5 *QUIET* and *SURPRISING* Middle Class Habits Keeping You Broke | FRUGAL & MONEY

[@williamclark1244]

My sister calls me cheap all the time. Why I don't know. I only buy what I need, live within my means, donate instead of shop, buy quality over quantity (from a wish list and on sale if possible), I cook at home and take lunch to work when in office and have reduced a ton of debt. I would call that making good money decisions and not being cheap.

[@robyn_southafrica]

My family do the same thing 😮‍💨

[@thebrokenwallet]

What you described is my definition of making good money decisions!

[@myaccount9498]

Your Sister may be jealous of your self discipline!

[@jehan9]

Many people laughed at me for bringing lunch and making my own coffee. I've now surpassed them in career and now I am on track to hit 1M when I reache 40 🙏🏼 You have to do you! It will all pay off!

[@thomaschew2191]

@@jehan9 One of my broke friends informs me on a regular basis that his home has a market value of $750K which is considerably less than our net worth but he doesn't know that. All he knows is that I bring lunch to work and drive an old car so he assumes that we don't know anything about handling our money. Anyway, my friend with the $750K home that he owes $480K on has refinanced twice and is currently five years into a 40 year mortgage which he may never pay off. Not my problem but his real estate taxes are 3 times what I pay on my paid off home and we have more than his $750K in investments and savings but all he knows is he lives in a big house and he and his wife drive leased 2024 cars both with 3rd row seating.

[@TimelordUK]

I'd be really upset and angry if someone bought me a gift when they can't afford it. Make me a card, write me a funny poem, say you'll treat me to a coffee together when you are more able. That's enough xx

[@misssophiamae]

Complete agreement. Oddly enough, my broke friends who never have money for retirement, don’t have an emergency fund etc. also go to expensive concerts, take vacations, all that. I’ve always had a hard time stomaching a concert if I don’t have cash for the next car repair. Benefits of being boring!

[@SherryEllesson]

The gift-giving point brought up a memory from a few years ago. I was working a 2nd job in retail (a really nice store) and one of the young women who was pregnant was given a baby shower. My 2nd job was specifically for extraordinarily high utility (heating) bills, so I had little to spare. I put together a little basket with baby care essentials, like shampoo, powder, diaper rash cream, things like that. On the day of the shower, she opened my gift and looked as though she was insulted. I was mortified, but not as much as she was months later, the day she was escorted out by Security and the Police for having shoplifted...from the store she was working at!!!

[@cynthiamurphy3669]

Had to laugh at this one. My elderly aunt was recently aggravated at being invited to a "reveal" shower held by her great-granddaughter (by marriage) for a second child. This girl is a very well-employed nurse who had reserved a big room at a local rec center, decorated the place, bought a huge cake and also had invited family on both sides and all her coworkers (mostly nurses) in the hospital where she worked. She is also a top seller for Mary K Cosmetics, lol. (In other words, she and her hubby do very well financially and don't need any "gifts"). Turns out only two people showed up and none of her coworkers. Her own mother told her she thought it was ridiculous but to no avail.

[@VBoo459]

Thats crazy because what you put together is exactly what she actually would need. I would've greatly appreciated this!

[@haute03]

@@cynthiamurphy3669 That's wild! I honestly feel like social media has raised society's expectations of what a celebration should look like. I remember helping to plan a baby shower for my best friend years ago. All of us were strained financially (most of us were in grad school and some of her old college friends were working minimum wage jobs) and I pitched having an intimate gathering in my mother's home who thinks of my friend as another daughter and wanted to contribute. We discussed providing some home cooked and store brought foods (e.g., platters), playing games, providing a nice cake, and decorating my mom's large living room with some nice decorations. Unfortunately, her college friends decided that wasn't good enough and rented out a banquet room at a hotel, complete with a ballon arc and backdrop for photo ops, table decor, catered food, a dessert table, etc. It was absolutely absurd considering we knew they couldn't afford it. It's wild what people will do for optics! I would bet all the money in my retirement fund that it took them months to pay it off.

[@patrick7228]

Another habit keeping middle-class people broke: refusing to create artificial scarcity. You make 40K to 50K a year as an example, but you can't put 10% away. I don't believe it. If that same job only paid you 36K or 45K you would find a way.

[@kenyonbissett3512]

Very true! They wouldn’t like it but would survive, maybe even thrive.

[@cynthiamurphy3669]

As an old lady of 70, I want to testify that the "friends" you have now most probably will not be the same folks you call friends as you get older. Most people my age I've talked to have admitted this to me. For one thing, you may outlive most of them (I have, which never fails to surprise me), including two best friends. If you end up in a nursing home, those closest to you may be your caretakers, maybe one or two family members and maybe a few folks you know from church, if you attend one faithfully - maybe. Sad but true and gives you something to think about, I hope. I definitely saw this when taking care of my mom with Alzheimer's after my dad died back in 2003 (she passed in 2018). Lord knows what you worry about when young definitely changes as you get older. I say just don't worry so much about what friends and coworkers think if at all possible.

