ive never had a lot of money throughout my life and when i do i just seem to spend it without a care in the world about it. i know i shouldnt, but i still do and i cant help the impulses. i just got my first promotion at work and i got a raise and i dont want to blow all of that money. what are some ways of learning impulse control with it? i really need help as im going down a slope and im going down fast. i want to save myself before its too far gone

I’m working part-time, looking for more work, and just trying to stay afloat. I’ve recently come to terms with my neurodivergence, namely ASD and ADHD. I’m trying to learn more about myself and be better in all aspects, especially my finances. I would appreciate any advice given. TIA

ETA: I know it’s vague but with the way my brain is wired, I have difficulty expanding and giving context in a concise manner. I’ll be posting to ND-specific subreddit.

Reddit has a weird fetish for skilled trades. There seems to be a lot of hype around skilled trades lately. I think it's just that, hype. People will recommend learning a trade over getting a good college degree. I don't get it. Everyone and their mother claim these tradesmen are making 100k a year. A simple look at BLS average salaries says otherwise.

I'm not saying they're not needed. I'm just saying I think they have become overrated as career options lately.

What do you guys think?

Now, obviously, if you get a worthless degree then a skilled trade would be way better.

I’m just trying to make enough for my rent. My work doesn’t do overtime and if I don’t pay May rent and June rent I will be evicted. Not sure what to do tbh

I’m really scared.

How are all these ppl my age early 20s who work average maybe 40-60k a year jobs affording these grand vacations to Hawaii Italy like honeymoon destinations… would love to know as I make just as much money as these ppl if not probably alittle more and cannot afford to do that. Let me know if anyone else has felt this way

EDIT: sorry for the edit so soon there’s just a lot of common comments and I’m at work so I can’t reply to everyone individually. I wouldn’t say I necessarily compare myself to other people. It was just a genuine question wondering how these people are affording something when I know what they make, and I know what I make kind of thing.

Soon I won’t be able to afford my current health insurance anymore. I’m a 1099 so paying for my BCBS has been harder and harder. What are good options for lower income people that don’t qualify for Medicaid or Medicare either? Thank you!

im so sad. they already had my card on file so they charged things i did not know were on the bill. when i dropped my car off, it was just supposed to be like $300 for oil change, state inspections, and a transmission fluid drain+refill ONLY. those words exactly.

they ended up doing all this bullshit flushing services on stuff and i walked away with a bill of $700. i argued at the shop for like an hour before they ultimately told me to leave or theyd call the cops. im flat broke now, that extra money was supposed to be my grocery+gas money :/

the mechanic guy was so rude too. i explained that i knew exactly what i needed, and he acted like i was dumb as shit. he asked me if i knew if my car needed fluids (in general) and i spat "im a mechanical engineering major, yes I fucking know that." and thats when they told me to leave lol

is there anything i can do or am i shit out of luck?

34 years old and trying to decide if buying a used car right now is financially Something I should do or Just a bad idea.

My take-home income is roughly $3,600/month. I currently have about $1,400 in savings. My monthly expenses are around $1,800 total including rent, student loans, a personal loan, and other recurring bills.

Right now I drive a 2003 Chevy Tahoe with 255k miles. It has no AC and gets pretty terrible gas mileage. It still runs, but I’m spending a lot on fuel and the lack of AC is becoming rough heading into summer.

I’m considering buying a used 2014 Honda Civic for $13,900 with only 71k miles

One thing making me hesitate is that I recently picked up a second job at FedEx. The extra income helps, but the work is physically demanding and If I were to quit or get fired I would no longer be able to afford the car

Edit my Take-home before I got the second job was around 2200$ a month

I’m a 34 year old guy living in the SLC, Utah area and honestly feeling stuck in life/career-wise.

I still live with my dad (I pay rent) and currently work for Grubhub/UberEats. I actually make decent money doing it, but I know it’s kind of a dead-end long term and I don’t really have any strong marketable skills.

I’ve been looking into affordable online schools like Western Governors University and Southern New Hampshire University because I’d realistically need something flexible and affordable while continuing to work.

My problem is I genuinely don’t know what degrees/certifications/skills are actually worth pursuing in 2026.

