Sun, Apr 14, 2013
Deanna calls in Gail to deal with her fiancé, James, whose money management she wants dealt with before they get married. Deanna even states that James' money management problem may be a deal breaker in them actually getting married. They both would like to be full time actors, but because they are still in the struggling phase in that aspect, they work part-time in the service and retail industries, bringing in little money to live. As such, they live in the basement of Deanna's parents' house, where they will stay until they get on their feet financially. Part of Deanna's concern over the money is that she wants a big wedding typical of her Italian family, and shortly after getting married wants to start a family. James' primary money issue is that he lives for the here and now, not watching at all how much money he spends or to where it goes. Beyond giving them both a financial diary so that they can keep track of how much money comes in and how much goes out, Gail has to get them on the same page for their immediate life goals so that they can plan on how to achieve them. For James specifically, Gail wants him to understand the need to work at something to bring in money to live, while being more proactive in selling himself for those acting jobs. But in looking at their finances, Gail finds that Deanna is a worse culprit with money than James. The big issue for the couple is if it is worth going further into debt to pay for the "big party" aka the lavish wedding when they already have other debts to pay off.
Thu, Apr 18, 2013
Laura calls in Gail to deal with her husband, Sean, who is the person within their household who handles the money issues, such as paying the bills. They both earn a decent wage which should make managing their household finances easy if done properly and within their means. The wake-up call for Laura that there is a problem with how Sean handles the household money is when an error he made led to a $10,000 income tax bill. Upon closer investigation, Gail does find that Sean is a money moron, but not for the reasons Laura stated in their meeting prior to them ambushing Sean. Beyond the income tax problem, which Sean readily admits was his fault and thus is his responsibility to fix (i.e. pay), Gail finds that Sean and Laura do not communicate with each other properly about their finances, with Sean shutting down anytime there is a confrontation, leading to Laura doing whatever she wants unilaterally, which is shop as a hobby. While Laura complains about the amount of money Sean pours into his beater of a car and the television with all the bells and whistles (which in reality he does not pour as much money into as she guesstimates), she in turn spends uncontrollably on clothes and home decor items, the latter with little to show for in their house in she not wanting to do anything with the items in her indecisiveness in not wanting to decorate in a way she will regret later. And although they both earn a relative equivalent to each other, Sean does most of the heavy lifting financially when it comes to their needs, especially for their shelter. Gail wants this couple to start communicating with each other, a symbolic task being to decorate one of their rooms to both their satisfaction, mostly with things they have already purchased, with all other items purchased that haven't been used to be sold or returned. Gail also provides them with a life coach so that they can get on the same page with their goals in life, and with that the financial obligations they have jointly.
Wed, Apr 24, 2013
Josh calls in Gail to deal with his wife, Kat, with who he is constantly arguing over her spending. The only thing Josh and Kat both seem to agree on with regard to their financial situation is that Kat should be a stay-at-home mom, their son now an infant, and that she should never have to return to work. She works part-time as a dog walker, bringing in $8,000 per annum, which is her spending money. Confronted, Kat does recognize that she is a money moron, she who made some effort in consolidating debt to get it to a manageable level only to get another credit source to increase that debt. She also spends primarily and impulsively on things for their son, he now having outgrown many of those clothes and toys. As such, Gail would like Kat to organize a toy/clothes swap with other parents not only to get those things she needs for him, but to declutter their house of the things he no longer needs which are of value to others. However, in reviewing this situation, Gail finds that Josh is a large part of the problem in their household. He works freelance as a massage therapist and running coach, his on average 28 hours of work per week bringing in an annual income of $32,000. He enjoys this somewhat carefree work life, and is resistant either to make a concerted effort to work more - new clients which he only gets on referrals from existing clients - or find other sources of income to support the family. He also spends more time looking after their dogs (4 hours per day of dedicated time) than he does with their son (2 hours per day of dedicated time), the latter he sees as Kat's responsibility. He defends his free time as needing to keep in shape/train to maintain his ability to do his work, and in being a responsible dog owner. Josh pays the rent, but Kat looks after everything else financially for the household. With their arguments about finances, Josh sees it as a necessity as he believes Kat doesn't listen to him when he speaks calmly, while Josh walks away whenever Kat argues back. They both see the current situation as being unsustainable, their marriage on the breaking point if something doesn't change.