[@ajbee4706]

Wise words!

[@biblioholic7139]

Looking broke is the GOAL so you can avoid people leeching off of you rather than conspicuous consumption making it look like you can afford to be taken advantage of. Also, no one with a personal electronic device (smartphone, tablet, computer) with which they can write a KZbin comment is broke, poor maybe, but not broke.

[@kenyonbissett3512]

Clean, neat and classic works just fine.

[@9krzymieniecki]

I understand some people who feel the need to "appear wealthy", but you can be happy while not spending much money too. Such as exploring/caring for your local area, community work, exercise, etc.

[@middlechamber3574]

I've found that MOST people who don't have an EmFund have not taken the time to look at their finances carefully. They look with without writing it down...or tracking their spending. Just tracking your spending could reveal $100-$200 in unnecessary spending that could start that EmFund.

[@thebrokenwallet]

I agree. Granted, some people might legitimately be unable to save much. But for others, I’m willing to bet that a 30 day no spend challenge would reveal how much they’re spending unnecessarily each month.

[@kenyonbissett3512]

I have a much loved relative who is really bad with spending. It’s sad. Clears $65k tax free and SS free, is single and still lives on the edge.

[@AnaViolinViola]

I have only one thing to say- everything I have now is because of the many years living frugally… Frugality is the only way for low/modest earners to have some sort of freedom

[@Chnacatsnflr]

Complacency is lethal to a frugal mindset. We're only limited by our self-imposed excuses.

[@alicem1111]

❤ The gift one is difficult, but I’m trying to be more creative with it this year. My Honda is 23 years old and runs like a champ- so I don’t have a problem with worrying about how I look to others in that regard😂. But I do love giving nice gifts to my family and close friends. I’m also trying to focus on what they NEED so my gifts improve their lives and don’t create clutter (something I’m personally trying to deal with).

[@thebrokenwallet]

Love that!

[@aurorasanchez7922]

😎yes the secret word is "CREATIVITY" make things happen and adjust whit the money you are making and you can save little by little $more and more. Is better than find a partime job and remaind in the same condition. 🔄working and spending ...

[@kenyonbissett3512]

And if rust might become an issue, you can always have your car painted and people will think you got a new car. My MIL did this for 40yrs, work every time. Neighbors would congratulate her on her new car, lol.

[@alicem1111]

@@kenyonbissett3512that’s awesome! Thank you.

[@rachelr9272]

I bake homemade biscotti for Christmas gifts. I only bake it for the holiday and friends and family look forward to it every year🙂

[@BuyLessJess]

I escaped poverty by behaving like and believing that I am poor. I say "it is out of my budget" or "we can't afford" about almost everything. I can afford to look like/behave like I am wealthy or to retire with dignity but not both.

[@kenyonbissett3512]

In my 20s there were all these charts saying you should save this by age 20,30,40,50,60. It was depressing. Then I read about a woman who talked about saving and buying a small, but nice 2br single family home on her modest income. Her goal was to pay it off within 15yrs, which she did. She knew what her income would be at 62 when she would collect retirement. Modest car and bicycle. Midsize town she could walk or bike. Her plan was to have the house with a new roof, appliances and plumbing/electric updated by age 62. A new to her car at retirement. She started and kept a 1 yr freezer, 1-5yr pantry, a garden in her yard for canning veg/fruit. All the shrubs and trees would already be producing free by retirement. Practice all the skills she would use in retirement to keep her expenses low. By doing that she was able to save even more for retirement. She had a backup plan that included possible part time work, a room mate and going without a car. It made me realize you could retire without being rich and saving the 20x or more of your income. My grandmother worked the same plan and the plan was very successful until her death. Different approaches to the same goal.

[@LaToyaWilliams-w5p]

love your sweater :) Good video

[@thebrokenwallet]

Thank you!

[@AmandaOwen-n9r]

By stopping worrying about what others think of what I look like or what I drive. Helped change my mindset. Also, walking away from people who could care less about money. Showed me what i want to do is helping me stick to my goals. I'm finding all kinds of small ways to put money away.

[@pgppe9488]

Personal finance is one of the major issues facing most Americans today. We have been influenced for decades by the government, media and companies to believe the only thing that matters is what you drive, what you wear, where you live, and you are not responsible for poor outcomes because it is always someone else’s fault. Americans think using a credit card when they don’t have funds is a right of passage.

[@JehanineMelmoth]

It’s the same here in the U.K.! Perhaps globally.

