I've Never Encountered This Before | Financial Audit

Hello, my name is Raymond. I'm from. Central Texas. Uh. work in communications and this is. financial audit. Work in communications. Uh how old are. you by the way? Oh, I'm sorry. I'm 28. That's okay. So, uh what what are you doing in. communications? Um so, I dispatch for a police. department. Oh, very cool. That's probably. stressful. Yes. Yes, it is. I couldn't even imagine cuz I'm sure you. just. crazy situations constantly. Yeah, constantly. So, like dispatch is are you the ones uh.

you're not the one taking the call, correct? From the. You are. So, dispatch does take the call. and sends says who to go where? Yes. Wow. So, um. It's a big responsibility. Yeah, you're either working. call taking or you're either like. dispatching calls. Yeah. So, How many hours a week are you doing. that? Um right now with staffing, probably. anywhere between 40 and 60. 40 and 60? Yeah.

And I bet that. I bet that is a mental job. I bet that. can take a mental strain. Yeah, I think you'll see that. Okay, so cope. Yeah, there's a lot of cope. Okay. Okay. That makes sense. So, 50 uh. so, okay. Well, what do you what are you. bringing in on a monthly average from. this job? So, I I sent you a Google sheet. Um. Mhm. I I show on there like my abs- absolute. base 40 hours a week is I think 1362. 1368.

For two weeks. Okay. That's my bring home. That's after taxes. deductions. Um and then. absolute max I can bring home about. 4,000 I think is on there. Per month? Yeah. Okay, yeah, that's what I saw. It was. just about 4,000. But, what do you think. is on average? Let's get an average. Um average is probably about 1,700 every. two weeks. Okay. 1,700 every two weeks. Mhm. So, let's. Ah, but I hate bi-weekly cuz months are. going to be longer, but we're just going.

to say average of $3,400 a month. just when we're doing the budget later, that'll help. Okay. So, how do we feel living in the. Central Texas area $3,400 a month? Obviously, uh. interesting situation we got here, but. Yeah. So, there Yeah, there is a lot. Um. I feel like with the income and then. like the the price of stuff in my area, um I I could be okay. Yeah. I think right now I've just gotten into. so much minimal monthly payments that.

it's a Yeah, it's it's hurting a lot. Yeah. Um give yourself a score, 0 to 10. Um. zero's all the way. Maybe a two for. for retirement cuz I do have some. through the. So, because of retirement, you'd give. your whole score a two? Yeah. Okay. Well, I mean, if you want to average it out. Yeah, average it. I think recently you've like branched it. out where it's like zero for this, zero. for that, and. Yeah, each category has its own and. they're weighted equally and then. they're divided by 50 totally. So, what. what would you give yourself an entire.

Probably a one. One. Yeah. Okay. Um unfortunately, unfortunately, and I. hate that I'm saying this immediately, but unfortunately, I'm going to have a. hard time with a one because. Yeah. 159.56%. annual percentage rate on the first of. like a million loans we're about to see. You borrow money like it is a full-time. job. Like when we're not getting calls at. dispatch, are we going to.

mylife.com and taking out a million. percent loans on a daily basis? Pretty much, yeah. So, obviously, we took out a payday. loan. Okay, so guess what? Amscot. Financial, $1,400. You borrowed $1,500, but paying this off, you're going to pay a total of $2,903. $2,903. What did you possibly borrow a hundred. or a thousand. $400 for? It was to consolidate the other payday. loans.

Oh, it's a payday loan consolidation. through payday? Yeah. Oh, Death, why are you taking out payday. loans, my dude? As you said as you. already admitted, you make enough to. survive in your area. So, it was just. um. a lot of the the coping. Um so, back in February this year, me. and my wife separated. And so. Oh, I'm so sorry. No, it's fine. Um I think before that, everything was good. You know, we were.

making it. We had We had everything kind. of budgeted out and we were doing good. And uh most of this you'll see is is. just from like the last 6 months. Was the separation expected? Um no. Okay. Yeah. So, that's probably. like played a big toll on you. Very much. Okay. That's where a lot of And there's been. there's a lot of mental health. a lot of that. Um issues with the job. So. Is this the right job for you? Yeah. I mean, I love it. I've always. I've always been in law enforcement, so.

Really? Um yeah. Okay. Uh it was just getting through that. I've had no issues before that happened. Afterwards, it was like I was trying to. work through it and I think. working through it. in this profession wasn't a good idea. Within the separation, has the the. divorce officially happened? No. Okay. What are we expecting from the divorce. financially? Nothing. Okay. Yeah, we're. I'm we're not It wasn't a bad. separation. Sure. We're still friends.

Um. I'm really sorry. That's hard. Yeah, it just. That's really difficult. It hurt and that's where like a lot of. the mentality. Have you sought help? Yes. Mental health help? Recently, yes. Recently? Okay, well, better late than. never. Yeah, I've got therapy is provided. through the work. And then. Definitely should be that. And. then um. I'm seeing a new psychiatrist and stuff. So. Okay, very good. Have you found that. that has helped? Yes, it has. Okay, so yeah, we talked a lot about the. coping. Now, coping I understand more.

like some of the credit cards you've. built up and all all this, but what were. we what were we getting with the payday. loans? What were you even doing? You. have to be like in the most desperate. situation possible to take out a payday. loan. Yeah, so. um. stupidity. Stupidity was 100% of it. Yeah, but what were you getting, man? Just buying anything like I know. during the beginning I was just like. buying random the house. I'm sorry. I.

was just buying random stuff for the. house. Um. Oh, you can say. Okay. I say it all. But um. there's just like. you know, I went. Originally it started with. uh we bought a laptop for. the nephew, which was the Best Buy card. That's when we opened the Best Buy card. And then um. Oh. From there it was like, oh, I can use. this anywhere. And then. yeah, it's just.

just random stuff. But the payday loans, I'm still just. Again, it makes more sense on the card, but so it it they they never went to. anything in particular. You were just. getting them just money? Did you not. understand payday loans? No, I understood them. Um I. So. Was it like a we've given up on life. situation? Cuz that's almost what it. sounds like. Yeah, pretty much. Okay. Not not not on life, but. Okay. just on my finances basically. It's. like, oh, I'll just get this money and. then pay it off. And it really.

