The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice; instead, it is for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not be current. This website may contain links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser; we do not recommend or endorse the contents of any third-party sites. Readers of this website should contact their attorney, accountant or credit counselor to obtain advice with respect to their particular situation. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or not act on the basis of information on this site. Always seek personal legal, financial or credit advice for your relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney or advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client or fiduciary relationship between the reader, user, or browser and website owner, authors, contributors, contributing firms, or their respective employers.
Credit.com receives compensation for the financial products and services advertised on this site if our users apply for and sign up for any of them. Compensation is not a factor in the substantive evaluation of any product.
My parents are a couple that anyone can look up to financially — not because they drive fancy cars or have a home in Boca (spoiler: they don’t) but because they are resourceful and forward-looking with the money they earn. I’ve always known that financial responsibility is important to my parents, especially my mom. I wasn’t allowed to even borrow the car keys until I had passed the personal finance class offered at my high school. I thought it was a waste of an elective, better spent on an additional dance class, but I learned some essential truths and opened my own Roth IRA at the ripe age of 18.
The following are nine simple tips I learned from my parents, either through the back seat of the car or by being lectured, which I often returned with deeply rolled eyes. Some are specific, others broad — but all valuable.
1. It is NOT economical to buy dinner out, even at the dollar menu. To feed a family of four on the way home from soccer practice, it would cost at least $12 to feed everyone even from the dollar menu at a fast-food joint. At a grocery store you can get a rotisserie chicken ($6), green beans and carrots ($2) and potatoes for baking ($2) to bring you in at $10, plus some tax — still the same price, but more food, and better food for you.
2. A $50 Costco membership can pay for itself, especially if you need to replace your tires or update your vision prescription and order eyeglasses.
3. Make your money go further on clothing by shopping at thrift stores. If you are patient and careful, you can shop at thrift stores and get the same clothing as is sold in a department store, but for 95% less and a season later.
4. Now is the time to contribute to retirement savings.
5. Buy used cars!
6. An allowance is earned by chores, because in real life, money is earned by doing good, honest work.
7. Due to the naturally occurring event known as Murphy’s Law, you should always have an emergency fund.
9. The debt is not “yours” or “mine,” it is ours.
My parents are wonderful people with ordinary jobs in fields they love. As a couple they decided to take control of their spending and saving, it wasn’t something that just happened. Their decisions together brought them to where they are now — financially stable, continuing to save for retirement and manage their money intentionally as a team.
Main image: iStock; inset image courtesy Maggie Perkins
March 11, 2021
Personal Finance
March 1, 2021
Personal Finance
February 18, 2021
Personal Finance