‘Teen Mom’ Star Leah Messer Owes More Than $779K in Unpaid Taxes After Being Handed $290K Lien

Teen Mom star Leah Messer owes over $779,147.46 in unpaid taxes to the federal government after being hit with a new $290,000 lien, In Touch can confirm. 

According to online records viewed by In Touch, the MTV star, 31, was handed a new lien from the federal government’s West Virginia jurisdiction on May 8, 2023, for $290,297.00. The filling is the most recent of six, with the full amount owed being $779,147.46. The liens were filed in 2014, 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2023, according to the West Virginia County Clerk’s Office. 

The MTV star’s major financial woes could be one of the reasons Leah’s name wasn’t on the deed of the home her ex-fiancé, Jaylan Mobley, purchased for the couple back in March 2022. 

According to the deed, which was recorded on March 31, 2022, Jaylan, 25, was the only person listed as the owner of the home, even though he referred to the new residence as “ours” with Leah in an Instagram post following the purchase.

​​“Proud to be a first-time homeowner!” the U.S. Army officer captioned a series of photos and videos showing off the gorgeous brick home on April 1, 2022. “I am so thankful and blessed and still speechless to own this home. Surprise! @leahmesser. I’m proud of you for selling your first home, and so, I wanted to surprise you with a new home, our home.”

In Touch later confirmed that Jaylan received assistance through a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs program, a.k.a. a VA loan, for the full purchase price. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website, no down payment was needed for a VA loan “as long as the sales price isn’t higher than the home’s appraised value.”

Following the couple’s October 2022 split, a source exclusively told In Touch that Jaylan “pocketed” the money that the Hope, Grace & Faith author gave him for a down payment on their former shared home. 

“He had told Leah he needed a down payment on the house, and I’m 99 percent sure she now knows there was no down payment on the house,” an insider close to the former couple explained. “I’m sure 100 percent how it went down because I don’t think Leah knows.”

Leah and Jaylan moved into the stunning Colonial-style home together with her three daughters – she shares twins Aleeah and Aliannah with ex-husband Corey Simms and daughter Addie with ex-husband Jeremy Calvert – shortly after their March 2022 announcement. Six months later, Leah and Jaylan got engaged on their one-year anniversary trip to Costa Rica. However, they ultimately split in October 2022 just two months after the Georgia Tech student’s proposal.

The U.S. Sun was the first to report the news.