This pandemic is a totally scary, unprecedented time in all aspects of our lives, including finances. Businesses are closing their doors, employees are getting furloughed or laid off, the stock market is plunging (or so I am told by my dad)—if we weren’t worried about our finances before, we certainly are now. During this heightened time of stress, many are struggling to figure out what they can do to ensure financial security. Our advice? Don’t check your 401(k) for a while… it’s only going to make you freak out even more. And to help put your mind at ease and give you tips on actions you can take to protect yourself, we spoke to Ken Lin, CEO of Credit Karma, about what you should be doing, and the types of mistakes to avoid.
1. Know Your Options
The situation we’re in is a weird one that no one saw coming (well, except the world leaders who were warned about it and tried to ignore the problem, thinking it would go away, but that’s neither here nor there). An important thing to keep in mind is that banks realize we’re in a f*cked up situation right now and may offer you a new plan in response to what’s happening. Lin advises to take matters into your own hands and “call your credit card issuer, as they may offer a hardship plan, which sometimes offer lower interest rates, smaller minimum payments and/or lower penalties.” I’m sure the last thing you want to do now is get on the phone and wait on hold, but you have the time, and it could help you a lot, so just do it.
2. Pay The Minimum Amount Due If You Can
If you aren’t getting paid your usual salary, your hours have been cut, or you’ve been laid off or furloughed, you may be freaking out about paying your credit card bill in the next few months. While it’s usually best to pay in full each month, Lin says, “during times of stretched income, try and pay just the minimum payment to help you avoid late fees or dings to your credit.” The good news is that issuers typically won’t report the late payment until it’s 30 days past due, so you may have a bit of wiggle room. Lin explains, “If you can make your payment before the 30-day mark, you may not have to worry about the late payment being added to your report.” So if you can afford to make that minimum payment, even if it’s a couple of days late, it can save you stress and may not incur late fees, but just make sure you double-check your credit card details.
3. Don’t Default To Swiping Your Credit Card
I don’t know who needs to hear this but STOP online shopping during quarantine… oh wait that’s me
— Linsey Meister (@linseyx5) March 25, 2020
You may want to make purchases on your credit card in order to make ends meet, but there might be better options out there. Lin advises, “If you’re looking for an alternative, often times personal loans will have lower interest rates than credit cards.” He also offers that before you swipe or open up an additional line of credit, you take note of the interest rate on your credit card and make sure you’re not accruing additional interest and fees.
4. Think Twice Before Taking Out A Payday Loan
Before you borrow any money, take a nice hard look at the fine print. Lin cautions, “Payday lenders tend to prey on those in desperate circumstances like these, and these loans can be the beginning of a long cycle of debt.” He advises holding off on these types of loans, as “a payday loan may carry unfavorable terms, including high fees and interest rates.” The best thing to do, he says, would be to look into other options available to you, such as emergency or personal loans.
We’re all feeling all kinds of emotions right now, but it’s important you take care of yourself, and part of taking care of yourself is making sure your finances are in check. Trust me, everyone is in the same boat. When in doubt, look into your options and talk to someone on the phone. There may be solutions there you haven’t thought were possible.
Images: Sharon McCutcheon / Unsplash; @linseyx5/Twitter
Welcome to WTFunds, where we do what nobody else does and… actually talk about money. Ever scrolled through your Instagram feed, wondering how your friends are affording their lifestyles when they’re making the same amount of money as you and you can barely rub two dimes together? Read on, because we’ll be talking to real people to break down how much things cost, and how they’re paying for it.
When it comes to money, people of all generations throw around catchphrases and adages like coupons at Macy’s without ever actually knowing if they’re true. People spend their whole lives soaking in all of these finance tips and philosophies, only to hit their twenties and have a total WTF moment because these tips are either completely untrue or are no longer suitable for the lives millennials lead. Mainstream media and older generations love to make jokes about avocado toast being the cause of our financial woes without actually acknowledging how different life is for young people today—riddled with student loan debt, an insane housing market, the list goes on.
