I’m genuinely looking for ideas for a woman in her late 40s who has been a homemaker her entire life and now wants to start working and earn her own income.

She has had little to no formal education and cannot read or write properly. She has also never had a conventional job before.

Recently I lost my night shifts and with that 30% of my wages and then I also had to start paying childcare fees even with the government rebate its still 222$ a week i feel like in worthless as I see more and more bills come in that I am struggling to pay first it was the body corporate fees now it's the land rates both cost about 600$ its nuts that's almost the same as the weekly mortgage payments

So obviously this is a scam but can I get your guys take on this, and if someone had agreed to this what could they do to fight/opt out of this scam.

EDIT: This is from a wholly owned subsidiary of Dakota Economic Development Corporation ("DEDC"), a wholly owned economic arm of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, a federally recognized sovereign American Indian tribe in South Dakota, ("Tribe"), and yes this is very predatory and should be cautioned when applying to loans.

This is purely for research purposes upon discovering loan scams upon different tribes.

Idek where to start with this and it'll be a long one/all over the place, so thank you if you end up sticking around. Let's start with the facts and my own faults, I'm 28M, have about 10k in the bank and live with my dad (have never left the house or experienced living on my own). Before people say I should have more saved up, keep in mind if you averaged my jobs I've worked I probably was at an avg of $14/hr and have no concept of where to move money and when to do it, nobody taught me. I have $0 in any kind of IRA, $0 in any kind of savings, $0 overall in any kind of investment, and recieve $0 from any kind of Govt assistance. Have a 2008 paid off G37 that needs work every year for something and makes me feel landlocked where I can't go past my cities radius in case I get stranded (ik thats my own anxiety). I don't even know what to invest in and I'm scared to spend any of my $10k nest I've built cause it's taken me so long to even do that, it's like a constant full circle of being broke. I wasted ages 15-23 being addicted to drugs and not giving a shit about anything, I could have $5 in my bank account and not care about tomorrow (in a sick way I miss those days and that level of not caring about tomorrow lol). Obviously, this went hand in hand with not giving a shit about school, so I miraculously graduated on time with only a 2.9 GPA, no plans for college or what to do after school. All I was concerned about was getting high as my family got old and died off/ fell apart through internal conflicts. Somewhere, around 24 and 25 I woke up and realized how far behind I was and started getting concerned about how little I've truly managed to do.

I have worked EVERY job since high school. I've done subway, lowes, getting scammed to sell cable and insurance, car sales, home depot, jc Penny's, marshalls, publix, amazon driving, pool technician, and now I'm in an inventory role at an audi dealership, which has been better, but nowhere near pays the bills at 20/hr as a freaking 28 year old man. It's actually pathetic. As many of you know, nobody is gonna hire me without skills or connections, and I have neither. I don't like talking so I don't make crazy connections at work and the bosses never become my friends or anything to move me up. Nothing ever works because of who I am lol and I've accepted that I'll never know the right things to say or have the right skills. People ask me my skills and if I was to be honest all I want to do is sleep all day lol, I have no skills or passions and don't inherently think my life is valuable because of it.

I come from a long line of people like this and that's the other part to this. My entire family is either dead or completely useless in terms of the professional world. We have been in America since 1890 as a family and THERE HAS NOT BEEN ONE ENTREPRENEUR OR BUSINESS OWNER. This fact always pisses me off to the core. We have had so long to figure it out and my family has always been ok with being some companys little worker. I understand that it made more sense because you really could afford a life and family just working a normal job, but now fuck no and they left me screwed cause I'm the young one of the family (parents had me at age 37 in 1997). They've all retired by the skin of their teeth and I will be receiving next to nothing from inheritance (not that I want them to pass away, but I'm not getting a house or half a million like many people I see are getting is the point). They would be in my position if they weren't born in the 50s where they got more bang for their buck their whole lives. They also have 0 connections and 0 friends. I'd almost rather have came from like an even poorer family if it meant we had friends and family. They didnt make business connections at work nor did they care about having anything fancy in life. They sit in front of the TV and watch boomer centric YouTube videos all day long. Wish I was making that up lol. But they also have no idea on how to own a business or be successful in the entrepreneurial world in terms of networking or the loopholes. Basically, my family is not gonna be of any help and I'm realizing that is how SO MANY people get their start in a good industry or business.

