Monthly Archives: May 2019

Budgeting, Investing, Saving, Wealth

GBM VS DEBT

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“Simply put, unsustainable debt is helping to keep too many poor countries and poor people in poverty.” -Bill Clinton

Tip Jar, Coffeeshop, Tips, Student Debt

I can’t stand debt. In any way, shape, or form.

Debt, Money, Pound, Finance, Financial
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It robs you (and your future self) of prosperity.

Every time I think of buying an item, I always think what would the future lost investment gains be.

For instance, buying a $40,000 car could end up costing you over $400,000 in future wealth! Pray tell. How can this be? It’s simple math.

Basically, if you invest that same amount and not a penny more, you could grow your wealth over 30 years to $402,506.28 with an 8 percent rate of return. Crazy right? Giving up mediocre present pleasures for incredible future comfort warrants astounding things.

Harry Houdini himself couldn’t concoct a magic trick so ingenious as the magic of compound interest.

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Speaking of magic, let’s look at saving money as a magic trick the same way a magician would. Marvelous to behold, but truly done by meticulous planning and practice because as we know practice makes perfect. Isn’t that right Mr. Potter? 😂

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MONEY SAVING MAGIC TRICK #1: SPEND LESS

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By no means is it rocket science. Much unlike that hilarious scene in Robocop 3 when that guy walks in a donut shop and tries to rob it even though the donut shop is within 7 blocks of a police department. And then the guy behind the counter asks him this, Donut Jerk: “What’s it like being a rocket scientist?” 🤣

Get serious. A donut shop that close to a precinct has to be one of the safest places in America. It might even have double-duty; 1) as a donut shop by day and 2) as a safe house by night.

Who tries holding up a donut shop full of cops?

That is the same way I want you to feel every time you whip out your credit card. Who wants to pay interest on a pair of jeans or table from IKEA for the next 10 years?! Nobody wants that! You must find ways to spend less.

See my posts American Homes Are Now $1,100 Per Month Storage Units and America Is The Land Of Subscriptions

MONEY SAVING MAGIC TRICK #2: SAVE MORE

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The three biggest expenses for families are: food, transportation and housing. The first trick is to cook more and eat out less.

However, if you can get invited to more dinner invitations, wine tastings, restaurant openings, annual stock meetings, cookouts and other shindigs; well then, you can take doggie bags and stockpile Tupperware with food for days.

Too good for Tupperware and leftovers?

Then please pick a career as a hedge fund manager or petroleum engineer or rocket scientist *cough cough* and start earning $200,000 a year and hire a chef or eat out, as you can afford it.

Need a car to get around? Look for a used $4,000 Ford Focus to pay cash for and then be on your way.

Too good to drive a Ford Focus?

Please reread the top of this article and rethink your priorities.

See my post Beamers, Benz, And Bentleys Or A GMC Truck

If you can Airbnb your way to a fortune, good for you. Otherwise, you will need to find a home in a place whose zip code has not been featured as the title of a television show.

That’s right. Does your dream zip code end in 90210? You can’t live there. Why not? When your neighbors are parked cars and moving vans filled with Facebook and Uber engineers, then you may want to really think about where you lay your hat.

If engineers making $175,00-$250,000 a year can’t find affordable housing, then that is a red flag that this neighborhood is probably not for you.

Remember this, if you want to build wealth, find the cheapest and safest place you can to live and save a fortune. Cause you know, it’s all about location, location, location.

Also, no long term house guests that are not paying! Why you ask? Did you ever see that movie Madhouse. Here’s the premise: The luxurious villa of Mark and Jessie Bannister, a yuppie couple, is overrun by loads of uninvited guests who turn the house up side down.

Even if it is a family member or friend, they should pay something.

Even if it is just groceries. Everyone has got to chip in and foot the bill. There is no free lunch or rent! This is my motto: If you can’t pay to stay, then you need to find another place to lay your head cause it’s not going to be on my pillow!

MONEY SAVING MAGIC TRICK #3 THE HAT TRICK: MAX OUT A ROTH IRA

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You must invest if you want to one day retire. You do not want to end up a bankruptcy court candidate due to lack of planning and saving.

See my post Catwalking To Get Paid: Modeling Is Rick Business

The easiest way to ensure this is to do the following: 1) Invest enough to get the company match in your 401(k), 2) Then fund a Roth IRA to the Max. And that’s about it.

But wait…there’s one more thing.

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You must also invest that money somewhere. You can invest in a 500 index fund with your brokerage.

For example, the S&P 500 index or VFIAX with Vanguard. In addition, if you are looking for total stock market exposure, then you can go for the VTSAX with Vanguard.

