Amanda Batula’s decision to move out of the apartment she shared with Kyle Cooke while filming In The City marked a major first in her life.
“I’ve never lived by myself before,” Amanda revealed in an Episode 2 confessional. “The last apartment I looked for before moving in with Kyle, our budget was, like, next to nothing. We were looking for, like, a two-closet apartment, you know? Not even a two-bedroom. Just, like, give us two closets.”
With Lindsay Hubbard by her side, Amanda went on the hunt for a temporary new place to live in New York City. In a separate producer interview, she detailed the qualities that were on her wish list for her very first solo apartment.
RELATED: Kyle Cooke Reveals How He Really Feels About Amanda Batula Moving Out Before They Split
“I’m trying to find somewhere that’s, like, furnished, month to month, [has] outdoor space, is pet friendly, with a doorman, and has sunlight,” she said. “I want to wake up with the sun beating on my face where I leave my house in the morning and I have sunburn.”
At the same time, however, Amanda admitted that she “hates change so much,” recalling how, in her younger years, she had once handcuffed herself to the cast-iron railings in her family home because the parents wanted to replace them with wooden ones. “But at this point, whatever I’m doing has not been enough, and I need to make a bigger change,” she added. “And it’s scary.”
How Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke were feeling amid their trial separation
As scary as it was for her to venture into uncharted territory prior to their eventual split announcement in January 2026, Amanda also described feeling a weight being lifted off of her shoulders as she packed up some of her belongings.
“After dropping the news to Kyle and, like, making the decision to move out, I feel lighter,” she explained in a confessional interview. “I feel good about this decision. I feel like this could be what we need to potentially save this relationship.”
RELATED: Why Amanda Batula Moved Into a Hotel After Summer House Season 10 Wrapped Filming
That said, Amanda accused Kyle of being even “more excited” for her to leave than she was. He insisted that was not the case, however, telling his wife, “That’s the opposite of how I think this has felt.” As she reminded him, “I mean, we’re trying to figure this out, right? Spending some time apart, but, like, courting each other and dating again.”
Kyle responded, “We knew something drastic needed to happen; I don’t think we knew what. Therapy wasn’t necessarily giving us everything we needed. Look, I think there was a side of me, I felt like we could’ve kept on continuing and playing this, like, broken record. So I give you props for confronting this, like, head-on.”
Why Kyle Cooke was skeptical that Amanda Batula’s “drastic” move would help their marriage
Even so, Kyle continued to express skepticism that Amanda moving out was the key to repairing their crumbling marriage, including during a boys’ night with his castmates during In The City‘s May 26 episode.
“I’m trying to be receptive and open-minded about the kind of drastic measures that we need to take to try to figure out if we’re meant to be,” Kyle told the guys. “There are times where I think Amanda’s already given up and she’s just waiting for me to do something stupid, so she can officially end it. Now, she’s telling me she wants to move out of the apartment. She keeps talking about, like, this is for a month… or two.”
Later, he added in a confessional, “You know, Amanda, she’s moving out. But we’re not separated; we’re just creating separation. But it’s confusing. This is foreign territory. I don’t know how I’m supposed to act. It’s still hard to believe this is happening.”
After Amanda informed Kyle of her decision to move out during the series premiere, Kyle also previously remarked to a producer, “I’m just trying to embrace this idea and be supportive. It feels extreme, and I’m not sold on this being the solution. I’ve never heard of a couple physically separating, but not “separating,” and using that as a tool to get back together. But maybe this is what we need.”
In the meantime, don’t miss why Amanda paid Kyle $117,000 before she moved out last fall.