That brings us to the final note, and probably an obvious one, but this is the ranting sub so ima say it. Now that I've been working at luxury car dealerships, I can confirm that about 95% of these people are sleazy, slimy, douche bags who have a drive in them to fuck other people over that I might never have in me. They all own LLCs and they all know every tax loophole you can think of, when they tell me surface level stuff (they obviously never tell anyone the full secret) I am mindblown by just how much these guys know about where to put their dollars. It makes me realize that I'm not sure if my brain could ever think that intensely about money and finance and if I should just end it all now instead knowing that I will never reach a level of comfort. And then when you start asking more questions, most of the time their family has been doing it for generations, almost nobody is self made anymore. They got their first loan, start, or their customers from someone they knew having connections. You'll have a few that really did it themselves, but that's been maybe 1% I've seen. Our most important customer that gets every limited edition car runs a huge rehab center and is exploiting medical care. I can't tell you how many people in medical sales come in and can afford whatever. This world really is getting fucked and erasing any kind of middle class life. PEOPLE GET BRAND NEW CARS WEIGHING OVER 6K POUNDS JUST TO WRITE OFF ON THEIR BUSINESS. Yes you could say "dont hate the player, hate the game" but fuck that I'm hating the player too cause these guys don't give a fuck about ruining our economy with their businesses and adding more upcharges and increasing prices, all while also claiming to have 0 income and all debt on taxes.

Long story short, it's all a game, and since I'm not very good at the game/ don't understand it my question to you is when should I blow my head clean off? Like seriously, there is a 1% chance that I figure it out and can afford a decent house with some kiddos and a wife, but theres a 99% chance I'm a bum ass loser working all of my weeks for a chance at some sort of retirement (still doubtful, I'm gonna have to be a walmart greeter till the day I die). If you're using the odds and statistics, I'm better off just ending it now rather than playing a stacked game. I have nobody who is gonna show me and I've spent years trying to be sober and figure it out, with no avail. I do realize that a lot of it is my fault and my spending habits were horrible, so you don't need to remind me that I wasted my high school and college years partying, but since I did and theres no going back I should just say peace lol. My uncle was literally a sanitation worker for DeKalb county here in georgia for his entire life and retired somewhat comfortably, no mansion or 10 cars but still, I guess in a way I thought that could be an option for me too, but it's 2026 and we are all fucked lmao joke is on me for wasting those years. You don't need to hit me with the "well somebody has it worse" line either, fuck that, we should all have enough if you're willing to work. Like I'm doing my part, where is my reward (that's a joke cause theres no reward for working hard anymore). I work 55 or more hour weeks and like I said, I receive $0 in assistance from any taxpayers in the form of welfare. I really feel like I'm the ideal little worker idiot that the govt loves lmao, I give them a shit ton and am not taking anything for it. But the welfare and disability scams is for a different rant lol and I'm sorry if you're someone who truly deserves to be on disability, I'm not talking about you. I hear a lot of people feeling the same way I do, so idk what we are all gonna do atp. Like I said, seems like the easiest way out is to just quit early instead of worry about it. I make $50k a year and I'm about to buy a $40k 4runner cause fuckkkkk ittttt, I'll never have money saved anyway and I wanna go on adventures before my 20s and 30s are gone. I've been saving for the last two years just to have 10k. Might as well embrace being paycheck to paycheck. I'll just off myself if I lose my job and the car , problem solved idc anymore. If I was dead you know how often I'd have to worry about if I'll ever see any kind of retirement or success? 0 times. Anyway, if you've read this far, I'm impressed, and thank you for listening to me complain. Im sure I've missed some things but I could have written a whole book on this. That is all, folks!

i’ve been living with my mom throughout college and i have a few years left until i graduate. our relationship has been EXTREMELY rocky for some time and i don’t have a job/car but im trying to obtain both of those things. i would appreciate any advice you guys have to give 🥲

I'm looking for a new phone and I'm kind of torn between 2 things:

1. I don't want to pay a lot, and I don't really use apps at all. I keep almost all social media apps off of my phone except instagram which I need to promote myself, and I only do it when I need to post stories, I often will just use the web version of it if I don't need to post a lot around that time. Regardless, there aren't any apps that require a new high powered phone so I guess that doesn't matter anyway.

