Not Even The Most Strict Plan Will Fix This | Financial Audit

I'm John. I'm 25 years old. I live in. Austin, Texas, and this is financial. audit. What do you do for a living here. in Austin? I'm unemployed right now. Oh, what? Is this a recent development? Since March 23rd. Woah, that's quite a. while. What happened, my dude? Uh laid off. Tech layoff. Oh, yeah, man. They say they over hired during the. pandemic and then when the market. started taking a poo and inflation and. you know, interest rates going up, they. took the excuse to cut people and all. that lovely stuff, especially in tech,

so. What was your position? I was a. software engineer. Yeah. Yeah. You're. probably making decent money, yeah? Uh. for for my area, yeah. Maybe not in. Austin. Uh 75 Oh. left. were like more entry-level. Yeah, for. sure. Okay. Okay. Now, I'm very sorry that. happened. Why. are you currently unemployed? Not saying. that it's like super easy to go get that. exact job again cuz actually in the tech. market, it has been kind of hard to kind. of recoup those jobs at certain points.

Um you know, we we have seen a bounce. back this last quarter, but. even still, there are other jobs. available. So, why haven't you been. working? Uh well, I've been applying for. mostly tech jobs, so software. engineering mostly or maybe IT, um but. not having any luck. I think I've. applied to like 300 jobs uh. since I was laid off and gotten a few. energy interviews, probably like 20 to. 30. Um how many years were you in that. position? Two, roughly two. Okay. Uh degree, certification? I have my. degree in information sciences, uh.

bachelor's. Uh no certifications, though. Okay. Yeah. Well, I mean, you. have a degree, so I mean, that's good. Um. you know, I like certifications, I like. degrees, whatever uh the best path is. financially for each person, it's their. own. I definitely, you know, give. shout-outs to a company I like, Course. Careers, for their different tech. certifications, and those are good, but. um. I mean, not having an income for almost. 6 months now is So, what have you been. doing? I mean, that might explain like.

all the trillions of debt. Yeah. Yeah, it for sure. I don't know. Since I'm living in Austin, kind of new. here. I moved here last December, so. rent's pretty expensive, and I'm kind of. Yeah, where are you from originally? Blacksburg, Virginia. Hm. Okay. Yeah, and I guess I've been, I. don't know, against getting a normal. 9-to-5 job. be, though. I feel that, but. If we're just building up debt and debt. and debt, it's like. I don't know. I don't want to I don't. want to do that here. I'd rather, you.

know, go back home. Go back home, then. Cheaper cost of living. Break your lease, go back home. Uh I. don't know. I I feel like I can make it. until my lease ends in December. going further into debt. I am. I feel. like. So, does that making it? No, definitely. not. Okay. I want to. I don't know. I want to get a job doing. what I was doing and making that higher. income. you to, as well, but why not until then. make sure that we can afford things. without going into endless amounts of. credit card debt? Yeah. Um I don't know. I was hoping I could. make it by now. Took a took a risk and.

didn't. Yeah. So, has your attitude changed, then? It's starting to, for sure. Um I was kind of against going back home. entirely, but yeah, I I definitely would. at this point. Uh I don't want to break. my lease, though. I Okay. think I could. make it until then. Um. You know, it it also it depends on the. landlord and stuff like that. Like I try. to be flexible. If someone had a. situation like yours and they wanted to. go back home and some of the rental. properties that I have, I'd be like, "Dude, totally chill. I mean, that's.

life. That's all life is. Let's break. the lease, no consequences, go back and. do your thing." But maybe you're with a. place where they're like, "Yo, it's like a billion months' rent. for breaking this lease, and we're going. to hit your credit." Yeah, no, I feel. like they'd be fine. Like I think it's a. fee you pay if you break a lease, so it. wouldn't be that bad. I just feel like. there's more opportunity here. I don't. know. Austin's. No, I would love you to stay in Austin. if you want to live in Austin, but we. can't live in Austin for 6 months and. not have a job because we feel like it's. beneath us. Oh, yeah. Like that's.

we can't do that. And the more and more. you do that and put it on 25% interest. rate credit cards, is the longer and. longer you're going to have to. work to repay it when you do get a dream. job or whatever like that. I mean, you. could it's again, easier said than done, but I know they're hiring at all those. places cuz I'm addicted to their food, but the managers, the GMs that go. through the training and go through. everything, you know, after bonuses and. stuff like that, they're making like. $120,000 in Austin at Panda Express. For. a manager? GM, general manager. So, they're running the shop. Lots of.

responsibility, lots of work, long. hours, lots of training. Yeah. But that's a lot of money. Yeah, but I. could also. Like you could have been through the. training at this point, mhm, approaching. that area. So, yeah, I could have also gotten a. job in the tech world and, you know, been fine, but it didn't go that way, so. Yeah, I think just mixed with laziness. and, I don't know, hope that I get a job. in time before I have to go back home is. Why hope? Dude, just go get a job right.

now. Any job. Just but I can't afford rent with like. You can't afford rent with zero dollars. Well, I I think I can. It's just I'll go. back home at the end. When does your lease up? Uh December. Okay. Can you afford rent until December. with zero dollar income? Uh with savings. and unemployment, I can. Unemployment. So, you've been on unemployment this. whole time. Uh a little bit after cuz I. got a severance package, and then I sold.

out of my 401k, um. and now yes, I'm relying on. unemployment. Now, of course, I mean, that's not. something to knock him against you. Paid. the taxes into that, you know, you know, into the, you know, state and. everything. Insurance programs, and then you get, you know, you got laid off. And then. that is there as a support system for. you, and I get it that, I mean, you're. meeting the requirements by applying to. the tech jobs, Mhm. but as a person who I'd want to be. responsible and self-reliant,

like buddy, we can go get another job. for a bit. Yeah. What's in What's coming in on a. weekly on a monthly basis from. unemployment? What are you getting right. now? Uh like 1,100 or 1,100 every 2 weeks, so. 2,200. a month. I could get you that easily working a. job in Austin. Yeah. Wouldn't you rather do that instead of. sitting on your butt? Uh well, I mean, the amount of time that I have to like. apply and then research companies, and. then every company has like their own. tech stack they want you to know, so.