We’re Lauren and Kelda, millennial sisters (and avocado toast lovers) living in Seattle, WA. After entering the real world ourselves and watching so many peers come to view money as a subject to be feared and overwhelmed by, we felt compelled to make finance an approachable and exciting topic, not only for our friends, but for all millennials. Instead of focusing on small actions like skipping your morning latte, we want our peers to understand the big deals—compound interest, credit scores, the power of investing—the needle-moving and life-changing concepts. While between the two of us, we do have a background in corporate finance, we truly believe that anyone can master their personal finances and that, no, you don’t need to be “good at math” to do so. Together we run Hello HENRYs, a blog on all things personal finance. Kelly Kapoor may be the business bitch, but we’re the finance bitches, betches.
Outside of bottomless brunches, Real Housewives marathons, and overpriced skincare, engaging in healthy debate (aka proving people wrong) just may be one of our favorite pastimes. There is no topic that makes this more true than money. Today, we’re sharing five of the most common finance myths and why they are actually so false.
1. All Debt Is Equally Bad
(Mostly) FALSE.
Did anyone else grow up hearing about debt as terrible, scary, or dumb? But then you were accepted to college and immediately encouraged to take out thousands of dollars in loans as the first “adult” decision of your life? Ironic, huh? The thing is, though, this happens all the time, and the reality is that the majority of millennials do have some kind of student loan debt. In and of itself, debt is obviously money that you spent without actually having, so in theory, it is never amazing. However, it’s super important to differentiate between kinds of debt.
Debt that is used to better your life can actually be seen as an investment that will help improve your financial health; and while yes, a trip to Bali 100% would better our lives, that’s not what we’re talking about here. Debt such as a mortgage or a student loan will (hopefully) give you a return on that initial debt investment. Provided that you are only taking out the exact amount that you truly need, receive a low (5% or lower) interest rate, and can afford the monthly payment, these debts are typically worth it and better your financial health.
Credit card debt, or a car loan for a new Range Rover (when your budget is more 2007 Toyota Camry), on the other hand, is not only hard to get out of, but is also not something that is usually an investment in your future and will cause your credit score to take a hit.
When evaluating your debt, always prioritize getting out of the “bad” debt and paying off the debt with the highest interest rate first.
2. Credit Cards Are For Emergencies Only
FALSE.
Okay, talk about scary. This kind of thinking is exactly why so much of the country is in severe credit card debt. Saying credit cards are only for emergencies or big (aka expensive) purchases, implies that credit cards should be used only when you don’t have the funds to cover the purchase yourself. Uh…what?
On the contrary, credit cards should only be used when you DO have the money to cover the purchase. Literally nobody should be judging you for using a credit card to buy your weekly groceries or morning Starbucks—which has happened to us, by the way. This judgment comes because people assume that if you’re using a credit card, it means you can’t afford it. Again, the exact opposite of when and why you should use a credit card.
As long as you can pay your balance in full each month, credit cards can be an amazing tool to earn rewards on money you are already spending. They can also provide travel/purchase protection and protection against fraudulent charges, and help you build credit, earn points for free travel, and a myriad of other amazing benefits. We use our credit cards for literally every single purchase that can be made using them. Obviously, we aren’t going to force anyone into using a credit card, but we are going to be extra bossy about ensuring that you use them only when you have the funds to immediately pay them off. And also a PSA: stop judging other people’s financial lives when you, very likely, don’t know anything about them.
3. Monthly Rent Payments Are A Good Indicator Of The Mortgage Payment That You Can Afford
FALSE.
When Lauren bought her first home last year, this was a huge learning moment. For so long, we had heard “If you can afford $X in rent, that same amount could easily be your mortgage payment!” Not true. Owning a home comes with SO many additional monthly payments that are not part of the equation when you’re renting. Property taxes, home insurance, HOA dues, PMI (insurance charge if you put down less than 20%—which is extremely common for first-time home buyers). All of these additional fees can easily add up to hundreds of dollars a month in payments. In actuality, if you want your housing payment to stay the same from renting to buying, you’ll need to look for a home with a mortgage payment significantly less than your current rent payment.
