People Share What They REGRET Purchasing | Buyer's Remorse

Summary

Frugal Friends Podcast
Episode: People Share What They REGRET Purchasing | Buyer's Remorse
Hosts: Jen Smith & Jill Sirianni
Date: July 7, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the world of buyer’s remorse, exploring the real purchases that everyday people regret. Through listener stories and online testimonials (rather than influencer confessions), Jen and Jill dissect why these mistakes are so common, the emotional drivers behind them, and how to avoid similar regrets in the future. The show moves from small, everyday gadgets, up to major purchases like baby gear and cars, ultimately landing on the deep emotional reasons behind some of our most stubborn regrets. The tone is honest, humorous, and encouraging, aiming to spark curiosity about our own spending patterns and move us toward more intentional consumer choices.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Small Purchases That Add Up (03:27–07:19)

• Gadget Regrets: Devices like fan blade cleaners, niche T-shirts, complicated beauty bundles, viral supplements, and gimmicky cleaning tools are widely regretted.
• Cleaning Product Overload: More cleaning gadgets can make life feel more cluttered and overwhelming, not easier.
• Social Media Influence: Many listeners realize they were “influenced” into buying something they absolutely didn’t need and quickly tired of.
• Supplement Skepticism: Jill warns about buying supplements from unregulated sources, noting, “So often they're not third party tested. We're just taking somebody’s word online” (07:19, Jill).

2. Overhyped Trends & Single-Use Items (08:09–14:18)

• Cup/Cleaning Gadgets: Overpriced water bottles (like the Stanley or HydroJug) are often a letdown, especially when cheaper alternatives outperform them.
• Protein Powder FOMO: The current protein trend leads to waste, as everyone’s taste differs. Jen and Jill recommend “taste-testing with friends before investing in a whole tub” (14:44, Jill).
• Deodorant & Body Product Fails: Unnecessary reinventions of simple products—like cream deodorant in a toothpaste tube—don’t improve the user experience and often create new frustrations.

3. Baby Gear: The Ultimate Trap (18:25–24:06)

• New Parent Overwhelm: Regrets abound for baby loungers, surplus clothing, unnecessary gear like rolling caddies, too many bottle sizes, and diaper overstock.
• Emotional Purchases: Hormones and peer pressure make parents over-purchase. Jen shares, “You can waste thousands… on things your baby will never touch or will hate. And you got it on good confidence that somebody else’s baby loved it.” (21:22, Jen)
• Frugal Hacks: Buy secondhand, borrow, or wait to see what you really need as your child grows.

4. Major Purchases: New Cars and Repair Math (24:14–30:49)

• Car Catastrophes: A listener regretfully shares issues with her new Kia—broken door handles, electrical issues, and power steering loss—all within two months of purchase.
• Myth Busting: Jill and Jen agree that “new cars aren’t made better. New cars won’t guarantee your safety… Cars are getting worse and worse and worse.” (26:19, Jen)
• The Math of Repair vs. Replace: On average, repairs for a reliable, used car save thousands per year over the cost of a new car (see detailed numbers at 28:04).
• When to Upgrade: Keep repairs below 50-60% of a new car payment ($5,000/year) before replacing. Aim for “new-to-you” cars 3–7 years old, and always check the model’s track record.

5. Emotional Buys & Identity Building (31:04–35:08)

• The “Bag You Never Use” Story: A listener’s tale of buying a designer bag for $500—not because she truly needed it, but to fit in with a wealthier friend. She realizes she bought the bag “because I didn’t have the courage to go after something I actually wanted… Objects are doing a lot of emotional work for us, but they can never do the actual work.” (32:25, Bag Story)
• Deeper Meanings: “We all have that thing we bought because there was work we needed to do that we didn’t do, and so we bought something to make up for it.” (32:25, Jen)
• Key Insight: Buyer’s remorse is an opportunity to ask deeper questions about our self-perception, needs, and goals. “Regret purchases can tell us so much about ourselves and provide a blueprint for going forward—not just for our wallets, but for our own growth.” (33:47, Jill)
• Memorable Quote:
  • “We will waste more money buying the person we want to become, than we will spend time and effort to become her.” (35:08, Jen)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Social Media Influence:

