the show. Not being able to work while in production creates a considerable financial hardship for many Bachelor stars, and Joey is no exception.
6Joey Bought A Car That He Probably Couldn't Afford
Brand-New Toyota SUV
After making their disturbing financial disclosures on the Trading Secrets podcast, things started to look up for Joey financially. After enduring weeks of public criticism of his financial decisions, Joeybought a brand-new car and posted the photos on Instagram. In the photos, a beaming Joey poses alongside his brand-new Toyota SUV, and even loads up his golf gear.
Joey's caption reads, " Can’t have a golf weekend without a ride that can hold your gear ."
After Joey complained publicly about his credit score taking a hit, it was surprising that Joey was able to buy a car. If his credit score was really that low, the car dealer probably gave him the car at a very high interest rate, which means that his car payments are very high. Once car insurance and other upkeep is factored in, Joey's purchase is a big recurring expense.
5Kelsey Got A New Job
She Quit Her Job As A Junior Project Manager
Joey's finances may have been in a questionable place, and Kelsey's weren't much better. During the same Trading Secrets podcast, Kelsey revealed that she quit her job as a junior project manager, and was mostly traveling around with Joey. To be sure, many women choose to stay home and raise families, and that's a perfectly valid choice for females to make. This, however, does not appear to be what Kelsey is doing, as she explicitly said that she intends to return to work someday. She went so far as to say that she was relying on Joey financially, and Joey said that they were currently living on four credit cards. Since then, their influencer careers have taken off, so it's unlikely that Kelsey will ever go back to her office job.
4Joey May Be On Dancing With The Stars To Make Money
Dancing For His Supper
In addition to building his social media empire, Joey's competing on Dancing With The Stars. Though he's doing well on the show, his involvement has caused trouble in his relationship with Kelsey. His passionate dancing with his partner, Jenna Johnson, has led to speculations about Kelsey's jealousy, which she has vehemently denied.
Though being on DWTS has caused problems in his relationship, it's possible that Joey's doing it because he needs the money.
There is no grand prize on Dancing With The Stars, but celebrities are paid a salary for appearing on the show. Though ABC has never publicly confirmed how much they pay the contestants, several sources, including Parade, report that the starting salary for celebrities starts at about $125K. They're paid for their time training, and they earn more the further they get in the competition.
3Joey Said He's Not "Broke"
But Maybe There's More To The Story
Both Joey and Kelsey have repeatedly insisted that Joey isn't broke, and it's possible that they're telling the truth. Their financial standing has certainly improved dramatically since they left The Bachelor season 28, so it's entirely possible that Joey has solved his financial boondoggle. Frankly, it's hard to tell. Though Joey and Kelsey have gone on lavish vacations and attended music festivals since their time on the show, it's hard to know how much of it they're paying for.
Joey has 858K Instagram followers and 327K TikTok followers, while Kelsey boasts 747K Instagram followers and 531K TikTok followers.
Like many influencers with such big followings, they get many things for free, in exchange for advertising on their social media platforms. Even Joey and Kelsey's engagement shoot was sponsored by the photographer. However, their celebrity lifestyles don't go far to prove that Joey's in a good place financially.
2Joey Never Has His Own Apartment
He's A Professional Couch Surfer
Once The Bachelor season 28 finished airing, Joey and Kelsey went public with their relationship, and they wanted to live together right away. Between appearing on Charity's season of The Bachelorette and his installment of The Bachelor, Joey had been living with his sister. After going public with their relationship, Kelsey asks Joey to move in with her. At the time, Kelsey shared an apartment with several other female roommates in New Orleans, and Joey agreed to move in. Since they were traveling so much, the set-up worked for them. These days, they're living in Los Angeles while Joey competes on DWTS. Joey is basically a professional couch-surfer who hasn't had his own apartment in ages. If he doesn't put down some roots soon, Kelsey could lose patience with her fiancé, which might lead to a breakup.
1They Never Seem To Get Married
Weddings Are Expensive
Everyone knows how expensive weddings can be, and that may explain why Joey and Kelsey haven't set a date yet. The Bachelor season 28 finished filming in November 2023, which is when Joey asked Kelsey to marry him. More than ten months have passed since Joey and Kelsey got engaged, but a wedding date still hasn't been set.
Though it's entirely possible that the wedding is being postponed due to financial considerations, there's no question that ABC would be thrilled to foot the bill for a nationally televised wedding.
That being said, if Joey can't afford to give Kelsey a proper wedding, he probably isn't ready to settle down with her anytime soon. Kelsey has also made it clear that she wants as many children as possible, and the only thing more expensive than weddings, is children. If The Bachelor doesn't act quickly to get his financial house in order, he may risk losing Kelsey for good.