And clearly you didn't cuz you. consolidated. You had to consolidate. them. It so it spiraled into I originally had. a plan to borrow the money for one like. one pay period. and then pay it off when the pay off. came, I forgot that there was an auto. payment that came through. and then I had already gotten another. payday loan. So, that was supposed to cover it. I was. supposed to only have one payday loan, but then I was stuck with two, which was. like $600 a month. um because they're like you know, you.

pay 20% every. every check basically. And so, that that. that was what got rid of that. Okay. Yeah. Okay. You know what's crazy? You know what's wild and. Oh, gosh. Okay. We uploaded an episode today. I'm dating. when we're recording this. And I I think. it was like the worst situation we've. ever seen. I don't know how it happens.

Mhm. How people just one-up each other. I'm. sorry. I'm sorry that you're in there, but I'm just think I'm still mentally in. that episode and then all of a sudden. we're here and I'm like. Payday loans. wrapped up in this. Oh, what what's the. balance of this? What's the current. balance? Did you just take this out? Like I don't see a current balance. one is it? This is the payday loan of death. Yeah, do you know what? Does it say what. company? Yeah, so that one's currently. 1,200. Okay, so it just started. Uh recently, yeah. It's It's been like a. month, I think.

Okay, yeah. So, it hasn't had the chance. to. have all that insanity of. death interest. So, 1,200. Ruined me. What's the. 103.71. is the. What? It It's $103 a check. So, every 2 weeks. That's so cool. So, it's 206 a month, I believe. The fact that it's even structured That. just That just ruined me. That just like.

infuriated me. Cuz it just It makes it feel like it's. manageable, but it's not. It's terrible. It's death. It's insanity. At the time, the mentality was. $103 a check was better than the 400 a. check. Or the 300 a check. Yeah. Saving that money. I love when my money. is making more money in the SoFi. high-yield savings account I use has. 4.6% interest on that money. It's the.

savings account I personally use for my. tax money that I set aside and other. money that I just want to be building. while it's just sitting there. And you. can get bonuses by signing up all the. way up to $250 by using my affiliate. link in the description below. And it's. not just cuz they're my affiliate. I. personally use them. They're great. I've. had a great experience with them so far. And I only recommend those who I like. working with and who I like using. So, if you have money sitting in savings, have that money make some more money. and use that high-yield savings account. Link in the description below. 4.6%.

and bonuses all the way up to $250. Okay. 207.42. per month. Okay. And then in the Google Sheets, um. it's labeled next to it. It should be. that that one and then the Credit Fresh. or per check. Okay. I'm going to throw that. to my side. Okay. because it harms me.

Affirm every second of your life you. affirm affirm affirm. Someone else has. just got a new gaming PC. Okay. Two. Two new gaming PCs? Why do you need two. possibly? I got one for me and my sister. Your sister! I'm sure she's lovely. She's great. You have payday loans. You. can't afford to survive. You're getting. money stolen from you on a paycheck. basis. Your sister does not get a Can. you return sister's gaming PC? I'm not sure. I'll have to check.

Yeah, we check. Sister's gaming PC is. going back. Sister gets her own gaming. PC or you pay off the debt, get a fully. funded emergency fund, catch up on your. retirement, and then you give her a. gaming PC. What GPU do you have? Um, 4070. TI. That was. halfway decent processor. Um, i7 13. 7. How much wham? How much dedicated wham? Uh, about 64 whams.

Okay. Listen, I'm a nerd. I'm all about it. I. got it, but guess what? I got mine when. I was out of debt. I was out of debt. You can't afford to live. You don't need. a gaming PC, which just presents. you to spend more money on getting the. games. Yeah. What are you even playing on it? Uh, well, right now Starfield, Baldur's. Gate 3. Yeah, you do need a good GPU for that. Starfield. But, um, so these are these are about, I. think a I'm almost a year into them. I think. I have to double check, but.

A year into them? Are you sure you're a. year into them? Uh, okay, Affirm. Is this from Newegg? So, kill me. Um, jeez. Loan amount $1,901, and there's $1,000 left. So, yeah, you're probably a year into it at 30%. interest rate. No, you're not You're not. No, no, no, no, no, no. You're like 6. months into this cuz this is a 12-month. installment loan. This one's like 6. months into What did you get from there? Is that Is that Newegg? Yeah, this is Newegg. What did you get. from Newegg? That was the 4070 TI.

What came in your PC? Um, a 3060, I think. Use it for a bit. For a bit. It's okay. You put settings on lower settings for a. bit, so that you can survive, so that. you don't die on the Walmart floor. I just hit the mic by accident. I don't. know if that messed up anything. I It's okay. I'm feeling like I want to. punch my mic. Oh, yeah. 30%. What is the monthly payment on. this? 30%? 176.

At least you know it. Yep. I respect that. Now, guess what? I buy. power, we went and we got Yeah. When I got my first gaming PC, which is. the one we're using for the studio back. there, very good. Very good. And I've. had it for a while now. It was cheaper. than this, so you got a damn good PC. Yep. And I'm sure being a pre-built it was a. little overpriced. Depends on where you get it from. Uh I. buy power, I don't know.