Also, part B to this equation: Whoever said buying is always smarter than renting was so false. Buying a home can be a smart investment in your financial future, but it isn’t always. If you’re renting and making other key investing decisions, you can be equally as set up for success in your future, while also not having to deal with the nightmare of needing a new roof or water heater.
4. You Can’t Afford to Invest Until You Have No Debt
FALSE.
Actually—you can’t afford not to. Some financial advisors actually tell you not to invest until you have no debt…which, if you have student loans, would mean you aren’t making any investments until you’re probably in your early thirties, at least. Yikes! There is a super mathematical and logical way to look at this, and it’s called the interest rate. You want to throw your extra funds at the highest interest rate. If your student loan has the average 3.5% interest rate, but you could be earning 8-10% in an investment or retirement account, you’re effectively losing money by choosing to pay extra on your student loans. Obviously, you always want to make the minimum payments on all of your accounts each month, but after that, your priority for your extra funds should be to the option with the highest interest rate. If you have credit card debt, this will likely always win out.
While we’re on the topic of interest rates, another PSA, your hard earned savings and emergency funds should not be sitting in a traditional, low interest savings account at a brick and mortar bank. If you aren’t earning a minimum of 1.8% or higher on your savings account, you’re doing it wrong and leaving money on the table.
5. Closing Old Credit Cards Will Boost Your Credit Score
FALSE.
Credit scores are something people talk a lot about, but usually have no idea what actually goes into them. There is literally no mystery about them, though. Remember back in college when the professor laid out the syllabus and what percent each category was worth? I don’t know about you, but, as soon as we saw “Attendance” listed at just 5%, we basically gave ourselves a free pass to have a little too much fun on Thursday nights and miss every Friday morning lecture. I mean, at just 5%, we could still come out with an A. Credit scores are pretty much the same.
FICO literally lays out the five factors that go into earning a perfect credit score and how heavily each factor is weighted. Closing old credit cards hurts two of the five factors: credit utilization rate (30% of your score) and length of credit history (15% of your score). Closing old credit cards could impact almost half of what goes into your credit score. Not a decision to be made lightly.
Credit utilization rate refers to the amount of credit you are using as a percent of what you have available. Let’s say you have two credit cards. Credit card A has a $5,000 balance with an $8,000 limit. Credit card B has a $1,000 balance with a $20,000 limit. Currently, you are using $6,000 of credit out of $28,000 available—just 21% and below the max target of 30%. Let’s say you decide to close card B (after paying it off) because you barely use it. Your balance dropped to $5,000, but your available credit also dropped to $8,000! That puts your new utilization rate is 63%—not good!
In addition, while credit history is a smaller factor of your score at just 15%, this is a challenging one for millennials to score highly on because we don’t have time on our side. If you decide to close your old college credit card because you don’t use it much anymore, you’re literally closing one of your longest chapters of credit history—also not good.
Obviously, there are some exceptions to this rule—if closing one card would not drastically affect your utilization rate, you have accounts with longer/better history, a card has a steep annual fee that you aren’t getting enough benefit out of, etc. The point is, though, closing a card can have serious consequences on your credit score and is not a decision that you want to make lightly.
There you have it: five of the most commonly thrown around financial myths proven wrong. Talking money is never that fun or glamorous, but the most important thing is to nail the big picture ideas. By doing so, we promise that you can achieve your financial goals, like saving for retirement or buying a home, while still going to Soulcycle, happy hour, or whatever it is that enriches your life and brings you joy! Even with student loans and a less than six figure salary. We are living proof.
Images: Sharon McCutcheon / Unsplash; Giphy (3); whenshappyhr (2) / Instagram
On Monday, Apple hosted a major event at its headquarters in California and made some major announcements about upcoming projects. The most exciting was the official reveal of Apple TV+, the new streaming service that is Apple’s direct competitor to Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon. They announced some enticing new shows, namely The Morning Show, a drama starring Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Steve Carell. It debuts this fall, and I’m basically already counting down the days.
