All language subtitles for Going From Broke s01e03 Till Debt Do Us Part.eng

Got a little
kickback on that one.

You're so manly.

MAX: [LAUGHS] This
is the easy part.

My name is Megan Foster.

I'm 28.

My name is Max Foster.

I am 32.

And we live in Los
Angeles, California.

I'm a behavioral therapist.

MAX: I'm a wildland firefighter.

We have two
beautiful children.

And we are kind of newlyweds.

You go first.

We met on a New
Year's Eve party.

I saw him from
across the party.

And I was like, wow,
that guy's really cute.

I'm going to just kind of
make my way over there.

We talked about God.

We talked about love.

Like, every amazing
conversation you can think of

went into just that one
magical New Year's Eve.

And the next day, I went and
told all my friends, like, I

met the man I'm going to marry.

He said that to his
best friend, too.

So it was fate.

We really did have
one of those nights

where it was like, the night
we met, I was in love with you.

And I always thought
that was so dumb.

And it happened.

Our two-year-old is June.

And then we have Luna,
who's our nine-month-old.

She was a big surprise and
our little honeymoon gift.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

You know, they are just,
like, the light of our lives.

We're pretty much the
all-American family.

Only one problem-- we're broke.

Yeah.

DAN ROSENZWEIG:
Here are the facts.

The numbers are massive.

44 million people have
borrowed over $1.5 trillion

in student loan debt.

And it doesn't end there.

My name is Dan Rosenzweig.

And I'm the CEO of the
multi-billion dollar

company, Chegg.

This is my mission.

With the help of my financial
expert, Danetha Doe,

we're going to
help young people--

The walls are closing in.

Yeah.

DAN: --who are drowning
in extreme debt.

[GROANS]

How many credit cards?

10, 11, 12--

12.

DAN: To build a life of
financial independence.

I just want to
get out of debt.

And I want you to help.

When the world is pushing
down on you, it's very hard.

DAN: This is an economic
crisis of epic proportions.

I don't use that much.

DAN: And we have to fix it.

No, come on.

DAN: They're going to hate it.

But when we're done, they're
going to be on the road

to financial freedom.

Do you feel good about
what we've done so far?

I do.

Thank you.

DAN: This is "Going From Broke."

It's another day, another
dollar somebody owes.

Let's go fix it.

Where we going today?

So we're headed over to
see Megan and Max today.

They're super cute.

So this is sort of like
the American dream, right?

So what's going on?

Yeah.

Unfortunately, they fell
on some really tough times.

Max was hit by a car recently.

Wow.

Is he OK?

He's OK.

But he's not working right now.

Megan recently lost her job.

So two months ago, she was
laid off from her position

as a behavioral therapist.

Oh, my god.

This went from
the American dream

to the American nightmare.

What are their expenses?

Well, we've got
some priorities.

We've got rent, groceries.

Right.

And they have to
feed their kids.

That's not a debate.

Yeah, absolutely.

So do they have
credit card debt?

There are four credit cards
that they're paying off.

Four credit cards?

Yes.

They have $110,000 in debt.

Based on the numbers
that you provided,

they are literally burning
down their own house.

DANETHA: Hi.

- Hi.
- Hello.

DAN: Hi.

On the surface, Megan and
Max, I see them a little bit

like Barbie and Ken--

beautiful couple, two
beautiful children.

But the reality of their life,
like a lot of people's, they've

got some issues.

And I think we're going to
have to take them head-on.

Well, listen, there's a
lot going on in your life.

And we appreciate
being invited in.

So maybe you could just
walk us through how you see

the situation and what
you're hoping to get out

of this, because the
more we understand,

the more we can be helpful.

We are in a severe
amount of debt, obviously.

There's really no light
at the end of the tunnel,

as of right now.

We had things budgeted a
certain way, where we were

managing to stay on top of it.

I don't know that we
were necessarily--

Were you really, though?

I mean, I've taken a
look at the numbers--

MEGAN: Yeah.

Right.