I don't know. I got mine from NZXT. It. was overpriced by about 300 bucks with. parts, but it was pre-assembled, of. course. Um I only did that because the GPU in. the pandemic, they were like over. gouging on. reselling, so. I got. lucky. I think you got I mean, you got bullied. on uh. Newegg. Okay, so you owe on this one. $2,099.28. And just for 30%?

Yep. And you Are you sure you're you're into. this? You borrowed 4,200. n-. $2,491. and you still owe over $2,000. Minimum. monthly payment on this one? Ooh, is that That's the computer, so. Well, there's two I buy powers. one of them is 137 a month and one of. them is 1. 36. And they're 24-month loans. Yes, they are. Yes, they are. Sorry. No, you're fine.

To be clear, I don't get angry at the. individual. I just I'm People have asked. me like why I'm so connected to the. situation. I've been in really, really. bad debt. Okay, you're for what it's. worth, usually I'm I have. I've been in worse debt than most guests. on the show, but of course yours is. worse than I was then, but I'm just. picturing myself in there and I'm. furious. I'm furious on your behalf, and. it just kills me. It just brings out all. of my emotions. Well, I I feel like I haven't been this. way with myself for the last, you know,

while. And so this is kind of why I'm. here. This is what I need. Is is for you to be that part, you know. Okay. I'll speak for that that part of. you inside. Absolutely. We have a. remaining balance 1,763 on here and you. know, it's like the 136 probably at 30%. interest. 30% Everything's 30%. Except. for the payday loan which is at a. million percent. Best Buy credit card, what did you say you did with this? You. bought your nephew something? You give. too many people money you don't have. To be very clear, you give people money.

that you have as long as you're hitting. your investment goals, as long as you. can afford to survive. What did you buy? So, I believe 1,100 of it is the laptop. It was another computer, cool. Um for his high school graduation. And the rest of it was just bull. No. Yeah. You know? What?

You know? You know what's killing me? The interest. Yeah, the interest is bad. Miss payment. Um. Why are you possibly missing a payment? It shouldn't be missed. Well, guess what? It was, sir. Past due. amount $92. Which by the way, this is not the only. card that that's going to happen on as. we go through this, so. I didn't think I had any miss payments. Oh. I didn't I didn't think so. Oh. So, okay.

So, we're we're just not very in tune. with our finances, are we? Well, correct? Oh, well. No, yes, no, yes, no, yes. No, yes. Well, if we're missing a. payment, we're getting penalty fees and. overdrafting our checking account, spoiler alert, we're not very in tune. with our finances. Especially if you don't know what's. happening. Yeah, minimum due now $245.28. I just heard my voice go high on that.

one. My goodness. Hopefully I'm not. harming your ears. This is stressful. Balance went up even though you made a. 63 Well, you know So, you're you're not. you're not making the full payment. You're You're You're past due. Okay. I'm glad there is no purchases on this. card. But, there was interest and of course. fees. Interest this year so far $185. Fees this year so far $71. That's more. than the $41 of fees. It means you've.

missed two payments this year so far on. this card probably. I thought I was I thought it was caught. up. I thought it should be caught up. I didn't think anything was actually. still behind. I'll have to double-check that. Well, here it is and it's over 30%. It's. like 32%. Yes. It's getting rough out there with those. interest rates. Oh. Credit Fresh. What a fun way to say my. life. Yeah. Okay. So, this is. minimum monthly payment.

on First of all, I've never heard of. Credit Fresh. This one's new to me. Outstanding. ba- principal balance $2,000. Previous. No, no, no. New balance $2,170. Fees. $115 of fees. Yeah. Fees. What are the fees for? I don't. know. This is only one page. What are. the fees for? And why didn't I get the. second page? That Well, that's That's all it had. page one of two. So, I'm guessing you.

made a payment. You missed a payment. No, I didn't miss a payment. Um. I think that one's structured to add the. fees. That's why I I just realized that after. the first payment. and um. I that was my goal is that one needs to. go as quick as possible. What is Credit Fresh? It. it's the same thing as Opp Financer, the. Opp Loans. It's a personal loan. What's the interest? Or the fees baked. in, what does it equate to? Um probably like 80%.

but I'm not sure. I just can't believe that's even a thing. that exists. Ay ay ay. Please help me through this episode and. hit the subscribe button. We're trying. to get to a million subscribers. Thank you to everyone who has subscribed. so far. I love you. Now back to the pain. I um I'm. clamming up, so. I do that too. I just. start to whisper like like a mouse or. something when I'm. Well, I sound like Mickey Mouse when I. get excited, I've learned.

Yeah. So, if I need to if I need to. speak up, just let me know. Um you can always speak a little louder, that'd be good. Okay. But. and I can't believe one. little $1,971.70. owed. As if there wasn't enough debt at. a hundred. uh minimum monthly payments in your. life. You just live off minimum monthly. payments. Fees charged. Yeah. You made a. You made a $10 payment. You made a $10.

payment. The minimum monthly payment was. $147. We can't be making $10 payments. Why. don't you just have automatic payments. turned on if you clearly can't manage. it? Oh, because you overdrafted your. checking account, so you don't ever have. enough money in there. Yeah. Why are you not making these? Why the. I. I've just built myself into. where there's not the money there. Except for.

that I don't want there to be. There's a. bunch of bull spending. That's what it is. Yeah, I don't. Oh, I know. I'm not going to lie to you cuz the. proof is in front of you, so. Member fee, late fee, total interest. $373 of interest this year so far, $66. of fees. Yep. 27.9% interest rate. So, that one's that this one's almost. done. Um. What's the current balance? 300 I got one more payment, $304.

