Many people who are unprepared for the realities of finances find it difficult to transition into adulthood.
Many of the things we need to know after graduation, such as rent, income, and taxes, are not taught in school.
If you’re lucky, your parents may set you up for success in the real world and provide you with a much-needed crash course in financial principles, but this does not appear to be the case for this Gen Zer.
In a very strange interaction on TikTok, one young woman explained the moment she celebrated being $4,000 in debt with her credit card provider.
The video was shared by user Caleb Hammer, who is perplexed by the woman’s failure to understand the fundamentals of credit and debt.
@calebhammercomposer 20 Year Old Doesn’t Know What DEBT MEANS!!! 🤦♂️🤬 #financialaudit ♬ original sound – Caleb Hammer
After her parents gave her a credit card with a $8,000 limit, the woman appeared to be unaware of the distinction between a credit limit and the amount she would have to repay.
When she first received the card, she claimed that she had gone on a spending binge with her friends and boyfriend, offering to pay for dinners and treating him to costly outings.
One day, her card provider sent her a letter which stated that she had $4,000 debt with the company and had spent half of her credit limit. So, she excitedly called her mother to celebrate.
Why did she think it was a good thing?
Because she thought her debt was somehow what you were supposed to do with the card and didn’t know that she would need to pay the money back.
So…did she think it was a free gift card with $8,000 to splurge? It sure seems that way!
Caleb sought to clarify her misunderstanding by asking why she thought debt was a good thing, but the woman had no explanation.
Now, if you believed she would have to face the consequences of her error, you were mistaken.
In fact, when her mother realized she needed to pay the $4,000 right away, the parents confiscated the card and are now paying off their daughter’s debt themselves because she ‘won’t be able to pay it off in time’.
So they’re now enabling her to utilize it if she has unexpected bills or needs to care for her animals.
However, it doesn’t appear to be sinking in.
Caleb tried to convince her that her income was insufficient to support herself, as he calculated that her rent amounted to 70% of her income, leaving her unable to pay for bills, food, costs, or her credit card bill each month.
To which the girl replied, ‘girl math’.
The uncomfortable watch angered a lot of online viewers, who took to the comments to blast the woman’s blasé attitude to debt and money and also her parents for enabling her irresponsible behaviour.
One person seethed: “This is 100% the parents fault for GIVING HER A CREDIT CARD and NOT EXPLAINING IT TO HER.”
Another was just as confused as the girl seemed to be: “I’m confused at how she was confused. did she think the credit card was a GIFT CARD with $4k placed on it as a gift by her parents.”
