‘Sister Wives’: Is Kody Brown’s Unhinged Behavior Because His Biggest Fear Has Come True?

As more teasers drop for Sister Wives Season 19, Kody Brown has become more unhinged than ever. His behavior toward Meri, Christine, and Janelle Brown remains tense. He has even turned on his favorite wife, Robyn Brown. Thus, will this be the most challenging season to watch of the TLC series as it appears Kody Brown’s biggest fear has come true?

Kody Brown’s fear of poverty drives his behavior

As season 19 of Sister Wives unfolds, the Browns are a family in crisis. Three out of four of Kody Brown’s marriages have collapsed. It appears there are issues in his marriage to Robyn Brown.

As the season begins, the family is more splintered than ever. The sudden death of Kody and Janelle’s son Garrison Brown adds to the splintering. From the outside, it appears that things couldn’t get any worse for the Browns.

Then, the unthinkable happened. Kody and Robyn Brown, the only married adults remaining in Flagstaff, Arizona, have listed their home for sale. Speculation runs rampant as to why the couple has decided to uproot their lives after years of investing in homes and property.

Could it be that the Kody viewers will see this season that everything he has worked for throughout the show’s 18 seasons has fallen apart? Perhaps his biggest fear become a reality.

During the season 17 tell-all, Kody Brown told show host Sukanya Krishnan that “poverty” scares him. That’s because the family lived without for years prior to signing on for Sister Wives.

Selling his and Robyn’s home may be a way to recoup the cash he’s lost since his other wives have moved on, taking their TLC paychecks with them.

Kody and the Brown family netted a hefty sum over 19 seasons of ‘Sister Wives’

Historically, it has been reported that TLC paid Kody Brown and his four wives well throughout the 18 seasons of Sister Wives.

E! News reported in 2009 that reality families, such as the Duggars, pocketed around $25,000 to $40,000 per episode. That rate was for a show that, at the time, was new to TLC. As the show grew in popularity, the income the family generated per episode likely increased.

Sister Wives debuted in 2010, about a year after that article was published. Even if their pay per episode wasn’t increased (and it likely was), and each season ran upwards of 10 to 14 installments, at $40,000 per, the Browns were being paid anywhere from $400,000 to $560,000 per season. Add that over 19 seasons, and the family likely netted upwards of $9 million.

That amount was supposedly divided between five adults as the children did not get paid. The family did admit more than once in the series that all their money was pooled. Therefore, there should have been enough for each family member and their children to live comfortably.

However, as each wife moved on and likely negotiated their own TLC contracts and are now paid individually from the network, Kody and Robyn lost a significant chunk of their family pot. Kody and Robyn could be selling their home because they can’t afford it anymore.

Kody and Robyn Brown haven’t revealed why they are selling their home in Flagstaff

The Zillow listing of Kody and Robyn’s Flagstaff, Arizona home surprised Sister Wives viewers. Some of the show’s followers believe the couple has significant paybacks to settle with certain family members.

In a Reddit post, Meri and Janelle Brown were cited as two Brown family members who should be paid back for the equity they reportedly used to help Robyn and Kody buy their Flagstaff home. Here’s what fans had to say.

“I hate that they stand to make 700K on it if it sells at that price. Every penny should go back to Janelle, who cashed out her 401K to help pay for it, and Meri, who was clearly the primary breadwinner for a long time,” wrote one viewer.

A second penned, “Hopefully, Janelle and Meri lawyered up to get their investments back, and the Bobbsey Twins need to give them their share. I sure do hope Janelle and Meri get their money back. And yes, K and R needed the other wives’ income to pay for this purple palace.”

“I cannot believe they had Janelle living in an apartment and a trailer while Robyn and Kody lived in that giant house. I thought I couldn’t hate them more,” blasted a third Redditor.

Finally, a fourth viewer shared, “Kody clearly needed everyone’s ‘income’ to make this house work – and now that the cash flow has stopped, they’ve gotta downsize. What a mess.”

Sister Wives Season 19 debuts Sunday, Sept. 15, on TLC at 10 p.m. ET.