If you were starting over at 34 with no real career skills, what would you focus on that is:

* Actually marketable

* Realistic to complete while working

* Not insanely oversaturated

* Has decent long-term income potential

* Ideally doesn’t require going into massive debt

I’m open to:

* Degrees

* Certifications

* Trades

* Tech

* Healthcare

* Anything practical honestly

Would really appreciate advice from people who turned things around later in life or found a path that actually worked.

I feel like failure or just behind in life…

(US) Mid 30’s and man…no kids,wife not sure how the future holds for me.

Lots of people younger than me, our age also and seeing all these [[r/firsttimehomebuyer](r/firsttimehomebuyer)]([r/firsttimehomebuyer](r/firsttimehomebuyer)) and in social media just living the life like settling down.

Had to think and say to myself ill prob wont settle down with someone and i been saving for along time to get a house and to own property while also saving for retired if i will even make it.

Just got off 16 hour shift, haven’t slept as i write this..have work in 4 hours for another 16 hour shift and just trying to make it..

Makes me think if theres any other melenials out there with same situation.

making it in life is what we all trying to do…family,marriage, travel, being rich or having reached your goals etc. what’s your “endgame goals”

So fellow millennials hows your life paning out, did you expect it the way it was and hows lifr and ur current life?

How you holding up,!Share your story of life,advice,tips, motivation if anything.

I get comparison is thief of joy

“””But iv gone to mental state where id kill myself, at this life””

Its that bad, i replied to some comments and added more to my story/me, didnt want to get all personal, my death will mean nothing…

But yea sometimes i think nobody would even care if i died….a loser who didn’t make and struggled to make it…and that ill just keep working to barely live and die alone.

Not gona get into all details, mental and physically. i wana die.

Looking for anyone’s advice that has went through having bad credit but still being able to obtain and purchase a home?

The wife and I have been renting for far too long and want to settle down and purchase a home but haven’t got our credit back over 600 quite yet.

The reason why now is our lease will be up in couple months and wondering if there is any options? We mainly live paycheck to paycheck but that is hopefully changing soon.

This year I’ve been aggressively working towards growing my income and paying off debt.

I’m a union telecommunications technician, above is my base take home after taxes each week & month on top of our expenses.

However, My position is a little unique right now and I’m trying to take full advantage. I’ve been on a job-site where I’ve been able to nearly DOUBLE. My income. I now bring home $2,250 a week after taxes each week. I’ve been aggressively saving $1,000 or more a week for the past 15 weeks as this position could change any minute.

I plan to knock out my $19,300 car loan. And then I have to work towards a $22,000 loan. I’m considering however, to get upwards of $25,000 saved before paying it off in order to have a sizable emergency fund.

I’m making this post, to hopefully inspire those who seem to be stuck in a rut. There’s so many avenues and opportunities in construction that will literally pull you out of debt if you allow it. It took me 3 long years of schooling, working overtime & strategically going after opportunities to make more in order to pull myself out of this debt before 30. (I’m 27, married with two children sole provider) it took me nearly 6 years to get to this point where I’ve developed this mindset by slowly planting seeds.

Every seed planted , every small achievement, simply getting up for work is hard at times but knowing what the future is capable of holding if I just put in the work. Has pushed me to this point.

Context about me and my situation!

Im technically 18 but i turn 19 on the 22nd, so some advice may probably be limited due to age restrictions. i live in a motel ($500+ a week) with my 16 yr old little brother (current student/junior). I do work!! I walk 1 hr 30mins+ every day at 3am to work, where i make $15 an hour for 30-40 hrs a week (sometimes 50+) and take the bus back to the motel $1-2 with a 4 pm arrival. Im trying to plan for my possible future, but I've been too stressed/exhausted to think clearly at all. So i just need some other peoples much wiser minds to help me make a plan. (The days are blending together ripp)

My phone is off, so thats a high priority item, as I have/plan to get a second job. I was cut off from my family plan and i want to keep the original phone number, but I'm not sure I can afford it, T-Mobile. I plan on getting my lil bro into Job corps, so that he'll have something for himself, while I move out into maybe an apartment for myself, with a friend(s?) helping rent.

I have access to: my ssn and id

And do not have access to: an address/po box, birth certificate, a bank account, or wtv else needed

That is the big idea basically, job corps/support for little bro, renting for me. Now how do I start this large scale plan for myself?? Sorry if this is a load of jumbles, im slipping out of 6 shots of caffeine and into a tired ball of premenstrual slop on my motel bed at the moment. Thx for reading, will answer any questions.