We both have--

And to be honest with
you, it looks like you're

very comfortable
with spending and not

as comfortable with saving.

Definitely.

DAN: Is that a fair
way to describe it?

Oh, for sure.
Yeah.

Yeah.

It's been a toll
on our marriage.

To try and handle situations
with grace, especially when

it's a financial
conversation about where's

the money coming from and
where's it going to go,

and it turns into a fight.

And it's the last thing
we want to be doing

in our first year of marriage.

Yeah.

So we ready to go to work?

Yeah.

- Yeah.
- All right.

Let's go look at the paperwork.

Money is a big factor
in everybody's life.

And it really affects the
success rate of marriage.

Normally, you pool your assets.

You pool your resources.

Well, in the case
of Max and Megan,

they're pooling their debts
and their obligations.

What's at stake
for these two is,

they could lose their house and
the future of their children.

This is a common problem.

And we're going to fix it.

Let's do a little
exercise right now.

MEGAN: OK.

First thing first, how
much income do we bring in?

His disability is $1,350.

A little over
a year ago, I was

crossing the street
as a pedestrian,

and I was hit by a car.

I haven't been able
to return to work.

That really impacted our income.

I've tried to take it
in stride by trying

to do positive things,
like go back to school

and keep myself as productive
as possible and helpful

around the house
and being engaged

with raising our daughters.

But it's been very difficult.

All right.

So $1,350.

What else?

And then about $1,000
from my business that I run.

Since I've lost my job
I've taken the time

to work on my business.

Last year, my daughter
kept getting really sick.

And we were spending
so much money.

And I use all-natural
homeopathic medicine.

So I had looked up a recipe
for elderberry syrup online.

And we started giving it to her
every day, and it saved her.

You want some elderberry syrup?

JUNE: Yeah.

MEGAN: I got in
touch with the guy

at our local farmer's market.

You drank the whole thing?

And we've had a booth
there for a few months.

I'm incredibly impressed
by Megan's creativity

and her ability to be
resilient, because she's

willing and able
to do whatever she

needs to do in order to make
ends meet for her family.

We're talking about
bringing in less than $2,000

a month of spendable income.

Mm-hmm.

But what is it we've
not even talked about yet?

MEGAN: Credit cards.

So we've got
four credit cards.

We have more than that.

You have more than
four credit cards?

OK.

Walk us through.

DAN: How many credit
cards do you have?

I'm going to tell
you in just a minute.

MEGAN: [MUMBLING]

Holy cow.

You're still writing?

Mm-hmm.

I feel like I
should stop writing,

even though there's more.

Keep going.

Tell us however many you have.

9, 10, 11, 12.

12.

[GROANS]

I'm so comfortable right now.

I-- honestly, I'm not laughing.

Honestly, I'm feeling a little
uncomfortable right now, too.

MEGAN: I know.
I know.

I did not see this coming.

Are you making payments
on all of them?

Yes.

DAN: OK.

So that's good.

Even if it takes--

If I'm being
completely honest,

no, I'm not making payments on
some-- that's why our credit--

Well, I can't
speak for both of us.

Well, we have to be
honest about all of this.

Even if I have to get help,
I'm making my minimum payments.

More marriages
break up over money

than almost anything else.

So the stress that they felt was
because not only did they not

want to share the truth
with me, they didn't want

to share it with each other.

This is the point
I'm talking about.

That we've maxed
out our credit cards.

Yeah.

But you don't look
at it as maxing out.

Just move on to the next one.

Just move on to the next card.

It's like a locus.

DANETHA: You're spending
around $5,000 per month

and only bringing in $2,300.

So each month, you're adding
$2,700 to those credit cards.

And the interest is
making it even worse.

That means, at the
end of this year,

you'll go from owing
$130,000 to $157,000.

You know what your biggest bill
is there, other than feeding

your kids, which
is probably the one

that matters the most to you?

Is this place.

You can't afford it.

Is there any opportunity
for you to move home?

Honestly, we'll-- (STAMMERING)
we won't stay married.

