This article was provided by guest writer and friend of Italian American Girl, Vincent Scordo. Vincent is the creator of Scordo.com an Italian American site which aims to inform and entertain readers on how to live the Italian way! Specifically, Scordo focuses on food, recipes, products with an Italian bent, saving money, home and garden tips, and how to
advice.
Here is an excerpt of his guest article:
Both of my parents were born in Southern Italy where unemployment is high and quality of life is superb. My mother, A., made it to the 7th grade and my father, T., received the equivalent of a technical high school diploma. Both of my parents immigrated to the US in 1975 and are currently debt free, own their own two-family home, and have plenty of cash in savings. They are, in many ways, leading the American dream - by not adopting the principles of American consumerism.
The lessons below may be be described as "old school" and overly simplistic, but the hard truth is that each tip works! And, moreover, are used frequently by recent immigrants to the United States (and are often forgotten by the 2nd or 3rd generation):
Tip 1: "Save like you have no job and 6 mouths to feed."
For my parents, saving was akin to a religion. They didn't save 10 or 20 percent of their paycheck; rather they saved close to half of their take home pay. I suspect the urge to save is an instinctual feeling for many recent immigrants who arrive in a new country with no job and no home. The ability to save such a large percentage of what they made was dependent on controlling how much they spent each week. If you live well below your means you can save a large percentage of your weekly income.
Read the rest of Scordo's article here:
On What Italian-Americans Can Teach You About Personal Finance: 10 Tips
Photo: Copyright of Vincent Scordo Tweet