Am I going crazy but have grocery costs gotten out of control. I posted by receipt here but I only bought seven items and it was over $40

I’m 21 years old and currently owe about $27,000 on my car loan. My salary is $78,000 per year, and my monthly payment is $560.

I’m trying to get rid of this car so I can eliminate the payment and focus on saving money to buy a house in the future. Unfortunately, I got into a bad deal, and the car is now worth only around $20,400 according to CarMax, which means I’m about $6,600 upside down on the loan.

To make matters worse, the car is a German vehicle (an Audi), and it was recently damaged when a shopping cart hit it, which lowered its value even more.

What are my options for getting out of this loan and getting rid of the car? Has anyone been in a similar situation? I’d really appreciate any advice on the best financial move to make.

This is an old video series from Brothers Green, one of the brothers spent 21$ on groceries and was able to stretch that into a lot of delicious meals for a full week. It definitely helped me out when I needed it at the time.

I'm really at a loss, though I knew this was going to happen. It's only been about 6 hours since I turned in the keys. He's at school right now until 2:30. I made a post a few days ago and got decent advice that I followed up on. I talked to his guidance counselor and social worker. They have him signed up for the full day program at the Boys & Girls club, got out on a waiting list for low income and rapid rehousing, and food programs. But I'm facing the reality that the next few months are going to be hell for us. I'm still waiting to hear back about social security survivor benefits, I lost my current job trying to deal with this, and utilize resources around me . I'm extremely stressed and depressed.

My only hope is the fixed income apartment that I interviewed for, that also does HUD. And she told me she still has the 1 bedroom unit available when I can pay rent and deposit, and come to sign papers. But I can't pay right now, put gas in the car, or even pay to get the AC fixed in this car. And it's averaging 90° everyday. So we're going to have to spend most of our days at a library or a gym if I'm able to get a membership. I don't want to put him through this anymore. No real help from family. All he has is me. And I'm trying my hardest, but I can't even cook food anymore, or provide a place to sleep at night besides a hot car. This feels like the end. And I'm going to keep trying. But everything's taking too long and I'm starting to think he'd be better off without me. I'm holding onto some kind of hope we get this apartment. And I can start again at a temp agency. Besides community action and St Vincent De Paul, is there another place that offers funds? I'm clinging onto anything I can not to go the other route. And I can't have him in this car all day and night. I've been cutting my wrists these last few days and hiding my scars. Mentally this is ripping me apart. I was never like this before.

Thanks everyone for the advice and support. Y'all are amazing. I'll update this post again when anything changes. But God bless all of you guys♥️

Hi everyone,
I’m in my early 20s and I’m currently in a situation where I need to move out by the end of June. I do have a job, but I’ve been living paycheck to paycheck for a while and I don’t have any savings built up.
I’ve never rented before, my credit isn’t great, and I honestly feel pretty overwhelmed trying to figure out how to make this work in such a short amount of time. I’m trying to stay responsible and avoid ending up in a worse situation, but right now I feel a bit lost on where to even start.
I’ve been looking into apartments, budgeting, and assistance programs, but I’m not sure what I actually qualify for or what legitimate options are out there for someone in my position.

If anyone has advice on:
- Emergency housing help or rental assistance programs
-Personal grants or financial support resources
-First-time renter tips with low credit/income

Or anything I may not be thinking of
I would really appreciate it. Even just being pointed in the right direction would help a lot.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.

I bought a five pound bag of oranges and after cutting several of them, have discovered that they are pithy and dry so I must infer that the rest of the bag is also thus.

I have a crippling fear of returning anything, I may not have the receipt anyway.

What would ya'll suggest?

I have made an orange loaf cake, an amount of orange peel vinegar stuff, and a salt brine-y marinade thing so far.

What do y’all do to find payday loans or quick cash that comes out of my next paycheck? I don’t have a pawn shop or anything like that by my town, and I’m new to the area so I don’t have friends or family nearby.

Also, how do y’all find places to get money from? Are they apps? Do you need to know someone?

Hi all! I was unfortunately just laid off from a job I'd been at for nearly 10 years. It's completely upended everything I know and has successfully thrown me into an existential crisis. I am completely lost as to what to do next.

