Loan payments: $425 car payment; $1,500 truck payment (we pay well above the monthly payment to pay it off quicker).
Daycare: $815 (we have a subsidy through my husband’s work that pays for over half the cost).
Phone: $80 (I get an $80 stipend from work that covers my half).
Electric: $300 (12-month average).
Internet: $80
Utilities: $110
Roth IRAs: $1,080
529 College Fund: $300
Gas: $100
Subscriptions: $25 (various media).
Donations: $100
Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
No expectation from my family but there was peer pressure. My friends in high school came from far more affluent families than mine. I was ashamed of my background and did everything I could to keep up with them. Senior year when they all started looking at colleges, I did everything in my power to keep my grades sky-high and join clubs and organizations to beef up my college applications. I went to a state college and a few years after graduating I got my MBA. During undergrad I had at least two jobs at any given time and paid for the majority of school with scholarships and out of pocket. I graduated with $9,000 in student loans. I paid that off over the course of three years and then paid for my MBA out of pocket.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s)/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
Money was a hot-button issue in my house. I was privy to conversations I probably shouldn’t have been. My parents were not good with money and relied mainly on social welfare programs, churches and my grandparents and extended family to support them. I was constantly stressed about shoes and clothes not fitting and being afraid to ask for new ones, having to move for the umpteenth time because we couldn’t make rent, not being included in school functions because we couldn’t afford the cost, etc. And no, my parents did not educate me about finances other than “debt is bad.”
What was your first job and why did you get it?
My first under-the-table job, I was 14 and I was hired to do some filing for the bookkeeper my older sister worked for as an office assistant. I made $200 a week (for 40 hours of work), which I thought was amazing. My parents let me keep half of it (see above re: They were not good with money). I spent my earnings on school clothes. I got my first “real” job at 15 and a half, working in the fitting room at a department store.
Did you worry about money growing up?
Very much so. Way too much for a child.
Do you worry about money now?
I wouldn’t use the word “worry.” I’m easily employable with high earning power and my husband’s job is extremely stable. We live well, well beneath our means. My considerations regarding money center around when I can retire. I would like to do that sooner rather than later.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
When I turned 18 my mom started charging me rent. I didn’t have a job at the time because I was still in high school and taking every AP course I could to try to save money in college, so she was showing me the door. I moved in with my older boyfriend but the joke was on me: I didn’t have the money to pay for the AP tests so I couldn’t get the college credit anyway. I would say I have a safety net that my husband and I have worked hard to create. If I lost my job tomorrow, we’d need to make some adjustments but we could live comfortably on his salary alone while I evaluated my options. I feel extremely fortunate to be in that position.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
No.