But now that I’ve had a few hours to process my excitement about Reese Witherspoon, it’s time to talk about the other huge announcement Apple made on Monday: they’re making a credit card. I have questions, and so should you. It’s called Apple Card, and while Apple is claiming that Apple Card “completely rethinks everything about the credit card,” I’m juuuust a little skeptical. That’s because this all reminds me way too much of Billy McFarland and his legendary Magnises scam.
Someone at Apple must have watched the Fyre Festival documentary and was like, "THAT. MAKE THAT. THE COOL CREDIT CARD."
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) March 25, 2019
Let’s look at some of the features and benefits of the Apple Card, shall we?
On the website for Apple Card, the first thing Apple says is “A new kind of credit card. Created by Apple, not a bank.” Okay, so I’m not going to act like I’m the most financially literate person in the world, but is this supposed to be appealing? I already give Apple like half of my money, so why do I want them to have control of my credit card too? It’s not like banks are the good guy here, but is Apple any better?
Apple then says that the card represents “simplicity, transparency, and privacy,” which are all good words I guess. “It’s the first card that actually encourages you to pay less interest.” These sound like great things, but why does Apple want you to pay them less money? I don’t know about all this financial jargon, but I do know that banks make money off credit cards by charging interest (god, I hope I’m right). But the next line is what really got me:
“You can buy things effortlessly, with just your iPhone. Or use the Apple-designed titanium card anywhere in the world.”
A TITANIUM CARD. I bet it feels nice and hefty in your wallet, just like a Magnises card. People will be impressed by the clanking sound it makes when you slam it down on the counter. Here’s the card that is going to make everyone in the world think you’re a billionaire:
After running down the list of exciting features like Apple Cash (it’s basically just a regular rewards program) and great security (boring), Apple finally gets down to the nitty gritty of why there’s not technically a bank involved.
“Every credit card needs an issuing bank. To create Apple Card, we needed a partner that was up for the challenge of doing something bold and innovative. Enter Goldman Sachs. This is the first consumer credit card they’ve issued, so they were open to doing things in a whole new way.
Ah yes, let’s applaud the incredible bravery of Goldman Sachs, who dared to partner with Apple, the company with the world’s highest market value. They’re really stepping out of their comfort zone, so good for them. I’m not an expert on Goldman Sachs, but their Wikipedia page has a “Controversies and legal issues” section four times as long as this article, so I’m not fully convinced that this is some wonderful, groundbreaking partnership that’s totally safe for consumers.
So that’s a full run-down of what Apple’s website says about their new credit card, but this slide from their presentation yesterday is just asking to be memed.
Apple Card is the new Magnises. pic.twitter.com/rYqkONHqnA
— William Needham Finley IV (@WNFIV) March 25, 2019
No card number! No signature! A West Village townhouse! FREE tickets to the Met Gala!! Beyoncé will definitely perform at your birthday party!!! So far, Apple hasn’t made any promises about concert tickets that are literally impossible to get, but I’m sure that’s coming in Apple Card Series 2.
Apple Card is scheduled for release sometime this summer, and I can’t wait to see how many dumb rich millennials run out and get one on the first day. Lmk in the comments if you plan on getting an Apple Card, because in about three years I might be making a documentary about scams and need your contact info.
Images: Shutterstock; @parkermolloy, @wnfiv / Twitter; Apple
It’s easy to get caught in the marketing traps of credit card companies, especially for first-time owners. Alexa von Tobel is the founder and HBIC of LearnVest, the Chief Innovation Officer at Northwestern Mutual, and the New York Times bestselling author of Financially Fearless and she’s here to help all you fiscally confused betches out there. We asked her what credit card you should consider getting based on your spending habits and lifestyle. Read on for Alexa’s advice, and for more career and adulting advice, pre-order our third book, When’s Happy Hour?