It's not just tech, buddy. It's other. jobs right now. Any other job. Yeah. Uh I don't know. I mean, yeah, I could. go work at McDonald's or something and. and probably make like 15 an hour. not even the only option, but all I'm. saying is like. Okay, sure. I've applied for some jobs like outside. of my $20 an hour. That's $3,400 a week. That's more than you're making now. I. can get you $20 an hour, and I can get. you easily $20 an hour in Austin. Or.

wages are pretty much minimum wage is. like 15. Market set. Whatever the job requires, buddy. I. don't care. I want you to like. be an adult, you know? But I feel like the time is. kind of wasted if I go and do something. unrelated. and then take a huge like income hit. Income hit? Your income's zero. Your. income's zero. What is the logic here? What is the logic? I guess none. Just kind of hoping that I.

get a job before December and I can stay. here and continue. Hope is wonderful. Hope has not worked. for 6 months. So, what do we do? We grow. up and we go get a big boy job. Mhm. That's what we do. Come on. Yeah. For sure. beneath you just because Dude, I want you to get into that position. that you got into. I want you to make. over six figures working in tech. eventually. Mhm. We don't just live life based on hope. and dreams. We do have to face the. reality of the situation and then the. economic structure that we live in. There's realities, and you got to be like, "Okay, I'm an. adult. I'm 25. I'm going to be.

self-reliant and actually go work.". And apply to go do those jobs, even if. it's not the dream job that we want to. do. I feel that. I feel that, for sure. You feel that? So, you'll do that. Uh. yeah, I'll start I'll start applying for. maybe some things outside of that. I. really don't want to go like McDonald's. or H-E-B or something. I don't want to. do that. I don't want to do that. I. don't want to do that. I don't want to. do that. Fine, don't apply to McDonald's or. H-E-B. There's a billion other options. 2.5 million people in the metropolitan.

area. There are jobs. jobs. And I can get you $20 an hour. easily in Austin. Yeah. Go through the. interview process. Don't be mean in. interviews, and then okay, let's get a. job. Yeah, but even if even if I get one of. those jobs, I feel like when it comes to. December, I'm not going to be able to. stay here. I'm not going to have to get. a new lease. I'm going to have to go. back home. to stay here at zero dollars an hour. So, I feel like it's the. logic doesn't make sense. And that. doesn't make sense, either, cuz even if. you got a place for $1,000, I know you. can get a place for $1,000, you know?

Yeah. Is it your dream place? Yes. Is it your dream place? No. Thousand. I pay uh 1,700 right now. And that was. kind of on the cheaper side when I was. looking. $20 an hour. Dude, what was that? $3,500. a month? Yeah. But I also got other bills, not just. rent. I know. We'll go through them. And you. have zero dollars an hour. I I I don't. understand this logic. How is money.

better than no money? It's it. Yeah, it's a bad bad logic. There just isn't logic. I feel like. you're just trying to find excuses. I could be, for sure. Could be. I'm open to that. I want to take a brief. moment to thank today's episode sponsor, Policygenius. Let's talk about something. very important, life insurance. If you. have anyone relying on your income, a A. insurance policy can give you a piece of. mind. And thanks to Policygenius, choosing the right life insurance policy.

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deserve a smarter way to find and buy. it. Head to policygenius.com/calebhammer. check out the link at the top of the. description below to get some free. quotes and see how much money you can. save. I I didn't expect it to be this. hard to. to find a job for one, but I don't know. It's kind of the economy in the tech. world right now is is not very open to. to newcomers. 91 complexes It's not 91 unit, 91. complexes in the Austin metro. metropolitan area that have units for. $1,000 or less.

Okay. Okay. They exist. Are they are they good apartments? Are. they I don't know. In Austin Austin's one of the safest. cities uh statistically. you know, when it comes to major cities. Mhm. There's like two sketchy areas I. can even think of in Austin. And those. were not them. Yeah. to be fine. Okay. saying move into a dumpster. Yeah. Yeah, I don't know. I think I got used. to a certain lifestyle. Well, I don't give a. And you shouldn't give a Yeah. I think.

your future matters a little more Yeah. than that. I mean, come on. Yeah, but I don't know. I want my future be in tech, not you. know, get. future doesn't exist. What about your. present right now? How about the. present? I want your future to be in. tech either. Well, how does either of. those things that I just suggested going. and getting a job so you can pay bills. right now and have not have to rely on. unemployment, which is going to be less. than you'd be making $20 an hour, and. getting an apartment that's $1,000 or. less, which was just, you know, it could. you could get an apartment for $1,500 as. well. I mean, that'd be way too. expensive for the income that'd be.

coming in at the 3,500, but you could. still do that. How do either of those. put possibly take away from you working. in tech eventually? They don't. They're. not an obstacle. I feel like people get stuck. They get. somewhere and then they're barely making. it by and then they get stuck there. Don't get stuck. That's up to you. That's up to your discipline. That's up. to your desires. Create a plan. Figure. out what the objectives are that you. need to hit along the way to get to the. ultimate goal and meet them. You're. right, if you just sit back and you're. lazy or if you get overwhelmed, there's. I mean, there's mental health things, too, like depression could be a thing if.

you're just like, "Okay, we're just. grinding or paycheck to paycheck." That. can bear down on people. And we can talk. about that as well. But for your. situation, you're just not doing things. You're just not doing it. And we're. making endless excuses why. I'm not crying. We for this degree that uh we're, you. know, not using to work right now. because we just don't have any job, which you could get a job, by the way. Fun fact, $20 an hour in Austin. We have. $28,524. of private Sallie Mae debt student. loans. Well, yeah, that's not half of it.

No, well, yeah, we have federal, but. this is the private, though. Yeah. These. are your private. what I'm focusing on. Sallie Mae. You're not focusing that. much on it because guess what? Of your. debt payments. 3.6% of your spending went to that, but. 5.7% went to eating out, so. Yeah. I don't think that we're focusing. on it. Well, right now I'm not. I'm trying to. save as much as I can. Not trying. throw it on bills. I'm kind of just. biting my time at this point.