Oh, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Oh, thank you. At a 21% interest rate. So, what was. this? What was up? Uh this was for surgery. Oh, jeez. What did you What What. happened? No, me and me and my wife uh at the time. we went to Mexico and had weight loss. surgery. Oh, okay. When did you do that? Uh back in November. How has that been so far? It's been good. I'm down. I'm like kind of staggering at 100 lb, but. You're down 100 though.

And. Absolutely. Come on. And um I think she's kind of she was. around the same. Okay. So. You found yourself plateauing though is. what you seem to suggest. Um I don't I don't think the divorce. helped at all. No, I I wouldn't think so. Um okay. And hopefully you're talking to. your uh. uh therapist and psychologist about. this, correct? Yes. Okay. Good. But, definitely be proud of the progress. you've made. Let's uh.

And I'm glad you're taking control. It. shows. actually it's giving me an optimistic. part So far for this optimistic thing. that is um come so far is you you've. done what is necessary to take care of. that part. And I struggle with my. physical health part. That takes a big. mental effort. And it's showing you that. there's a part of you that has. self-control and determination. Even. through the struggles of the divorce, I. know thing it's made it harder, but uh. you haven't yo-yoed, right? You haven't. gone back up. See, that even that within. itself is a win. So,

it's showing you that. there is. I think you can tackle this. I think you. can tackle this. It's going to be hard. We're going to have to create a plan, but. Yeah. You will. um. you'll see in the bank statements that a. lot of the. the food, probably food addiction and. stuff is still there. And then we'll get to the point where. like half of that gets tossed out. Mhm. It's just spending to spend. Um. Cuz it physically, you know, you can't.

can't eat. I don't want Yeah, and I also do you. want to? No. Yeah, I don't I don't want you to gain. it back cuz the stomach can stretch back. out. Yeah. So, you drove We must have driven driven. here in a lovely old Nissan. Yep. Nissan Murano. Yep. I don't even know that. 2020? Mhm. Maturity date 2029? Yep. The end of this decade? It was a a panic buy. Go on?

So, I was driving a 2015. Dodge Journey. Um I owed about 7 or 8,000 more than. what it was worth. And it There was some mechanical issues. that it was having. Um I was having trouble getting it to. start. It was a push to start. So, I. don't I don't know anything about cars. But yeah, I was having trouble with it. getting to push to start. It would do It. would start shaking and stuff. And then. driving down the road, um as you were. driving, it would just start like. kicking.

And so, You took it to a mechanic? No. I just I I immediately got scared and. And what? Drove to a car lot and took. out a evil disgusting loan? Yeah, it was it was a very impulsive. So, we have basically a $30,000 loan. paying off by the end of this decade. with minimum monthly payments of. $656.56. And.

bi-weekly payments, I don't know if. that's how it's structured or if that's. how you're doing it to do it. No, it's not bi-weekly. Okay, but you're you're paying. bi-weekly. At least in the statement you. did. You paid 330 and then you paid 330. So, one Yeah. So, one payment I did. I. went ahead and and paid half of it. early. Okay. It's a 16.66%. interest rate. Yep. Ruined. I really hate myself for it cuz. No. No, no, no. No, I don't like that. talk. Well, I mean, now I do, but my Dodge. Journey was.

I had 13,000 left on it at 3%. or 3 and 1/2%. That sucks, dude. Yeah. It sucks. So. Don't hate yourself for it. I I I don't. want to I don't want to be talking like. that. We're not talking about that. What. you going to do because your life. matters, just like your life mattered. enough for you to uh work hard and. extend your the longevity of your life. by taking control of your physical. health, and you're on that journey, your. life matters in terms of I want you to. get to a place where you're going to be. able to retire. We don't hate ourselves. for past mistakes. I'm going through.

your situation. I I I make it very I I. react naturally based on my own. reactions. Mhm. and I make it uh I try to also make it. very clear to the person sitting on the. other side of the table how bad it is. cuz so many people come in and they're. like, "It's not great, but it's not that bad, either." Oh, it's bad. So, I make sure. they kind of know. Just like in Kitchen. Nightmares, you know? You start You're. going You show how nasty the fridge is. and all that stuff. It's getting all. rotten. Wake's Wake up call. Wake up. call.

Yeah. And then think. Do not hate your life Do not hate. yourself. You You've made mistakes, absolutely. I have, too. But, a mistake. I made a decade ago make a mistake I. made 5 years ago, it does not define the. rest of my life. What defines my life is. what I'm doing right now, what progress. I am taking to better my life, and then. personal improvement as we go. You're judged for what's right now. You'll be judged for what you do in the. future. Let's get Let's use what we've learned. in the past, use it as a learning lesson. to make educated decisions going for-. forward. So,

I want I I just want that language out. of your mouth. Mhm. Um. I'll try. Well, if you actually think that way, I. really want you to talk to your. therapist about it. I really do. Oh, now here's the basically the devil. Credit One, my least favorite. institution in the world. Screw Credit One. And it comes in the mail disguised to. look like Capital One. You're like, "Yeah, it's Capital One." Then it comes. in with all these terrible fees on a. monthly basis and interest. Luckily, I.

mean, you only owe. $199.11. They usually don't allow you to have a. huge balance. Yeah, yours is only $300. on here. So, thank goodness, or else you. would have spent more than that. Total. Total fees charged uh this year so far. $141.37. of interest. Mhm. Thank you for not purchasing on this. account. And you did a minimum monthly payment of. $30. Good. All of them All of them All three of. them are caught up. All three of what? Credit cards. Good lad. Good lad.