That-- we can't.

No.

No.

That is not a choice.

We both grew up in broken homes.

And when we met, that was so
important to us that wouldn't

be the case for our children.

And when you go through
these financial stressors

and not being able
to provide, that

puts such a toll on a marriage.

To try and juggle
all that stress

and not take it
out on one another,

it's been the hardest
thing I've ever had to do.

Our biggest fear is that
we're going to lose our family.

If you're not willing to
do anything, why are we here?

DANETHA: What's going
through your head right now?

It's easier to turn a
blind eye to this stuff

than to really look
at it, you know?

And I've just been trying
to stay in the mindset

that I'm going to be
going back to work soon.

And he's going
back to work soon.

And I've really
been trying to stay

positive about our situation.

I feel like we put
a lot on you today.

And I understand why
you're emotional.

And honestly, inside,
it's killing me, too.

We've got to stop the bleeding.

I feel like we put
a lot on you today.

And I understand why
you're emotional.

We've got to stop the bleeding.

So the homework here is
to find $1,700 a month

out of what you're spending.

Or we have to sell things.

We're cutting the
spending down to zero

until you increase your income.

And I have confidence
that you're

going to go back to work.

But between now and then,
you may have to start

doing work of any kind.

You bring in $2,000.

This is $1,300 of it right here.

And you have $400 to $500 that
you have to pay for your kids

to eat and put in
diapers, which is

the dollars that matter more.

So we're going to make a
journal, starting tonight.

DANETHA: Every dollar that
goes out, you need to track it.

The other piece is to go through
each and every credit card

and try to consolidate them.

And cut them up.

Just because you cut
them up doesn't mean

you don't have to pay them.

But it means you
can't use them again.

OK.

You guys ready to do the work?

Yeah.

DANETHA: All right.

Let's do this.

Thanks.

What gives me hope is the
fact that we have help right now

and some guidance in what to
do to change our situation.

Now is the time to make a change
and foster that environment

that we want for our children.

That's what's at stake.

And so that's why
this will be worth it.

Between Max and I, we
have 12 credit cards.

And I don't even think we knew
that when we started filming,

honestly, until we sat
down with Dan and Danetha

and started writing them down.

[GROANS]

MAX: There you go.

It's been done.

You can finish it off.

Cutting these credit
cards up is frightening.

But it's what we have to do in
order to stop this bleeding,

stop this financial hemorrhaging
that's been going on.

Forget about it.

It's done.

DANETHA: Max and Megan have to
stop adding to their crushing

credit card debt.

A good way to do that is to
stop using your credit cards

and use a debit card
instead, like the Acorn Spend

card, which uses cash that you
already have instead of adding

to your credit card debt.

The Acorn Spend has no late
fees, no overdraft fees,

and it saves and invests
for you automatically.

Transportation is one
of our highest numbers.

So that might look like
trading in your car.

I don't know.

Trying to create this
budget is really difficult.

I don't know how we're
going to do this.

These are all things that
have been so comfortable

over the past how many years.

And just trying to kind
of adult at this point

and learn what it means to
adult is really hard for me.

Cable has got to go, obviously.

So we're just going to
go down to internet.

OK.

It's super difficult. And it's
way outside of our comfort zone

to really be honest
with ourselves

about where we're spending
money that we don't have to

and how we can reduce
those expenses.

I don't know.

I'm just saying, maybe we
can find other places to--

Yeah.

Find them.

MAX: --to trim the fat.

You know, I'm just trying to
talk through it with you, babe.

You don't have to--

I get it.

I'm having an anxiety attack
going over these numbers.

A lot of those feelings
are just so raw and heavy.

And I mean, honestly,
both of us felt

like we just wanted to quit.

But we can't.

One of the pieces of homework
that Dan and Danetha gave us

was to get rid of
$1,700 a month.

And a big portion of that
was coming from our cars.

We actually got
creative and found a way

to make money from our cars.

So with mine, I was
able to do an app called

Wrapify, where they
actually wrapped

my car in an advertisement.