Which, by the way, this. uh. one of these loans at 17,000 started at. 17,000, went up to 20,000. So, I mean, this interest of 10% um basically 10% 9. to 10%. Mhm. is starting to beat you down. It's. fixed interest, though. It's good. interest for a student loan right now. Uh for a private student loan, maybe. Yeah. I mean, for I mean, federal. student loans. It's like Well, some of those are. For the whether it's subsidized or. unsubsidized in your financial.

situation, but we're looking forward to. 8%. You're still at 9. Mhm. point. 375. So, $28,524. owed, lovely, with a minimum monthly. payment of. $263. And for someone that doesn't have. a job, uh that's a lot of money. And that's a little lower right now. I. have a deferment on another one. Um or. actually, I'm not not a deferment. I. paid ahead, so I get a couple month. months' break, but I think next month I. have to start back up on that. It's a.

lot cheaper, though. It's like a hundred. more. It's like a So, if the other one was. 250, I think you said. Uh well, that's for both of them Oh, right, cuz it's at zero dollars. Yeah. 427 when it comes back. I'll have Sallie Mae cross her dumb. stupid face. I hate her. I hate her. Subscribe. Subscribe, and I'll do it for. you. It'll be great. We're trying to get to 750,000. subscribers. Thank you to everyone who. has subscribed so far. I love you all. Sallie Mae, I don't love you, Sallie. 9.375%.

interest death. Sallie Mae is like one of my least. favorite. I had a bunch of Sallie Mae. death debt. Federal student loans, what does it go. in total? Cuz I don't want to This is so. much of nothing. 17. Okay. And then I I couldn't get this one, but. my mom has a parent plus loan. But okay, your mom has it, though. It's in her name, yeah. Yeah. Which okay, if you want to take care of. that eventually, fantastic. That's not. something we're doing now. Yeah. One's. at 2%. So, your highest rate is 5%. What are. your your minimum monthly payment's.

going to be something like. $200 a month? Something like that. it's not bad. Um and I think everyone gets like a year. deferment automatically. No. No? So, what you're thinking about the. federal thing what they announced? Yeah, I think it's like a year. No. So, interest is still going to be accruing. on that. And minimum monthly payments. are still going to be necessary, but if. you miss minimum monthly payments over. the course of this next year from when. it starts uh they will not garnish your.

wages or affect your credit score. I. thought they have like a IDR uh plan, and since I have no income, there's zero. monthly. Well, have you applied for that? Uh. yeah. Okay, well, that's something. different. That's something you would. have to do, but that has nothing to do. with the the deferment for a year or. anything like that. Well, it's zero income, zero payments, or zero monthly payments. but that's something different than uh. yeah, the year of like deferment. But. yes. There um. you you can get on income-based. repayment, and it can be zero dollars, and you can be on the income-based. repayment now. At some point, you're.

going to be making good income again. anyway, and I don't want you to be doing. that now anyway, but whatever. At some. point. with income-based repayment, you know, the interest accrues a lot. Mhm. Income-based repayers have gotten their. stuff forgiven quite well these last few. years, but historically not very well. So, what what concerns me about this and. it's not politics at all. I don't care. about political parties, whatever. ideologies, doesn't matter. It does seem. like it depends on the administration. Mhm. on if someone's if the Department. of Education is forgiving those people.

in the income-based repayment. Just. historically speaking, it's hard to say. if that's going to be what it's like. going forward. So, I it's a risky way to go about it. It might get forgiven. That's fantastic. You know, if you go about that method, I. would hope that the plan that you agreed. to and they agreed to is honored. Mhm. Yeah, I don't want forgiveness or. anything, honestly. I I want to make the. the payments. I just. So, you want to get off income-based. eventually? Yeah, whenever I get a job, yeah, I'll make some income payments. then. I'm just saying it might be a. little risky to be on income-based and.

rely on forgiveness eventually cuz it. just I feel like a lot of it depends on. politics. No, I'm fine with paying it. just, you know, when I have the money to. do so. Yeah. Then. why don't you have a job to go to? I'm. like, "That doesn't I'll apply for. do not correlate. I'll apply for a job, couple jobs, just for you right after. this. How about uh for yourself? Well, yeah, but. We I don't care about me. This isn't. about me. This is about you, dude. I'm. here for you, not for me. Okay, so we have a Volkswagen 2014. How.

many miles are on that thing? 98, 99. Okay. And it balances $2,906. What's the. interest rate on this thing? Um. I want to say like five, maybe higher, six. Okay. As far as cars go, it's pretty good. But. either way, you're on the. end of it where every most most of it's. going towards principal and not much is. going towards interest anyway. Mhm. Yeah, it's almost done. Yeah. I was thinking about selling it if I do.

get screwed anymore. Well, what are you. going to do for transportation? Well, I. I would have to if I move back, I just. have to take a moving truck, so I. wouldn't be able to take my car with me. All right. Buddy, decide. Are you moving back or. not? We can get you a job, we can get. you to stay here, or you can move back. Well, if I if I get a $20 an hour job. here, I don't think I'm going to be able. to afford to stay here and pay. It'll be tight. It'll be tight. Yeah. this is an example. I'm saying you can. go get that today. Yeah. Like let's not. Like let's let's have that, and then. let's immediately be paying for the.

upper-paying jobs. You're not I'm not. saying go get the $20 an hour job and. then sit on that for the rest of your. life. That's what no one's No one's. saying that. And here we go. This is what you and not. having not willing to get a job has led. us to. We have the Quicksilver card with. the balance. $4,893. 5 cents. 154 minimum monthly payment, which is. death for you at a 25% interest rate. essentially. Yeah. Interest accruing.

$105 on a monthly basis. Death, death, death. Transactions, $15.47. See, usually I get on people and I want. to go crazy like, why are you possibly. purchasing on a card that we're only. making minimum monthly payments to? That. is accruing $105 of interest. But I know the answer. It's because you. decided you did not want to get a job. except for your perfect job within the. last 6 months. So, guess what? You have. to put things on credit cards when you. don't have enough money. Mhm. So, that's.

the answer. I'm pretty good with that. Yeah. Pretty good with that. What do you mean? I haven't spent a lot on the Capital. One. Doesn't even matter. Shouldn't. spend anything. We want to pay it off. Yeah. You're losing $100 a month on it. and the minimum monthly payment is. insane for your lack of income. situation. Yeah. So, spending a penny on that is unacceptable. in my opinion. Yeah. Yeah. Well, interest is accruing on it, so it's I can't get rid of that until. till the job thing. Which you could have had the whole. time. Dude, you're killing me. You are. just You're going to come.