Wed, Apr 24, 2013
Lisetty calls in Gail to deal with her husband of three years, Ryan. What concerns Lisetty, now more than ever, is that Ryan, who works as an independent contractor (i.e. he pedals his business to client companies), has never understood the complexities of tax laws affecting small business owners like himself, which has dug him into an income tax hole - with another tax year end approaching - with their first baby on its way. On top of the tax debt, Ryan spends based on his revenue (on average $90,000 a year) instead of accounting for expenses, including the relatively large year to year tax burden. A large part of that spending is a $15-20 lunch out every day, he who has not brown bagged a lunch in five years. In addition, Ryan purchased a revenue property with a friend, for which Lisetty cosigned a loan despite not legally being part owner of the house. After the loan was signed, Ryan unilaterally took out additional money on the loan, which shows Lisetty that he may not be a responsible parent if he is focused more on his own financial needs than theirs as a family. What Lisetty is unaware of is that she, as the cosigner, is responsible for the loan if he defaults on it. What Gail sees in Ryan and Lisetty as a couple is that Ryan handles all the household finances, shielding Lisetty from any of it in his belief that it is above her head, not realizing that he has made a mess in handling it on his own. Beyond giving Ryan the services of a tax consultant specializing in small business owners like himself and impressing on him the need to cut his spending (meaning no more lunches out), Gail wants Ryan to see that Lisetty should be involved in the financial management for the household. But Gail also wants Ryan to get a good view of life after the baby is born and how that truly will affect him in what he needs to do as a household provider and them as a couple in being responsible parents.
Wed, May 1, 2013
Leah calls in Gail to deal with her fiancé, Will, the couple who have an infant daughter together. Leah and Will each earn approximately $30,000 per annum in their respective jobs. Leah's primary issue with Will is his frequent nights out with friends, which will easily cost him on average $100 per outing. An associated issue is that Will's time away leaves Leah to handle most of the work around the house, including the care of their daughter. Confronted by Gail and Leah, Will admits that he probably does spend more than he should in those nights out. But upon inspection of the spending within the household, Gail finds that Leah is the bigger moron. While Will handles paying most of the household needs, such as rent, Leah spends more on wants such as clothes and entertainment. The dynamic within the couple is that although they claim to talk about money and finances, they don't really in that they will allow the other to do what he/she wants in order to keep peace at the time. Gail also finds that they haven't really discussed in a meaningful manner their joint goals in life, including if and when they should have more children. The first task Gail has for them may be the biggest shock for them: getting rid of one of their two cars, that second vehicle which they cannot really afford on their incomes, with the result being one and/or the other adjusting to other means (such as public transit) to get around, especially for commuting. Gail sends them to a life coach, who plays a question and answer game to show them how close or far apart they are in their wants in life. Gail also wants them to switch places to balance out the roles, with Will tasked not only with the cooking and cleaning (the former which he professes not knowing how to do well) but the care and feeding of their daughter, and Leah tasked with budgeting to see how important her income is to the maintenance of their household finances.
Wed, May 1, 2013
Anne calls in Gail to deal with her fiancé, Michael. Anne had previously called off their engagement before because of what she considers Michael's reckless spending, especially on his man toys. An example of that reckless spending is that Michael spends more on a monthly basis on his luxury sedan than he does on the mortgage on his house. To protect her own financial self and well-being, Anne purchased her own house during their break-up, which she is reluctant to part with because of not fully trusting Michael. Anne states that she will have no hesitation in breaking up with Michael again if he doesn't change his spending ways. Michael's debt is also despite he earning a good $100,000 living as a radio DJ. Gail tries to impress on Michael the difference between setting his house or his car as a main priority. Gail also wants him to redirect his energies into the wedding, primarily to walk a figurative mile in Anne's shoes to see what she is going through in terms of spending responsibly on what should be a joint goal. She also wants them to sit down and discuss rationally as opposed to emotionally what they are going to do in terms of their post-marriage living, the two houses which they don't need. This task may be more difficult for Anne as Michael's house carries the emotional baggage of the problems when they lived there together previously. On the flip side, Gail wants Anne to understand that Michael does not want his past spending problems to be constantly thrown in his face if problems arise in their relationship, this something Anne has done in the past in her mistrust.