Thank you for your time.

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After all of that writing and helping the masses, I am exhausted. Please pass me (this non-rocket scientist) a donut.

Fictional characters Cartoons and Money, Financial Freedom, Financial Independence, Retirement, Television Shows and Money, Wealth

Life Lessons I Learned From A Goofy Movie

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If you grew up in the era of after school cartoons, then prepare to be nostalgic. This time I’m going back to 1995. Let’s get goofy… as in A Goofy Movie that is.

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A Goofy Movie was released theatrically on April 7, 1995, by Walt Disney Pictures, and made $35 million at the box office.

A Goofy Movie is a 1995 animated musical comedy film produced by Disney MovieToons and Walt Disney Television Animation and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The film is based on The Disney Afternoon television series Goof Troop created by Robert Taylor and Michael Peraza Jr. and acts as a follow-up to the show. It features the voices of Jason Marsden, Bill Farmer, Jim Cummings, Kellie Martin, Pauly Shore, Jenna von Oÿ, and Wallace Shawn.

Taking place a few years after the events of Goof Troop, A Goofy Movie follows Goofy and his son, Max, who is now in high school, and revolves around the father-son relationship between the two as Goofy takes Max on a fishing trip out of fear that Max is drifting away from him, unintentionally interfering with Max’s social life, particularly his relationship with Roxanne, his high school crush and dream girl. This movie also featured 2 songs by R&B singer and superstar Tevin Campbell.

The film was so much fun, uplifting, and family oriented that I had to give it some love her on my website. The movie just melts my heart 💖But first…What is Goof Troop?

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Goof Troop bears similarity to several early-1950s Goofy cartoon shorts which depicted Goofy as a father to a mischievous red-haired son. Goofy, a single father, moves back to his hometown of Spoonerville with his son, Max. Their next door to Goofy’s high school friend: Pete and his family. His son P.J. (Pete Jr.) befriends Max. Max and P.J. become best friends and do practically everything together. A large portion of humor comes from the relatively normal Max’s personality sharply contrasting with his father.

And love the theme song by Phil Perry.

H-h-h-h-hit it!
Like father, like son
You’re always number one
Best buddies, best pals (Yeah!)
You always seem to work things out

Can’t you see you’re two of a kind?
Looking for a real good time(Real good time)
Report to the Goof Troop
And we’ll always stick together
(Yeah!) We’re the Goof Troop
Best of friends forever

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Now let’s talk about A Goofy Movie!

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DREAMS ARE A WISH YOUR HEART MAKES AND ARE MEANT TO BE FULFILLED I love how the movie starts. Max ( Jason Marsden) is dreaming of his high school crush Roxanne ( Kellie Martin).

However, before his dream can come true he wakes up!

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Fun Fact: A dream is a wish your heart makes is a song that’s in another Disney Film: Cinderella, which is from 1955. And I love Cinderella stories! See my post Money And Life Lessons I Learned From CBS Storybreak’s Yeh-Shen (A Chinese Cinderella Story)

I am all too familiar with having a dream.

Most people do not know this, but since I was a little girl I always had a dream to be rich. I just always knew that I did not want to worry more about money than helping people. Therefore, I figured out ways to live on less so that I could find ways to earn and save more.

First, I wrote down a plan. Second, I knew getting a good education was key so I went to an in-state, affordable college to lessen debt. Lastly, I refused to buy expensive or big ticket items i.e. $800,000 home, $70,000 vehicles, and $5,000 annual vacations.

I knew I needed my money to go to work for me. I needed to invest. So what’s it gonna be? 🤔 Real Estate? Stocks? Bonds? Mutual Funds? Art? Since stocks are more bang for my buck , as high-quality, dividend-paying stocks have proven to be the best way to make money over any twenty-year stretch of time or longer, I put my money in stocks.

My mission: To invest $100,000 in the stock market. Challenge accepted! Like Max, I had my work cut out for me.

MAKE A PLAN In the film, Max decides he’s tired of being looked over and makes a plan to change his fate. After today he sangs, things will be different.

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Popular girl who ignores max.
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Pete, Max and Pauly Shore, err um I mean Bob, in An Extremely Goofy Movie picture image.

You got that right! Max dons the costume of his favorite popstar, Powerline (Tevin Campbell), and proceeds to perform the song “Stand Out” live in the school auditorium in front of the entire school. Talk about GUTS and going for the GLORY!

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Me and Max are very similar indeed.

Back in 2016, after years of reading other bloggers and dreaming of becoming one myself, I decided to change my fate and destiny forever.

