Oprah show on Friday about getting out of debt.

[MiaSRN62]

You know I don't think the college tuition is killer -- it's the housing! To do 30 credits a year at my school (University of Nebraska) is $2400 per semester, or $4800. That's really not all that bad in my book.

Well, it still is a crunch in the budget. My ds goes to a state university and the total cost is $15,000 (not including books/supplies/spending money) per year. True, the actual tuition portion is maybe $6,000 of that. The rest is dorm/meal plan costs. My son had to go out of his way because of the major he chose. Not many colleges offer it and this happened to be the only one in the state that did.
So regardless of how average/acceptable this cost may seem to some, it's still $10,000/year extra out of our pockets. And we lucked out that he found his major at a state university vs a private one as far as cost.
He does have a student loan as well as a tuition grant which helps. But dh and I still need to budget approx $800 extra per month (over a 12 month period) towards his college every year. This is all money that used to go towards other things. And we are paying his car insurance because he really can't work except for school breaks (and he does pay for that stuff when he can) And then I have the year my dd goes to college to look forward to as far as the budget goes. I'll have two in college at the same time. I'm trying to shovel away anything extra I can for that. I'm 3 years off from that at this point.
So like I said......I know alot of 40'something year olds that are in the same boat as I am. Dh and I both work with alot and we see our neighbors and friends in the same boat. So I don't see being debt-free for quite awhile unfortunatly. We do plan to drive our cars into the ground once our one car loan is paid off. Dh's truck is already paid for. We just cannot comfortably manage any more cc or loan debt besides our mortgage.

 

[Jon99]

For those of you talking about saving for college, try savingforcollege.com...

We were in the Illinois Bright Start and have built up $1500 for our DD2, but have decided to start a Coverdell instead..

 

[disneysteve]

Very good points. I've read many times how bad high fructose corn syrup is for you. I went to the grocery store (Giant, to be exact) and looked for snacks for my kids that did NOT have high fructose corn syrup. I came up with NOTHING, except a couple brands of yogurt and regular fruit! It seems like it's in almost everything.

The amount of processed food in our diets has skyrocketed. Back in the olden days, like the 1970's , this wasn't the case. We made most of our food at home from scratch. If we wanted cookies, we baked. We used good old sugar, not hfcs. And we ate more fresh fruits.

In 1970, the average supermarket carried about 9,000 items. Today, the average is well over 40,000 items. Guess what most of those 30,000 extra items are? Processed, prepared, ready-to-serve foods.

So if you are worried about hfcs and other processed foods, get back in your kitchen and cook and bake. You'll save money and you'll be healthier.

 

[barbeml]

The amount of processed food in our diets has skyrocketed. Back in the olden days, like the 1970's , this wasn't the case. We made most of our food at home from scratch. If we wanted cookies, we baked. We used good old sugar, not hfcs. And we ate more fresh fruits.

In 1970, the average supermarket carried about 9,000 items. Today, the average is well over 40,000 items. Guess what most of those 30,000 extra items are? Processed, prepared, ready-to-serve foods.

So if you are worried about hfcs and other processed foods, get back in your kitchen and cook and bake. You'll save money and you'll be healthier.

There are whole aisles in the store I never visit!

DH always says there is no excuse to go hungry when whole wheat pasta and crushed tomatos are so cheap, but many people have no idea how to make a meal from staples and pantry items. If it doesn't come in a McDonald's wrapper or a microwave tray, they don't recognize it as food.

The one thing I really don't get is the whole category of "kids food." Umm, we ate what my Mom cooked. The various forms of fat, salt, starch & corn syrup that comprise today's "kid cuisine" is truly frightening. If you think health care costs are high now, wait until today's kids are adults. This is the first generation with a life expectancy lower than that of their parents...due to obesity and diabetes.

 

[C.Ann]

At least Oprah's not telling you to spend money on HER to get out of debt. Dave wants you to believe he has YOUR best interest at heart... NO WAY!!! Dave had DAVE'S interst at heart. Buy his books, pay for his internet access buy his envelopes (my personal fav!) I know folks who worked for Dave.... Dave is greedy.. (And Dave's I've been there.. yes, we all managed to lose a lot of money for investors didn't we???)

-------------------------------

Well this is interesting.. So this particular show, Oprah will not be making any money from? And if she has advisors or financial experts there, they won't be making any money either? And all of Suzy Ormans books are free - as well as anyone else who writes books or offers financial advice via radio, tv, web sites, etc.?

