1.

Lawrence Salberg
January 29th, 2007 at 1:54 pm

When are we going to stop seeing these same tired arguments? These don’t guarantee “not being poor”, and some of them are perhaps destructive.

Going to college does not in anyway make you “not poor”. For many people, who take the “go to college to be successful” mantra a bit too seriously, they end up pursuing not their dreams, but the career market, and typically wind up in way more debt than they can pay off with their whopping $33,500/year salary out of school. College should be for those who want to go - not an entitlement or some kind of career strategy. Many people are college poor after 4-5 years of school - more so if both husband and wife are paying off loans.

Owning a home isn’t necessarily a quick path to not being poor. Most people are told this advice you give at a young age and go buy a home because of that pressure - and of course, they overbuy. Few people “over-rent” because landlords and property managers don’t work on the same “quantum math” that mortgage companies do - many of whom are financially failing as you pointed out recently. And, at least in Florida, where I’ve rented successfully for 20 years (with a family - gasp!), many of my friends are struggling with their homes due to astronomical increases in insurance premiums and property taxes. Some of them literally couldn’t sell (i.e. which means “move”) if they wanted to. I can rent anywhere tomorrow. Renting isn’t always bad - and it certainly doesn’t make you poor.

And lastly, for pete’s sake, stop repeating the mantra about having children later. Children don’t cost a ton of money - except in the minds of people who don’t have any - or in the minds of weak parents who let their children run all over them. And I will tell you this assuredly: For every child who is bankrupting his parents, there are at least three other adults (single or married) who are bankrupting themselves with foolish purchases, fancy cars, clothes, and computers. Some of my single friends can’t make it paycheck to paycheck (no matter their income) because they are selfish and childish. They have to buy the new XBox 360 more desperately than an 11-year old. I’m so tired of people saying “wait to have children”. It is just a knee-jerk reaction to seeing folks who have to live below the “poverty level” (which is ridiculously high in America). Most of the time, those of us who are “not rich” made plenty of bad mistakes that caused us to still be considered “poor” by some people. Having children doesn’t cause you to be poor - and it certainly makes you rich in some other ways that money can’t buy.

Lastly, saving money is a great idea, but that is hardly ever the problem with people - it is their spending that is out of control. You want to spend $120 per week on eating out and hanging out and buying stuff and being, well, a consumer - but save $100 a month in your 401(k)? Now, that’s poor!

So, have some children (be blessed), stop wasting money, go to college if you love to learn or dream of learning a certain field, buy a home when you are ready and when you’ve settled down, save some money for a rainy day but don’t get religious about it yet (it can’t save you after all), and do not move back in with your parents - did you learn nothing at all from the movie? Your parents REALLY don’t want you there - and if they do, they don’t care about your long-term well-being. Independence is important and helps you to learn. Mom and Dad deserve some time to grow and have time to themselves.

2.

samerwriter
January 30th, 2007 at 11:31 am

I’m a bit less opposed to these ideas than the previous poster..

I think college is a great way to improve your fortunes, so long as you don’t graduate with an art history BA and a 2.0 GPA from Harvard. Pick somewhere affordable, get a marketable degree, and work two jobs in the summers to avoid going into too much debt. (I don’t mean to dump on art history majors, that’s just one of the stereotypical “unmarketable” degrees).

I’m not a huge fan of home ownership. I’ve seen statistics showing that home-owners are wealthier than non-home-owners, but I think those confuse correlation with causation. Owning a home is not cheaper than renting. People always forget to take into account landscaping costs, maintenance, insurance, and all the money spent to fill the house with furniture and decorations.

I totally agree with the savings aspect. Lawrence is right, though, that the way to savings is to keep expenses in check. I know a lot of people who save 5% - 10% of their income, but they go into debt on credit cards at a faster rate than that. Every few years they raid their savings to get out of debt, then the cycle starts again.

I’m not a big fan of moving back home. My parents told me that we were welcome to move back home with them; they would expect a rent check for 150% of the “going rate” on the first of every month. Of course they were kidding, but the message was clear. They expected us to learn to handle our own problems, and be successful without their assistance. I think that was a great lesson to learn.

3.

English Major
January 30th, 2007 at 1:34 pm

While I think the first poster may have a point with the “this may not be enough to break the cycle of poverty” argument, my real concern is the sex. Surely, you jest when you say that sex is only for those equipped for children. Planned Parenthood=birth control on sliding scale=closest thing around to free lovin’.

4.

beloml
January 31st, 2007 at 9:54 pm

I read somewhere that you need to do three things to avoid poverty: graduate from high school, don’t get married until you’re out of your teens, and don’t have children until you’re married. Makes sense to me.

5.

Myself
October 30th, 2007 at 2:43 pm

Home ownership doesn’t always work. The choices must be made entirely on a local level.
Renters can be better off depending upon their circumstances.

What to do?
1) Save 20% or more of your paycheck. Some of that should be to liquid savings/CD/MM. Some towards long-term savings (i.e. retirement.
2) Don’t pay more for your first vehicle than you can afford. In other words, don’t just get a lease because the monthly payment is lower than if you bought it outright. If you can afford a payment of $x for a vehicle (which should include insurance, gas, oil changes, etc.), then you need to purchase a vehicle that is no more than that.
3) Don’t move out of mom/dad’s house on a whim. If there is abuse of any sort, get out immediately. But if there isn’t, save up to pay most you can down on a house. If prices for houses (and their maintenance/utilities/insurance) exceed rent (along with utilities/insurance), then you should rent. Don’t forget that there is more to just renting, since you may or may not be paying utilities, and you should still carry renters insurance for your own belongings.
4) As for “wait to have children”. If you have the above taken care of (i.e. you have more coming in than going out), and you are old enough of course, then go ahead and have kids. Just don’t forget to allow for food/clothing/healthcare for the little munchkins … we have 4 ourselves.