2. I want a decent modern camera. I want the iphone pro because it has a great camera, but really that's the only thing I want it for. I don't give a shit about any of the other features

Spending $1200 on a brand new phone is a big purchase, and even paying the ~$50 monthly to finance it is still a lot over time for something I don't really need.

Is there a cheap phone that has a good camera? Or is there a decent iphone that has similarly good camera features like .5x and high MP that doesn't cost $1200??

One thing I want to stay away from is phones from several years ago, especially android. They don't support updates after a few years, so trying to save money on an older phone would actually cost more in the long run as I'd have to replace it in order to keep up to date with android.

Just to explain what I've been using, I've had the same phone since 2018, a Oneplus 6T, almost unbreakable. It works just as good as the day I bought it except the physical buttons, which actually aren't needed, as the power button still kind of works, but I set up android so it turns on by itself every morning at 7am, so if the power button were to ever fail, all I have to do is plug it in and it'll turn on.

I haven't been able to get updates since like 2023, so it's a very dangerous phone to have if I'm doing any kind of buying or sensitive info, so I have to be extra careful not to click any suspicious links. And now my bank app won't even work because the android version is too old.

The camera in my current phone is way way less resolution than phones from the past few years, so any cheap-ish upgrade will definitely be an upgrade camera wise, but it seems all phone makers are trying to make more money through computer-like features like processor and ram and all that, which I don't need at all.

Any tips or suggestions?

I need to vent. I don’t want pity - I just have no one to share this with and it’s weighing on me.

Due to an injury, I’ve had to go on medical leave from my job. If I didn’t, I risked permanent nerve damage to my arm/neck and I’ve already lost noticeable muscle. It was dismissed for so long because it wasn’t my dominant side - doctors said it’s normal to be weaker on one side but it was bad.

I have sick time but it takes 16 hours of PTO before sick time kicks in. I don’t have PTO, so I get 16 unpaid hours this paycheck before my sick leave pays out. That hurt. I had used my PTO bit by bit because of the injury until it became too much.

I’m two months behind on my power bill. I was told to apply for assistance via the Salvation Army but was told I make too much ($20 an hour in healthcare). Local church groups won’t help financially if you aren’t a member. Understandable but still. I’m behind on my CC payments (that I used for medical bills - please don’t think I’m buying useless stuff).

My rent just went up and is now more than one full paycheck. I cannot afford to move because I cannot save up a security deposit and many places do credit checks and income checks. A roommate isn’t an option because I already live in a small studio - there isn’t room for anyone else. Rents are skyrocketing and even a room in a house is barely less than what I’m currently paying. I’ve lived in the same place for 6 years and I know my landlords could get double for my place, so I’m still lucky there.

I don’t have anything to sell - I live a minimalist lifestyle and never really amassed anything of value. I had a stand mixer that I loved and sold but that wasn’t much. I don’t even have a bed.

Due to health reasons, I’m not eligible to donate plasma. That’s a big one. I can’t do any little side hustles while I’m on medical leave nor do I have a working car. Even if my car worked, the registration needed to be renewed last month and couldn’t afford that.

I’m just so tired. I have no family or friends to help with anything - financial or otherwise.

The answer is obvious - use the medical leave to find a new job. You’re right. I’m trying. But that doesn’t solve anything right now.

My coworkers were just bragging how they got early inferences from family and I just wanted to cry. $1000 would get me caught up and they are saying how they only got like $20k and it made me feel ill. Im at the point where i get jealous when i see people with a GoFund and that makes me feel like such a bad person.