Dave must be one heck of a super smart guy if he's the only one making money by offering his expertise to the public..

 

[disneysteve]

DH always says there is no excuse to go hungry when whole wheat pasta and crushed tomatos are so cheap, but many people have no idea how to make a meal from staples and pantry items. If it doesn't come in a McDonald's wrapper or a microwave tray, they don't recognize it as food.

I saw a survey recently that 68% of respondents described a meal as "home made" even if one or more of the ingredients was prepackaged. For example, a casserole made with a can of Campbell's soup or a packaged rice and sauce mix or a bag of precut, preseasoned frozen veggies. Very few people actually prepare a meal from scratch anymore. Its sad. DW and I love cooking and do still prepare a lot of meals truly from scratch, but I'll admit that we use more convenience items than we did 5 or 10 years ago.

 

[dcfromva]

For those of you talking about saving for college, try savingforcollege.com...

We were in the Illinois Bright Start and have built up $1500 for our DD2, but have decided to start a Coverdell instead..

Jon99,
I'm curious as to what attracted you to a Coverdell since these funds seem to have more restrictive rules on them than the 529 (and if the funds don't get used for educational expenses they go to the child instead of the parent).

Also, don't you get to write off the Illinois Bright Start 529 contributions on your Illinois state income tax ?


-DC

 

[Beca]

I saw a survey recently that 68% of respondents described a meal as "home made" even if one or more of the ingredients was prepackaged. For example, a casserole made with a can of Campbell's soup or a packaged rice and sauce mix or a bag of precut, preseasoned frozen veggies. Very few people actually prepare a meal from scratch anymore. Its sad. DW and I love cooking and do still prepare a lot of meals truly from scratch, but I'll admit that we use more convenience items than we did 5 or 10 years ago.

This is so true!! I never was a person that could eat soup...I just didn't get it. When I would get sick, my mom would go buy Campbell's chicken noodle and expect me to eat it...yuck!!! Then, when I got older I decided to make homemade soup either with homemade chicken stock, or if I get pressed for time, Organic chicken broth. I add to that organic chicken, celery, carrots, brown rice seashell pasta, sea salt and pepper....what a difference!!!! Not only does it taste amazing, it makes you feel good after you eat it!!

I realized, it's not that I don't like soups, it's that I don't like soups full of preservatives.



Beca

 

[Jon99]

Jon99,
I'm curious as to what attracted you to a Coverdell since these funds seem to have more restrictive rules on them than the 529 (and if the funds don't get used for educational expenses they go to the child instead of the parent).

Also, don't you get to write off the Illinois Bright Start 529 contributions on your Illinois state income tax ?


-DC

The underlying funds in the Bright Start program have performed poorly and have few choices, plus have high expense ratios... ESA will give me unlimited investment choices and with ETF's can keep my expense ratio under .20%..

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I saw a survey recently that 68% of respondents described a meal as "home made" even if one or more of the ingredients was prepackaged. For example, a casserole made with a can of Campbell's soup or a packaged rice and sauce mix or a bag of precut, preseasoned frozen veggies. Very few people actually prepare a meal from scratch anymore. Its sad. DW and I love cooking and do still prepare a lot of meals truly from scratch, but I'll admit that we use more convenience items than we did 5 or 10 years ago.

I just bought Rachel Ray's 30 minute meals--she does take short cuts and the ones that have me --I'll spend the extra time.

I like the taste of well prepared restaurant food (talking good stuff--not fast food or bennigans stuff)....and she accomplishes that without having to remember to marinate the meat for 3 days.

I prefer from scratch cooking. Just dont' have the time or patience. Just developed the kids charts based on what we see at their sunday school (it is in a private school and we homeschool--so I always hunt around to get ideas when I drop them off ). I now have "helpers" to help me and they get 5 cents per shift. Never to young to learn that every little bit adds up.

She wants a bike and as much as I want to buy her one since they are so cheap----I'v taken a vow of "make her earn it" and told her that if she would raise half, I would match it. She's only 5--we'll see how far we get. Mommy doesn't want to cave--but mommy needs a new bike as well and I can't get one when the kids don't have one!

