Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner

Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner in happier timesGetty Images

  • Kevin Costner scored an early legal victory in his divorce case with his estranged spouse.

  • Christine Baumgartner must move out of their shared Santa Barbara compound by the end of July.

  • Baumgartner had asked for a delay to August 15, citing child support and rental market concerns.

Kevin Costner’s estranged wife was ordered to move out of their shared home of by the end of July, in an early legal victory for the “Yellowstone” actor amid an acrimonious divorce battle.

At a hearing in Santa Barbara on Wednesday, Judge Thomas Anderle ruled that Costner’s ex Christine Baumgartner must move out of their shared compound by the end of July, rejecting her request to delay the move until August 15.

Baumgartner’s attorneys argued that their client needed the extra time because of the over-saturation of the Santa Barbara rental market, and the “extreme disparity” in the child support amount offered by Costner compared to the amount requested by Baumgartner.

Cotner appeared virtually at the hearing, and Baumgartner appeared in person, wearing a modest long sleeve patterned pink blouse, black slacks, open toe kitten heels, with her hair half back.

The couple were married for close to 20 years before Baumgartner filed for divorce in May, with the pair citing irreconcilable differences.

Throughout the last few weeks in the acrimonious case, Baumgartner claimed that Costner has low-balled her with a $30,000 a month child support offer, and has also canceled a credit card, leaving her with limited funds as a stay- at-home mom with no income. In filings this week, Costner said that he imposed the limits after Baumgartner used the cards to spend $45,000 for a Los Angeles-based lawyer and $40,000 for her Santa Barbara-based attorneys.

They share three children, Cayden, 14, Hayes, 14 and Grace, 13. In court documents, Baumgartner has claimed that she needs the $248,000 a month to help support the luxe life that the children are accustomed to.

According to Zillow, the median rent in Santa Barbara is $6,200, with less than 300 available rentals. By comparison, the median rent in California is $2,900, per Zillow.

In previous filings, Baumgartner has said she has no assets other than $50,000 in her checking account. Baumgartner claimed that Costner made $19 million last year, and covered all of the families $6.6 million in expenses.

After Baumgartner filed for divorce last month, Costner filed a motion to evict her from their marital home, citing a clause in their prenuptial agreement which allegedly gave her 30 days to move out after divorce proceedings began.

The “Yellowstone” actor also claimed that he paid his estranged spouse $1 million for a new house, offering to pay the mortgage, insurance, and taxes for a year, per court documents.

Baumgartner accused Costner of trying to move her and the children out of the house before a child support order was in place, which he has denied.

“Kevin wants me to rent a place without a financial plan in place,” Baumgartner said in a June 28 declaration. “However, I have our three children to think about. It is contrary to their best interests to commit to a rental that I may not be able to afford, particularly as that would ultimately lead to multiple relocations.”

Read the original article on Insider



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