I caught an episode of House Hunters on HGTV this weekend that was over the top. A woman who had just graduated from college was on the hunt for her first home. I use the term “woman” loosely. Even though she wasn’t a dancer or a model, she broke out in both dance and pose several times during the show. She was over the top obnoxious and was one of those woman raised as a “princess.”
My head reels just thinking about the travesty that occurred in this 30-minute train wreck. First, Princess had a budget of $175,000 for her first starter home. Second, mommy and daddy were contributing substantially to her downpayment. The Princesses career of choice was fashion merchandiser and wasn’t at a national chain (i.e., less money).
After nixing one town home because the master closet wasn’t big enough, Princess quickly moved into one of her choices. Of course, she had to immediately purchase furniture and accessories to fill it up. You can’t possibly expect a Princess to live with empty rooms and save until she could earn enough money to buy what she wants.
There are so many things wrong with that scenario.
The parents are setting up their daughter for either a lifetime of out of control spending or are setting themselves up for a lifetime of bailing their princess out of debt.
Princess or not, it makes ZERO sense for someone making in the $30,000 salary range to purchase a $175,000 home — especially a town home where dues for upkeep of common areas are not included in your house payment. And don’t get me started on how much additional debt either she or her parents incurred in furnishing a 3 bedroom, 2 bath town home immediately. On top of that, the princess had horrible taste in furniture and accessories.
Let me tell you, these “princesses” parents are raising turn out to be nauseating adults. The best thing a parent could ever do is not give them down payment money, but instead sit down with them and teach them about creating a budget, living within their means and saving for a rainy day. When they are in their early 20’s they will bitch and call you mean, but by the time they hit 40 and have had their savings quadruple from money saved in their 20’s they will be kissing the ground you walk on.
And you wouldn’t have spent your future retirement money constantly bailing out an obnoxious overspending wining “princess” of your own creation.
Don’t believe me? Let’s run the numbers.
Princesses’ Salary: $30,000
$576.92 Weekly Gross Pay
- 61.44 Federal Withholding
- 34.77 Social Security
- 8.37 Medicare
$ 471.34 Weekly Net Pay
$ 471.34
x 4 weeks
$1,885.36 Monthly Net Pay
Princesses’ Mortgage
$175,000 Purchase Price
- 10,000 Down Payment from Dad
- 10,000 Down Payment from Mom
- 10,000 Down Payment from Princess (assuming this really took place)
$145,000 Amount Financed
$145,000 Mortgage
6.25% Interest (Countrywide’s Rate today for a 30-year Conventional)
$893.00 House payment
Shockingly, Princesses’ mortgage is 47.364% of her income. This does not take her car payment into consideration. After all, Princesses do not ride around in hoopties.
Dave Ramsey advises your home mortgage should not be more than 25% of your take home pay.
Unless Princess:
- Gets a roommate; or
- Continues to receive economic support from her parents; or
- Drastically curbs her spending; or
- Drastically increases her salary
She is bound to be facing foreclosure in her future. And she has her parents to thank for their inability to not only say “no,” but failing to sit down with her and go over her finances before:
Of course, I’m not absolving Princess of any personal responsibility. She’s a grown adult, but she is a product of parents who have catered to her since she was an infant. I doubt someone who thinks a display of “jazz hands” on national television after the purchase of their first home is suddenly going to have an epiphany they are living outside their means and just bought a house they can’t afford.
