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Wisdom may come with age, but what do you do when you’re young and you could use a dose of it?
For Paris, her shot-in-the-arm came in during a reality check from personal finance YouTuber Caleb Hammer on an episode of his show, Financial Audit.
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The 20-year-old Austin, Texas native, revealed she’s on a slippery slope of overspending and has a “bad habit” of borrowing on credit cards. As she tells Hammer, she likes to “spend, spend, spend” all her income as soon as it hits her account, considers her credit card purchases an “investment” and believes grocery shopping is a “scam.”
Paris may seem like she’s destined for disaster, but Hammer believes there’s hope for her yet — if she plays her cards right.
Where is her money going?
Paris, a model and “pageant girl,” recently participated in the Miss Texas pageant. While she didn’t win, she was in the top 17, which she says will be enough to unlock new opportunities and regular modeling gigs.
However, modeling isn’t lucrative enough to sustain her living expenses. It only brings in a “couple hundred bucks a month,” as she tells Hammer. It also costs a lot.
Fortunately, she also has a full-time job as a dog kennel technician and earns $20 an hour, or $3,120 a month (pre-tax). Meanwhile, her living expenses are also low — just $848 a month in rent and $180 a month in utilities, after splitting costs with a roommate.
However Paris regularly maxes out her two credit cards — each with a $500 limit — on miscellaneous expenses related to her modeling work. She considers these expenses an investment, but wasn’t even aware that the interest rate on one of her cards was 30.49% until Hammer pointed it out.
While this is certainly a daunting financial situation for Paris, it is possible that she can get back on track and pay off her debts with ease by opting for a debt consolidation loan.
If you’re in a similar or worse predicament when it comes to digging yourself out of debt, Credible can help.
Credible’s online marketplace of vetted lenders provides personalized loan offers based on your needs and situation. This can allow you to pay off your debt more efficiently at a fixed rate so you don’t have to juggle multiple monthly bills that have different interest rates.
Gen Z loves to spend
Credit-fueled spending is unfortunately common. Gen Z (people born between 1997 and 2012) have accumulated debt at a faster pace than other generations according to data published by LendingTree. Between 2021 and 2023, this cohort’s credit card balances grew a whopping 174%.
Paris also has a fast food habit — spending more than a third of her monthly budget on eating out. Hammer recommends grocery shopping and food prepping, but she thinks that’s a “scam” because food isn’t much cheaper in stores.
Hammer believes Paris’ indulgence in credit card debt and food spending habits are risking her financial future. Luckily, Paris — and anyone else with a track record for swiping their credit card a little too frequently — can boost their financial security by putting some of that money in a safe place where it can grow, rather than be spent frivolously.
One safer option for growing your savings is to park your extra money in a high-interest account such as one offered by Wealthfront Brokerage.
Wealthfront Brokerage is a company that offers a range of financial products including cash accounts.Their high-yield cash account offers 5.00% APY, which is 10x the national average, making it a great option to help bulk up your savings for your next big purchase or in case of an emergency.
Plus, you can fund your account with as little as $1, you’ll pay no account fees, you can withdraw your money when you need to and you can do it all on their handy app.
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Of course, whether on essentials or the occasional fast food order, spending is inevitable. But it is possible to make more out of your spending using Acorns— an automated investing and savings app that simplifies the process of setting aside extra funds.
All you have to do is sign up and, link your cards and spend as you normally would. From there, Acorns will round up your purchases to the nearest dollar and invest the remaining change in a diversified portfolio for you.
All you have to do is swipe your card and Acorns will take care of the rest. Sign up now and you can get a $20 bonus investment
Building better habits
Paris admits her financial skills are mediocre at best — but she does come by it honestly. “I didn’t have many people teaching me, my mom always struggled with finances,” she says. “I just saw ‘Spend, spend, spend, as you get it… I’ve kind of just followed the pattern.”
To be fair, she isn’t in crippling debt as her credit card balances are “not a ton of money,” according to Hammer. “But this is just [bad] habit building.”
He wants Paris to change her habits before it’s too late. And even though she didn’t have much financial literacy growing up, this doesn’t mean she can’t get her money on track now with some professional help.
With Advisor.com, you can connect with professionally vetted fiduciaries, financial advisors, and financial planners in as little as three minutes and find the right match for you.
When you answer a few questions about yourself, you’ll be matched with professionally vetted advisors. Then, you can book a free consultation with no obligation to hire to amke sure they are the right advisor for you.
Like Paris, you could have peace of mind, get help with getting your finances in order and set new goals for your future.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