Capital One, Best Buy, and Credit One, they're all caught up. Good lad. Make sure you take them out of. your Apple Wallet or whatever else there. is. I was going to ask you about um. what do you think about like just. closing them? Yeah, if you can, absolutely. Like is that is that something you can. do? I know you've recommended that to a. lot of people, but. Close what you can. And then. you financed the $1,000. What is it? Uh through. Oh, um. a DocuSign, so. Yeah, it's probably.

through our our work. So, the bank Yeah, the bank system. there. What? Yeah. So, they have a You can take out a. personal loan. Through work? Yeah. The. I don't know. It was um we we did it as part of the uh. bi-weekly payments. I think um. I think it was for part of the surgery, but I'm not sure. I don't remember.

But I think it is like. was the surgery? So all together mine was almost 7,000. and my wife's was about 5,500. What does it cost in the United States? Uh around probably like 30,000, 40,000. And your insurance wouldn't it? No. Okay. They they specifically label like we. don't cover obesity. Okay. Yeah. You financed $1,000 through work. It's almost It's almost done. How much is left? I think 300. two something. I'm sorry. The this right here.

I wrote it down. Oh, it's $399. 400. Okay. Yep. With a. $84.32. minimum monthly payment. Okay. Then this one you financed 500. through work again. Yeah. So this one this one was an error. on my part. Um I had paid. the original one off early. and. they didn't actually take the money. I. didn't realize.

So when they came back to charge it, they're like, "Hey, you still. you still owe this because it never came. out of your account." And so they just. set that up for payments. At 25.22%. interest rate. All these rates are rough. $135.69 is. left what's owed and it's a minimum. monthly payment of $43.07. The The debt does not stop. This is just an endless roll of debt. Oh, man.

Student loans. Yeah. You're making me hate writing. Yeah. I did not know. resumed. Yes, they have. Are you making the payments? Nope. That's why Yeah, that's why you see on. there it's I'm like 2 months behind or. some some something behind cuz I didn't. I forgot that the payments were. anyone should do it and no one should do. it. At least for a year though under the. resuming you know you're not going to. this isn't going to hit your credit and. they're not going to garnish your wages.

But a year from now they could. Yeah. So it it wasn't intentional. I forgot. that they were starting up. And. Really? Didn't we all get like a. thousand trillion billion emails. annoying us every day? I didn't. No you. So it was one of your one of your videos. I watched about student loans and. I listened to you say they were starting. back and I was like now I really need to. check that and I saw that I had a. balance on there. Have you Okay, have you connected. payment? Um I haven't connected payment yet. Connect payment. Yeah and then um. Step one. Yeah.

So I just haven't like I said I haven't. done it yet. Okay, do it today. Yeah. 182 48 in a monthly payment. Mhm. Luckily the highest rate is under 5%. Like 4.6 is the highest rate. Like that's good. Mhm. You got You got a degree? No. Where'd you go to school? Uh the first one uh was a community. college in my area. And then the second one.

Did you get an associate's? No. You So you went to transfer to another. institution? Yes, sort of. Okay. So it was um. DeVry University was the second one. Online. I recognize that name. Yeah, I was taking online classes. Okay. And then I dropped both of them. What were you trying to study? Um. information technology I think. Yeah, I mean information technology is.

good. I what what I wish I what I wish I. could have done I wish I know would have. known you there. I would have gifted you. an IT certification program through like. Course Careers or something. Like those. are fine fantastic. And yes, degrees. absolutely help. They're great. But. while you're just discovering what you. want to do, imagine a 6-month much. cheaper three to 6-month much cheaper. program versus going to college, dropping out, borrowing $20,000 to do. it. It's like unless you exactly knew. what you wanted to do. What do you need to do the job you do. now? What are the qualifications? You. already have it, but I'm curious.

Yeah. Um. I mean, just. clean background, drug screening, high school diploma. Okay. This is your checking account, isn't it? Yep. We've made it through the debts? Yes. You have nothing else? Uh no. So, without any Well, the student loans. being decent interest rate, the rest of. them being like 20% or more debt or 100. or kill me. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12. 12 debt endless ruin me debts.

Yep. Okay. Yes. The food addiction very clearly. still continues. And Dutch Bros is your. favorite place in the world. You go. there every second minute of life. Yeah. What do you like so much about Dutch. Bros? What do you get there? Um. several different ones. The drinks. Okay. Like coffees? Yeah. Okay. Just that? had a Dutch Bros? We have Dutch Bros. Oh, yeah. It's just yeah, coffee. Okay. But you don't get like any of the.

No. pastries or whatever. No, no, no. Okay. Do they even have. I don't know. I've never been to one. But 10 bucks is a lot. They're They're like $10. Oh. Yeah. But then I probably will never go to. Dutch Bros with that kind of price. So, yeah. Dutch Bros Dutch Bros. well, I'm sorry. $10 is the um. the uh charge up on your phone. The. minimum charge up on your phone for. that. The drinks are probably like eight. something. Oh, my god. That's still ridiculous. That is a huge.

I mean, it's a large It's larger than. Starbucks. You must get this on your way to the. office, don't you? Uh sometimes. And then I go every. Sunday. Then I bet I can make a better cup of. coffee. Probably. I bet I could. And you pack that in the. biggest glug glug you can get. Yeah. Take that to work. Dutch Bros, Dutch. Bros, McDonald's. Uh Temu. ATM withdrawal 100 bucks, who knows. where that That went. Starbucks,

taquitos. There's a lot of things in. here, by the way, that I just didn't. even know what they were. And like the. words are combined and this is like the. most painful statement to read in the. world. So, there's a lot of through here. and I'm not going to call it all out, but just going through There's a lot of. loan payments and you're doing micro. borrowing. You're doing Dave. Isn't Dave. like a paycheck in like. So, currently. I'm sorry, I did forget about that. I'm. kind of stuck in a loop right now. Yeah, I bet. of the. the advances. Yeah, you're just advancing to pay off. your advance, right?