After reading a post by Financial Samuari on how to start a blog, I decide to throw my hat in the ring. And here I am today. After today I thought, my life will never be the same!

Reading so many books and blogs about money, I learned how to save and invest more and spend less. In order to reach my goal of $100,000, I cut back spending. I went from saving 13-15% of my income to about 41% of my income going towards savings and investments! Remember this: NO GUTS, NO GLORY!!!

Back to Max, he now has gotten the attention of his dream girl. And the attention of the entire school including an older high school girl, that Roxanne’s best friend Stacy ( Jenna von Oÿ) tells her to do what The All American Rejects says to do Move Along. I know that’s right!!!😂

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See this, like me, Disney does fun facts too! 😉👍
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As soon as he finds a way to make his dream a reality, his dad, Goofy (Bill Farmer), decides they are drifting apart and need to go on a fishing trip to bond (and teach his son the perfect cast like his father taught him). After all that work Max just put in, he did what any teenage boy on an adrenaline high would do… he fainted.

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Fun Fact: Walt Disney is known for making animated films or shows as single-parent households in which the mother is missing. Think The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Ducktales, and A Goofy Movie. There was always a close bond between the father and his children. This reminds us how important it is for a father to be involved in his child’s life.

See my posts Money Lessons I Learned From Scrooge McDuck and A Christmas Carol: Lessons in Finance, Business, And Life

SECRETS AND LIES OR LOANS Max decided to lie to his father in order to fulfill yet another lie that he told his friends about going to go see the Powerline concert live. This deeply hurts his father.

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In regards to loans, here’s a tip; do not invest borrowed funds. Invest cash only. Debt creates more debt. Cash creates more cash. It is just that simple.

FORTUNES FAVOR THE BOLD Max eventually comes clean to his dad and they agree together as a family to go to the concert. Father and son rocked it out!!!

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This all happened because Max finally had the guts to tell his father the truth. He also comes clean to Roxanne and she rewards him with a kiss. Max no longer being ashamed or embarrassed by his father introduces him to his dream girl Roxanne. Max took a chance and a huge risk, but it paid off in the end.

So remember this: Don’t do the boring thing, do the exciting thing.

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As for me, after I decided to start investing like crazy, I did hit my goal: $100,000!

Why $100,000 you ask?

Well, it’s like this. I did some research and found out how to build generational wealth over the long term. Investing is a long game. It takes decades to earn significant sums of interest.

Over 30 year time intervals, this is what can happen to money that is invested that earns 8% return.

Basically, invest and then do not add another penny to $10,000.

The First 30 years: $10,000 can turn into $100,000.

The Second 30 years: $100,000 turns into $1 million.

The Third 30 years: $1 million turns into 10 million.

The Fourth 30 years: $10 million turns into $104 million!

Therefore, you can turn small sums into vast fortunes over time.

That $100,000 is the golden ticket to prosperity my friends. Once you hit this milestone, your money starts to accumulate pretty fast.

That $100,00 can move mountains and turn small money pebbles into big money boulders! You just have to be bold enough to make a plan and execute it.

A dream may be a wish your heart makes, but a goal is a carefully crafted plan that is written down. So when in doubt, BE BOLD!

Celebrities and Money, Saving

Win, Lose Or Save

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Welcome to this post of Win, Lose or Save.

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Like the show, Win, Lose or Draw you must decide your fate.

Financial fate that is.

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Are you a fiscal gentleman or lady that manages your money well? Let this post help you out!

I do not care what anyone says or tells you, but saving is important. Supremely important, in fact. Why? Because all things first start with having money; therefore, you must save some.

Want to buy a house? You have to have a down payment. Want to start a business? You need to have the funds to pay employees and the lease on the storefront. Want to invest in your favorite company? You have to be able to put money in the brokerage account. And the list goes on and on.

I’ll give you an example of why you need to save money.

Every year for my birthday, I like to buy stocks.

Generally, shares in a 500 index fund. However, if you are broke, then there is no way to make this ice cream dream a reality.

Instead of an exotic vacation, new toy, fancy new set of wheels, or expensive birthday cake, I prefer to buy myself a $3.50 cupcake. Wait…in providing full disclosure I paid tax on that cupcake, so it really cost me $3.85.

I actually had about $500-$5,000 that I could invest. So, where did that other $496.15 or 4,996.15 go? Toward earning me interest of course!

We cannot all be like the jeopardy champ that has won a mind boggling 28 times in a row. His total winnings are now at the $2 million-dollar mark. Incredible!

However, we cannot base our financial futures on being able to answer in what year was the Louisiana purchase; 1803. Oops…I meant to say, What is 1803?

We need our money to work for us while we are sleeping.