 

[MrsPete]

Wow. I go away for the weekend, and y'all write umpteen pages. Random comments:

I do spend a lot more on my hair than I did when I was younger. I don't want to be gray yet, and a professional color job looks infinitely better than my homedone job. I'm not blessed with great hair; if my hair doesn't look good, my face and clothes will come out looking badly. Still, I spend much less than 1000 per year (and it's well within my budget). I don't see how you could possibly spend 7K per year.

I don't think Oprah is a hypocrit; instead, I think she's discussing topics that are important in our society. I'm sure debt isn't a big problem in her personal life, but it IS important to many, many people. If she did a show on prostrate cancer (which would include experts in the field, men who've been through it, etc.) would you say that was hypocritical of her? Of course not! You'd say she was informing the public about a disease that hurts many men.

As for the woman who decided to cut her excessive spending in half, I think she's taking a step in the right direction. Yes, she's off-the-charts foolish right now, but FOR HER, it's a good start. It's true that you and I may be spending only a fraction of her take-out budget, but cutting it in half will be an adjustment for her. If she tries to "do it all" right away, she will almost certainly become frustrated and give up. If she takes small steps towards her goal, she is more likely to succeed in the long run.

I don't think it's housing that kills college students; I think it's lost income. It's that the college student is spending heavily on tuition, housing, etc. AND AT THE SAME TIME isn't earning (or isn't earning as much as he could be) because of the time required by his classes.

 

[mickeyfan2]

The amount of processed food in our diets has skyrocketed. Back in the olden days, like the 1970's , this wasn't the case. We made most of our food at home from scratch. If we wanted cookies, we baked. We used good old sugar, not hfcs. And we ate more fresh fruits.

In 1970, the average supermarket carried about 9,000 items. Today, the average is well over 40,000 items. Guess what most of those 30,000 extra items are? Processed, prepared, ready-to-serve foods.

So if you are worried about hfcs and other processed foods, get back in your kitchen and cook and bake. You'll save money and you'll be healthier.

I am amazed at the number of aisles that we don't use. We tend to use the outside aisles (fresh fruit/veggies, fresh fish/meat and dairy.).

 

[westjones]

I don't think it's housing that kills college students; I think it's lost income. It's that the college student is spending heavily on tuition, housing, etc. AND AT THE SAME TIME isn't earning (or isn't earning as much as he could be) because of the time required by his classes.

This is one of those "costs" that people rarely ever consider.
(But I still think the degree if worth it, if you won't go in to too much debt to get it).
DJ

 

[MrsPete]

This is one of those "costs" that people rarely ever consider.
(But I still think the degree if worth it, if you won't go in to too much debt to get it).
DJ

Oh, I totally agree that a degree is worth the financial cost, but by earning a college degree, you are giving up the chance to work full-time for four years. This is a "lost opportunity" cost -- an expensive one.

If High School Grad A goes straight to work at a 18-20K job and has a few raises, he's probably going to gross 100-110K in his first five years out of high school.
Meanwhile, High School Grad B goes to college. He works only part time and spends every penny on his education. Five years out of high school, having had only one year of "real work", he will probably have earned less than 40K -- in fact, if he's taken out loans, he may have a negative net worth.

Of course, we all realize that 10, 20, 30 years down the road, the picture will be quite different. I'm just pointing out that the LOSS OF INCOME is a significant cost of a college education.

 

[MyGoofy26]

If High School Grad A goes straight to work at a 18-20K job and has a few raises, he's probably going to gross 100-110K in his first five years out of high school.
Meanwhile, High School Grad B goes to college. He works only part time and spends every penny on his education. Five years out of high school, having had only one year of "real work", he will probably have earned less than 40K -- in fact, if he's taken out loans, he may have a negative net worth.

*raises hand*

I'm SO frustrated right now. I double-majored and finished one degree last semester and have ONE class holding me back right now (decided I could scrounge up the money last minute and couldn't get into the course for the fall and the professor wouldn't make exceptions for even graduating seniors *grumble*) I've been checking job postings regularly and keep finding some amazing jobs that I am qualified for. . . and can't do anything!! SO much good money out there going to someone else because of one class. I could finally be earning something that isn't going right back to school.

 

[Reflection]

What an interesting read this thread has been. Here are my various random thoughts:

I did not watch the show but did the read website and the backgrounds of the families profiled on the show. I just shook my head in amazement. In addition to the budgeting tips the finanical experts will provide the families, it appears that the family members, particularly the wife in the family with the combined income of $102,000, need to give some deep thought about their attitudes about money. Such overspending has to be covering some other underlyng deeper issues.

