[6] Spencer grew up in the New York suburb of Garden City, Long Island,[2] the daughter of Richard Ernest and Carolyn von Seelen.

[7] She attended Pennsylvania State University on an athletic scholarship[7] for springboard and platform diving and was a nationally ranked competitive diver.

[3] Spencer married former CNNfn journalist David Haffenreffer on September 30, 2000, at St. Andrew's Dune Church in an Episcopal ceremony.

[19] Spencer was the creator and executive producer of the prime time game show, It's Worth What?, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, which aired during the summer of 2011 on NBC.

[21] Spencer's first book, I Brake for Yard Sales, a guide on how to create high-end looking rooms using secondhand finds, was published and released in April 2012.

[22] She replaced Brooke Burke-Charvet and co-hosted the 87th Miss America pageant at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey with Chris Harrison on September 15, 2013.

[25] In August 2019, Spencer's comments about six-year-old Prince George of Cambridge enjoying ballet classes (among other hobbies) were interpreted by some as offensive, causing public backlash.