I I wouldn't be laughing. This is. embarrassing. Yeah. I'd be embarrassed. Spotify and a VPN. Yeah. Where you can listen to ads on Spotify. while we have no income. Ooh. What? Well, $5 to not listen to ads? YOU. DON'T MAKE A DOLLAR. SO, YES, $5. OKAY, OKAY. You don't make a dollar. You've lost. All right, you're going to get mad at. the next one. I You already am.

You lost $783. this year on interest so far for an. income that doesn't exist and $20 of. fees, meaning you probably missed a. payment at some point. Mhm. I didn't. miss a payment, but Okay. Does that card have an annual fee? No. Okay, did you. take out cash? Did you transfer balances. to it? so I did do a cash advance. Oh. Uh but that was when I had a job. I'm. not a credit card person.

You're not. And it's just cuz if you had. a job and you had to take out money from. a credit card, I mean, just like, you're. not a credit card person. That's a I. love you off, by the way, but this is. how I. communicate. Yeah. The Capital. One. Lovely. Capital One. 9,000. $204, which is an insane debt for a $0. income situation. How long until unemployment ends, by the. way? Uh.

I I think they give you a total amount, so I had like 12,000 when I started. I. think I'm at like seven. Um but I'll. have to move before I can even get rid. of it all or use it all. $202 of interest on a monthly basis. Insane. Yeah. Yep. With $290. 5 dollars owed on a minimum monthly. basis. $286 payments made. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. And then off immediately.

Should I Should I cancel it? What's your. thoughts? Really? Yes, of course. credit's really low. a single. about your credit possibly. Not even for. a single second. Because you are losing. so much money in this interest that any. possible gain you are having from a good. credit, guess what? Mhm. You are not reaping those benefits when. you are losing $202 on a minimum monthly. basis. You have a minimum monthly.

payment of $295. You make that payment, then you purchase $272 on it. And then, guess what? Your balance of a card that. you can't even pay off cuz you have $0. goes from $9,014 to $9,204. So, should you keep that open and have. the ability to spend on it? No, I don't. think so. I think it's gone. Okay. Okay. Your credit goes down every time you. cancel it though, right? I don't give a. Okay. Again, whatever potential benefits of. having a good credit, you are just.

You're not taking advantage of it. anyway, dude. You are losing everything. This is a weapon against you, not a tool. for your benefit right now. The vast. minority or the small minority of people. can actually be credit card people and. take advantage of it. You have proven. you're not, so you do not take advantage. of it. It is not a thing. It's taking. advantage of you. You're being taken. advantage of. You are not taking. advantage of it. Agreed. Agreed. So, you. will close it? Uh once I pay it off, yeah. No, dude, just end it. End it. Cut. it up. End it. And just make sure that. this cannot be spent and pay it off. I.

don't think you take this seriously. All. right. I don't think you give a. You give You would have a job. Yeah. Even at seven, whatever, which is not. even like offered in Austin, but you'd. have a job. Mhm. If you gave a single. And if you gave a single. a single whatsoever, we. we collect unemployment and don't get a. job so we can do DoorDash, DoorDash, DoorDash, Amazon, DoorDash, DoorDash, DoorDash, DoorDash, DoorDash. That's. what we do. That's what we do. DoorDash is the uh probably the worst.

you drive DoorDash? How about that? Yeah. Yeah, I could do that. Or Uber. Something like that. Yeah, I feel like I'm just biting my. time for the tech the perfect job as you. put it. This doesn't. stop. like I'm really disappointing you. $1,297 of interest last this year so. far. $200 of interest loss. It's It's. not about me. It's not about me. What. immediately makes me go crazy and lose. my damn mind when I feel like I care. more about someone's situation than they.

do. And I'm feeling that right now. 26% interest rate. Did you ever watch the show Dahmer? Uh yeah, the new one? Netflix, yeah. Your speaking cadence is just like the. actor in that show. Yeah. And that is making me nervous. Yeah, I'm very monotone, very quiet. I'm not going to be a serial killer, am. I? Uh no. Okay, thank you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Uh but for some reason, it sounds. exactly I literally I just rewatched. that the other day for some reason. I.

don't know why someone rewatched that. show, but Whatever, I did. I and. uh. It's just Yeah, the cadence of your. talking is exactly. I've gotten the serial killer thing much. before that show came out, so Really? Oh, I wouldn't have associated that with. it before, but literally just the way. the actor talks in that show. Like, I. could close my eyes and I feel like that. person's sitting right in front of me. Um but serial killer vibes in general, I. don't know what serial like this is. whatever. Whatever. We That's a weird. tangent. I think there's a serial killer loose in.

Austin for some time, right? I've heard about it. It's not you, is. it? No, I hope not. I hope not, either. Please don't serial kill either me or my. employees, please. I need them. 2,900. $2,093.72. I will say in my defense against the. Amazon thing is I don't buy things I. don't need. I buy like normal like. shampoo things and like supplements. Yeah, but you're using a credit card. that you can't afford off to pay it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Minimum monthly. payment. What is it? 75 bucks now. You. made a $100. payment last time. Then, congratulations. $150 of purchases, so. we already negated it, then we lost. $53.53. Also, behind a little behind the scenes. information here, I should say, we. encourage, not just tell them they can, we encourage every single person to cut. things from the show that they're. uncomfortable with. So, the little. banter back and forth, if that's in, you know, you did not. want to have that cut. But, if you want.

to have that cut, we highly encourage. you to have that cut. part? Where we made the little jokes. about the serial killer. Oh, no, that was great, yeah. Cuz I know someone's going to be upset. about that out there. knows me is will already agree with you, so. Someone's Someone out there takes. everything way too seriously online. There's people. Um okay. So, yeah, we purchased from. Amazon. And we purchased from Amazon. Yeah. And then we gave Bezos some money, so. Yeah. Lovely. Fantastic. 30% interest.

rate, so it's even worse than the other. cards. Oh. Oh, that's all the debts? That's it? No No other debts to your. name? Uh. Correct? Yeah, yeah. Did you go through all the. cards? Three, right? Yeah. I have Well, I have. three more, but they're all zero. Do you spend on them? No. It's like. store cards, so. One's a Newegg card, one's a American. Eagle card. that you have them. With the balances. that are on those, like No, they're. zero. I know I know with the balances. you have on the other cards, like you. having access to a place to put money on.

credit cards, that makes me nervous. You. have a Newegg card? Yeah, I do. even know they had that. Yeah, it's. great. You get like a year of. interest-free financing. on like a purchase. Yeah, that's what you need. 500 and up. And then, we purchased on. Steam. And we purchased on Steam. What's. they put, Austin? Um I don't know. How much was the cost? Eight bucks for. this one. I don't know. Cosmic Cowboy. Yeah. AMC online.