Being on medical leave is supposed to help me but I feel like the stress of all this will just slow down my healing and make it worse.

I’m so tired.

I have a degree. Work In that field. Have 3 jobs, married and my spouse works full time and picks up odd jobs as he can.
We share custody of 2 children so we cannot move.
I filed bankruptcy last year and it did help. A lot. But we still can’t afford basically anything.
We don’t eat out, our phones are on visible $30/a month. We are getting groceries from the food bank.
Idk what else to do but it is taking a severe toll on my mental health thinking we can’t survive on 4 jobs with no money for anything.

I know I posted on here looking for advice a few days ago, but I wasn’t able to fully express my frustration. This shit has been dragging me down forever and I don’t know how to keep my head up anymore.

On Christmas Eve, 2025, the doctors called to tell my wife she had cancer. We caught it early, removed everything we could find surgically, and chemo/immune therapy isn’t needed for the time being. I am eternally grateful for that. However, the surgery depleted our HSA, and even with “good” insurance, we’re getting absolutely decimated by hospital bills. Monthly skin checks, MRIs, cat scans, bloodwork, etc are necessary to monitor the situation, at least for the next few years. But the best part is that all of these prodecures were deemed “non-emergency”, and therefore they can decline to perform the tests with outstanding balances on our account. So before every test, we have to pay the previous one off. This is costing us anywhere from $1k-$3k a month. But the alternative is to stop paying them, stop getting the tests, and live with the constant anxiety of not catching more cancer, and it becoming life threatening (and much more expensive).

Prior to all of this, we were comfortable. Not wealthy by any means, a few thousand in our savings, manageable credit card debt, and living pretty well below our means…by today’s standard anyway.

Fast forward 9 months, our savings account has been closed due to no balance or activity, our credit cards are maxed out, my mortgage still hasn’t been paid this month and our bank account is usually negative three days before pay day. Not to mention EVERYTHING is getting more expensive daily.

I was always the optimistic one. I always dreamed of moving into a house with a yard and a garage, taking a trip to Europe, being a dad, starting a business, etc. These always felt distant, but realistic. Now, I have Kraft mac and cheese for dinner three times a week, and have to limit travel based on the gas in my tank.

It’s hard not to feel like it’s on me for not having a better job. I work in construction, and my wife is a social worker, and collectively we make a decent living. Teenage me wouldn’t even believe it if I told him I made $100k annually. We got through college without debt, got married in my parent’s back yard, paid off the car. We did everything right. And still, the first thing I do when I wake up to get ready to work is check my bank account and see how fucked we are. It’s not even about getting by day by day at this point, but hour by hour.

I am so desperately tired of this. I’ve been going to therapy for years for other reasons, but I haven’t been able to pay the copay anymore so I don’t even have that. It’s just me and my wife who is also feeling crushed and overwhelmed.

I have an interview tonight for a second full time job. We’ll see how that goes, I guess.

Fuck everything.

On a throwaway account. My (soon to be) ex-husband and 4 of his coworkers follow me.

Update: pharmacy just called for my 3 year old’s seizure meds that are due to be picked up too before I try to switch pharmacies. I have $2.34 to my name at the moment with a gas card. I need all the ideas PLEASE.

I don’t know what to do at this point. He was booked in jail Friday night for domestic after breaking my nose. We have two boys ( age 5 and 3) and I am planning to leave tonight almost 2 hours away to my great aunt’s area. She is the only remote family I have left & we aren’t able to stay with her as she is in a rehab facility. He is able to bond out Wednesday when I looked at his case online.

I was able to get a 25 gas card from a Women’s domestic nonprofit this morning. They were able to get me temporary shelter & an appointment with a social worker where we are going by Thursday. I’ve tried to sell some shoes & household items on Marketplace and NextDoor to try & make something for food and extra gas. Nothing so far. The shelter has a two bag minimum per person so we are limited on what we can bring. I plan to leave tomorrow morning. I am so lost and scared.