  • “Starting off strong with the fan blade cleaner. What was wrong with me just cleaning my fan blades like I always have? ...All of the niche T-shirts. I give you two wears tops and you’re going to be sick of them.” (03:27, TikTok Shopper)

• On New Cars:

  • “New cars aren’t made better. New cars won’t guarantee your safety… Cars are getting worse and worse.” (26:19, Jen)

• On Baby Purchases:

  • “You can waste thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars on things your baby will never touch or will hate.” (21:22, Jen)

• On Buying Identity:

  • “Objects are doing a lot of emotional work for us, but they can never do the actual work.” (32:25, Bag Story)
  • “The shortcut to the identity.” (33:22, Jill)

• Protein Powder Regret:

  • “All your friends have a protein something, and they have a protein that they didn’t like that they’re not using. Just ask them for a serving before buying.” (14:44, Jill)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:27 – TikTok-influenced small gadgets and cleaning tool regrets
• 08:09 – Water bottles, deodorant, protein powders: overhyped trends
• 18:25 – Baby gear that new parents most regret purchasing
• 24:14 – Listener’s new car nightmare & discussion on car purchase math
• 31:04 – Emotional purchase of a designer bag; deeper motivations for spending
• 35:08 – Episode takeaways: Spending to become someone vs. becoming someone
• 40:40 – Lightning Round: Jen and Jill share their most recent regret buys

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The Lightning Round: Hosts’ Recent Regrets (40:40–47:24)

• Jen’s Regret: Panic-bought soda and cookies for a potluck with 15 unexpected children—resulted in chaos, sugar highs, and self-reflection on panic buying versus intentional choices.
  • “I was panic buying. I was panic buying.” (44:11, Jen)
• Jill’s Regret: Large bag of beef tallow potato chips from Costco—looked healthy, but turned out to be a waste because nobody liked them.
  • “Will I ever learn to not get bulk sized snacks that I haven’t tried yet from Costco? Stay tuned.” (47:17, Jill)

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Big Picture Takeaways

• Buyer’s remorse is universal, and typically follows purchases made out of FOMO, panic, or as shortcuts to an identity or emotional state.
• Influencer and social media trends drive an enormous amount of regretted spending on overhyped gadgets, products, and wellness items.
• When it comes to significant purchases—babies and cars in particular—going minimal, used, or “wait and see” can save thousands.
• True change comes from questioning our motivations for purchases: “What is this really trying to fix or fulfill in me?”
• “We will waste more money buying the person we want to become, than we will spend time and effort to become her.” (35:08, Jen)

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Audience Engagement

• Jen and Jill repeatedly invite listeners to share their own regret purchases in the comments, especially those influenced by social media or baby/kid purchases.
• They encourage a supportive, non-judgmental approach to analyzing past mistakes—not for shame, but for curiosity and growth.

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Resources & Further Listening

• Previous episodes on baby shower/gender reveal spending and car buying.
• Book: “Buy What You Love Without Going Broke” — offering gentle, actionable, and empathetic guidance for more intentional spending.

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Final Notes

The episode masterfully weaves humor, real listener stories, and actionable frugal advice. Its central message: Awareness and intention can help us avoid regret—not only for our wallets, but for our own growth as mindful, confident consumers.

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End of Summary

Transcript

[Jen]

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[Jen]

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[Jen]

People share what they regret purchasing.

[Podcast Host/Announcer]

Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast, where you'll learn to save money, embrace simplicity, and live a richer life. Here are your hosts, Jen and Jill.

[Jen]

Welcome, Frugal Friends. I'm Jen.

[Jill]

I'm Jill.

[Jen]

And have you ever bought something and instantly regretted it? Felt a little buyer's remorse. Thought, why did I spend that much on this? Well, that's what we're getting into today. Not our stories of it, though we do have some that we will share. We're getting into other people's stories of buyers remorse, real people, not influencers, because I don't know if you can trust them anymore. But, but we, we have found some good ones.