And another another AMC online. $40. We. gave $40 to go to the worst movie. theater chain in America. I saw. Oppenheimer in IMAX. It was sweet. Yeah, but you went to AMC for that? It was the. only It was the biggest IMAX in Austin, though. Oh, maybe. I just wouldn't go to. AMC for any Really? It was nice. Well, they show about 30 minutes of ads. for AMC before the movie even starts, so. I'd rather go to Alamo Drafthouse. Cosmic Cowboy again, $129. What's that? Uh it's a smoke shop.

Yeah. Trimmer, fade, Figma monthly thing. Subscription to Acorns. I want you to. invest, but when we have 30% interest. rate death, we're not paying for it. Like, okay, if you're not in bad debt. and you want to invest, Acorns is a. great place. I do Acorns. I have my link. in the description below for free monies. when you sign up, but like I wouldn't. want you to do that. Yeah. Because then you're paying a. monthly. uh thing, which is okay for brokerages, you know, but. though. I will say the dividends help a.

little bit with the monthly They do. cost. But you are not even close at. keeping up with the 30% that you're. losing by holding on to some of the. balances. So I wouldn't want you to have. that. Then you did an ancestry.com. thing. I I did that. I got a refund I. got a refund for that. I didn't mean to. pay for that. Oh, good. I was going to say it doesn't. make sense in your situation. Now the Acorns checking account. We have. 24 hours in there. Uh. g u m r d.com. I don't even know what it is. Huh? Gumroad. Sure. And some other shop.

thing. Like I don't know. I don't use that card. There's no money. coming out of it at this point. Good, cuz there's no money in there anyway. So. Again, this is spending money we don't. have on things we don't need. And then. in Robinhood, a little bit of Bitcoin, a. little bit of Ethereum, not much. $133,160. Almost split down the middle. And then. in our Acorns, we have $792. Mhm. Chilling. And that looks like uh So what are you.

on? What are you What's your risk? On. what? On what's on your pie? On the. highest. Okay. Which I think for. I don't know if I'd want that for. It came back for a second. Now it's. everything's low, but when markets were. kind of high, I did have a little bit. past week? This past week has been. fantastic. Oh, really? Oh, at least for my Acorns. Not for crypto. That's what it is? That's all crypto? It's like five There's a little bit in. there in crypto, but most of it's uh I'm.

good with more aggressive things when. people are younger. I don't give. investment advice cuz. Yeah. Yeah. But even still, that's your. return. Like okay, what about your. retirement from the company you worked. at for 2 years? How much was it? Yeah. It's like 10, 11. Thousand? Yeah. Before. taxes. So I think I pulled out like nine. You pulled out? I'll If you get fired or. laid off, you don't have to pay a huge. fee, so it was just sitting there, and I. was paying them the. But even still, it's your retirement, man. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cuz now you're sitting. with nothing. Cuz guess what? Dude, in.

your early 20s, you had that $10,000. sitting there. Oh. You had 10,000 is what you said? Yeah, roughly. Okay, so for the next 35 years, say you pulled it out at 60, that. $10,000 would have been worth $162,000. You lost $162,000 pulling that out. That's what you lost. $162,000. That's what you chose to lose. Well, I. needed the money. And my And my. um And that's why we have emergency. funds. Not having an emergency fund is. an emergency because you wouldn't have. had to touch that if you had what you.

needed to survive for 6 months. And we'd. actually be getting to the end of that. now. Mhm. If you had the emergency fund, if you followed like basic financial. advice, which, you know, it's totally. okay if you were not educated on that. I'm not going to beat you down for that. in general. But that's why I want you. out there to have that. Because when you. end up in a situation like you, get laid. off, you would have been surviving perfectly. fine these last 6 months while you were. looking for a job. I don't think I've ever had an emergency. fund. It's either gone into something. like Acorns or Robinhood or Yeah, that's. not good. And we have $44.

in Robinhood, Microsoft and Tesla. I will say one thing I couldn't show is. TrustWallet. I have more crypto, and. it's like 700 bucks. But it was 1,500, and then crypto took a. pretty big turn recently, so. I lost almost half of it. Welcome to the world of crypto. Yep. So the vast majority of your spending, 40% goes to housing. Mhm. Uh a good. amount did go into uh different savings, so that's cuz you put them into those.

portfolios that we talked about. I didn't put I haven't put anything in. there recently. Uh what Since I Since I. was laid off. Uh let me see where this went to. Maybe the fees. Maybe I have been paying. more in fees. Well, we saw savings sent to. one retirement account of $1,111. Mhm. To a retirement account? so. So it was 1,100? Mhm. Yeah. I don't know where that would have went. to. Well, we also have lots of. subscriptions. Subscriptions. um only account for like 1% of your.

money, but again, for no income, that's. expensive cuz we have DashPass, Spotify, Figma. I got rid of Figma. Okay. Amazon, 125 bucks spent. Pet Supplies. Plus. I do have a kitty. 139. Yeah. Yeah. It's like 50 bucks for food though, unless I have to buy some other things. was this $140? I think I had to buy I. buy her like probiotics and like. sometimes other supplements, so maybe I. ran out. But usually about 50, 60 for. her food. Lots of gas, $249.