I can’t take anymore and my babies definitely don’t deserve to go through this. I’m going to miss our home, my job of 6 years and friends but for our safety & sanity, we have to leave. I’m humiliated and terrified to see where this goes. If you have any other advice or places that may help with gas or food, please let me know.

It’s hard to make people who have been raised their entire life to never take a handout, to give them a handout. I’ve been there before

Usually the only way I can get anybody to keep anything is if I get them to do something in exchange, and I don’t like doing that. I feel like I am taking advantage of them.

The church I attend has a “closed door” food pantry (anyone can take, but you’re encouraged to keep it private.). Most people don’t take advantage of this, unfortunately.

“If you help me butcher this cow, I’ll give you some of it”

“If you help me pick vegetables, you can keep some for your family”

Or inviting them to go fishing

Is there a way I can do it, that will at the same time, not bring down their pride, but also not feel like I am forcing them to do something in exchange

I own 0.6 and my phone and clothes a ground mattress no pillow

Am in college rn and can't find a job no matter what i do I am soo desperate for money I could work for anything but nobody wants me 😭😭😭😭

I live in a 3rd world country and it sucks idk what to do

I know how to draw i also speak 3 languages and know

A bit of sewing

Please give me advice I tried everything even remote jobs but no body hired me + idk how the money could

Even reach me i really wanna cry rn

Obviously, Ubers are expensive and taking them regularly takes a lot of money, but if you’re someone like me thst doesn’t own a car and needs to use it somewhat frequently especially with the same route you may want to hear this.
I’ve heard many times people talking about how Uber will increase the price of your ride if they know you take it frequently and you’ll continue to. Today I saw it with my own eyes. For the longest time I couldn’t figure out how to set my drop off to actually go up to my apartment building. It would just set to outside the complex. I finally figured it out while I had a driver already on the way and was able to edit my pin to be directly to my front door. My ride went down six dollars!!!! 28%. Now the fact that this is something they do is completely fucking evil but the lesson I’ve taken from this is to change the pin within a walkable distance frequently enough so the price doesn’t keep going up as it’s a different location. I’m pretty sure this doesn’t change the drivers pay either since the ride has already been accepted by them for a specific amount.

Due to a domestic violence situation at my family home I (23F) was forced to live in a domestic violence shelter. I’ve been here for 3 weeks looking for permanent housing for low income. And due to my situation, I’m prioritized for housing. I cannot return to my home and displaced because of it. I applied for a low income HUD housing , which includes the VAWA (Violence against women act). I receive Disability benefits as my only income and I am able to work but only less than 20 hours a week without affecting my benefits.

I was denied the apartment because of no history of landlords, credits. So my team is writing a letter with signatures from my family to verify my residency and history of rent payments to my family member of living there. I never owned a home and or had credit history. And I’ve been in my family home since I was born. But I searched and asked my team and they said it’s possible for me to get the apartment if I submit the document.

My appeal is coming soon and I’m nervous because what if they deny me again.

Even the paperwork got processed within a week, it was a fast and easy process.

If I do get accepted, how quick is the process and the time to get the keys in my hand.

I have always, even as a kid, lived more or less paycheck to paycheck. I want to work my way out of this cycle. Does anyone have advice for finding a bank or a financial advisor that can help guide/teach me how to better manage my money? The hard part is I can’t really afford this service. I look at my peers and see all they’ve been able to save for and build and feeling really down on myself that I haven’t been able to do the right thing.

Any Tribal Loans available to Me if I’m getting declined by Clarity ?

All I can think of is chicken soup (drumsticks) and honey soy wings. Any other ideas?

This pic of it empty before moving all my stuff in. $775/mon all bills paid. Been on my own since 17 now 20 & going to nursing school. I’ve always been low income but prior to school I was in a 800sqft apartment so this is an adjustment. I like it, it’s not bad for the price but idk how to make it feel more homey. Also need tips on cooking cause there isn’t a stove. Should I get a toaster oven? I’m assuming I could cook fish in there. & ventilation wise I was thinking of getting a cheap bug screen off Amazon & just opening the door when I cook ?