[Jill]

Yeah, because we have all been there. The deal that wasn't actually a deal. The trendy gadget, the thing that we thought was going to change our lives and it didn't. We've all made purchases we regret and we're just going to commiserate together about that and hopefully save ourselves from future poor buying decisions. But first, have you subscribed to the channel? Have you hit that subscribe button? If you haven't, now's a great time to do it. Also, if you have subs to the channel, are you getting the Friend Letter, our twice weekly newsletter where we give you monthly budgeting tips and weekly money tips and background on the episodes.

[Jen]

They're fun. Sometimes I will because I write them. I will put in some personal pictures from my life that I would never put on in public on social media. So it's fun.

[Jill]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Frugalfriendspodcast.com right there on the homepage. Get on There. And like this video, too. Just a quick little thing you can do. All right, so let's dive in. We're going to start small and work our way up to the most expensive spending mistake you can make. And I am willing to bet we have all made this mistake. I mean, at least I have. So stick with us till the end. But this one, I think this will be small, but hit home for me.

[TikTok Shopper]

Things I regret buying on the Tik Tok shop. Trying to save you money because I wasted mine. Starting off strong with the fan blade cleaner. What was wrong with me just cleaning my fan blades like I always have with the swoofer instead of having another big honking tool to hang around? All of the niche T shirts. I give you two wears tops and you're going to be sick of them. The entire Medicube bundle trying to figure out what order to use them all in and where to store them at. Gave me wrinkles instead of curing them. This miracle. Finally be able to concentrate and get your life together Supplement. Why was I trying to buy medicine on Tik Tok? The bath bomb Surprise jewelry? No. Just for so many reasons. No. This hair identifier spray, it was real fun until I realized that it was making me dust my house like Amelia Bedelia. It will get on every surface in your entire house. So, yeah, save your money.

[Jill]

I had no idea what facial hair identifier spray was. I had to look it up.

[Jen]

What is it?

[Jill]

It's spray that you can put on your tiny little peach fuzz.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

That's what I thought.

[Jill]

In order to be able to d thermaplane it and. And get it all gone.

[Jen]

So it is finding hairs that you can't see so that you can remove them. Yeah. Yeah. Okay.

[Jill]

I can so commiserate with the fan cleaner. I don't have one, but I. I do feel this way about cleaning products that the more you have, the more gadgets you have, the more space it takes up and then the more overwhelming it is. And so often just a space spray bottle and a rag is gonna be enough for us. But now she's got this whole single use item. That's huge.

[Jen]

Yeah. And how many single use items do we have? Because this is going to change your life. I have bought one of those. Only one thing has ever actually changed my life that I found from social media. And I. I don't want to say it because I don't want to influence anyone. That's how much I hate the Internet. But I will say it because it actually did change My life. I don't use it that often, but it is the only thing that works is there's a Dremel sponge, like Dremel with a scrub daddy sponge head.

[Jill]

Okay.

[Jen]

And that works on my glass top oven with a little glass cleaner.

[Listener/Caller]

And

[Jen]

that's it. That's the only thing that works. But also in the bathroom, like that thing is, is life changing. I don't clean often. When I do clean, I need that.

[Jill]

Yeah, but that's going to be different for everybody. For me, I am just fine with the products and the sponges I currently use. I might have to do a little bit more elbow grease, but that's exercise for me. Like personally I don't need to buy that thing, but I'm glad you found something that made it efficient for you.

[Jen]

That's like one thing out of like 10 cleaning products. And you know, things that I've bought to make cleaning easier for me that have just that been another fan cleaner, you know, like that was so many. And then the T shirts I see all the time, I get ads for these virtual 5Ks that come with a T shirt, a really funny T shirt and metal and a bib. And it's not for a real race. So like if I see you running around with something like that, I am going to make fun of you in my head. You're essentially just buying the T shirt. And yeah, the T shirt gets old after a little while. I will say that.