I always advise people to identify their priorities before choosing what credit card is right for them. First, think about your goal: Do you want cash back? Do you travel a lot on one airline? Do you want to use points for a trip you wouldn’t normally pay for? All of these are important since you don’t want to change your spending habits once you get a new card. Here are a few to get you started:
If You Want To Get Cash Back Without Thinking: Citi Double Cash
Other cards get more back in certain categories, but this is the most no-thinking-involved card out there. The Citi Double Cash earns 2% cash back on all purchases. Think of it like getting a 2% discount on everything you buy. You simply redeem for statement credits and don’t have to think any further than that. Two cents per point is really the benchmark for all other cards. If you’re not getting that much back on your redemption (divide the dollar value by the number of points you redeem), you’re better off just using the Citi Double Cash.
If You Cook At Home And Drive Everywhere: American Express Blue Cash Preferred
This card gets you 6% cash back on up to $6,000 spent at grocery stores; after that, it’s just 1%. It also gets 3% at gas stations and select department stores. Shop anywhere from Kohl’s to Neiman Marcus with no set limit. Those big cash-back percentages don’t apply at Wal-Mart, Target or discount clubs, but if you spend more than $1,500 on groceries in a year, the card already pays for its own $95 annual fee. That’s not even considering the unlimited 3% back or the great extended warranty benefits of an AmEx.
You Spend All Your Money On Dining Out And Travel: Chase Sapphire Reserve
The Sapphire Reserve’s $450 annual fee sounds steep, but it quickly pays for itself. First, you get a $300 credit every year toward travel. So if you book plane tickets or hotels, that effectively cuts the fee to $150. You also get a $100 Global Entry/TSA Precheck credit that’s good for five years, as well as lounge access with unlimited guests. Every time you fly, instead of waiting in lines and eating at Cinnabon, you’ll zip through security and sip on an adult beverage for free.
The real kicker comes through the Sapphire Reserve’s point accrual and partner transfers. You can earn three times the points on dining and travel (that includes taxis). While Chase offers a 50% bonus to redeem points for travel through its travel portal, you could instead transfer out to airline partners like Singapore Airlines. You’ll be flying in a private suite to Asia for just 120,000 points. With a 50,000-point signup bonus, you’ll get there pretty quick. Once you’re there, there’s no foreign transaction fee either, which will likely save you a bundle.
You Love Planning And “Deals”: Discover It Card Or Chase Freedom
Both of these no-fee cards offer rotating quarterly categories where you earn 5% back. For example, Discover it Card earns 5% back at restaurants from July through September when you’re enjoying the height of summer, then another 5% on Amazon and Target purchases from October through December when you’re stocking up for the holidays. Plan wisely, and you cash in—without having to pay a dime for the trouble.
You Need To Tackle Your Current Credit Card Debt: Chase Slate
Maybe you went a little too crazy on gifts last Christmas, or you ended up spending a lot more on that vacation to Santorini than you’d planned. It happens. Rather than staying in that hole, transfer your high-interest debt to the Chase Slate card, with a $0 transfer fee and 0% APR for the first 15 months on your balance transfers and purchases. Stay after it, and you could be debt-free in no time.
A final thing to consider: If you fly a lot with one airline, consider getting that airline’s credit card. For example, having one of American Airlines’ co-branded cards will let you check a bag for free—that’s normally $25 each way, so the savings can really pile up.
For more advice on credit cards, adulting, and career, pre-order our third book, When’s Happy Hour?, out October 23!
Images: Hanson Lu / Unsplash
Once you’ve been weaned off The Bank of Daddy and are forced to deal with your own finances, sh*t can get pretty scary. There’s more to that plastic card than just swiping, so we enlisted Alexa von Tobel, the founder and CEO of LearnVest and the Chief Innovation Officer at Northwestern Mutual, for some serious help. Alexa is also The New York Times bestselling author of Financially Fearless, so clearly she knows what she’s talking about. Here, we asked her all about credit—how to build it, how to ruin it, and why you need it. And for more career and adulting advice, pre-order our third book, When’s Happy Hour, here!
How do you get credit?
