What was your financial upbringing/background like?

run back to the cesspool aka OT and post this there.

looks like you hang out in that crap forum often.

i stopped reading right here

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What brings you to Money Talk?

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ummmmmmmmmmm maybe, just maybe.........discussions about.......



could you ask a dumber question?

Grew up in the country on a lot of land but didn’t have much money growing up. Lived in a trailer until my Senior year of High School when my parents house was finished. Dad started making really good money after I moved out so my sister and brother had it much better

Never really talked about finances much so really didn’t have an idea of anything except for putting money into my 401k.

Pop in here to see what everyone is talking about and to get some tips on investing.

We were slightly above middle class until I was in about middle schoool. My family made a couple of grave business deals that sent us into bankruptcy. The man who “screwed us” did time for it. But the damage was done. During my high school and early college years, it was just about survival.

So I learned a lot about survival, and very little about how to manage money, so I spent a lot of my 20’s and early 30’s just figuring it out as I went. Plenty of bad decisions, and a handful of good.

My dad did end up clawing back and did fine until his stroke.

ETA: to kind of wrap it up. I’m doing alright, I’d say. Nothing like some of you boys in the Money Talk board, and nowhere near the OT Ballers.

I’m 37, wife is 33. Hanging out in the low 6 figs in the MS Delta. Living in a good neighborhood with a 3.6% int rate. Very little debt beyond the house. Wife inherited some great income producing real estate, and we were able to wipe out a lot of those mistakes from our 20’s and early 30’s with that. We did buy a retail business right as the economy went full retard, so owing a lot of debt on that is a real bitch right now… I’d have to do the math, but I think we’re still solidly around $500k of net worth “on paper” even with the business debt. It’s tough out there some days, but we’re making a go of it!

Well, I grew up a poor black child in Mississippi. We didn’t have much, but we had love, music, and a deep-seated belief in the power of hard work. We also had a dog named Shithead, but that’s another story.

My family didn’t have any money to invest, not in stocks, bonds, or even index funds. Our idea of saving was sewing an extra pocket inside our clothes to keep our coins from falling out. But despite all that, I had a dream. I wanted to be somebody. I wanted to be financially secure, like those people in the fancy cars and nice houses.

One day, while reading the phone book (the new phone book was here!), I realized I was somebody. And it hit me—I needed to get smart about money. So I did what any sensible person would do: I packed up my things and set off for the big city to find my fortune.

After a few ups and downs (and a little invention called the Opti-Grab), I found myself with more money than I knew what to do with. And then, I lost it all. But through it all, I learned the value of a dollar and the importance of wise investments.

Now, like my parents, I see the value in being thrifty and putting my money to work in the stock market. I may not have started with much, but I learned that with a little bit of luck, a lot of perseverance, and some smart investing, anyone can achieve financial stability. And who knows, maybe even retire early someday!

So, that's what brings me to Money Talk. A lifetime of learning, a bit of craziness, and a whole lot of hope. Plus, Shithead always said it was a good idea to diversify your portfolio.

I'm from probably the poorest area in the country. My parents worked so we never went without but we never had luxuries, either. Anything above a basic birthday or christmas present was something I had to buy on my own. I got a basic allowance of like $2/wk and learned how to save for things I wanted. They would occasionally loan me money for things that I'd have to pay back with allowance over time.

I probably learned the most about living poor while in college. I covered all my costs including car loan, car insurance, gas, rent and groceries on a $450/month budget. I personally think everyone should live poor for a period in life to learn it. You learn what is a need and what is a want very quickly. It is hard to be "smart" with money if you were never forced to figure out what exactly "smart with money" meant.

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run back to the cesspool aka OT and post this there.

looks like you hang out in that crap forum often.

i stopped reading right here

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Well this response was certainly called for

Mom and dad never had a lot of money or really knew what to do with the money they had, but they also didn't squander money so it seemed like we were better off than most of our neighbors. Dad grew up really poor so he was content with "pretty well off", which pissed mom off.

Father was on SSI disability and mom was a local admin staff for a small business.

I now make triple what they made combined. I wish I was brought up more "financially wealthy" but having two loving parents together gave me more "wealth" than I could ever imagine.

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He never shared much with me or my siblings about finances.

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Thankfully this antiquated mindset is changing. Always found it weird that some people have zero clue how much money their parents are bringing into their household.