Yeah. Yeah. There was. um I think five different apps. that I was that I was getting advances. from. And um. Yeah. I've able I've been able to like. taper it down to I think three now. So, I'm. Some amphitheater thing and Mark uh the. taquitos. What is Automatic Chef? It happens a. lot. Is that a meal prepping service? No. How much is it? All right, it comes up a. lot. Now, well, this uh maybe it's a. vending machine, $1.60. So, vending.

machine, vending machine, taquitos, taquitos, Best Buy. You already spent. enough money there, trust me. Whataburger, taquitos. This I think Best Buy was the credit. card payment. Oh, thank goodness, you're right. Uh. there's the dave.com. They gave you 75. bucks, probably just pay the the 75. bucks you owed and. um. And this is the. Get a new gaming PC. You got to go get. those Steam games and Dutch Bros and. taquitos, and overdraft overdraft fee.

overdraft. Dutch Bros, taquitos, ATM, don't know where that one. 63 bucks. Taco Bell. and taquitos and OnlyFans. Like okay. I I don't want to get into something. weird. I really don't. But you know there's like. Bad times bad times. You know there's.

like a trillion trillion free options, right? Yeah. That's all I'm going to say. Dave Dave. Dave. taquitos. So yeah, you'll see. some of them some of like the payday. advance things they come out separately. Like Earnin. if you borrow $200 it does like four. charges of 50. Yeah. Yeah. So that's why. ATM withdraw 100 bucks and there's the. web Earnin web Earnin web Earnin and. vending machine vending machine taquitos.

Steam games we're doing more of that. Temu. Taco Bell Dutch Bros. Temu are you happy with the things you. get from Temu? They've desperately. begged to sponsor me and I refuse to. allow them just like most sponsors. I consider it like the. the cell phone flea market. Mhm? Yeah, if you've ever been to a flea. market you just see a bunch of like. random crap. Oh, I was thinking just like getting. cell phones. I was like what? no no like like a flea market but for. your phone. I got you.

Yeah. Dutch Bros there's the OnlyFans again. taquitos OnlyFans and. taquitos and Dutch Bros and Dutch Bros. and ATM fee draft withdraw. Yeah, ATM so the ATM fees get refunded. up to four times. Okay, you go to the ATM a lot then. There's Dave, and there's. Earnin, and there's Dave. So, your loop, how much would it take to. get you out of the loop in the three. payday three pay advance?

So, there's Earnin, which is about 200, and then. Dave, 125, and then. Bridget, 75, and then Klarna, 100. All right. Well, okay. Well, here's. here's the thing, dude. A lot of money, a lot of massive. percent. You're not paying extra on your.

debt, and you're missing debt payments, yet still your actual debt payments was. 19% of your spending, cuz that's how big. your minimum monthly payments are. Cuz. you're missing payments, and it's still. that high. You're not making anything. extra. Your car and gas and everything. is. an extra 22% of your spending, which is. crazy. Your housing is 20%. You even just I mean. phone and internet, 5%. You do go to HEB. a lot, and you get a lot of food, 590. bucks. That's 12%.

Going out to eat is only 2.5. It's not. crazy. Those drinks do add up in 124. dollars, though. And the extra taquitos. you're getting is 5%. Large purchases is almost about 10%. Sending out money in Cash App is 3%. The. other large purchases, ATM withdrawal. Uh US gloss all. turnati? I'm not sure.

I don't either. So, this whole conversation does not. matter if you're actually not willing to. take the steps to change, to be very. clear. There will have been no point of. going through that, and there will be no. point of creating a budget if you are. not willing to take the steps to change. I need to know from you how much do you. actually care, how much are you willing. to sacrifice? Do you give a single sh. Yes, I do. Um. that's why I've been working on it for, you know, the last probably month. Uh doctors, therapy, stuff like that.

Good. Um. I'm I'm trying to I think I'm just now. getting over. the divorce. I feel like it's it's not. in my mind. I was having panic attacks. daily, multiple day. And you know, that's another thing is the constant. panic attacks and stuff. And then um. Yeah. I Well, trust me, I feel that one. I think now it's starting I'm I'm trying. to kind of getting back into. um how I was. Listen, I couldn't imagine divorce. My. My high school breakup high school. breakup took me like a year to get over. So, like.

I couldn't imagine how you're feeling. You have every. There's every technical justification. for this to have happened. But, it's putting you in such a terrible. position and it's putting your life in. such a terrible position. that you have to take control now. A. month of progress, that's great. I can I. can be happy about that. We often have. on the show people who've done a month. of progress before they come on though. And then I hear back from them like. afterwards like they just they do. another really good month and then they. fall back into old ways. Especially when.

it comes to addictive tendencies and. coping tendencies, that can be really. easy to fall into, my dude. And you're already stuck in the loop of. the Daves and the Clarn and the Bridget. and the Earn. That can be hard to get out of. So, I. need your 100% commitment. If we're. going to build a budget, if we're going. to work to get you out of the sh. I need your 100% commitment. Absolutely. Okay. Give me your rent.

Um rent, my part is 600. Give me your portion of utilities. Um. including internet if you can. So, I. my sister just gives me a lump sum and I. pay the rest. You live with your sister? Yeah. Okay. So, she gives me about 800. What do you think? A month. Including rent? Yeah, that's rent. Oh, okay. is rent. Oh, how much do you put towards. utilities on top of your 600? Um. Would you say?