Building your credit isn’t complicated, but it takes time, discipline, and a bit of knowledge. First, you’ll need to apply for a credit card. If you don’t have at least a passable credit history, actually getting a traditional (aka: unsecured) credit card in your name can be surprisingly difficult. So if you can’t get approved for an unsecured card, consider signing up for a secured credit card.
Next, start building your credit. There is a myth that using more of your available credit translates to a higher credit score. The opposite is actually true. In reality, lenders worry that you’re in over your head financially when you spend a big chunk of your credit line. To help assess this, they’ll look at your credit utilization ratio. This is the percentage of your total credit limit that your current balance represents. For instance, if all your cards give you access to $20,000 of credit, and your current balance is $5,000, you’ve got a credit utilization ratio of 25%.
The most important thing to remember when building your credit is to get serious about due dates. I recommend that people request recurring transfers or autopay via your bank. Make sure though that you’re setting an amount that is doable for your budget. Creating calendar events on your phone so you receive alerts before each bill’s due date is also a great method.
What ruins your credit?
Not making payments on time is the biggest factor that affects your credit score. It’s important to realize that it’s not just lenders that report to credit bureaus. Things like medical debt and missed utility payments can also ding your credit report.
The second-largest factor that can hurt your credit score is the amount you owe across your credit accounts. The biggest influences on this calculation are either your credit utilization ratio or the percentage of your available credit that you’re actually using. So, making sure your balances don’t balloon can go a long way toward helping maintain a good credit rating.
I also advise people to refrain from opening too many credit lines at once. This triggers a “hard inquiry” on your credit report. But closing credit accounts you already have could impact your length of credit history negatively. Even if you don’t use a card often, keep it open and charge something small on it every once in a while.
What do you need good credit for?
You need good credit for almost everything! Having good credit sets you up for success when you need to apply for a loan or line of credit. Your credit can help determine whether you can even get a mortgage or car loan in the first place. Plus, you could even miss out on a perfect apartment rental or job opportunity—both landlords and employers have been known to check out an applicant’s credit history. Having no credit at all or bad credit means that you either won’t be approved by future lenders or may have to deal with some unfavorable lending terms, like paying higher interest rates.
What’s a good number of credit cards to have?
There’s no magic number for how many credit cards a person should have. It all depends on what type of person you are. Responsible users may benefit from having multiple cards. If you pay off your balance in full each month, it can be a good strategy for a few different reasons. You can reap more rewards and boost your credit score. If you’re self-employed or a freelancer, it can help with easier bookkeeping because you could keep your work and personal expenses separate.
Despite the potential benefits of having multiple credit cards, there are drawbacks. And the stakes are high: If you destroy your credit score by, for instance, consistently missing payments on multiple cards, it could take years to rebuild that number. Plus, carrying a greater number of cards means the potential for racking up a greater amount of debt overall.
Bottom line: don’t open more credit cards that you can manage. Be honest with yourself about your spending habits and responsibility.
Should I just have a regular credit card with a bank or is my retail card helping me with credit?
I would recommend having a regular credit card with your bank or choosing one of the cards I mentioned. This depends on your spending priorities and goals. Retail store credit cards that people open at the register because they get 10% off their purchase right on the spot, can hurt your finances.
This is because retail cards tend to have higher interest rates than regular credit cards. They also tend to have lower credit limits. So if you spend a lot on a retail card, it could look like you’re close to maxing out your limit. This could hurt your credit utilization ratio, and thus, your credit score. Also, their “special offers” (like getting 10% off on the spot) could end up costing you. Retail stores are known to dangle deferred-interest offers in front of consumers without properly explaining what that means. In a nutshell: You don’t pay interest on your purchases for an introductory period. But, if you have any outstanding balance left at the end of that period—no matter how small—you’ll be back-charged. That would be interest on all the purchases you made in that time frame.
For more career and general adult life advice, pre-order our third book, When’s Happy Hour? and stay on the lookout for our new podcast, When’s Happy Hour!
