Interview with Eddie F.

Eddie a.k.a "Stud" due to his GQ-like fashion sense and "ability" to get any girl (regardless of marital status or shoulder size) is a recent college graduate who is currently looking for a full-time job that will jump start his career. Until he finds that job, his main source of income comes from his part-time job, which is working security at the Wachovia Center.
Stud believes he spends to much money on drinking at bars/clubs, clothes, and little things he likes to call "impulse" purchases. He essentially blames society for this overspending, as he feels like he needs to always have the newest clothes and go to the "hottest" clubs on the East Coast. Overspending to him is spending more than he makes.
Stud read about a couple money-saving methods that he found in a Men's Health magazine, but he says he can't really remember the particulars. All he knows is it had to do with "cutting corners" and it didn't work for him. His current method is to mentally be aware of his current finances, so that he knows whether or not he can "afford" to buy something, but that isn't working either because when he wants something he just has to get it even when he knows it is just going to put him in greater debt.
Stud has relatively modest short-term and long-term goals. He just wants to be "comfortable" with his financial situation. He wants to be able to buy the majority of what he desires without maxing out his credit cards or applying for a second mortgage on his house. When asked what he would do if he were able to save some of the money he is currently spending, he naturally replied that he would spend it.

Interview with Nichole F.

Nichole is a 26 year old full-time, first year MBA student at Penn State’s Smeal College of Business. Nichole currently waitresses at a local restaurant in State College two to three days a week. Nichole does not have any other means of income. Nichole worked for three years before going back to school and also relies on her previous savings as her income.

Nichole says that she spends too much money on clothes. She says that with the limited amount of stores in State College, PA and being that she is so busy with school, that she often resorts to shopping online. She admits that she usually falls victim to online gimics, such as “Spend $150 – receive free shipping”. Additionally, she says that she usually has intentions of not keeping everything she buys, but often becomes lazy about returning the shipments, and ends up keeping everything she buys.

Nichole says that she tries to keep track of what she buys online by keeping a log of the invoices, but often forgets to write some orders down. She also tries to keep track of her clothing spending by checking her credit card statements online, but since she is now in-debt on most of her cards, she usually pays the minimum balance due and neglects the total amount she has spend on clothes.

Nichole’s short term goals include gaining control of her spending, paying off atleast half of her credit cards, trying to work more hours at her waitress job and taking an additional elective class this summer. Nichole says that if she were to reduce some of her spending, that she would be less stressed and her concentrate more on her school work. Also, if she had more disposable income, she’d rather spending going out with friends.

Nichole’s long term goals include graduating from Smeal’s  MBA program, getting a job on the west coast, living in a nice apartment, and controlling her spending, and eventually buy a new car. She said that if she had a simple, organized way to manage her money and her spending, that she would definitely follow it. She said she is aware that her spending is out of control, but any attempts to regain control quickly fall through, as she becomes too overwhelmed with being in-debt and simply chooses to ignore the problem. 

Interview with Shan

Shan is a full time, second year, law school student at Villanova University. He currently works part-time at a law office in Wayne. Besides working at the law office, Shan does not have a source of income. Shan states that he spends too much money on eating out and at the bar. Shan states that although he isn’t a big drinker, he always manages to spend “way too much money at the bar” – whether on food or alcohol. Shan claims that he would very much like to cut his spending on food and alcohol in half.

Currently, he keeps track of his receipts and monitors his debt-it bank card online. Shan states that he rarely uses cash because most often he doesn’t have any cash on him. Shan doesn’t take full responsibility for his overspending and states that he always gets stuck with the tab or that his friends always borrow money from him.  He says that since he is always using his card, his friends often ask if he could pay for them on his card and that they’ll pay him back; however, his friends rarely pay him back in full, and pay him back sporadically. 

In the short term, Shan’s goals include moving into his own apartment and to pay off his credit cards each month. Additionally, he has loans for law school that he wants to pay off within five years of graduating from law school. If Shan were to reduce his spending, he says that he would’ve moved out of his current apartment and into his own apartment. Shan’s long-term goals include alleviating all debt, purchasing a house and working at a top law firm in Philadelphia or NYC.

Interview with Jessica A.

Jessica, better known by her peers as "Jessie Sweats," due to her uncanny ability to wear sweat pants regardless of the occassion, is currently a full-time student and part-time employer at a law firm. The money she makes at her part-time position is her only real source of income. However, she also has the majority of her college tuition paid for with scholarships that she received. She feels that the majority of her overspending is attributed to food costs, more specifically lunch and dinner. While having to deal with the burden of going to both work and school, Jessie Sweats doesn't feel like she has enough time to make her own meals, forcing her to pay the high costs that vendors, food shops, and restaurants around her area charge. Ideally she feels like a couple times a week of eating out wouldn't be that bad, but anymore and she definitely feels like she is overspending in this category.
Jessie Sweats only real method of controling her spending is will power as she has a weekly goal of saving at least $50 a week from each paycheck. She also believes that physically writing down or documenting her purchases would be beneficial, but once again she attributes her lack of free time as the reason for not following through with this method.
As a short term financial goal, Jessie Sweats, would like to be a car owner in the very near future. Also, in the long-term, this aspiring Lawyer would like to be able to quickly pay off her law school loans once she graduates, so she can comfortably break right out into the new world without any financial restricitions.
If Jessie Sweats were able to save some of the money she is currently overspending on lunch and dinner, she would most likely put it towards the car she plans on buying. Also, depending exactly how much she saved, she may decide to put some of it into a CD, or even better she might buy herself a nice pair of jeans.