In gas? Mhm. I'm never driving. I never. drive. What was all that 7-Eleven then? Uh. vapes and alcohol. Yeah. So okay. Another behind-the-scenes information. It's impossible to know what's in-store. shopping and what's gas, and sometimes. unless it says inside outside for uh a. lot of gas stations, but we assume over. $10 is probably gas, under $10 is. probably taquitos. So you you spent $250 on stupid. taquitos? Yeah, basically. Ugh.

Buddy, you don't have a job! Yep. I. don't have a good excuse for that one. I'm getting upset at this situation cuz. I just feel like you don't give a. Do you Do you feel irresponsible? I feel. like you're irresponsible. I feel. I I'd agree with you about I can get a a. job today and have more money. spending with $0. But it's like when I see. 7-Eleven and DoorDash, and then I look. at my student loans, it's like. $50 versus $70,000.

a about that. You complained about. not being able to pay rent. Yeah. That was what? That was this blue pie. chart. Look at the rest of this. Look at. the rest of this. You can't complain. about not being able to do rent when. housing was only 40% of your spending. Yeah. But there's a lot of student loans. and credit cards, and I'm kind of. screwed. Again, the debt payments was 3.6% of. your income. Mhm. And what plus an additional 5% for your. car payment. But yes. Your logic is not equaling out to the.

actual math. Yeah, but if I get a job, dude, it's all. it's all over. It's like all my worries. are gone. You didn't like that at all. We're talking around and around circles. This is not productive. You're right, if. you get a job in the last 6 months, HAVE. YOU GOTTEN that job? Mhm. No. I have not gotten a job. is no. Okay. Buddy, what's even the point? And and. what. Do I create you a budget? Do you even.

Will you even do it? Will you even like. I would do it. What. I guess what's my worst spending would. you say? The DoorDash? That'd be my my pick. Yeah, lots of that. Lots of that. Mhm. And uh. uh the taquitos the taquitos spending is. crazy. Yeah. What about credit cards? Like I'm going. to have to the credit card versus my. personal spending is way higher. What?

What What do you What? What? What are. you talking about? like I don't know, $1,000 a month on. credit card payments, and then. Cuz you have to. That's money you. already spent. Yeah. So what? We I. didn't count that against you in terms. of. uh bad spending. Yeah, it's like a I. guess a motivational thing. It's like I. spend $1,000 on credit cards, and then. But you have to. That's required. You. signed the contract. You said, "I will. borrow this money and pay it back.". Yeah. Versus what? Versus I don't know. Just I.

don't When I see $50 go out for. something personal, and then I'm like, "Well, I have to spend $1,000 on. have it. You make zero. You make zero. You make zero. You had a job, I could at. least listen to that. I probably. wouldn't allow the classification, but I. could listen to it. Buddy, you make. zero. $50 is not nothing when you make. zero. Can I get that point across? Is that. I agree. No, you don't, cuz you keep making that. excuse. You wouldn't make that excuse if you.

actually agreed. Mhm. I I agree it's good advice. It's just I. don't know. It's harder to follow, harder to do. Okay. Okay, cool. So Well, let's get. let's let's talk about that. Why do you think that's hard to do? What. do you think is. uh the reason you were going to doing. that spending? Uh like before? No, now. Uh the spending. now? Oh, I don't know. The DoorDash is. like I feel like I I cook and, you know, I'm pretty good with my grocery budget,

and then I eat good for like 5 days, and. I'm like, "Damn, I really want Wendy's.". And if you're going to go and get. Wendy's, man, half the price of just. going and getting it. Yeah, but then I. got to drive like 10 minutes. Yeah. Devastated. That's the worst That's terrible. Oh my. goodness. Yeah, it is bad. Driving 10 minutes. Oh, I feel so much. sympathy. It's hard out there for sure. How about You're right. You're right. You know, that is really hard. So why. don't you just be in debt for the rest. of your life? Yeah. Why don't you just.

never be able to retire? That is pretty. difficult. That sounds pretty hard. Yeah. Well, a lot of people are in the. that predicament. Good. So you should be, too? I feel not. alone, I guess. You're not. Yeah. You're part of the biggest party in the. United States. Woo! It's a party. Everyone's going crazy, spending that. debt. Yeah. That's lovely. So you want to? I don't. want to. I want to get out of debt, but. I I've been in debt since I was like 18, so. So let's not be in it then. Let's work. to get out of it. I was I was working really hard getting. out of it.

And you stopped at work. Yeah. Because. Well, I got laid off, so. I know, but you didn't stop that work. We're spending. We're spending too much. on groceries. We're doing all this crap. You could have been it making progress. Yeah. Of at least not adding up the. debt. You're going into debt. Yeah. When I moved to Austin, my my debt my. credit card debt was pretty pretty good. But yeah, now it's gotten out of That. means you're not a credit card person. Don't have credit cards. If you're going. into credit card debt at any point at. any time, you're not a credit card. person. Don't have it. I don't want you. to have access to that. If so, you're.

getting I am. What's your rent? 17. Yeah, it's too much for you. You need to. move to like 1,000. Minimum or maximum. Utilities and everything and internet? Uh well, I included water. I think. rent's like 1,600 or so and then water. Is that included as well in that? No. What's internet? I think 80. Okay. Electric's like 100. Phone bill? Uh 60. The electric was not included in the. 1370? No.

It's 100. Austin electric. And it was 60 for the phone? Mhm. Good. Running out of ink. Okay. Uh good good good good and your all your. debt payments added up 1376. What is. your car insurance? Car insurance I have 500 for 6 months. Oh, for 6 months? Mhm. So, you pay that. on a. bi-annual basis? I have been. I don't.

think I'm going to be able to anymore. When does that come up next? Uh now, September. So, you're paying it monthly? Uh I. haven't yet. What's it going to be? Like 200, maybe 180, something around. there. Okay. Wait. I'll budget in 200. Which I might have to sell out of my. crypto to pay that in full. Oh, trust me. We're doing that. regardless. Food, you get groceries. Only groceries. That's it. Nothing else. exists. Congratulations, $300.

