Creative Families Turn to Payday Loans, “Found Money”

Payday loans only one source of extra cash

With the traditional lending market in so much trouble, people are turning to payday loans and other forms of credit to meet their financial needs. A lot of families have come up with creative ways of coming up with extra money, and one good example is the Humpherys from Staten Island, New York.

The family of four has made a hobby of collecting “found money“ from hallways, parking lots, sidewalks — anywhere and everywhere they go.

Short-term finds, long-term hobby

The Humpherys are Mom and Dad — Barbara and Scott – and two daughters: Brianna, 11, and Karen, 7. The parents have come up with a very creative way of teaching their children the importance of money. Traditional financial education covers subjects like interest rates and types of credit, like payday loans.

In the Humpherys family, financial education includes braving a freezing day in New York to scour a parking lot for pennies. It’s a hobby Barbara has been diligent about since college.

Picking up the pieces

Barbara says it all started three and a half years ago, when she saw 7 cents lying in the hallway of her college.  Since then, the family has developed a “fanatical devotion” to picking up change. Barbara even updates her blog every day saying how much change they found that day. Here’s an excerpt:

Today we found a total of 32 cents – three dimes and two pennies in spite of the freak snowstorm that crippled our post-workout plans this evening.

Every little bit helps

After three and a half years of collecting change, the Humpherys family has a total of $1,100 in quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies. But according to them, they’d take out payday loans before they would spend it on themselves. The family’s plan is to wait until they have a grand total of $10,000 and then donate it to a charity.

Barbara and Scott’s hope is that this exercise will not only teach their children that every penny counts, it will teach them to give back to their community.

Lessons learned

The plan seems to be working.

“Whatever the community gives you, you should help it when it’s having a hard time and give back,” 11-year-old Brianna stated proudly.

Another important lesson, taught through hours spent combing cold parking lots, is understanding that you have to work for your own money.

“With the economy the way it is right now, it’s important that they realize Dad is not this endless tap of cash,” said Scott.

How will it end?

So I did some number crunching. If the Humpherys continue to collect change at the same rate they have been for the last three and a half years, it will take them more than 30 years to meet their $10,000 goal. But having such a long-term project doesn’t seem to bother the Humpherys.

“A family that collects change together stays together,” Scott says.

The Humpherys are a good example of how financial education can bring a family together. Whether it’s finding creative ways to teach about money or educating your children about payday loans, the important thing is to give kids the tools they’ll need to survive in any economy.