BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — It is a class that many argue should be part of the school curriculum: financial basics for teens. Thankfully, the Moneywise Guys offer this type of instruction. Seth Perry, financial advisor, is joining us in Studio B this morning. Thank you for coming in.
Yes sir.
You were teaching this class at West High not that long ago...
Yeah, just, uh, just a handful of months ago. Yeah, it was, it was quite an experience to get to teach these kids, and they need it. They need it very badly.
What was the purpose behind the financial instruction?
For teens, through Moneywise that it's just a give back to the community. We wanted to get out there in the community and serve, and we do a lot of different things, but this is a huge need. I have a background in it, and so it was a good fit.
What's the biggest mistake that teenagers make when it comes to their money?
Probably not budgeting. They think I'm a teenager, you know, I don't have to budget, but you know, even if you're on an allowance, um, you have a little part-time job, pay yourself first, you know, get on a budget, pay yourself first, that means save some money.
And -- don't just go shopping,
Don't just go shopping, man. Don't go crazy for sure.
And, then, what are some mistakes that teens might get passed down from their parents a lot, because I mean, they think a lot of them follow what their parents do.
Honestly, the biggest one is debt, you know, most, most teens grow up today and they see their parents arguing about debt, you know, but the parents aren't teaching the teens what to do, and hey, this is how you stay out of it.
So that's part of what we want to teach and what we also invited parents is a big thing parents can do is just give a, give a peek behind the curtain, have them see the bills and the statements coming in, have them help log in and it's an eye opener for the teens too, just how expensive it costs to live right now.
So, what are some of the things that you go over?
Wednesday night it's gonna be, uh, budgeting, it's gonna be, um, how to pay bills, banking basics. Another big one's gonna be how to build credit without going into debt. I know it sounds kind of cheesy. We talked a little bit about that, um, a whole segment on compound interest, like Albert Einstein said, the eighth wonder of the world, and the main focus, though, is on investing, you know, what is a stock, what is a bond, how do we invest in companies? There are so many out there who are TikTok educated now.
And you just gotta go back to the basics and and that's the other thing for teens and parents, do your homework, do, do your research, read some books. Don't just see the latest uh fad on the internet, wherever you're getting it from.
How tough is that when you're giving this type of advice when they, when they sort of throw, you know, when they're throwing that social media stuff back,
Yeah, but TikTok said this. I'm like, where did they get those facts? And any time you challenge a young person, it's hard. They, they believe, and their studies have been done, they believe that. The internet is right. That is their fact, and it makes it a challenge to teach these young folks.
Uh, so where are we right now as far as sign-ups, and how can people get involved?
So today is the last day to RSVP. You have to call the Moneywise office at 661-847-1000. You can RSVP.
The event is this Wednesday night from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Bakersfield Racquet Club. We've partnered with them. They're letting us use their beautiful facility. There's gonna be pizza and snacks too. You can't go wrong with, uh, offering that.
Seth Perry, financial advisor with Moneywise Wealth Management, thank you for coming in this morning.
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