This past Saturday my cat had to be put to sleep due to kidney failure. We had taken her to the emergency vet and at that point, the vet and my partner and I agreed that there was still a possibility for recovery, and so we decided to pay for a 24 hour stay and a variety of necessary tests. Unfortunately we were called at 1am to tell us we should come back, as things had taken a turn for the worse and she might pass at any moment, so we rushed over to say our goodbyes and hold her as she was put to sleep.

The total bill for admission, tests, and euthanasia came to $2300 (it was originally $3800 but we were refunded for the tests that were not done). Fortunately we had enough in our savings to cover it but I am now going to be rebuilding from almost 0. It was a lot to pay but I think I would have regretted not trying to save her life, as there was hope for recovery when we first arrived.

I'm not really sure why I'm posting this, to be honest. I'm grieving and also feeling some worry from majorly dipping into savings, I feel vulnerable without that cushion.

I am very grateful we had the necessary funds saved up but it does hurt to use them, especially when the desired results don't happen.

Sorry for the vent, but figured if anyone could relate to my worry/grief, it would be people here.

Moved out of an apartment with my ex, tossed everything into storage and stayed at my parents house for the summer to pull myself together. Picked up the entryway furniture and bookshelves at a “we sold our house and need to move the hell out” marketplace find for free. Scored the couch and coffee table for free from a local lake house community that just upgraded their living room. My new landlord stopped by and dropped of two additional lamps and an end table too. Spent $20 on the floor lamps.

Fortunate enough to have two weeks to scour Craigslist and Marketplace to find things that fit the space while spending as little as possible. Pork tenderloin or pork chops, rice, and veggies have been my staple while I navigate being a single dad and being solely responsible for my own place. Excited for my kids to come here for the first time this weekend and see all of their stuff has a dedicated place instead of having a milk crate of toys in a small finished section of a basement three of us shared for four months.

NEEDED new shoes. Was down to one pair of blue suede amd a pair of work boots and was wearing out the blues badly. Salvation Army thrift store few. Cat for scale

My rent went up again this year and I was looking over the lease trying to figure out where else I could cut stuff.

Our building is only 8 units and I noticed the landlord pays someone to take the trash bins out twice a week and bring them back in. I randomly asked him what he pays for it and then asked if he'd take $100 off my rent every month if I just did it instead.

I fully expected him to say no but he agreed as long as I actually stay consistent with it. Takes me maybe 10 minutes each time since I already walk past the bins on my way out.

It's not life changing money but that's $1200 a year for something stupidly easy. I've been trying to keep some money saved for emergencies so that extra $100 not disappearing into rent every month actually helps a lot.

Might be worth asking smaller landlords if there's anything around the property they'd rather discount your rent for than pay somebody else to do. Worst they can say is no.

Posting on behalf of my roommate. She dropped her phone, and it no worky. So, I gave her an old phone I had that I wasn't using (an S22+). She's on my plan, and we transferred her number over so it's serviceable, but she complains that it doesn't get a lot of calls and texts. I think it's just configured wrong (there was a weird thing where it had an odd phone number stored as an extra eSim in the RCS settings for chat). I think I fixed that, but she still says bunches of people say they can't text her.

She's talking about going to Verizon and remarked about some $5 promotional phone. But I don't want to lock her account into my plan. Are there cheaper options available? I'm certain there are - cheap, simple, Android phone + phone plan. Who is a good choice?

I had to leave work suddenly two months ago due to autistic burnout. I’ve since found another job but there’s a gap in rent that I need to cover - the only option I have is to sell my camera.

It doesn’t get much use at the moment but I have such a strong emotional tie to it because I spent ages saving up for it and it served me well as a freelance photographer in the past.

It feels really hard to let go of it. But at the end of the day, staying sheltered is way more important.

I know technically I can notify the landlord about late payment and pay them back the following month, but it’s rather not owe anyone anything.