Interview with Joe D.

Joe is a recent graduate from Temple University's School of Business. He is currently working Full Time at the Police and Fire Credit Union. He feels that he spends too much of his money going out on the weekends. This normally includes buying drinks at bars/clubs and going out to dinner. Since he usually goes out with a large group, he cites his friends as the main reason for his over spending. The majority of them are less conservative with their money (especially once the alcohol starts taking effect), so he feels pressured to spend as much as they do in order to be able to keep up with them. If one of them buys him a shot, he feels obliged to buy one back, regardless of whether or not he really wants it.
For Joe, spending too much doesn't necessarily mean spending above his limits, its really just a matter of spending more than he would like to. Essentially spending a larger portion of his paycheck than he feels is necessary. Working at the same bank where he keeps his own money allows him to be more aware of his accounts than most people, but he said that still doesn't really deter him from spending less. The only technique that he has found helpful enough to use is placing a portion of his money in accounts that would assess penalties if money were withdrawn from it too often.
Joe has pretty simple short-term and long-term goals. He basically just wants financial stability and comfort throughout his life. A life that he would soon like to live in a new house he plans on buying in the next couple years. If Joe were able to reduce his overspending, he would most likely use that extra money for his next vacation. A vacation that he would go on with his good friends and not his girlfriend because his friends are more fun than she is, so he would have a better time with them.

Interview with Scott Ciammaichella

Scott is currently doing full time MBA from Fox School of Business, Temple University. He works at the business school as an administrative assistant for undergrads. Scott spends too much money on gas and food. He spends money on gas because he has an SUV which consumes lot of gas and spends on food because he is short of time and has no time to cook.

His basis of comparison for overspending on food is home cooking which he use to have when he was staying with his parents and also cooking at his present home which is cheaper than eating out. He tries to limit on fast food and also tries to only pick certain times like the ones that are on sale which helps reduce cost. He knows people who balance there books, some who have planners and some who have daily sheets to keep track of how much they are making and spending. 

His short term is to keep working so he does not have to take out any student loan and long term goal is to live comfortable. If he was to reduce his over expenditure then he would save that extra money.

Interview with Mohan Anand

Mohan is a research assistant at the Federal Reserve Bank. Mohan feels that he spends too much money on rent and his coworkers and friends less than him. To control his spending he does not carry to much cash. Mohan knows some people who write down how much they spend and others check online but he doesn't do any of the two. 

Mohan's short term goal is to stay out of debt his long term goal is to earn lot of money. If he was to reduce his over expenditure then he would invest that money. 

Interview with Matt Mcmaggry

Matt is a JD MBA student at Fox School of Business, Temple University. He has stocks and at present stocks are his only actual source of income. Matt says that he spends too much money on eating out and going to bars. He enjoy eating out and going to bars. Matt compares needs to wants and thereby feels that he is overspending. 

Every week Matt tends to set a limit on how much he will spend but he has few friends who use excel spread sheet and few friends who don't track there expenditure at all. 

His short term goal is to purchase certain house hold items and pay off his student loans after 6 years of graduation and long term aspirations are unlimited. If he was to reduce his over expenditure then he would spend his money on the same things. 

Its very interesting to note that for his basis of comparison, he compares needs to wants. He compares what he wants to do than what he needs like he can buy food from the grocery store rather than eat out. 

Interview with Nick Solarino

I interviewed Nick over the phone on Sunday, May 11th.

Nick is a studying in the Physician's Assistant program at Drexel University. He is 26.

Nick's primary sources of income are a part-time job and money from his parents.

When asked what he spends too much money on, Nick replied "alcohol and food." He feels like these expenses as well as the cost of general entertainment (concerts, museums, movies, etc.) can get excessive, but that they're also somewhat necessary in order to maintain a social life. There a huge "social aspect" to dining out and drinking at bars, not to mention that both are enjoyable on an individual level as well.

"Too much," in this case, is relative. Nick doesn't spend money on anything else at this point in his life besides groceries, gas, car insurance and entertainment expenses. The amount for the first three is relatively stable. However, he isn't sure how much he's spending in on entertainment because he doesn't really keep track. He said that although he "plans to make purchases, [he] doesn't plan for a certain amount."

Nick's methods for managing money include:

1. Going out with a fixed amount of cash and only spending that much
2. Saving money on groceries by buying on sale
3. Charging gas and groceries to a credit card and paying the balance every month. He can then see how much he spent in these areas by looking at the credit card statement.
4. He uses online banking to periodically check his balance.