I know the cast of Friends is still raking it in, but they are from a different time. When studios had to pay to play. That is, pay these actors on the back-end with royalties in order to get them to commit to playing the same characters for a decade or more. That is 12-15 hour days spend on a studio back lot that you cannot get back.

So I say kudos to them and the casts of the recently ended The Big Bang Theory and Game of Thrones. However, we all can’t be Starks or Dr. Sheldon Cooper, Dr. Leonard Hofstadter, Dr. Koothrappali, or Howard no Dr. in front. Just Howard. 🤣

You must save because you do not know when the next check will stop coming in. Let’s examine this further shall we? In one of my posts, I wrote about why Academy Award Winner Halle Berry saves so much.

See my post Why Halle Berry And I Continue To Save So Much

Because if you play spin the bottle with your finances, then it tends to land on BROKE!

It is no secret that here in the good old US of A many high school and college graduates know nothing about finances. However, here at Greenbacks Magnet we aim to change all that.

That is why I write cautionary money tales like today’s post.

For more cautionary money woes and tales, you can check out more stories on my website.

See my posts

From Debt Free To Owing $1 million In Mortgage Debt

Meet An Orthodontist With $1 Million In Student Loan Debt

From Pulitzer Prize Winner To Penniless

So let me give you some examples of why not to depend on big paychecks, royalties, or sequin jumpsuits.

A DIME ISN’T WORTH A NICKEL It was recently reported on May 14, 2019 that Brian May said that Queen hasn’t made any money from Bohemian Rhapsody. Now that’s a head scratcher. The film went on to gross over $900 million at the box office and its star, Rami Malek, with his performance as Freddie Mercury earned him the Oscar for Best Actor.

What do you gotta do to earn a few coins? Invent the wheel. Or in this case, invent music!

In yet another tale of musicians and money, David Lee Roth of Van Halen fame said the following in a December 2018 interview, “up until 18 months ago, I was making pennies in royalty on a $20 Van Halen record.” In addition, Roth stated, “I got butchered 40 years ago. I made over a billion dollars for Warner Bros. I watched my whole fortune walk off into another man’s pocket.”

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However, now that he is no longer under a recording contract and owns his own business he is, and I quote, “I’m a free motherfucker!”

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This is sad and confusing to say the least. I would be a disgruntled employee too if I sold millions of albums, t-shirts, spandex leotards, and headbands only to receive pennies on the dollar!

Check out how other musicians made fame and kept their fortune.

See my posts

How Dave Grohl Turned Passion Into Profits

Gene Simmons on Power

Money Advice I Got From John Legend

This reminds me of what I read in Pat Benatar’s book, she stated that she made her record label $75 million dollars and she felt used, abused, and thrown away.

After reading her book, I knew I better make sure to fund my retirement account like no tomorrow. When you see people work that hard for so many years talk about getting the shaft, then you know us regular folks in the salt mines better get it together.

Don’t even get me started on all the celebrities that owe the IRS! It just goes to show you that saving money has to be a part of your financial freedom equation.

There is no financial independence when you have debt obligations. More cannot go out than is coming in.

WE ALL MUST FACE THE MUSIC

Here’s the thing. We ALL are going to stop working someday. It is simply up to you to decide what you want to and ow you want to live.

You may think that adults should know how to manage their money. However, if you never learned how to balance $100 in your checking account, then how on earth is someone supposed to earn and build a million bucks!

I work under the impression and assumption that if most people can manage $1,000, then they can manage $100,000 or more.

If I still have not convinced you to save, then just let me share this last story with you. If you saw The New Edition Story, then you know kids get ripped off too! Recording a hit album netted these kids $500 and a VCR! They decided to start taking more control of their money and their financial destiny. And you should too!

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Therefore, I have chosen to be the master or mistress of my fate like Elvira is Mistress of the Dark.

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I own my image, whatever I do, my mistakes and my money.

I am Mistress of the Greenbacks Magnet. I’m ready for my financial close-up like the same way model and actress Cassie poses for a shoot.

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If some company goes belly up and decides not to pay out it pension, then plan to make other arrangements. I don’t want to be left holding the bag for my retirement after giving my youth to some company who tells me to invest in their stock while at the same time cashing out their own chips like Enron.

That is why I save and invest.

I increase my goals EVERY SINGLE YEAR!

Doesn’t matter if every goal doesn’t get hit, I still have something to aim at.

This is what I have decided for my future. Here’s my financial close-up. 😉

Here is a peak behind my financial savings curtains.

