Adult Daughter Blames Her Parents For Her Financial Problems — ‘They Didn’t Teach Me Anything About Credit Cards Or Rent’
Many young people would agree that their parents never gave them a comprehensive financial education, but their parents didn't receive one either.
Cast Of Thousands | Shutterstock Trying to be financially smart can often be a difficult task, especially for young people who may lack experience, face pressures to spend, and struggle with balancing their immediate desires against smarter long-term financial goals. It also doesn't help that many things like rent, groceries, and other basic necessities have risen in cost over the last several years.
During an episode of the podcast "Financial Audit with Caleb Hammer," Hammer spoke with a woman who claimed that it was her parents' fault that she was so bad at managing money and being financially literate, which seems to be the same experience for quite a lot of people in younger generations.
She blamed her parents for her financial problems.
In a clip from Hammer's podcast, he questioned the young woman he spoke to about what her parents have to do with her finances, claiming that since it's her life, she's the only person who can control how much money she spends, and the amount of debt she's in. "Do you blame your parents for everything?" Hammer questioned.
The young woman answered that she does a bit, explaining that her parents never really sat down and spoke to her about finances, how to save money, how to budget, and how much money you should be spending on rent, depending on your income. Hammer argued that it wasn't her parents' responsibility to teach her about finances when they most likely didn't know about it themselves.
"No one gets taught that in America," Hammer pointed out, referring to financial literacy. "I mean, if you're lucky, you are, but you learn it yourself."
Unfortunately, that seems to be the case. Many U.S. adults have admitted to feeling unprepared for managing their money and being able to live financially independently out of fear they can't handle their money. A 2023 report from Ramsey Education echoes this notion, with 88% of U.S. adults feeling unprepared to call their own financial shots, saying their high schools did not stress the importance of learning personal finance enough.
Similarly, only 15% of parents speak to their kids about household finances more than once a week, according to CNBC. One-quarter of parents talk to their kids about money less than once a month — and one-third of parents never do.
The young woman on Hammer's podcast admitted that her parents never taught her things like to only have rent that's 30% of your income, which Hammer pointed out is something he also didn't know until recently and that most people, including our parents, may not have any idea either.
Not that many Gen Zers are financially independent and still rely on their parents for money.
A Pew Research Center analysis found that 55% of 18- to 34-year-olds are not completely financially independent of their parents. In a survey from Experian, over two-thirds, or 70%, of millennials said they feel ashamed when they have to ask their parents for financial support. About 60% of the younger generations also feel the same way.
shisuka / Canva Pro
Despite asking their parents for money, the survey also found that 27% of respondents don't think their parents are good financial role models. This might be the case because even our parents weren't taught how to be smart and savvy with their money, and instead of high schools offering classes that go in-depth about the mistakes that we shouldn't make with money in our youth so we can be set up for successful financial futures, the education system lacks comprehensive personal finance lessons.
"We were just very aware of this narrative that's out there that parents today are too involved, and it's holding young adults back from becoming independent, and we wanted to learn more about the dynamics," Kim Parker, the director of social trends at Pew Research Center told CBS. "Most parents think they did a good job [preparing their children for adulthood], but everyone agrees that young adults aren't completely financially independent."
It's why so many young people are still living at home or are struggling to move out and find places on their own because either everything's too expensive or moving out would just put them in a deeper financial hole than they would be in if they just stayed under their parents' roof. While some of our parents may have lacked in teaching us comprehensive financial education, remember that for them, they also probably never received it in the first place.
We should hold grace for each other, and having conversations about money with friends, families, and significant others can help in bridging that gap and create a culture where we can be transparent about the financial decisions we all make.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.