With regards to Oprah starting this debt diet program while hawking high-end goods in certain segments of her shows, while I think it is hypocritical, I don't particularly knock her for it, as I see it as a cost of her doing business. Two or three years ago, the Washington Post Sunday Magazine ran a feature on the growth of anti-consumerism groups. It was an excellent article, but the irony was not lost on me that this article was published in a publication whose primary income source comes from advertising of extremely high-end luxury goods/products.

Needs versus wants: I read the comments on the message board on Oprah's site and was saddened because it does seem that many of these people are looking for a quick fix. What is amazing is the number of people (not just on the Oprah board, but on this board and elsewhere in life) who have clearly picked up on the marketing messages from the financial services and luxury goods/services providers (the Madison Avenue mucketedy mucks that create and distribute this drivel should be handsomely compensated because they clearly succeed in their goal) that they 'deserve' these items. When did we get to the mindset that discretionary spending items (i.e., vacations) are deserved. Folks who think this way seem to conveniently have disassociated themselves from the logical perspective of how will they pay for what they feel they deserve. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy my vacations and regularly budget for them. But vacations were something that I built up to as my income increased. In my early 20's right out of the college, my vacations were spent enjoying the free and/or low-cost opportunties available in the city I lived in. There were no trips because I could not afford them. I am thankful for two pieces of advice from my parents--it is easier to go to college and complete your education unencumbered; and pay yourself first--no matter the size of your paycheck, decide an amount you will save, no matter what (for me at the time, that amount was $50) and put that in the bank. I understand that life happens: people are human and do not always make the best choices. But it seems a significant portion of the serious financial predicaments (including those profiled on Oprah) are more from poor choices/decisions than bad luck.


I agree with the posters, particularly, Beca, who wrote about the lack of balance in public spending/savings (e.g., growing federal deficit and the fact that so much of the US govt's debt is being financed by other countries, particularly China) contrasted with similar financial imbalances amongst individuals. And as pointed out in earlier posts, the imbalance in our physical/mental health is only going to more severely impact the economy.

Something will have to be done, and quickly, about rapidly sprialing health care costs. And although, I support a free-market system, it clearly causes problems when there is no balance. Consumerism cannot continue to be the driving force of our economy--from an environmental, health, and societal perspective--we can't afford it.

But what will be the final wake up call? I don't see a mandate coming too soon from John Q Public. We're in an environment now where people want tax cuts and they want government services (hence lack of progress in revamping social security). To answer my own question, I think it will be health care. When the middle class is finally squeezed out from access--then something will happen.

 

[Carrie Ellis]

Even auto insurance is crazy. I have raised my deductables to $1000 because why not?? I am not going to claim anything that is under $1000 anyway! I don't want to pay double for it by my increased premiums for the next 3 years! I am from Texas and 1 out of 3 people who are driving in Texas do not have insurance. My mom works at an insurance agency. Those of us with insurance are paying for those who do not.

As far as health insurance.....I took my 5 year old son to the ER for stitches under his chin about a month ago. I waited from 7pm to 3am before we were seen by the doctor. During that time we had to sit with a hospital representative and submit all our insurance information and my son's info. There were so many people around me that were not "dying" as far as visually. One young lady was there because here baby might have an ear infection. I felt bad because "I" felt like I was clogging up the ER and we actually needed stitches! Well when we went to check out at 4am the receptionist said that there was no insurance in the system for us. I was like "there should be"! I was tired by then. Then she said that the paperwork must be wrong because they have my son down for ******l discharge. It was also recorded that we were asking for financial help. I told her negative on both accounts. It was never fixed, really, because later in the week I still received a bill stating no insurance.

Now the bill...I was shocked! For my son's 8 stitches the hospital bill was $800. Then later, we received a seperate bill from the doctor for for $200. So all together his stitches cost $1000!!! He had busted his chin and it was about a 1 inch cut.

While we were in the room (before he was sewed up) a nurse came in and we began to talk. I told her that I felt bad that we were using the ER. (There had been some life threatening wrecks that night). She told me "no no that is what the ER is for. Don't feel bad for bringing your son in, that is what we are here for, cuts, broken bones, etc... Not blessed tooth aches!!" I guess the room beside us had a tooth ache victim.

The system is just so bad that you can use it for what it is for.

 

[disneysteve]

Episode 2 is on tomorrow, Feb. 24! Set your VCRs!