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Ladies and Gentleman, I give you Greenbacks Magnet savings goals:

2018: $13,333

2019: $14,000

2020: $15,000

2021: $16,000

2022: $17,000

2023: $18,000

2024: $20,000

2025: $25,000

As you can see, my ultimate goal is to save $25,000 per year. That would net me $100,000 every 4 years! It is all about planning and discipline.

I do not care if your goal is to be able to make rent next month or buy a private plane next year.

Whatever you do, win, lose or save; make a goal and stick to it.

Automobiles, Bankruptcy, Financial Independence, Retirement, Saving

Range Rovers And Foreclosures

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Here I am back again talking all things on four wheels. I’m talking about cars of course!

So I will say to you what they always like to say in Welcome Back Kotter’s theme song, “Welcome back!”

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And less like Agent Smith in The Matrix saying Welcome back.

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However, we did miss you.

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After my last post on on the price of luxury cars, it is time to bring you the sequel! Just like The Matrix Reloaded. This posts sequel is all about cars so Buckle Up!!!

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See my post Beamers, Benz, and Bentleys Or A GMC Truck

Why another post about cars you ask? Because apparently folks out here are still lining up at the dealership every summer ready to take on these 5, 6, 7, now 8 year car loans!

You read that right. Lenders are now allowing borrowers to repay car loans for 8 friggin’ years!

That is enough time to do the following:

1. Graduate from college twice, including graduate school

2. Get married

3. Watch all 14 seasons of Supernatural on Netflix

4. Have the President of the United States finish two-terms

5. Write the next great American novel (hey it’s possible as it took J.R.R. Tolkien 12 years to pen The Lord of the Rings) 😉

I am here to remind folks that cars will not make you look, feel, or be rich.

Hey, don’t get mad a t me. I am just the messenger. Like Loreali Gilmore, I am A Messenger, Nothing More. Please just take the letter Dean or in this case, just read this post. 😁🙏

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MAKE PEACE NOT CAR PAYMENTS You must make peace with your finances. It is the only way to come to terms with reality and set your sights on the bigger picture. You must choose a path. Rich or Broke. Never poor because poor is eternal.

All things are temporary. However, life is not short, it is long. And like Chris Rock said, “life is long especially, if you make the wrong decisions.”

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Therefore, I want you to make good financial decisions from the starting gate. Paying 8 year car payments is like going to war with your bank account. And you know here at Greenbacks Magnet, we are all about the love. So make peace not war. So I am here to tell you: BACK AWAY FROM THE CAR PAYMENTS SLOWLY, TURN AROUND, AND RUN AWAY!!! You need to stand on firm financial ground. Your financial footing has to be so good that not even the Big Bad Wolf could huff and puff and blow your finances over!

When you constantly have to worry about how to make the mortgage payments or paying for the Range, then you have a serious problem. No car is worth going into foreclosure over. Should the home get foreclosed are you prepared to live in that Range Rover? A car that luxurious should be parked in a driveway and not on a freeway off ramp. Paying a $700 car note is outrageous. Then again, so is paying a $6,000 mortgage. Both of these high fixed expenses could leave you in the poor house.

Tons of bankruptcy filings include not only credit card debt, but high mortgage payments and out-of-control luxury car notes! People, people please don’t forget what Ferris Bueller said about priorities!

A man with priorities so far out of whack doesn't deserve such a fine automobile.

RANGE ROVERS ARE OVER RED ROVER Why discuss and name my post about Range Rovers? Let me tell you a story and paint this picture for you. In the illustrious words of Sophia from Golden Girls, “picture this.” 🤣

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I have heard several separate stories about Range Rovers and the cost of ownership.

In one story, the owner had the car in the shop for an entire year because he could not pay the repair bill. That’s right. A car that you are still paying the payment for, including auto insurance is sitting in a repair shop.

Now how are you gonna be a number one stunna, if you can’t ride around in your car to impress all the people out there, while only having $100 in the bank? It’s like Birdaman said, “Ride Bentley’s ’round the city on buttons.” “I’m the # 1 stunna!”

Oh and why only $100 in the bank? because it took almost every dollar in your paycheck just to keep the car on the road. And speaking of keeping the car on the road…let’s talk about maintenance and repairs on a Range Rover.

If you didn’t already know, then let me be the first to tell you. Luxury cars are more expensive to repair. Why you ask? It’s simple. Luxury comes at a premium. You have to pay the cost to be the boss.

See my post Lipstick Confessions: Confessions Of A Teenage Waitress

Repairs will also cost you more for luxury models. The parts are more expensive and not easy to find and replace like American made cars, as repairs and upkeep are cheaper on these models. Why even buy a Range? That is because nobody wants to wear platinum Rolexes and canary diamonds while pushing a Honda!