[@mjones1122]

Guessing that when you decide to have people over for lunch instead of going out to eat, game changer. You can feed 4 friends for about the same cost eating out now. If you buy groceries and make something. Make it a pot luck, make extra for lunches, on your path to saving....Mantra: Every penny counts....

[@victoriousvkg]

👏👏👏on the "follow your passion" point - straight FACTS!!!!!!!

[@danielponder690]

On the subject of following your passion and monetizing your skills, I am in debt, but I sub regularly on piano and organ for churches, this makes about 200-600 a month extra on average. It's very helpful and I know not everyone has a skill like this, but it's really helped me tread water in the past and make progress on debt and saving (general and retirement).

[@NoRegerts]

I appreciate your channel so much. Each video is straight to the point and full of good advice. I'll definitely be binging each of your finance videos.

[@thebrokenwallet]

Thank you!!

[@danjumasani7953]

This is my best personal finance channel, I've benefitted tremendously from your practical mentorship, thank you very much.

[@thebrokenwallet]

You're most welcome!

[@RaeC5280]

Informative, great video! Also love your earrings and sweater, so pretty. ❤

[@thebrokenwallet]

Thank you so much!

[@bridgettetraveler658]

Many ppl complain about food prices. Many of us eat wrong. We need to stop eating so much meat & junk food & stop eating out. Dinner shouldn't be a big meal. Breakfast should be biggest meal. We can exercise at home & stop getting gym memberships. Ppl spend too much on nails & buying hair.

[@fnma21]

I don't eat breakfast. Just can't. Lunch and maybe something very light for dinner. That's it for me. And agree about exercising at home! The only things I need are weights and a mat. Walking outside is free.

[@fatimamanneh9432]

I have seen those everyone is broke comments all over instagram also they are annoying that person needs to say he/she is broke because of wasting I don’t know why some people find it hard to live within their means

[@cherylT321]

Too many people feel they are entitled to everything even when they know they can’t afford it!

[@simpleflylife8189]

Love this video! All good points!

[@kathleenmassy2292]

New subscriber here, love what I see on your channel so far.

[@thebrokenwallet]

Welcome aboard!

[@philipw4849]

Great content and advice

[@aurorasanchez7922]

🔄

[@sophiegolden]

When I used to have money, and my situation changed, I noticed that people around don't believe that now retired I have a small budget... They think that I m a liar, what can I do?

[@lmiller6675]

Why do you care?

[@ednaevans2025]

New Subscriber.....Thank you

[@thebrokenwallet]

Welcome!

[@Animal3Lover3]

I would love to go with my friend to a concert... She doesn't have the money for it but I would gladly pay for both of us no future charge

[@alexafernandez5743]

have a coworker who always ask me when i going to change my car... my answer , when fix it is more the value 😅😅😅 oh she hate me

[@novaricos]

can tell her, "as soon as someone else, like you, wants to pay for it!" lol

[@blackfrugalchic6745]

❤

[@bookwormbon482]

Please could you add chapters /timestamps to the video? :)

[@thebrokenwallet]

These are supposed to be automatic. I’ll look into it.

[@bookwormbon482]

@@thebrokenwallet fantastic thank you :)

[@believerofchrist90]

i recently opened an IRA account through the bank-credit union. I wonder if I have made the right choice for my future.. lol off topic but I have limited income as well, but I went ahead to open the account anyway, if anyone have an IRA account with limited income, lets talk!! FYI: another great video from you, !! thank you as always!

[@thebrokenwallet]

Congrats on opening the IRA

[@believerofchrist90]

@@thebrokenwallet thank you ! ❤️

[@kenyonbissett3512]

Smart to open an IRA, if they charge to much in fees, you can move from one bank, credit union or brokerage account to another. Just remember to never take custody of the money, it’s a direct transfer.

[@novaricos]

1. first fund your company's pension plan up to the % that they will match, ( free money!) 2. then set up your own free, no account fees, Roth IRA , (at Fidelity, for example, an online brokerage), (tax-free after 5 years- the rest of your life) and fully fund IT($6000 or possibly more this year), 3. before you put money in the regular IRA (where you WILL be taxed in retirement, when when you withdraw the required yearly minimum amount the laws say you MUST take out each year and pay the taxes on!) Peace and Wealth to you

[@jessicamillerr]

Hey! ☘️🪴🍓🍓 KZbin recommended one of your videos, and I must say, you post awesome stuff. I love it, and I want to see you on top! By the way, I was wondering if you or your friend need a video editor or thumbnail designer. I am Mohan, a professional video editor and thumbnail designer with 4.5 years of experience in creating engaging and high-quality videos and thumbnails for KZbin. If not, please reply with "NO" and I will remove you from my follow-up list. Keep creating amazing content! Best regards, Mohan