Wed, May 8, 2013
Courtney calls in Gail to deal with her husband, Dylan, the two who have been together for ten years. They have an infant son, Dason, who was a surprise in their lives. Dylan wants them to have another child, but Courtney is concerned that Dylan's reckless spending - on the surface on nights out with the boys specifically having meals at the bar, and on cigarettes - will prevent them not only providing for Dason but for that future child. Another hit of Dylan's sole doing had to do with his car insurance, which required his parents to bail him out financially. As such, Courtney wants to put her foot down in not getting pregnant unless Dylan changes his ways. She also fears that their financial issues may lead to them needing to split. Gail finds that what is happening in Courtney and Dylan's household is not all that it appears from Courtney's side. Although Courtney, who handles all the household finances, is dead on that Dylan spends on average $400 a month on those spur of the moment meals out - more than Dylan suspected - she is surprised to learn that Dylan has socked away some money, both as savings and in an education fund for Dason. Dylan's issue is that Courtney, who is a full time nursing student, has spent her working life on part-time jobs that neither he or she would ever consider careers. Despite she currently earning half what he does, they had made the decision to split the household expenses down the middle, thus he feels she hasn't held up to her end of the financial burden. Dylan however admits that he has little understanding of finances in general, his financial doings on an individual basis without looking at their household money on a comprehensive basis. Gail wants the couple to look at their money more holistically with Dylan taking more responsibility, which means either he hands over his paychecks to Courtney to pool their money for household bills, or Dylan will take charge of the paying of the bills. Gail wants Dylan to set long term budgets to deal with their debt, in combination with both going through a goal setting exercise to see if another baby truly is priority in their lives.
Wed, May 8, 2013
Mike calls in Gail to deal with his fiancée, Kelly, who he believes spends too much money on her hobby of scrapbooking. Mike admits that he is afraid to confront Kelly about the issue on his own, largely out of circumstance. Kelly, a teacher, earns almost twice the amount of money he does as a call center employee. He at some point in time would love to get a higher education to earn more money, but life circumstances - he and a former partner having a child at a young age - have prevented him from being able to do so, his infant daughter who is in his custody. That fear is that Kelly has the financial power in their relationship, he being unable to provide for his daughter if Kelly were to leave. He also admits that his beef is somewhat "sour grapes" in the disparity in their financial situations. Regardless, they have a fifty-fifty split in household expenses, which leaves Mike with no disposable income and Kelly with it all within their relationship. Beyond believing the fifty-fifty split in household expenses inequitable, Gail, in reviewing the situation which includes getting Kelly's side of the story, sees the major issue between the two being a lack of effective communication. As they don't want to talk about their issues constructively, Mike generally sits on the couch playing video games on the television, while Kelly scrapbooks or goes out with her friends. As such, Gail believes they are acting more like roommates than a committed couple. Acting truly like a couple is the foundation of the change that needs to occur for them to get on a sound financial footing.
Thu, May 16, 2013
Anthony calls in Gail to deal with his wife, Tamara, who he feels spends indiscriminately. They have a relatively low combined annual household income at just under $45,000 which is part of their financial issue. Beyond their household expenses, they made an agreement that she would only spend on things she needs for work as a hairdresser, which still seems to add up to a lot of beauty products. Part of Anthony's concern is providing for their infant daughter properly, they not wanting her to fall into the feeling of being poor like they both did when they were growing up. However, their financial situation does not stop them from dipping into their daughter's savings whenever they feel the need. Anthony also wants to have more children which will compound their financial problems unless something changes. Part of providing that security for their daughter is their want to own their own house instead of renting for their entire lives. Anthony seems to realize that he is not totally blameless, he often taking the easier path of going out for fast food instead of eating at home. Also, Tamara does all the finances for their household as the one with the greater natural aptitude in that area. In speaking to Tamara, Gail finds a somewhat defeatist attitude in that Tamara has always felt poor, and feels that nothing they will ever do will change that. Gail gives Tamara a choice with regard to certain issues to see where her true priorities lie. Gail also wants them to see what it will take to work toward their stated goals of a house and more kids, and whether the short term pleasures they currently spend on are worth forgoing those longer term goals.
Thu, May 16, 2013
Tammy calls in Gail to deal with her husband, Rob, the two who are close to splitting if they cannot resolve their problems. They are parents with two preschool aged sons. Their current annual household income of approximately $74,000 is primarily from a military disability pension Rob earns, he who suffered brain damage which required two years of recuperation during which time he didn't work. It was then that Rob started to spend indiscriminately online, many purchases about which he now admits he feels guilt. Those purchases are what have largely sent them into debt. Rob also has a hobby business of keeping bees, a business which he says is revenue neutral. He does not consider the $25,000 truck he bought specifically for the business a business expense, as he paid cash using household money. Tammy manages the spending for the family and household, such as on groceries and items for the children. While Tammy no longer trusts Rob, Rob accuses Tammy of hiding away money, effectively accusing her of stealing. Both Rob and Tammy admit they want their marriage to work, acknowledge that it will take some fundamental changes, and hope that the disintegration of it is not past the point of no return. Gail is hoping more so than usual that the truth in terms of what is happening with the money will be an eye opener for both of them. Beyond means to spend their money more wisely - such as learning to cook which will reduce their household food budget - the challenges Gail issues and the assistance she provides is largely to try and restore measures of trust and cooperation in their day to day lives, the trust building including Rob walking a mile in Tammy's shoes.