However, if you drive that Honda for a decade and invest that $40,000 you spent on the Range, then you could have a million more in retirement in 35 years. That Range will be long gone by then. But you know what? If you have money to burn, then play on player or should I say drive on driver!

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In another story, I heard that a mechanic left a stable transit authority job with excellent benefits to go repair cars for the Range Rover dealership. When asked why he did it, he replied, “because I can make more money fixing Range Rovers because those cars are always in the shop.” What the F*ck!!! You spend enough to put a kid through college to get that car only to have it in the shop! Unbelievable. You would think with all the dough you had to drop to get that ride it would at least hold up better than a Rav-4 or Honda CRV.

SITTING PRETTY WITH MONEY IN THE BANK OR WITH YOUR CAR ON BRICKS I will end this post with some news I have heard from around the water-cooler and then some.

One lady told me that she didn’t know what her husband was going to do because his BMW was in the shop and he couldn’t afford the $8,000 to get it out! Holy crap! So you want luxury but you cannot actually afford luxury. Then it’s simple: Sell the car. Take the $15,000 check that Carmax will cut you for the trade-in, get you a Ford or Toyota for $6,000 and put the rest of that money to work in the stock market. That is how I turned my $450 car payment into over $100,000!

It is far more important to have money in the bank than a Range in the driveway or the repair shop. Put your money where your values are. Far more people are impressed by those than can afford to buy Range Rovers, but actually don’t. The most important thing you can do with your money after you earn it is to actually have and keep some of it in the bank.

Automobiles, Credit Cards, Financial Independence

Beamers, Benz, And Bentleys Or A GMC Truck?

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When it comes to cars, people can blow more money than a newly signed NBA player or first round pick of the NFL draft.

It was recently reported that Americans are spending $18,000 a year on non-essentials. Which makes it pretty hard to stack those Benjamins; and even harder to be saying stuff like Drake and Lil Baby : Got M’s in the bank, like: “Yes, indeed.”

I have found that either you can be rich or act rich; you cannot be both.

However, don’t feel bad. Lots of people take years to learn that lesson. That is why this latest post is going to be a two-parter. 😉

See my post Catwalking To Get Paid: Modeling Is Risky Business

So don’t drop that top just yet playboy or playgirl, cause we’re equal opportunity like that here, because we’ll be right back later with part two of this post.

As soon as Springtime hits, more people are lining up at the convertible dealership faster than Punxsutawney Phil can make his prediction and see his shadow.

People are blowing major dough on their rides. If you are old enough to remember the MTV show Pimp My Ride, then you know its serious out here in these streets. $5,000 rims? You know it. Got to have that tint too? No problem. $2,000. Custom sound system? It will only set you back $8,000. And have to be like Three-Six Mafia and Stay Fly in the new whip by dropping $2,500 for a new pair of tennis shoes, $250 for Illesteva sunglasses, and $700 for new gear.

A new BMW can run you $40,000 and fully loaded could cost you over $100,000! Why not invest that money you say? The problem with investing in stocks and bonds is they’re boring as hell. A boss turns their garage into a Bentley dealership, stockpiles platinum Rolex watches, collects houses like chess pieces, turns their closets into a fashion house, collects $500 shoes like monopoly pieces, and opens up nightclubs. Got it, nerd? So light a Cuban cigar with a hundred dollar bill, pour your most expensive champagne in that crystal glass and put your feet up on a diamond-encrusted ottoman as Greenbacks Magnet presents Beamers, Benz, and Bentleys or a GMC Truck?

See my posts on Shoe Game Is Not For The Frugal At Heart and Introducing The $100,000 Bottle Of Water

THE PRICE OF LUXURY All things come with a price tag. Food. Water. Houses. But when it comes to cars, people are willing to drop some serious coin. I’m talking enough to put down a 10-20 percent down payment on a half a million-dollar home.

Remember cars are now coming more high-tech; like Lil Baby says, “Brand new whip got no keys.”

So what is the price of all this luxury?

Let’s take a peek.

For goodness’ sake, a GMC truck will run you $20,000-$30,000. Buy a decent quality car one-time and you’re done for like a decade!

When you have to start putting gas and groceries on plastic, then you are in some serious trouble.

If you can drop $75,000 on a new S-Class Mercedes-Benz, but your credit card gets denied while in the drive thru for a double-cheeseburger, then you need to check your priorities at the door of the Range Rover dealership.

Mercedes-Benz, Car, Amg Gt, Transport

If you are only able to make the minimum payments on $55,000 of credit card debt, then at that rate it would take you over half a century to get back in the black. No one should stay in the red that long!