[Jill]

Oh, the supplements too. Everyone has a supplement. There's always a supplement you can buy. And here's the dangerous thing is that so often they're not third party tested. We're just taking the word of somebody online saying this is great and they seem trustworthy and they look good. And so we think if we take this thing, we're going to look similar to them and we're going to be as healthy as them. And we just need to do a lot more research and then talk to our doctors.

[Jen]

Yeah, we definitely want to know in the comments, like, what is something that you've been like influenced by on social media? Especially if it's one of the next on the next list. Because I think, man, I Probably like, I'm six for six on this list.

[Product Reviewer]

These are my 2025 purchase regrets. As a normal consumer. I, I'm just the normal person. I don't have pr, I don't have bekuza money. I'm just easily influenced. I hate this. I hate this so much. For me, what I care about in a water cup, like this is Its ability to make my drink cold and cold for a long time. This did not hold ice for eight hours. I would go into work, fill it all the way up to the top with ice, and by the end of work, I had two ice cubes left. I have an Ozark Trail one from Walmart that was 15 that holds ice for three days. The Olay spoonful of Sugar body Wash. It smells like a cheap wax candle. Like, in the worst way possible. It smells like wax akt deodorant. I was influenced because some girl ran marathon and said that she didn't stink after running it. And I was like, oh, I'm a runner. I don't want to stink.

[Sponsor Voice]

Mid.

[Product Reviewer]

Do you stink? Not really. But I hate the cream deodorant. Like, I don't want it to get under my fingernails. It's kind of grainy and like, hurts when you rub it in. The smell is mid. I bought this applicator to make it, like, easier to get out of. And I gave up the clean simple eats protein powder. I thought that I was going to be like this healthy girl and like, o I'm going to drink protein coffee. I'm going to make protein yogurt bowls. That is not for me. I was influenced to get this electric spin brush off and whatnot. It's awful. It doesn't do anything. Nothing beats elbow grease and a scrub daddy. I thought that this was going to change my life. I knew it was going to change my life. I was like, I'm never going to have to bend down again to scrub the tub. Wrong. After five minutes of using this, I knew that it was junk. Absolute junk. Junk.

[Jill]

Thinking you're never gonna have to bend over to clean again. Don't let anyone ever convince you that that's gonna be true. It's never gonna be.

[Jen]

And when you can no longer bend over, that's why you save for retirement. Because then you need to hire someone to bend over.

[Jill]

Clean reasons will always require bending over. Okay. Even if your cleaning thing has a long stick wand to it, you are still gonna have to bend over. Yeah, it's just required. Also big red flag of product that is being delivered in a wildly different type of package than how that product is typically delivered. Just to be cool. This deodorant, for example, and I know my audio listeners weren't able to see it, but it was deodorant in a toothpaste tube. And then it had this gold wand thing that you could roll up and help to push it out. And there's a Reason that that deodorant is a stick stick. They, they did a good job on that. That was a good invention. We do not need deodorant in the form of toothpaste. So there you go. If you're looking for. Well, what are some of just the general rules for like when not to.

[Jen]

People would disagree with you on the deodorant thing. I know I've been on the hunt for a deodorant because I'm a runner, but also perimenopause has made me like, I have never smelled worse in my entire life and nothing is helping. I. And honestly running is not what makes me smell it like living and, and thinking. Yeah. So I have been like on this deodorant path and there are people who would, would say that it needs to be in a toothpaste tube. Yeah.

[Jill]

She was so dead on though with the cream getting under so good. I would never, I would never rubbing it on.

[Jen]

I'd rather smell if, if the product. Please give me recommendations.

[Jill]

Can't be put into an applique. Like you need to figure out another way to apply it other than it getting underneath.

[Jen]

Well, that was, that was an applicator too. Like you, you squeeze it up and then you use that applicator to like do that.

[Jill]

Paddle it on and. What? No, no, just. I mean it looked cute. It looked like that's something kind of new and edgy. But think it through, think through the use of it.

[Jen]

The biggest one for me was the hydro jug which was exactly like the stale, which is essentially the. It was like people are like, oh, Stanley's are done.

