Money in the Military with Janeil Pierre | Ep. 17

• Janeil describes seeing a wide range of financial behaviors in the military—from living paycheck to paycheck to buying $1,000 sneakers and cars at 24-25% interest.

We can be a little bit frivolous with money... because we know that regardless to what, everything is covered.

• Unlike many who join right after high school, Janeil enlisted at 27 after struggling financially in New York—walking to work to save $103/month on a MetroCard and sometimes going to sleep hungry after paying rent.

There has to be more out of life. I'm almost 30 and I'm living like a high school [student].

• Janeil's main spending weakness was cars. She bought a new 2011 Toyota Corolla, then traded up three more times, often for emotional reasons like wanting an SUV or needing a change while stationed in Hawaii.

I probably spent about $80,000 doing that. Yeah, I'm kicking myself.

• Each trade-in added negative equity to the next loan. Her first car bought for $19k was worth $11k after seven months, rolling $4k into the next vehicle. By the final car, she carried over $6,400 in negative equity before making the first payment.

Before I even start paying for that new car, I had $4,000 left over from the old car.

• Low interest rates (0-2.5%) made the payments seem manageable until Janeil built a full budget in Virginia and realized she was spending nearly $800–$1,000/month on her car including gas and insurance.

That made me feel sick... spending almost $1,000 on a car that depreciates.