TURNING HEADS LIVING LARGE AND TAKING CHARGE If your theme song starts off like this, “rain drops drop top,” then you may be in trouble.

Sports Car, Automobile, Vehicle, Auto

Trying to impress people with stuff usually leads you down to a life of misery and penury.

Personally, I have seen too many people get taken to the cleaners trying to impress family, friends, and acquaintances at stop lights for 20 seconds. That is a quick way to end up in bankruptcy court. Don’t believe me. Check out the NBA or NFL player’s union, stating that over half of NBA players are broke within five years of their retirement and even less for NFL ballers (there’s is three years).  

I even read an article discussing how men that drive fancy sports cars are less likely to want long-term relationships! Is that why so many pro athletes owe millions in alimony and child support! Then show up in court crying and telling the judge they can’t afford payments like T.O. After making more M’s than the M&M’s can put on its candy, it’s hard to feel sorry for you. But we hear you out there. It’s hard out here for a pimp.

FINANCIAL DISASTER ON FOUR WHEELS I guess I don’t have to tell you that overspending on cars is dangerous. What I do not get is when I see people not bat an eye at paying $50,000 for a new car, but then loss their minds if they get overcharged $0.50 for an ice cream sundae (um, what?)

Mercedes-Benz, Car, Auto, Transport

Pinching pennies on small items and dropping G’s on blackjack tables and designer car seats. That makes no sense.

You want to keep your fixed expenses low. That includes mortgages and cars. Why? So you can save and invest of course.

In order to try and retire early, it usually takes most folks saving 50% or more of their income.

Tough to do if you have to spend $3,000 every 3 months on repair bills at the BMW dealer. But because you are unwilling to negotiate at the farmers market or wait in line at Target or Costco, you spend like your life is made up of 75 hours instead of 75 years.

In order to avoid this fate myself, I paid off my car in 2009 and have not had another car note since!   I then went from saving $1 a day to over $1,100 per month! I calculated that if I could save $13,333 a year, then I would have over $100,000 of cold hard cash within 8 years! And I would be that much closer to saying “Got M’s in the bank, Yes indeed!”

Bankruptcy, Credit Cards, Entrepreneurship, Film Reviews, Saving

Catwalking To Get Paid: Modeling Is Risky Business

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Sometimes you just have to say what the heck?

At least that’s what they kept saying in the film Risky Business.

Risky Business is a 1983 American coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by Paul Brickman (in his directorial debut) and starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay. The film covers themes including materialism, loss of innocence, coming of age, and capitalism. Known as Cruise’s breakout film, Risky Business was a critical and commercial success, grossing more than $63 million against a $6.2 million budget. The soundtrack was done by Tangerine Dream. The movie poster reads: There’s a time for playing it safe and a time for… Risky Business.

Tom Cruise in Risky Business (1983)

Meet the model son who’s been good too long.

However, the title of the post is Catwalking To Get Paid: Modeling Is Risky Business. So why is modeling risky business?

Well you are about to find out.

The film Risky Business was released on August 5, 1983. Joel had all the normal teenage fantasies…cars, girls, money. Then his parents left for a week, and all his fantasies came true. 

He was just a Chicago teenager looking for fun at home while his parents were away, but the situation quickly gets out of hand.

Speaking of dreams coming true and things getting out of hand; People magazine reported in the news this week that former Victoria’s Secret model Erin Heatherton (former girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio) has filed for bankruptcy owing
$560,242.13 in debts and having $6,464.57 in assets.

Like our protagonist in the film, she has goals of securing her future.

Joel (Tom Cruise) chose Princeton, but Erin chose modeling.

He is the model son.

She is the model.

How can it be possible to get in debt so bad that you have to take drastic measures such as filing for bankruptcy or starting, in Joel’s case, a brothel?

Keep reading and find out.

EVERY STORY HAS A BEGINNING AND LIFE IS BUT A DREAM

A suburban Chicago teenager’s parents leave on vacation, and he cuts loose. An unauthorised trip in his father’s Porsche means a sudden need for lots of money, which he raises in a creative way. While the cat’s away, the mice will play. After his overprotective parents leave town, Joel has some fun.

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He plays loud music, dances around the house, and invites over a young woman named Lana (Rebecca De Mornay) from a house of ill repute. It will cost him. For her services, she charges him $300.

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On a joyride, he later crashes his father’s Porsche and that’s when things really get crazy.

Buildings, Car, City, Porsche, Rainy

The model son turns into a enterprising young man indeed. Although this movie is pure fiction and for entertainment, the business of modeling, which is very lucrative and glamorous, also has its pitfalls.