Even though being at work today feels like coming in on a Saturday, I actually have some good news. We have a new addition to the summer of scamming: Yvonne Bannigan. Accused of stealing over $50,000, the 25-year-old former Vogue staffer has confirmed what we all suspected. Low-level employees at fashion magazines are America’s next criminal class not to be trusted. (Remember that Anna Delvey also started out at Purple.) Honestly, if The Devil Wears Prada was any indication, the world of fashion is a high-stress environment. I’m not surprised a few people snapped. And by snapped, I of course mean started rampantly using other people’s money as their own. Let’s dig in to this story.
Yvonne Bannigan, 25, is the former assistant of Vogue creative director and—*Tyra voice*—living legend Grace Coddington. While snagging that job is impressive, Bannigan wasn’t really on anyone’s radar until her arrest in April. And she wasn’t on my radar until I discovered her in a scammer withdrawal-induced Google search. Anyway, Yvonne Bannigan was charged with stealing over $50,000 from Coddington, with further allegations that she stole Coddington’s property and sold it on the online consignment store TheRealReal. You know, the site we told you to go on to get designer clothes for cheap. (A recommendation I stand by if the site is selling Coddington-level goods, FYI.) These sales allegedly netted a $9,000 commission for Bannigan. The other allegedly stolen $50K is just in charges to Coddington’s credit card.
Me rn:
Sadly, unlike with Anna Delvey, no one seems to know how Yvonne Bannigan allegedly spent that $50K. We already know we have a second fashion-mag scammer, but did they both use the money for shopping sprees and hotel suites? Did they go to the same parties and nod at each other in scammer-to-scammer recognition? Do they both wear Supreme??? These are the important questions, people.
Also sadly, Bannigan has not commented (on Instagram or otherwise) on the charges. While Anna Delvey is still spouting an alarming amount of nonsense, Bannigan seems uninterested in preserving any kind of reputation. Her lawyer has commented that this is all a “misunderstanding,” which TBH was my line every time my parents were unhappy with my credit card charges too. How does one “misunderstand” $50,000?? That’s what I want to know.
So, why do we keep getting scammers like Delvey and Bannigan? For one, I am convinced fashion magazines are breeding grounds for evil, as discussed. But there’s also the fact that any young girl thrown into a highly moneyed, fashionable world like Vogue will feel pressure to keep up. And in a country where student loans can haunt you into old age, and the president’s economic world views can be summed up as “I’ve never paid taxes and don’t intend to start,” things like “working hard” and “honest money” don’t really seem like viable ways to get ahead. If you’re still not getting the zeitgeist here, go watch The Bling Ring and maybe Ingrid Goes West a few more times. It’ll start to click, I promise. In the meantime, I’ll be here in my Not Not A Grifter tee hunting for leftover Coddington pieces on TheRealReal. Don’t @ me, I didn’t steal them!
Images: Giphy (3)
It’s been a couple years since Iggy Azalea was anywhere close to the top of the charts, and it looks like she’s been living a little too, um, fancy. According to documents obtained by TMZ, Iggy has a $300,000 unpaid balance with American Express, so like yikes.
In the court documents, it says that Iggy has a preset limit of $50k, which means she spent an extra quarter million dollars, then just decided not to pay any of it. Which kind of seems like a setup, if you ask me—like, why even have a limit if the credit card company lets you go six times over that? Or so I ask my mom accountant every month.
So does this mean Iggy is, like, poor? Not necessarily. She might just be shitty at getting bills paid on time, which like, same. Or maybe she doesn’t really understand how a credit card works? Because also like, same. Being an adult is hard, and maybe Iggy just isn’t on top of her shit.
Or maybe she’s broke. Since her big breakout in 2014, she’s struggled to recreate her initial success, and two new singles that she put out this spring failed to chart in the US at all. She hasn’t toured in like, three years, so it’s not crazy to think that her funds might be running a bit low. She probably spent a little too much on butt injections, which is a classic mistake that many girls make.
So is this the end of Iggy Azalea? Tbh, she’s been over for a couple years now, but things aren’t looking good. AmEx wants the whole 300k covered, plus their legal expenses, so things could get ugly.
