"I take full accountability": The Valley star Nia Sanchez apologizes for comments about unhoused people

The Valley star Nia Sanchez publicly apologized at BravoCon 2025 after facing backlash for comments she made about unhoused people in a since-deleted Instagram Story.

During the show’s panel on Friday, Nov. 14, Sanchez addressed the controversy directly, describing her regret as immediate and profound.

Her apology followed widespread criticism earlier in the week after she described a park as “infested” with “unhoused people,” prompting conversations online and among viewers about the remark.

The Valley star addresses controversy onstage.

Sanchez, 35, took the microphone during The Valley panel and acknowledged the comments without hesitation.

“Thank you, first of all, for asking that question,” she said from the stage. “I figured it might come up, and I am grateful for the opportunity to address it here. Anybody that reached out to me on social media, I responded to every single message, and even people that commented, I went and reached out to them as well.”

She went on to describe her reaction after realizing the video's impact. 

“There’s no excuse,” she said. “I was completely mortified that those words even came out of my mouth. It’s not an excuse. It was a crazy day. And I vented in a way that I don’t normally speak, and then posted it publicly, which was like, ‘What was I even thinking?’”

Sanchez repeated multiple times that the remarks did not reflect her true feelings and expressed that she understood why viewers were upset. 

“That’s not how I feel, and I spoke out of a moment of overwhelm and frustration, and feeling a bit unsafe, but that’s not an excuse,” she said. “So, I do deeply regret it, and I should not have used those words. And I’m grateful that you gave me the opportunity to apologize again publicly, because it’s not okay. So, I take full accountability, and I should have never said those words.”

Her apology comes at a critical moment for The Valley, which recently wrapped Season 3's filming.

Cast members, including Sanchez, appeared at BravoCon to discuss the upcoming season, new storylines and the addition of new cast members.

The series is set to welcome Vanderpump Rules alums Tom Schwartz and Lala Kent as full-time cast members, further expanding the Bravo crossover appeal.

During the panel, Sanchez also connected the controversy to her own lived experiences.

She previously opened up about her childhood during Season 2 of The Valley.

“I was homeless with my mom when I was kid,” she said. “We were living in a shelter; we slept on couches; we pitched tents in people’s backyards; we had to go to parks and get cans out of trash cans to pay rent.”

She also spoke about the years of instability she faced, even as an adult. 

“I’ve had times that I’ve slept in my own car as an adult,” she said. “I had a job, but I had to sleep in my car in the parking lot where I worked.”

In a confessional from The Valley’s previous season, Sanchez described one of the more painful memories tied to that period of her life.

She recalled the experience of “waking up to a security guard” telling her to leave the parking lot. She described the moment as “mortifying” and added,

“Life has not been easy. But that’s okay because it’s made me strong.”

While Season 3 of The Valley has wrapped production, the panel did not include a confirmed premiere date. Cast members teased new story threads, expanded family dynamics and additional Bravo crossovers.

BravoCon 2025 continues through Sunday, Nov. 16, at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas.

Stay tuned for more updates.