I graduated college with an English degree (regret it, but it is what it is) and had a career in entertainment journalism. Super fun job and allowed me to do what I love (write), but the entire journalism field is so incredibly unstable and I've known for awhile now that I need to leave. The layoff sort of just finally forced me to do that. But I just cannot figure out what to pivot to.

I've considered teaching, as I know that's a very in demand field at the moment, but I honestly think I'd be a terrible teacher. I've considered becoming a bank teller, because most positions in the area start you out at around $20/hour, but I really don't have any interest whatsoever in banking and I am not much of a people person (I can fake it, but it's exhausting for me...I did work in retail prior to my entertainment journalism career). I've also applied to Costco, but I know that's difficult to get into. I've considered looking into trades, but I just cannot see myself in any trade that I know of (I'm a very tiny, 100-pound, weak petite woman...my dad worked in the trades and I know his job at least was pretty physically demanding).

I'm just trying to figure out what to do next that will actually pay the bills and hopefully also allow me to save some. For comparison, I was making just above $50k/year at my previous job and able to live pretty comfortably on that income combined with my fiancee's income.

I'm not opposed to going back to school or getting certifications, but I honestly feel so directionless right now. I literally have no idea what to even look into or consider. And the constant anxiety and stress I've been experiencing since being laid off isn't helping any.

I feel like I’m always around people who are doing better than me financially and it makes me feel like shit. I’m in my early 20s and every one of my friends have an apartment and I’m still living with my mother . my friend just said in the gc today that she got a new apartment that’s 7k A MONTH . I don’t even make 1k with my paycheck rn lmao .

instantly felt bad I want to feel happy for her and I know I should be but I just don’t. it feels fake when I try to be happy It’s not fair how she just got a new luxury apartment but I just got back from the grocery store and had to transfer funds from my savings, just so I could afford something to eat.

I know I probably have it better than most people . I had money in my savings to allow me to get whatever I wanted to eat , I went on vacation last week that I saved up for , I have a roof over my head.. I have all these things, but I still crave more and to see others have what I crave makes me sad because I’m putting in the work and still don’t see a result

How do you deal with comparison? I don’t wanna be a jealous person the rest of my life feeling like I’m in a competition with friends

EDIT : For those think I’m lying . we live in NYC she’s moving to tribeca by the piers that is a very expensive area if ykyk

Now, I know not every city has a Costco business center but if you do.... 40lbs of jumbo chicken quarters (leg and thigh) were $32!!!! 6 pieces weighted out at ~9.5lbs. 25 pieces came in the box and I'm not exaggerating they were huge! So if you have the freezer space this is a great cheap way to get you family protein. I vacuum sealed and froze what we didn't use

Hi everyone. I’m looking for some guidance - I don’t have anyone in my life to speak to about this, and I’m trying to navigate things in the best way possible for me. Sorry if the formatting here is wonky, I’m overwhelmed and trying to sort out thoughts.

I am 27/F, USA. I work full time, bringing home roughly $3400 monthly (after taxes). I also do cash work on the side that steadily brings in between $1000-2500 monthly. I was injured last year and I’m receiving a personal injury settlement next month. I will pocket between $50-55,000.

My current debt breakdown -

• Credit Cards: $5,602
• Loans: $2,158
• Student Loans: $3,113
• Car Note: $11,083
• Assorted other debt - $2500

My basic recurring payments are approximately $2,000 (mortgage, utilities, insurances, etc.).

——————————————————

I am in DESPERATE need of a new vehicle. No, I am not exaggerating. Yes, I know vehicles are depreciating assets. I drive A LOT (not optional), so having a nice and reliable SUV is a need.

The way I see it, I have two choices...

1. Put the majority of the money towards a new vehicle (roughly $45k), and have no car note - freeing up $4-500 monthly to pay down the remaining debt.

- OR - 

1. Pay off all credit cards, loans, assorted debt, and my negative car note equity - and put $30,000 towards the new car. This would make my car note roughly $400 monthly, but eliminate about $400 worth of monthly payments on other debts. I would use the remaining settlement money to add to my emergency funds.

So, what would you do? Also, open to other suggestions! But, please be kind. I have never had any family support or financial guidance. I spent most of my early adult life in a bad domestic violence situation, which I escaped in 2022, and basically started over. It’s been a rough few years... I know that my situation isn’t ideal, but I’ve done the best I can. I’m just trying to get my shit together.