DC saver inspired by aunt
Billey Johnson once owned 80 pairs of sneakers. At an average cost of $130 a pair, Johnson’s feet featured $10,000 worth of canvas and rubber. Those days are over.
With the help of the folks at D.C. Saves, and its sponsoring agency Capital Area Asset Builders (CAAB), he has discovered the power of building wealth and investing in the future. His commitment to saving money has helped him finance his education and begin building a down payment for a condominium.
Johnson named his aunt, Maria Lopez, as his role model. She told him about CAAB and D.C. Saves and “how the money management classes and the Individual Development Account helped her save for a house,” he said. “I thought I could use that program to pay for school.”
Earlier this year, he enrolled as a Saver, signed up for an Individual Development Account of his own, and began taking the required money management classes. In just a few months, he had saved $1,000. CAAB matched those funds with $3,000, and the account earned interest. Johnson is using the money to pay for Microsoft certification classes and to fund his dual major of Economics and International Business at the University of the District of Columbia.
He said the money management classes taught him to monitor his spending and the importance of saving. “I couldn’t believe all the stuff I wasted money on, especially fast food and carry out. Now I go to the grocery store and bring my lunch,” he said.
He also learned how credit cards, when used well, can be a good thing. “At first, I was going to cancel all of my credit cards because I didn’t want to have any debt,” he said. “But I learned that you need to build a credit history in order to achieve your financial goals.”
The computer classes he’s paying for with his savings have also helped him create a budget and stick to it. “I created a spreadsheet where I put in what I get paid, my bills, and my miscellaneous expenses,” he explained. “It calculates what I spend in each category. It works out pretty well.”
Johnson credits CAAB and D.C. Saves with giving him the discipline to save. “Before I took the money management classes, I didn’t know anything about savings and credit. I lived paycheck to paycheck. I never thought much about financial goals. You need to save for things that will benefit you and help you build a future instead of just wasting money on things that don’t last.”
Johnson is scheduled to graduate in 2008 and expects to have finished several more computer certification classes by then. He hopes to be a condo owner by then as well. When he started a new job recently, he began contributing five percent of his salary to a 401(k) plan, on top of what he’s already saving in his IDA.
And what about those tennis shoes? “I bought two pairs a couple of months ago, but they were on sale,” he said. “I got both pairs for $100. I couldn’t resist.”
“You need to save for things that will benefit you and help you build a future.” --Billey Johnson