Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes, I didn’t know there was another option but I was ~academically gifted~ and am bad with my hands, so I would have gone anyway. In undergrad, I had a half-tuition scholarship, graduated a semester early due to lots of APs, and my parents paid the rest. I also did a one-year master’s program, which I also had a $20,000 scholarship for and my parents lent me another $26,000 interest-free for the rest of the tuition. I worked part time to pay my living expenses.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s) educate you about finances?
My parents are super savers who taught me about the value of saving, the importance of investing in your 401(k), and how to be good at credit cards. I also learned quite a lot about compound interest from my AP stats class. My mother also strongly suggested I buy an apartment with an inheritance I received when I was 24 if I wanted to stay in NYC long term. I wouldn’t have otherwise considered it, but am so so glad I did, as it would cost at least double to buy today.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
My mom had been working at the same very small company since she was 19, and she eventually put me to work filing and then processing accounts receivables when I was 12 or 13. I worked there intermittently in the summer and on school holidays (when she had little child care). At first, her boss would hand me an $100 bill, but eventually they cut me checks. My mom made me pay for my railroad ticket into the city and lunch, if I didn’t want to eat the frozen pizzas she’d pack me. My first real job was at a movie theater so I’d have some money between freshman and sophomore year of college, as my mom finally rage-quit her job partway through my freshman year of college.
Did you worry about money growing up?
Not really. We were comfortably middle class and I knew plenty of people less well-off than we were since I grew up in, and then near, NYC. I also knew a lot of people who at least seemed better off than us, but in the end they got cars on their 16th birthdays and expensive Abercrombie clothes, while I graduated from an expensive private school with no student debt. In retrospect, I’m thankful for my parents’ priorities. As I mentioned, my mom quit her job my freshman year of college, but my parents didn’t tell me until she found a new job months later. I suspect there were other things they hid from me.
Do you worry about money now?
Not day to day, but the future of the economy and the job market as a whole weighs on me.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
More or less since I graduated undergrad. I’ve been paying my rent and for all normal expenses except my cell phone bill (though my mom is retiring next month, so TBD how much longer I get to ride this gravy train). That said, my parents also lent me a lot of money to go to grad school and more recently to redo my kitchen, even though in both instances I planned and expected to take out a real loan. At this point, I’ve had a good salary for a few years, plenty of savings and investments, and they are retired so I am my own safety net. In a pinch, my partner would help out but I have a long runway.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
I received about $60,000 when my grandmother died. I withdrew enough for my down payment (I think it was $30,000 or so) and left the rest in my investment account, which has since grown to over $200,000 with only minor additional contributions.
