Jessel Taank Addresses Rumors She Moved to NYC to Be on RHONY: "A Different Opportunity"

The Real Housewives of New York City’s Jessel Taank is willing to pay top dollar to send her children to the same school as Tom Cruise’s kids, as learned this season. But is that the only reason Jessel is now in NYC?

Some people questioned Jessel's New York cred after the infamous Tribeca comment, but the London-raised mother of two is shutting any rumors down, as seen in the first half of the RHONY Season 14 reunion.

Jessel’s move to NYC, explained

Reunion host Andy Cohen addressed rumors that Jessel and her husband, Pavit Randhawa, moved their family across the country to be closer to where the new season of RHONY was. Fans writing in questioned why she rented a luxurious apartment in Manhattan’s Chelsea while still owning a home in Dallas, Texas.

Jessel said she “moved to New York for the opportunity,” clarifying that it wasn’t for the opportunity to be on the series but “the opportunity to be closer to my family, for my work.”

Photo: Clifton Prescod Photo Assist: Jocelyn Prescod

She added that filming RHONY was “a different opportunity.”

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Erin Lichy and Sai De Silva didn’t appear all that convinced, even after Jessel explained that she lived in New York for about a decade before moving to Los Angeles.

“And then Pavit started a company in Dallas, so it was a landing pad,” Jessel explained in the reunion. “We still have a home there.”

When Andy asked how long she’d been back in the Empire State, she said it had been almost a year and a half, which “seems to be when we were casting the show,” according to Andy.

It’s not the first time Jessel had to defend her move to NYC.

In September 2023, when speaking with Today, Jessel addressed social media chatter about the move.

“It’s really funny how upset and aggravated people got about that,” said Jessel. “Look, I moved here in 2006. I met my husband here, I started my career here, and we lived here for almost a decade.”

Jessel clarified that Pavit was originally from L.A. (where their twins  Kai and Rio were born) and that New York was “more of a middle ground” so her parents wouldn’t have to make the 12-hour flight from the U.K. to see their grandchildren.

“When I had the twins, it was really hard for me because my family was in London,” Jessel explained. “The minute you have kids, all you want is to be close to your mom; you want the support of your family… we were actively making a decision to move back to New York.”

Does Jessel have a house in Dallas?

In the meantime, the married couple temporarily moved to Dallas as Pavit started his business. They purchased a home, which Pavit visits about once a month, Jessel told Today.

“He’s very much integrated into his business there, and he needs a pad there; that’s all it was,” said the Housewife. “But we live in New York, and the kids go to school in New York.”

But for Brynn Whitfield at the RHONY Season 14 reunion, the math wasn’t mathing, as Andy put it.

“Look, even if you did — I personally don’t think that you did — I think if it’s something like I’ve had with opportunities, where it’s like, ‘OK, there’s this, or I’ve moved for love,’ and then there’s just other things that make it an add-on and make it better," she said.

Erin agreed with Brynn’s statements, as Jessel continued to double down on what she’d previously said: that after giving birth to the boys in L.A., she “needed to be closer” to her parents in England.

“Why not move to London?” asked Andy.

Jessel said that was “T.B.D.,” as in to be determined.

It could be an opportunity if ever there was a Real Housewives franchise based in London, the host pointed out.

“Pavit and I are very nomadic,” said Jessel. “We love to move around.”

Catch up on The Real Housewives of New York City now on Bravo and Peacock.