[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

They leak.

[Jen]

Get the hydro jug. It doesn't leak. And then she's like, but it doesn't hold ice. Like you've, you've solved the one problem instead of like the multitude like of things that these reusable cups should do at affordable prices. And I never bought a Stanley, but I did, I was gifted one and it was like the worst.

[Jill]

Yeah, I did not.

[Jen]

And so now I just use like I don't need ice in mine. So that's not necessarily. This is the off brand. This is Hydro flask. It's the off brand Hydra jug. But this is. All I need it to do is not come out. Yeah. See how I put. I wasn't even sure.

[Jill]

It's the drip test.

[Jen]

Yeah, perfect.

[Car Owner]

Perfect.

[Jen]

And yeah, that. I mean everyone was so on Stanley. And where are they now?

[Jill]

Where are, where are they now? Where did all the Stanley's go? Yeah, if your name is Stanley Chime in. Yeah, we want to know that you're okay.

[Jen]

Same with the body washes, the.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

These.

[Jen]

All these different scents of anything, including candles.

[Jill]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Body washes, lotions, having, like, a bunch of different scents. Girl, you need to just. Just pick one and work through it.

[Jill]

Okay? And protein. We all know it. We all get it. It's trending right now. We all got to have more protein, and there's probably some truth to that, but then that leads to just buying tons of protein powders, protein bars, protein, whatever. But chance, like, we're not gonna all have the same taste. We're not all gonna like the same stuff.

[Jen]

And this is so true.

[Jill]

So much money on it. So try my trick not saying I did this perfectly because I did waste some money on some protein powder that ended up it. Actually, I had a reaction to it, was able to find a new home for it, but that cost me some money. So then I got smarter, and I'm like, I'm just gonna taste test from all my friends, because that's the.

[Jen]

That is it.

[Jill]

It's the protein era. All of your friends have a protein

[Jen]

something, and they have a protein that they didn't like that they're not using. Everybody does.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Just.

[Jill]

Just ask them for a serving just because you will know whether or not that's the thing for you in one try. That's all it takes. So don't waste 60 to $75 on. On a big old jug. Ask around. Ask your friends. Take your time over the span of a week or two and try it all out and then make your purchase.

[Jen]

You have to do that because you. You did that with me. Like, I gave you a scoop. I have been using the same protein powder religiously almost daily for 15 years. Yeah, I get it at Costco, and. But I was using it before they had it at Costco.

[Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And I. I swear by it. It's nothing fancy, but it. I. I enjoy it. I can have it with just 8 ounces of almond milk. Puts a chop, a scoop of chocolate in, and I can drink it that way.

[Jill]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And you tried it.

[Jill]

I didn't like it.

[Jen]

Not for you.

[Jill]

Stevia in it.

[TikTok Shopper]

Right.

[Jill]

And I could just taste it too much. I didn't want, like, a sweetener.

[Jen]

And I was certain. I was like, it doesn't really taste like stevia because I don't really like the taste of stevia either, but I guess I had just become so immune to it. And, like, I don't know what it. What it is, but. But yeah, you have to try Other people's protein.

[Jill]

Yeah, like you just make friends try their protein.

[Jen]

Yes.

[Jill]

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[Jen]

All right, now let's get into the big stuff and you Know if you're a mom, you know, you know where,

[Jill]

you know what's coming.

[Jen]

We're talking about regret buys, so roll the tape.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

These are the baby items that I regret buying. So we're gonna get rid of them because I'm overstimulated by how much my house, starting off strong with the baby lounger, he hates it. He doesn't lay in it ever. This is my crib and although I'm not gonna get rid of it, I'm gonna tell you, you don't need it for a while because what is it right now? Laundry basket, straight trash. Because these baby slippers over baby socks every day of the week. We have way too much clothes. Some of his stuff still has tags on it or he's worn one time. Take it easy on buying clothes because

[Jen]

you're just going to go get rid of it all.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Next up, a rolling Caddy. I fell victim to all the tiktoks that you see of people stalking their caddies. I found it to be completely pointless in a waste of space. All you need is one of these.

