Ep 1Is This The Biggest Issue Facing Orthodox Jews?
"We have no money left, but I still have checks in my checkbook"
Zevy Wolman & Yaakov Langer
Is This The Biggest Issue Facing Orthodox Jews?
with Zevy Wolman & Yaakov Langer
Our families need to be earning in the top four, five, 6% of income earners in America just to be making ends meet.
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Quotes
“We learn algebra, calculus, trigonometry, and Shakespeare in high school, and we don't learn basic personal finance.”
“Chances are just to wake up in the morning and pay full tuition and everything else that's going on, you need to be earning $200,000 plus pre-tax.”
“It's not two houses. It's one house with two rooms.”
“Eat less than what your financial means allow, dress within your means, but honor your wife and children with even more than your means allow.”
“It's a lot more comfortable to drive a 10-year-old car that you've paid off than to drive a new BMW or Lexus that you have no idea how you're going to pay for.”
“Cool doesn't pay the bills.”
Takeaways
- 1 The first Kosher Money episode launched the show with Living Smarter Jewish (an OU partner), which offers content, practical tools and free one-on-one counseling.
- 2 US median income is about $31,000 for a single person and $68,000 for a married couple, so a rebbe and a teacher earning $80,000-90,000 together already earn more than the average family.
- 3 A tri-state frum family with a $3,000-4,000 mortgage and 4-5 children in yeshiva (about $8,000-15,000 each) likely needs $200,000+ pre-tax just to pay full tuition and cover basics.
- 4 School scholarship cutoffs show what communities think families need: some schools offer aid below $300,000 a year, while only the top 4% of Americans earn that much. Some schools expect about 20% of income to go to tuition.
- 5 Ways to lower the number: a smaller house, Lakewood, or an out-of-town community with tuition vouchers. Remote work has made moving more realistic.
- 6 Many people who assume they just don't earn enough find that 28% credit card interest is a big part of the gap.
- 7 A leading figure called lack of retirement savings one of the biggest 'ticking time bombs': people support married children and never save.
- 8 Financial literacy is a Torah value. Work and home life are 'one house with two rooms.'
- 9 The frum community has far more entrepreneurs than average, partly because of limited college. Half of businesses fail in five years and 80% in ten (SBA). Interest-free loan funds and mentors help.
- 10 Rich and struggling families live side by side in the same shuls and schools. That creates spending pressure, but also exposes children to great role models.
- 11 Even families who are still short after budgeting benefit: cutting waste makes them better candidates for help and makes tzedakah organizations more effective.
- 12 Financial literacy has to be taught: one wife in counseling couldn't understand how they had no money when she still had checks in her checkbook.