Patricia Altschul revealed why she sold her house—and who bought it. The “Southern Charm” grand dame spilled the news on the season 10 episode titled “Sew Not Invited.”
In a scene set around her 83rd birthday, Altschul sat down with her son, Whitney Sudler-Smith, to go over some financial affairs. That’s when she spilled that her 56-year-old son now owns “all of this”—meaning her iconic Charleston, South Carolina estate—and that there are things he needs to “be responsible for.”
In a confessional, Altschul shared, “Several years ago, we had a meeting with our lawyers and estate planners and money manager. And they said when I kick the bucket, Whitney is gonna have to pay, I don’t know, 46 percent in [inheritance tax], or something extraordinary.”
“The house is now worth, I don’t know, $15 million or something,” she added. “So we decided that Whitney should buy the house from me and put it in his own trust.”
Patricia Altschul Went Over a Long List of Responsibilities for the House
During their family meeting, Altschul went over a list of maintenance requirements for the house, including the gardeners, landscapers, painters, electricians, furniture restorers, the pool guy, and even special lilies for the pond.
“There are a million things to keep up with an old home,” she said in the confessional.
“It’s like curating a museum without public funding,” Sudler-Smith cracked.
Fans reacted to the scene in a Reddit thread, with some commending the mother and son for talking about the estate on camera.
“I know it’s tacky to talk about money, but I actually appreciate Pat and Whitney talking about estate planning on TV! It’s an important subject and too many people are too scared of death to talk about it and then are left blindsided,” one Reddit user wrote.
“Yes! Needs to happen in every family,” another commenter agreed.
Patricia Altschul’s House is a Historic Property
Altschul lives in a famous landmark property in Charleston. According to Architectural Digest, her 9,500-square-foot mansion, named the Isaac Jenkins Mikell House, was built early 1850s. The property, located in Charleston’s Historic District, was later used as a public library and was also made into apartments. South Carolina contractor Richard Marks eventually restored the 10-bedroom home.
Speaking with Charleston Home & Design, Altschul, who previously lived in New York, revealed that she spent years looking for a new house. “It took me three years to find this house,” she shared with the outlet. “We looked at various houses and, for whatever reason nothing felt right until we found this house and it just gelled. I had been down here to Charleston three times before to look at other houses, but I would drive by this one and tell the realtor that this is the type of house I’m looking for. So, when it came on the market I bought it immediately; I didn’t have any reservations.”
Altschul noted that despite its large size, she uses the whole house. “Every room is used,” she said. “I entertain here [the drawing room], and when I’m on the house phone I go in the morning room. A lot of times when I’m reading, I’ll go in the library and have a cocktail in there. After dinner, people go in there and have after-dinner drinks and Whitney’s friends smoke cigars in there.”
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‘Southern Charm’ Star Reveals Why She Sold Her Iconic Home