[Jen]

Set it on a shelf on a

[Baby Product Reviewer]

nightstand and it has everything you need.

[Jen]

I also got way too many four ounce bottles.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

I don't know if I thought I was having triplets, but it doesn't before your baby's drinking 5 ounces, 6 ounces. And these bad boys just aren't enough diapers. These are all size 2 diapers. Planet's going into size 3, so don't go overboard.

[TikTok Shopper]

Hey.

[Jen]

Oh, this is so real.

[TikTok Shopper]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Yeah. You will always have too much clothes because you'll ask your in laws and your parents to stop buying clothes and they won't stop. It'll be fine.

[Jill]

It's so tough because I gotta imagine because I've seen it happen for people. You get pregnant, it's your first. Everyone else around you is so excited and wanting to help you out and give all the tips of what worked for their baby. And then you think, I just gotta have all of the things. But then you discover, no, my kid doesn't like this, this or that. They do like this. And then what do you do with all the excess? This step? So it is this kind of push pull, but it sounds like better to just go really minimal and get the things as you discover that you need them. It is, I don't know. That's just my take.

[Jen]

It's a, it's a balance. Right? There are some things that I refuse to buy that I was like, man, I should have just like pulled the trigger. And either bought that or bought it earlier. Right. Like, so there's that stuff and then there's stuff I bought being in the crazy pregnancy hormone haze, being like, I definitely need this and I definitely need this and I definitely need this. And I didn't use them like so thankfully whenever I said that it was a non negotiable, I get it used. So I'm going to specifically like baby consignment stores. I'm looking Facebook Marketplace. Riolana is like a pop up consignment that happens twice a year in a lot of cities. In St. Pete it happens twice a year. So stuff like that, I was at least committed to doing it that way. But you can waste thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars on things your baby will never touch or will hate. And you got it on good confidence that somebody else's baby loved it.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So there's just, there's a, some of it that some buyer's remorse that you can't avoid with a baby because it's not you, it's not controllable. But there are, there are ways to go about it. And like we didn't even touch. And this is just stuff we didn't even touch on like gender reveals and baby showers. We did a whole episode on those like maybe like two weeks ago or something. So definitely check that one out. But where we did like talk a little bit about stuff. But one thing she said that I did, I also, I found like was the same for me was the rolling cart. I never got a rolling cart. I just had those little baskets. So she had a basket with like dividers. What I did was I got, I received those cute little baskets that we saw in our baby shower episode that are like literal, like picture perfect Instagram worthy gift baskets. And so I took all the stuff out and then I put diapers and wipes and nipple kind of like a

[Jill]

cabin for wherever you are.

[Jen]

So I had maybe two of them. One was for the living room and then one was for my bedroom. And it would go, you know, if in the middle of the night we had a diaper change, we grab the Caddy and we can change the diaper, you know, or if I'm like feeding and I, you know, need, need something like a wipe or a blanket or something, then I can just like, you know, grab the Caddy. We never went into his room. We didn't go into his room for six months.

[Jill]

Right.

[Jen]

So we didn't need a changing table or the diaper thing in there or the crib. Like it Was all just sitting there for a pretty picture.

[Jill]

We don't need to spend a ton of money for a pretty picture. We know this.

[Jen]

Yeah, I mean, we did, obviously, once he got six months and he was sleeping in his own bed. We did use it, but like, man, please let us know in the comments, like, if you have purchased any baby stuff that you just absolutely regret buying. Let let everyone know. Let them know what just wasn't worth buying and avoid.

[Jill]

All right, we're moving up in big, big categories. Next one is cars.

[Car Owner]

You guys told me don't get a Kia. Told me don't get a Kia. What did I do? I got a Kia. I got the 20, 24 Kia Telluride. This thing's not cheap, but I like

[Jill]

the way that it looked.

[Car Owner]

We have some friends who have it.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

They love it.