So, utilities in our electricity is. about. 170 150 170. Um water sewer all in trash all that's. already in our our rent. And then internet is like 100. You pay half of that? Yeah. Okay, if you pay half of the other thing. as well, that's 125. Total. Okay, what's. your phone bill? Uh 116. Car insurance? 152.

I think. Co-pay for medical stuff, health. insurance, all that. uh. uh therapy is 100% covered? Covered, yeah. That's good. Yeah. As a uh for your line of work, absolutely definitely should be. Lots of subscriptions or a few. subscriptions canceling canceling. canceling we don't need them right now. Um okay, let's get your minimum monthly. payments. Well, actually okay, groceries. um. Now, we've proven that easily people can.

meet their caloric goals on 250 bucks a. month at HEB sorting uh cheapest to most. expensive for meal prepping what you. need to get. Yeah. With your situation and you're losing. weight and I don't know how unique your. food situation is. Is it much more. unique than the average person? Um there are some things that I have to. avoid. Avoid, okay. Because yeah, it causes like uh. What is it I think it's called dumping. syndrome. Okay. Where it just goes it goes straight. through and your body doesn't digest it.

and makes you sick. Okay. Um but. Could I get you there 350? 350 at HEB? Oh, yeah. month? No, yeah. Um I think. this last. I think I only spent like a hundred. something. Yeah, but you ate out a lot, too. Yeah, I did. Yeah. So, I'm talking about HEB-wise. Yeah, I'm going to do 350 and I'm giving. you a hundred dollars for anything else. you need to survive. That's toilet. paper, whatever you put that to what you. need to put that towards.

Minimum monthly payments. Uh gas, how much in gas? Um not much. Probably like. 30 bucks a month. Okay. Woo. Yeah. Minimum monthly payments for debts, that's insane. So, if I may, I remember. why like um. so the credit cards are showing they're. behind. Um. so these the statements were older. Um. I showed you. I I think I gave them to you a little. earlier than what you wanted to, but I.

don't I don't think it mattered. But, there was I think last month where I. basically just decided to say. and I gave up on all my finances. Last month? Yeah. But, then. What? You said you've had a month of. good. No. I don't think I did. Did I? You suggested or I I may have. misinterpreted or misheard. So, last month you just completely gave. up? Yeah, I just said give up. And so. Okay. um. about a week after that, I decided like.

that was a really bad idea and I was. already behind on all my stuff, so I. think that's where. Credit Fresh came from. Is I took out a loan to catch up on. everything that I was stupid with. Okay. Yeah. Often times there's a lot of. uncontrollable things in our budget. You. need to have a phone and a plan to. survive these days and it can be hard to. cut back cuz those plans can be really. expensive. A really good way to do that. is with Mint Mobile where you can get a.

plan as little as $15 a month. Imagine. how much money you can save with that. I. have an affiliate link in the. description below. I highly recommend. checking it out. Just takes a few. minutes and you could save a lot of. money. Yeah, it's as simple as you can't afford. to live. You live. I mean, you're you're. you're you're you're down. You're down. $600. So, you're under $600 what you. need to survive in order to meet your. minimum payments. You say on your very. best paying month, your very best paying. month, you just break even. Mhm. Just break even. So, in your audio.

you work 50 to 60 hours a week? Yeah. Hey. Hey. Hey. And we. Just like the episode that got uploaded. today, this might be the second time the second. time that bankruptcy might be. considered. It won't touch your student. loans, but the student loans are not my. biggest concern here. Obviously, your car, that's going to be. a situation. You're going to have to. figure that out. Mhm. And it's it's you you see you've you're.

you've been through the separation. You're going to go through the divorce. And this bankruptcy can have a very. similar emotional toll in someone in. your situation. That's That's why I just. don't really like talking about it here. cuz any studies on, you know, mental. health when it comes to bankruptcy and. everything concerned, it's it's it's so. rough. It's one of the worst things to. go through. So stressful. It's so hard. to go through. And it's not cheap to go. through, either, depending. So, it's like. God, I don't want to recommend it. And. that's like the last thing I'd.

recommend. You're already working like. the max hours you can work and going on. the most aggressive budget possible. No fun. Not a single cent of fun. You're. still behind $600. How much are you making per hour again? Uh 24 25. It's not bad. You've just you've you've dug yourself. such a big home. There's. Um I'm sorry, man. I'm sorry. This is.

very, very difficult. Um. What's your credit? it, so. You Yes. Yes, I'm just I'm trying to. think of solutions. So. there are solutions. I'm just trying to. think of like the least hard and rough. solution. The beginning of this year, it was. almost 690. Now it's 621. 621, really? Okay. Actually, it's pretty. high. So, Credit Karma is 621, and then. pulled a free credit report this year so.

far? Um yeah, I think so. You have? I do Equifax as well. I have that app, and it says 640. Okay. I don't know which one to follow. A thing to consider. I What's that car. worth? Have you looked it up? Yeah, it's it's worth about 20,000. Oh, Yep. That's why I said I I carried over the. Technically, you can save $10,000 by. borrowing a $20,000 personal loan, selling that car, paying it off with.