[CAR HORN BEEPS]

[LAUGHS]

Whoa.

That's crazy.

What do you think?

They really covered
the whole thing, huh?

I get about $200 to
$250 a month from that.

So I was able to kind of
take care of my car payment.

Team Foster.

Indeed, babe.

It's all coming together.

This is good stuff.

Yeah.

So I just got finished
taking care of a fix-it

ticket for no plates.

And I got to be honest, I
am feeling super frustrated.

It's disappointing.

You know, today I'm just--

I'm struggling, because I'm
so eager to get a paycheck

and just feel valued again.

And you know, today I had to
ask my mom for more money, just

to get us by this month.

And it's just what it
does to me every time.

It just really is--

it's not fun.

Hi, you guys.

We're at the boutique today.

And I've set up my booth.

We've got my elderberry--
classic elderberry-- right here

for you.

And then I've done some of
my arts and crafts, as well.

So you know, I'm going to make
lots of money today, guys.

I can feel it.

It takes an incredible
amount of courage

and bravery to put
yourself out there,

especially if it's something
that you've created yourself,

especially in Megan and
Max's case, where she

had to make a decision
quickly to make

ends meet for her family.

I was able to not only
almost sell out of elderberry,

but I sold a lot
of my artwork, as

well, which was very exciting.

I didn't know that
people would be into it.

Yeah, she was the top
earner in the entire show.

Yeah.

I sold a bunch of yarn
hangings and some baby blankets

I had sewn.

It was about $500.

Oh, it's going to make such
a difference for our family.

[PHONE RINGING]

Hello?

Hi.

Yeah.

Today was an exciting day.

It went from being really
hard to really exciting.

(EXCITEDLY) I got a job!

MAX: You did!

Congratulations.

Getting a new job was
so exciting after a couple

of months of really going
through rough times.

It was so validating
to get that phone call.

And I'm going to be working
as a behavioral therapist.

I should be making
about $3,400 a month

after taxes and insurance.

And that's going to be
just the biggest impact.

MAX: That's huge.
- Yeah.

That's amazing.

I'm super excited.

So I'm so excited to
hear about any updates.

Max and Megan have done a great
job cutting spending, getting

a handle on how much
debt they actually owe,

and working towards
paying that off.

And once someone's in that
place where they've gotten

their feet back under
them, I generally recommend

protecting your assets.

Hi.

Hey, guys.

DANETHA: Hey, Demetrio.

This is Megan.

This is max.

When you have a family,
you have to start

thinking about unexpected
expenses, which,

in Max and Megan's case,
definitely happened with both

of them losing their positions.

And one of the things
that insurance helps with

is being able to put
yourself in a position

where you don't have to
come out of your own pocket

to cover them.

To catch you up, Demetrio,
I met with Megan and Max

a couple weeks ago.

And we went over some of
their financial situation.

I would love for them to hear
some policies or plans to help

them plan for future
events, whether they're

unexpected expenses,
and, of course,

also any risks that they
might have to think about.

So essentially, I'm here
to help life go right.

And just to get
a better picture,

you guys have auto
insurance, of course.

Just we also have
a renter's policy.

Do you guys have something
like that in play?

No, we don't.

And its definitely something
that we've thought about.

Last year, the house
that we're living in

was in the immediate evacuation
zone for the creek fire.

Whoa.

You were evacuated, but
nothing happened to the home.

Imagine the place
was burned down.

So in regards to
that renter's policy

that we were talking about,
the main thing that it covers

is all of your
personal property.

If that fire did end
up hitting that house

and you lost everything, what
would that amount be, all

that personal property you own?

And usually, the policies go
from, like, $25,000 to $50,000.

MEGAN: Oh, OK.

So--

So I think $25,000
would be a good estimate.

MEGAN: Yeah, $25,000.

And you want to make sure
that is protected in the event

that something
like that happens.

MAX: Sure.

I would be curious what the
range of some of these policies

cost.