Nick mentioned that it would be helpful if he kept better track of his spending. He knows people who use spreadsheet programs or other financial programs, but he doesn't do that. He'd also like to pinpoint where his money goes by categorizing transactions and seeing the total amount for each group every month.

Nick's short-term goals include living comfortably without having to sacrifice too many of the things he enjoyed when he was employed full-time (before he returned to school). Long-term, he wants to pay back student loans, have a real job with a steady fixed income, and track his spending better. Ultimately, he wants to save money, invest wisely and buy a home.

If he spent less on alcohol and food, he would probably save that extra money.

Interview with Kelly Wood

Kelly is a 24 year old female graduate student at Drexel University with student loans and a part-time job

She feels she’s spending too much money on eating out as well as groceries. While she’d like to reduce spending for both of these, she’d like to focus on spending less on eating out. It’s less healthy and also more expensive than making meals at home.

The convenience factor plays a big role in this overspending. She feels it’s just much less time-consuming to eat out then to figure out what you want to eat, go to the store, and actually prepare the meal. Kelly thinks that “spending too much” is a very personal issue, and cannot easily be quantified. She personally tries to memorize how many times she eats out per week, but doesn’t have a specific budget.

Kelly used to balance her check book before she had a computer, but now she just checks her PNC online bank account. She used to spend more time on it manually, but not anymore.

She feels that writing out a budget of what she needs every week, and balance it out afterwards, would help track her spending. Kelly says she’s too lazy, though, and doesn’t have the time to do this.

Kelly’s short-term goals (while in school) are to have enough money for school and living expenses. Long-term goals include a life free of stress, where she doesn’t have to worry about spending too much money. If she would be able to reduce her overspending, it would go towards her savings.

Interview with Val Burlak

Val is curreny doing full time MBA from Fox School of Business, Temple University. He teaches privately and plays in a local band. Val says that he spends too much money on transportation and school. He made a bad decision of staying far from school and is also taking a class in Fort Washington. So he travels a lot by car and train.

Val figures out how much he makes each month and then decides how much to spend each month. Val doesn't really use any method to control his spending. He has tried keeping track of his expenditure by having a budget but stopped because it got little annoying.

Val's short term goal is to get out of school debt free and get a job which will help him buy a car of his choice and his long term goal is to earn $1 million/ year for 20 years. He wants to live well and donate some money to charity. 

If he was to reduce his over expenditure then he would use that money on traveling.

Interview with Brittney Franklin

Brittney Franklin, 27, is currently working on her Orthodontics residency at Temple. Her income is based on student loans which she uses for tuition and all other costs of living.

Her short term financial goals include finishing school. Long term, she intends to pay off student loans, start saving for retirement, and eventually buy a home.

Two areas she identified where she might be spending too much are clothing and groceries. She prefers brands of clothing that tend to be more expensive, and admits that her taste in food can be "extravagant." In both cases, she's willing to pay more money for higher quality products.

Brittney is extremely organized and disciplined when it comes to budgeting. She establishes her total budget at the beginning of the year by subtracting her fixed monthly costs (rent, car insurance, etc.) and then dividing what's left into categories for food, clothing, travel, etc. She uses Quicken and online banking from Wachovia, although she doesn't take advantage of any integration capabilities between the two products. She also uses a credit card for purchases for the sole purpose of maintaining good credit.

Brittney made an interesting comment during our interview; she expressed that she doesn't normally discuss financial matters with her friends. Many people retain a similar layer of privacy where money is concerned, and it might be interesting to consider how financial decisions are different than other decisions in our lives as a result.

Interview

This is an interview with a 23-year-old graduate student, with part-time income and student loans.

Interview

Interview with 25 year old female full-time student - no income - scholarship and savings - goes to school in center city
"I feel like I spend too much money on going out to eat, either for lunch or for dinner. Also I think I spend too much money on small snack and drinks at convenience stores. In general I overspend on food and drinks, and I wish I would prepare lunch/dinner myself instead of going out to eat. It is usually a lot more convenient to go out and grab a quick bite for lunch in center city, then to prepare lunch in the morning. It takes a lot more planning and time, and as a full-time student I'm always so busy, I'd rather get something real quick.
I used to list all my expenses in Excel so I could see how I was spending all my money, but I stopped cause it was too much of a hassle. Currently I use online banking at Wachovia, but it doesn't really help me control my spending. I would have to go through all the expenses and group them together to see how much I'm spending on eating out, which, again, would take too much time. I think the excel spreadsheet, which I used to do, still could help me, because I could group certain expenses together.
I would like to not think/worry about every purchase I make, like I do now. I'm always thinking: How often did I go out to eat this week, and am I spending too much money?
If I could reduce the amount of money I spend on food, I would probably go shopping more often, which I rarely do now. As a student, you're constantly thinking about your budget and how much money you have left. I would save if I could, but there's no point right now with no income.