Model Erin Heatherton was discovered by a model scout in South Beach Miam,i FL. She moved t New Yorl City to chase her dreams and launched her career in 2006 walking for Diane von Fürstenberg.

At the same age as Joel, 17, she began to focus on her future and started modeling for top designers such as Prada and Chanel.

She began walking in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in 2008.

In 2010, Heatherton was officially contracted as a Victoria’s Secret Angel. Then things begin to change after a few years.

ALL BUSINESS IS RISKY Going back to Joel, he knows he needs money fast to fix his father’s Porsche so he decides to be enterprising and recruits Lana to help him turn his parents house into a brothel for one night.

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In Erin’s world, she is collecting paychecks and accumulating debt fast. She purchased a $1.7 million dollar home in 2012, then the very next year ended her contract with Victoria’s Secret in 2013.

In her bankruptcy filing she states she only makes $1,089.91 a month and $221 of that comes from family and friends.

So, now I have to ask that infamous question that keeps coming up in the movie, “What the F*ck?” How in the world did she go from catwalking for top designers to barely able to avoid the mortgage on her million-dollar price tag bachelorette pad?

After doing some digging, it seems that models are not all as rich as Gisele.

According to a website called Job Monkey, Models can make lots of money and depending on the type of modeling you do you can actually make a huge amount per day you work. … Photgraphic Model – You can earn anywhere from $100 per hour or $1,500 per day for catalogues and for advertising agencies $250 per hour or $10,000 per day is average.

According to Refinery, models can make the following:

Internationally-known mass brands:
Runway Show: $800 
Presentation: $1,000 
Runway Show: $1,000

Independent brands well-respected in the fashion community:
Runway Show: $1,500 in trade 
Runway Show: $800 in trade 
Runway Show: Trade (unspecified amount) 
Runway Show: $2,500 in trade 
Runway Show: $300 plus trade (unspecified amount) 
Runway Show: $1,000
Runway Show: $100 plus trade (unspecified amount)

Not exactly enough to buy that yacht yet.

Modeling is a young woman’s sport. Most models are considered over the hill by age 30. That would mean you need to make a boatload of money from ages 15-27.

Those are your peak earning years.

Very risky business indeed.

THERE IS ALWAYS A PRICE TO BE PAID

Joel succeeds in getting the funds necessary to fix the Porsche, but then he has to pay a pimp to get his furniture back that was stolen from his house while he was away. He tells Joel that he seems like a smart kid and to not mess with a man’s money during a bad economy. That night at his house cost the man money because the girl’s were working for Joel instead of him. Instead of making a profit Joel was in the hole.

In Erin’s case, so far this year, Heatherton says she’s made $2,820. She currently has $919 in her checking accounts and her living expenses are a little over $1,000 a month.

How can she possibly save making so little?

From ages 22 to 28, I doubled my income. No where near what a Victoria Secret model is earning, but still managed to start putting away $150 a month until I was able to ratchet it up a notch to $1,100 per month. I am basically saving the same amount PER MONTH what she needs to live on!

According to Complete Payroll, Average model salary Victoria’s Secret Models are among the highest paid models in the world. These women make anywhere between $100,000-$1,000,000 a year, on average. However, the paychecks increase due to seniority and fame. Some of the most experienced models, like Gisele Bundchen and Adriana Lima, earn significantly more.

I have reviewed dozens of bankruptcy filings of celebrities over the years. Ms. Heatherton hit every mark that generally throws people’s finances into a tailspin.

Owe IRS. Check. Tons of credit card debt. Check. The list goes on and on.

The usual suspects are living beyond your means.

It just so happens I discuss this topic of bankruptcy more in detail in a post I did on the film about models in The Devil Wears Prada. What a coincidence?

See my post 5 Pieces of Money Advice From The Devil Wears Prada

IT WILL COST YOU Joel hands over his cash he made on that incredible night to get his parent’s furniture back. It cost him EVERY CENT HE MADE!

As for Erin, she currently owes $11,514 on one credit card, $9,485 on another and $194,602.49 on a third — adding up to $215,601.49, the outlet reported. Heatherton owes City National an additional $201,000 for a separate line of credit. She also owes $41,000 in back taxes to the state of New York.

She owes over$416,000 in credit card debt! That is more than most people owe in student loans. And she is has no degrees and is not a doctor, lawyer, MBA-holder, or CPA!

She also sold her Manhattan apartment for $2.68 million last year in 2018.

Makes you wonder where all her money went?

At the end of the film, Joel and Lana meet up after everything that went down. They are still friends. She tells him that she wants to keep on seeing him; he jokes that it will cost her.