For groceries? Yeah. A month? You're. meal prepping. You're meal prepping. It's going to be very boring. You're. going to have a lot of similar meals. You're buying in bulk and we're meal. prepping on a weekly basis, bi-weekly. Not bi-weekly. Weekly basis or twice a. week. I do a I do a little bit of meal. prepping on the grocery run. doing all meal prepping. Yeah. Toilet paper spending, everything you. need to keep your house in order. Um toothpaste, all that good stuff. $100. That's what you get. No more. For. like. No, $100 a month. For real? Yeah.

For groceries and toilet paper? No, 300 for groceries. Toilet paper and. everything else you need to keep your. house in order and an additional 100. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree. Gas, how much. do you think you spend on gas a month? Uh I really don't drive my car that. often other than to go out. So, maybe I. fill up once a month. So, 50 50 a month. Subscriptions, you're canceling them. DashPass and Spotify, I'm sorry. They're. they're not in your budget anymore. Five. bucks, though? They're it's not You make. zero. Do we have to have this. conversation again? Well, the unemployment's kind of income, no? Off, buddy. You're using that to.

survive, not for wants. Yeah. God, what is this conversation? Okay. Okay. We need to survive. Yes, and you'll have it with some ads. here and there. Yeah. Ads, though. I don't give a. I don't care. I don't care. Whatever. Again, is this conversation even worth. having if you're not willing to cut back. $5? Okay. So, you spend a lot on. nicotine, right? Yeah. I'd say so. Is this an addiction you've considered. or wanted to quit? Yeah. For absolutely.

Okay. Now, that's very hard and I can't. help you through that process. That's an. incredibly difficult thing. I don't want. to put it in your budget cuz one, I want. you to be healthier and two, I don't. want you spending that money cuz it's so. much money. That's a personal endeavor that you have. to go down on your own. And I'd. recommend it anyone with the potential. to How's your How's your community here? Friends, relationships, stuff like that? None. Yeah. Well, okay. Being surrounded by a group. of people with. is certainly helpful. Um but I have.

friends that live in Texas, just not in. Austin. Okay. I mean, I know how hard it is to quit. There's people in my personal life. who've gone through quitting either. cigarettes or vaping and I know how hard. that is. Well, I I actually I don't know. how hard it is cuz I've never smoked a. cigarette or a vape in my life and I. never plan to because I know because I. know it's so hard. But I Yeah. It it's. hard. I recommend trying. And I know. that's difficult. It's so much easier. said than done. So, I'm not going to put. it in the budget and I'd recommend. trying to wean or do whatever is.

necessary. Yeah. I feel like my DoorDash addiction is way. worse than the nicotine addiction in. terms of health and money. I don't know. We we don't we we don't know the. long-term consequences of the vape. stuff. We don't. Going right into your. lungs. Like okay, things going in your. stomach. No, it's not good cuz it has. the chunkage and I got the chunkage. But. things going into your lungs, man, I. don't want it going into your lungs. Yeah. Agreed. Agreed. Anything else in here? We have your debt. minimum monthly payments, your rent, your internet, your electricity, your. phone bill, your car insurance, your.

food, toilet paper and keeping the house. in order and then your gas. Anything. else you need on a monthly basis? I don't think so. I think that's it. Yeah, if you're staying in Austin, which. if you want to stay in Austin, it sounds. like you do, stay in Austin. That's. absolutely fantastic. Uh you are downgrading your apartment, my good sir. It's basically not an option. I don't know. I feel like I looked a lot. when I was planning to move here and. 1,700 was kind of on the cheaper side.

You can get a studio. Yeah. Well, even. for those, they were like 1,500 1,600. you're just looking at like super nice. places, the places that have everything. you want. Again, I'm not putting you in. a roach-infested like mold everywhere. type place, but we're not living in a. luxurious place either. Like there are. options and I showed complexes that have. those options in the Austin area. Plus, and I don't want you to like. I don't want you to get in a position. where you're able to take advantage of. things and get lazy. Kind of like.

the unemployment thing. Again, you've. I've nothing against that. You've paid. into it and you're taking advantage of. that now when you got laid off. Totally. reasonable. But because of that, you. also weren't willing to accept. lower-paying jobs. So, I ordered jobs outside of the field that. you wanted to be in. So, I mean, I'm. going to say sure, technically if you're. still employed by then, which I will not. find acceptable. But if you are cuz you. just are you, you could take advantage of local. housing programs. Okay. Yeah. You could.

But. I think what we've shown is you being. being able to take advantage of programs. is giving you less incentive. You. personally, this is not everyone. You. personally, it's giving you less. incentive to go out and just make that. money. and work. You personally, it it feels like you're. a little lazy when it comes to that. stuff. To go outside of the field, yeah, absolutely. Yeah. I I'm really against that as much. as possible. Until like I actually get something. going. buddy. Yeah. Uh dude, I.

You're talking about moving home. You. can barely pay your debts. Your debts. are growing. I think the situation of. you absolutely needing to has already. passed. I don't know how you don't see. that and I don't know how I can get that. through to you at this point cuz I've. said everything that should have gotten. you there mentally. I'm not homeless. yet. I guess that's my last. Yet. If yet's even a part of the. conversation, then guess what? You're. there. $3,966. in order to survive on a minimum monthly. basis and that's cuz your minimum. monthly payments are too much. It's. because your rent is way too much. Way.

too much. And you make zero dollars and. you need $4,000 to survive on a monthly. basis. Mhm. So, whatever you have in. Robinhood, whatever you have in Acorns, whatever you have in crypto, I don't. care. We're taking that all out right. now. Okay. We're taking that all right. now, putting it in a high-yield savings. account and that's the our starter. emergency fund of what? A few hundred. bucks? Uh. no, no, no. Robinhood was actually. Acorns was actually up. You might be. You'd probably be closer to about a. thousand bucks. Thousand bucks. Okay, lovely. So, we have a thousand dollars. So, what you need for a fourth of a. month to survive.

on a tight budget. That's my moving home. budget is what I tell myself. It's what I'm keeping to to Yeah, so I. wouldn't have it in risky assets because. uh I put it in a high-yield savings. account. I mean, SoFi I use is at 4.5%. right now. It's fantastic. Link in the. description below. Love you. But no, I actually really do like it and. that's, you know, I'd put that there or. put it, you know, wherever you want to. put it. It's up to you. But I'd put it. in a high-yield savings account. Does it. Does it have a minimum balance? You. asked what high-yield savings account I. use and that is SoFi's high-yield.