DEMETRIO: The
renter's policy starts

at, like, $10, $11 a month.

Oh, wow.

It's very inexpensive.

It's way more affordable
than I ever thought.

It's definitely affordable.

And we hope that nothing
bad happens in the future.

But we want to plan
for it so that you

are able to not have to worry
about what the future may hold.

I'm just a phone
call away, anytime.

And I just want to
be here to help.

Well, thank you.

We could definitely
use the help.

I had no idea how affordable
renter's insurance could be.

We were faced with a situation
last year where that actually

could have been useful.

Today was a huge wake-up call.

Even just their smallest
policy and smallest coverage,

what a difference that
could've made for us,

god forbid something
had happened.

Thank you so much.

Yeah, thank you.

You're going to go up here?

MAX: Come here.

Hey.

MEGAN: Hi.

MAX: Hey, how's it going?

Hi.

Say, "hello," Luna.

MEGAN: Can you come
say hi to our friend?

JUNE: Hi.

Hi.

You are so beautiful.

Did you know that?

Yeah.

I bet you did know that.

Can you show me,
how many is that?

Three.

Three?

That's the same math that got
us into financial trouble.

All right.

Should we go sit down?

Today I wanted to meet with
them to connect with the fact

that we had a very painful
meeting the first time we met.

We walked into a hornet's nest.

They were struggling
with their marriage.

They were not only
broke, they were getting

broker, if that's a word.

And I really didn't
know if they'd be

willing to make the commitment.

I left feeling very
distressed and anxious,

to be honest with you.

There were, like,
many moments where we

were like, we could just quit.

But we just kept having
it come up against this

and look at our girls
and their futures.

Now looking over the budget and
looking, we're in the green,

you know.

And we got rid of cable.

We got rid of--

It's a color you
didn't know you had.

Yeah, exactly.

I have goose bumps right
now, because I can see

so much of my own life in this.

When I was younger and my
wife and I had two daughters,

and we had to make financial
decisions and tough decisions,

because we went
down to one income.

So I could completely
empathize with the disarray

that you feel.

It was nice to see that at
least some of these experiences

are universal.

All parents that are trying
to juggle finances and family

come up against some of these.

And he really
shared that with us.

Seeing a young couple
feel good about themselves,

because they can and they
should and they deserve it--

I mean, it's not about me.

But I'm going to have a great
weekend, thanks to both of you.

Thank you so much.

I feel like he's proud of us.

And we're just going to
continue to take his advice.

MAX: This is a
marathon, not a sprint.

And all the strides that
we're going to take now

have to continue to be
taking as we move forward

and really keep that
momentum moving.

Welcome to your
financial future.

Great job.

MEGAN: Thank you.

Now go feed the young one.

I will.

Thanks.

DANETHA: The Fosters
were able to remove

several items from
their monthly expenses,

which is now at $3,900.

Additionally, with Megan's new
job and their side hustles,

their income is up
to $5,900 a month,

which means now they have
around $2,000 each month

to put towards paying off
their massive credit card debt.

Now that Max and Megan are back
on track with their finances,

they have a little
more freedom to spend

money on what
matters most to them,

like time with their family.

Cleaning up around
the house can be

time-consuming
and take time away

from spending with the family.

So I recommended an
app called Handy.

Danetha told me about Handy.

And I went online, and it was
so easy to book a cleaning.

And I actually got to
see what I was going

to pay before I even booked.

Hi.

Hi.

Are you the pro on Handy?

- Yes, I am.
- Awesome.

I'm Megan.

Nice to meet you.

I'm so excited you're here.

I need a lot of help, obviously.

I'm Tiana.

I'm a pro from Handy.

And today I'm here to
clean Megan's kitchen.

I'm so happy with
the job she did.

I feel like I could
breathe again in my house

and actually get to
enjoy my children

and not be stressed out
about the dishes that

need to be done.

In this episode, Max and Megan
learned the mistake of having

too many credit cards.

Visit GoingFromBroke.info
for more financial resources.

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