Was there an anticipation for you to take part in university formation? Did you take part in a form of university formation? If so, how did you pay for it?
I know my mother had hoped that I would go to college, but she didn’t really have the information about what it looked like financially. I got good grades and could probably have received grants based on our income status, but I didn’t know where to find them or how to apply. I took two years between High School and College, but I have a bachelor’s degree and paid it with Pell grants and student loans.
What conversations did you have about money? Have you informed your parents/legal guardians about finance?
Most of the conversations that I had with my mother about money was about how we didn’t have any. She didn’t know much about personal finances and I doubt that at a certain time of my life she ever had more than 1,000 US dollars in savings. My grandma taught me how I can compensate for a checkbook at the age of 19 (LOL) and advised me to “pay first”. I couldn’t really afford it when I was younger, but I’m definitely doing it now.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
My first job in the books was in a Fast food restaurant in my second school year. I lied about my age to be hired and nobody ever really checked? I got a job because I knew that we couldn’t afford things like promting them or new clothes from the shopping center, and I wanted to fit into my colleagues. I helped with food and things in the house when I could, and brought a lot of free meal home from work.
Have you worried about money that grew up?
Constant. I lived in fear of being driven out or not having enough food in the house or switching off the strength or water from a young age. We had no stable living space most of my childhood and I attended five different primary schools in five years. My mother was mentally ill and couldn’t work reliably. We lived from state support that did not extend very far.
Are you worried about money now?
Constant. The past year was very difficult for several reasons in my finances. In 2023 I bought a fixer finger and unexpected home repairs completely drained my savings. Last year I took out a heloc of $ 60,000 to take care of some aspiring topics, and basically everything is gone. My partner D. and I are currently doing the house for the sale of this year because we just don’t keep pace with everything this place needs and we hate living in Salem. I am worried that we cannot sell it or that we have to sell it with loss. Second, we encouraged my 3-year-old nephew for five months and the additional childcare costs were indebted. Every month we have gained a little savings to much credit card debt, only if you are for the daycare center, all the additional meals (children eat), clothing (children grow) and all the little things that nobody tell you to prepare to spend money when you have children. He was reunited with my sister last month and we are just starting to tackle the financial consequences. I have never had so little savings in my big adult life and it is terrifying that we didn’t even cover for two months if something catastrophic would happen with one of us. I pay off our credit card aggressively and received a credit offer from one of my existing cards with 0% so that I can pay for it within one year. I will feel much better as soon as the house situation is found, but it is a really scary time for me.
At what age do you become responsible for yourself financially and do you have a financial security network?
I pulled out when I was completed at 17 and since then was responsible for myself. I used to be married in a wealthy family and for a long time they were my safety net (one of the reasons why I admitted that I didn’t want to be in this marriage).
Do you have or have you ever received a passive or inherited income? If so, please explain.
When I was married, the parents of my ex US $ 12,000 gave for a deposit in our first house. We sold this house four years later and made profit of 150,000 US dollars. I went away from marriage with around $ 85,000 savings from equity in our second house. It seems so crazy to me that such a relatively small leg-up is the reason why I’m fine in life, but I think that works generational wealth. I am lucky enough to have benefited a bit from it because I get absolutely nothing from my own family, except maybe a dilapidated two -wide trailer.