savings account. The rate recently went. up to 4.5% and I'm taking advantage of. that high rate all day. And with bonuses. all the way up to $250 when signing up. and getting direct deposit. I mean, I. had to take advantage of that and so can. you. So, check out my affiliate link in. the description below. It's the one I. use and you can use it as well. It's a good question, actually. Off the. top of my head, I don't know. I know in. order to get a lot of the biggest. bonuses, you need to set up recurring direct. deposits for like the $250 bonus. In. terms of minimum balance, off the top of. my head, I'm not sure. Yeah, I was.

looking to change that to my checking. and savings account when I had a job, but never got there. Yeah. You said. $2,500 comes in on a monthly basis from. unemployment? Yeah, roughly. You need. $4,000 to survive on a tight budget not. eating out. So, the math isn't working, man. Math isn't working. I need you right now. to go home and this is pretty much the. end of the conversation cuz there's. nothing more that can be done from here. Yeah. You need to start applying for any. and every job possible. Just operations. type jobs, sales jobs. Sales might not be best for you. I'm not.

doing solar sales. I won't. No, cuz especially cuz that's like zero. income, all commission. But I don't. think sales might be good for you. But. maybe like tech support might be good. for you. Well, see, that's in field for me. So, I. don't I do apply to those, but I don't. get any luck. Like I only get luck for. software engineering with my specific. tech stack. Okay. But even still, customer service jobs. Blah blah blah. blah blah. In-person working manager's. job at We've had a couple managers now. who do Waterburger. If you're willing to. work your off, man. Dude, they make. $75,000 a year. As a manager? Yes, as a.

manager at Waterburger. Do you think that I I get that? I I know. they're looking for them. Okay. They're. definitely trying to hire. You have work. experience. I I don't I don't know what. your interview style is like. I don't. know how good your resume build out is. I don't know what your work ethic is. I. can't talk on any of that. But in terms. of could anyone get that job right now? Absolutely. They are trying to hire. If. any industries are trying to hire right. now, it's like that service and. experience based. places. You know, retail a little less than.

before, but food and going out, yes, absolutely. They are hiring. Go make the. money. You do that. And then what I. would do is to save up a 1-month. emergency fund, downgrade your living. situation drastically, pay off your debt. smallest to largest, probably. That's. probably the most productive way for you. to do it. Mhm. Top up your credit card cuz you're. not a credit card person and you can. never have them ever again and close. your accounts. Then save up 6-month. emergency fund and then rebuild that. investing portfolio by putting in 25%. for a while. It's like some catch-up.

Right now, I mean, you did it, man. You. did I did it. You did it all. And. honestly, that's what the situation's. going to be until you decide that, okay, I'm a big boy. I live in the society we. live in and I need to go get a job, even. if it's not the job I want. And I know. you could get that. Yeah. It feels like. I'm I'm my dreams are dying though. That's what it feels like. Listen, with. what just sat in front of me, Yeah. I. can agree that it feels like that. This is a temporary measure. Whatever.

your job you get is a temporary measure. You are still applying like it's a. full-time job to those other positions. that you want. Eventually, I mean, tech. stocks have rebounded, man. Interest. rates are still high. I think people are. that industry is a little nervous to go. back in their crazy amount of hiring. But man, if we're just saying those jobs are. never going to hire again, that's just. not reality. It's going to It might be. more competitive than it was, you know, when it was competitive to try to get. workers. But now it's competitive to try. to get the job. You're going to have to. have the right resume. You're going to.

have to have the best interview. You. are. Don't give up. Yeah. And don't think that step taking a job. that's a step down right now for your. career and wants is giving up. It's not. It's you being an adult, being mature, and saying you give a about your life. and your future. So do that and then apply for those. other jobs like it's a full-time job. applying for those other jobs. And work. on your interview skills, man. Work on. your interview skills. Watch YouTube. videos on that. This is a great. resource. When I was looking for other. jobs. and got one pretty quick for product.

management, I was watching interview. YouTube videos and how to do interviews. and how to build resumes. It's worth it. Yeah. That's what you got to do right. now, man, or you're pretty much dying in. poverty. Yeah. I'm sorry. Well, I mean, I feel I feel like I'm. getting consistent interviews in the in. the field. Then maybe the interview. process is what's not working for you. Yeah. Well, not good at that. It's the definitely like the lead code. or I don't know how far you into are. into tech. But yeah, the tech interview. is is killing me. Yeah. Cuz I'm I'm.

still new. Oh, they're like Oh, you mean because. there's so many rounds and it's just. relentless. Yeah. Yeah, you do like six rounds and. then two of them are technical and then. you get to the last round and they don't. even call you back. So yeah. Well, again, my last real job before this was. product management. So I get I get tech. Yeah, yeah. It was for a real estate CRM. Mhm. So I. feel I feel like I don't know. I get my. foot in the door and then it doesn't go. anywhere and then I order DoorDash and. go get a vape or something and then it's. You've got to work on coping mechanisms.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. So yeah, let's. go get those other jobs and keep. applying to those jobs for full-time. like it's a full-time job. And I think. you can land on your feet if you get. disciplined, follow the budget when you. have that income. But you need to do. this now. It's not an option. Unemployment, it doesn't cover this. That's why you're going further into. debt. Yep. So. Totally agree. I I. We'll do a follow-up, but honestly, I'm. incredibly nervous for your situation. and I refuse to do anything but be as. honest as possible and I am very very.

nervous for you, more than anyone that. I've talked to in a very long time. Yeah, I'm pretty nervous as well. It's. up to you. I'm only nervous cuz I don't. think you're going to take the the right. choices. You have no reason to be nervous if. you're willing to go apply for those. jobs and make the money and work 80. hours a week. I'm nervous for you based on everything. you've said here and the conversation. we've had. Yep. Any final. No, no. Thank you so much. Great advice. Hammer financial score, I mean, come on. I don't know what else to say. Across. everything, it's a zero, right? So.

hammer financial score, zero out of 10. Make sure to check out all the resources. as linked in the description below. They. are what I use or would use in specific. situations.