Author Archives: Kristina Tahnyak

Good morning Dinks.  Do you remember a few weeks ago when I wrote about my Dad’s girlfriend being in debt at 65?  In case you missed that post let me break it down for you very quickly.  My Dad used to spend his winters in Florida.  Last year he wasn’t able to go because his wife couldn’t afford it.

Actually to say she couldn’t afford it is a very polite.  It turns out my Dad’s girlfriend has been living on credit cards ever since she retired over 5 years ago.  She finally decided enough is enough and sought out financial advice to fix her situation.  I asked my Dad how she could be in debt because she has been living on a fixed income for several years.  It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that if you live on a fixed income you also need to have fixed expenses.  It’s really a no brainer.

I personally don’t think that retirees should have credit cards at all.  Maybe this is because I was financially irresponsible in the past, but if you can’t afford to make debt payments each month due to your limited income then you shouldn’t have credit products.  Again, maybe that’s just me.

Should adults ask their parents for money?

It turns out my Dad’s girlfriend has been helping her two children pay off their debt and pay their monthly expenses for years.  This absolutely blows my mind because her two daughters are older than me and I’m 33 years old.  I come from a family where you do what it takes to live.  If you don’t have enough money to live you get a second job.  If you don’t have money to buy food you cut your monthly expenses.  I completely don’t understand adults who rely on their parents financially.

My Dad’s girlfriend’s kids use their mother as their emergency savings fund.  They are in their late 30s and early 40s and have absolutely no savings.  One of them works part time and the other one doesn’t work at all.  I hate people who take advantage of other people.  I also hate people who don’t take responsibility for their own lives.  If you knew your parents would always bail you out would you flake out on your backup plans?

It’s up to a parent to say no

When my Dad’s girlfriend retired she vowed to cut off her children financially.  She would stop making their credit card payments, she would stop paying their rent and she would stop giving them money for groceries.

If someone is going through financial difficulties it’s OK to ask your family and friends for help.  But I don’t think it’s OK for adults in their 30s and 40s to live off their parents and think it’s normal.

One could argue that these two women are financially dependent on their mother because she enables them.  If my Dad’s girlfriend always bails out her kids when they need money with no questions asked then she is only sending the message that their behaviour is OK.

As a parent there is a fine line between wanting to help your kids and teaching them how to be an adult.  This is why more parents need to teach their kids about money management from a very young age.

Photo by tahnyakristina

Good morning Dinks.  As you know I have had my share of financial struggles in the past.  I don’t regret my financial mistakes as a teenager and in my 20s because they made me into the responsible adult I am today.  However I do wish that I learned the easy way how to manage my money.  I wish I learned how to manage my money the right way the first time instead of having to learn from my mistakes.  Maybe my parents should have taught me about money or maybe they should have make me an appointment with a financial advisor.

It’s important for kids to learn about good money habits as young as possible so they can form good money values as they grow up and not make the same mistakes I did.  As a teenager and young adult I accepted every credit card offer mailed to me and I overspent to avoid dealing with my feelings.  I never learned how to manage money or how to budget as a child and I ended up over $50,000 in debt in my 20s because of it.

Money lessons I wish I learned as a kid:

How to budget my money.  I wish I did this more as a child.  When I got my weekly allowance I just spent it as soon as possible.  This is a habit that stayed with me as an adult.  I lived pay check to pay check for many years because I didn’t know the value in saving money.  I didn’t know that saving money could help accomplish everything I wanted in life like travelling.  I really love travelling but I only started doing it in my 30s because I couldn’t afford it when I was younger.

I thought having a budget meant I spent the money I had and then waited for my next pay check.  I didn’t know I had to live within my means and make room for saving.  If I did I wouldn’t have had to live with the stress of living pay check to pay check.  If I learned how to budget as a kid my life as an adult would have been a lot easier.

Set financial goals and work towards them.  I had absolutely no financial goals in my 20s expect to make it to my next pay check.  I paid my bills (not always in full), put food in my belly and bought pretty things for my apartment.  That was about all the goals I had.  As a child I wish I sat down and set financial goals such as saving for college.  If I did my life in college probably would have been a lot easier.  I could have worked less and I probably would have had better grades.

The importance of saving.  Lots of banks offer kids accounts with no fees.  This allows them to make deposits and save money from their birthday gifts, their allowance or a part time job.  If I had this as a kid maybe I would have learned to save instead of spending all my money on CDs and clothes.  Don’t laugh but I was really addicted to Columbia House CD club when I was younger.  Remember that mail order music service?

Photo by Good N Crazy