$10,000 of the personal loan, then. getting yourself a $10,000 car. You. could do that. Saves you $10,000. It. doesn't exactly get us out of this hole. Yeah, I can't I can't borrow. I've tried. So, I've seen I've seen videos where. That's why I was asking about your. credit score. Yeah, well, I've seen videos where. you've suggested it. Your debt-to-income I bet it's your. debt-to-income ratio. Cuz what I would love to see. potential option, but I think this is. going to be difficult in your situation. Just gathering a lot of this a lot of.

this as much as we can. and consolidating it. But, it's going to be difficult again, so. I mean, there are solutions. The. solutions are you get a better job. Easier said than done. You work more. hours. Basically impossible in your. situation. Uh we consolidate. Who knows. if you'll get approved for that. You. sell your car, get a personal loan to. make the difference to get another car. You won't get approved for that, as you. just said. So, this just leads me, like, is. bankruptcy the only option? I. cannot stomach actually saying yes.

Yeah, my fear is how it affects my job. So, I don't I don't know. What, bankruptcy? Yeah. I I I don't know. I'll have to look into. it, but I know, like, working in law enforcement, there are. some financial ties and stuff, so I. don't know. Mhm. Well, I don't want to speak on that. if I if I don't have the full answer, so. I'm not going to. Well, I want a second eye on this. I. want a second eye on this. Um. Like there's a couple financial advisers.

that I have relationships with who I. trust. We have, you know, similar. mindsets on it, and I want to see if I'm. missing something, if they have other. ideas. I'll pay for them to go over your. situation. and have, you know, a conversation with. you. I'll do that because right now, I. for the first time ever, for the first. time ever on the show, I'm. I cannot think of a true, actual. path forward because it is really, really difficult, and I'm so sorry. you're going through this. And I cannot.

stomach the idea of recommending. bankruptcy, especially with all you've. already gone through and knowing that. your mental health is where it is. It it. would just be so difficult. You can't. work more hours. You can't get loans to. consolidate. You can't get loans to make. the difference between the car, get a. cheaper car. What is it? What is it? There's allow. things to go Again, this is I can't. think of any I all the options I can. think of are just terrible. There's. allow them all to go to collections.

Hope they don't come after you in an. aggressive way. I mean, technically they. can. Technically, they can go to court. You know, depending where. Uh state by state basis. I know Texas. has some interesting laws about around. certain collections. Um. And that was the whole thought that I. was telling you about like last time. me a. up. Just giving up like But but even. still, I mean, they're going to sell for. pennies on the dollar. There is still the chance that some. companies could illegally. like pursue.

Um. small chance, but I again, I don't think. that's something you could go through. Like from just you individually. I. wouldn't want you to go through that. Then you're leaving it on your credit. for 7 years, never touching it, never. going to get approved for anything. down that time. So technically, again, I laid out some. options, but none of them are good. None. of them are things I want to tell you to. do. So I'm going to get a second eye on. it. I want to get a second opinion.

Um like I'll send you to another doctor. Yeah. And uh. get that second opinion. But I'm sorry, man. I wish I could give. you more. I really wish I could give you. a clear here's how to budget, but even. in your budget, we're down $600. And again, I mean, 70 hours a week, do you find. yourself picking up an additional 20. hours at another job? Can you push yourself that hard?

I can't I cannot in good conscience push. you to a physical limit that puts you in. danger, a mental health limit that puts. you in danger. What do you think? I'm not really sure. Um I mean, I can. still try to just get as much overtime. as I can. And you know, I think our max. is about 70 hours a week, I think. But even with that, you said your max. only breaks even with us. So we're we're. not making progress. At least your.

head's like. when it comes to water, like water. level's like right here in that. situation. Right now, it's right here. Are you taking any 401k contributions? Um yeah, so I looked it up. I didn't. print you out a form cuz I forgot about. it, but I have. um. through the municipality, I think, something like that. Uh, I have about. 9,000 right now. Yeah, but how much are you contributing? What percentage? And they match up to. At 5 years, they match 100%.

Of 7%? Yeah. Okay. All right, this goes against every. bone in my body cuz I am a. take the match. It's going to beat the. bad 30% credit card interest because you. get 100%. First of all, you have. interest rates on here over 100%. So, that doesn't even mathematically make. sense anymore and you have to wait for a. while for it to vest anyway. Number two, you simply cannot afford to. like eat. Like, you are not above water right now. That 7% I need to I need it to be. hitting your checking account. We need. to stop that just for basic survival.

Yeah, through through the county, I. don't think you can stop it. What? It's a mandatory contribution? so. It's something I can look into, but. So, like through the union? Uh, probably. Like I'm not sure. Well, that might be something worth. looking into, too. I've never I've never really focused on. on any of it, so. I don't even need you to focus on it. I. just need it to stop. But, maybe through. the public sector thing that you're in, maybe you can't. I don't I don't know. Maybe it's a.

Am I right? That's um. Yeah, let's get that a second opinion. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I really am. Oh, I understand. Like I said, I you know, it's it's my. bed. I made it. Now I have to lie in it. And you know, I was. I'm just hoping that it's something that. I can get through. So. I hope so, too, man. Your life does. matter. You're taking control of the physical,

let's take control of the financial. I'm so sorry. God. And of course, if I think of. anything, if I'm just having a brain. fart of something obvious right now, I'm. we're going to be right in touch with. you immediately, but let me get you set. up with an advisor. Okay. Any final thoughts? Any final questions? Um I mean, if I guess if you ever feel like, you. know, anyone else watching, if you ever. feel like, you know, you're having that.

kind of mind slump, it's best to try to. work through it and not just. spend money, I guess, so. Obviously, Hammer Financial scored zero. out of 10. I'm going to connect him with. someone and we're going to try to find. him the best path forward. Make sure to check out all the resources. linked in the description below. They. are what I personally use or would use. in specific situations. If you want to. be in an episode of Financial Audit and. you're able to make it down to Austin, Texas, fill out the survey in the. description below.