[Car Owner]

I said, screw the negative public opinion. I'm just gonna go for it. I've had the car maybe two months. Month one, the passenger door handle falls off. Sorry, it doesn't fall off. It was hanging by a wire. I chalked it up as a random defect. They fixed it quickly, no problem. Week later, I'm driving and suddenly my entire dash lights up. A speedometer stops working, so no matter how fast I'm going, it says zero. The lights on my shift don't work. So I don't know if I'm in park or in drive. It also doesn't change on the dash, lose power steering, so the car becomes very heavy. Then it'll fix itself. Sometimes after five minutes, sometimes after two hours. Obviously it's only two months old. Everything's under warranty, so I make an

[Jen]

appointment to have it fixed.

[Car Owner]

I had to postpone. It was supposed to be last week.

[Jen]

I had to postpone it.

[Car Owner]

I was going to call back today, but this morning I had to drive a prenatal appointment because not only do I have a toddler that I have to get places, but I'm also seven months pregnant and I'm just minding my business and my new car. What happens at the stop sign?

[Jen]

My car just stops.

[Car Owner]

It's still on, but again the dash lights up. And now my car is locked in drive, but it's actually in park, so I can't go anywhere.

[Jen]

And the stick shift is locked.

[Jill]

That's terrifying.

[Jen]

That happened to me.

[Jill]

Yeah, that's right.

[Jen]

With my last car. But here's the thing I did. I was able to go and I got. I was crossing a four lane road and my car stopped in the middle.

[Jill]

Kia.

[Jen]

No, it was a Hyundai.

[Jill]

Okay.

[Jen]

So it can be any, I mean she said Kia, but it can be any, any car stops in the middle of a four lane road. And I am so blessed that there was not a car coming because I had to turn the car off, turn the car back on, put it in drive to keep going. It's so with my child in the car.

[Jill]

Yeah, yeah. And it wasn't, it wasn't an old car. Should not have done that.

[Jen]

I didn't buy it brand new, but it was not an old car. Yeah, it was like a 2016 and this was in probably 2022. So the point that we're trying to get across is that new cars aren't made better. New cars won't guarantee your safety. So getting a new car for that reason is a, is a moot point now. Like it's, it's done. We have to repair our cars like because cars are getting worse and worse and worse.

[Sponsor Voice]

Yeah.

[Jill]

We did an episode, this was months back at this point. But we talked with a car mechanic and influencer in the vehicle space and affirmed this and research to back it up to identify that. So much is plastic, where it used to be, metals that the technology can have so many glitches that can interrupt. So you know, when it's not manual anymore, it's got all of these other bells and whistles that seem really cool but can cause so many more glitches and it just hasn't been ironed out. But also they're trying to drive down their manufacturing costs so that they can increase their profits and it is, it is leading to safety concerns. So if you've got an older car, it is better to repair it and keep going for as many miles as possible. If you can get that car up to 200,000 miles, we support that. Yeah, you are probably going to be better off financially repairing it year over year, especially if you've got an older, more reliable car than, than to go buy a new one.

[Jen]

Yeah. And so here is the math on it from data from aaa. So the average new car cost to own is around 9 to $12,000 per year for I believe it's the first kind of first four years. So depreciation alone is three to $5,000. So if you're buying something used, you can, you can cut those numbers down by three to. But we've got increased insurance which you are going to have whether it is new or used, $1200 to $2500 a year, loan interest of 800 to 1500 a year and then registration usually costs 500 to 1000 and you're still going to have maintenance. Right? Right. So that's your benchmark. So what a 10 year old car typically costs at 100 150,000 miles to maintain and repair is 2 to 2 to $4,000 per year. That's the average range per Consumer Report trends. So even with higher repair bills, you are saving four to $8,000 per year in those first four years versus like by repairing versus replacing. So a rule of thumb if you want to like say when should I get a, you know, new to me car? If you can keep the annual repairs less than 50 to 60% of a new car payment, which would be 5,000 or less annually, you are better off keeping your used car. So if you're, if you can budget for $4,000 per year of repair costs, costs, you're better off repairing honestly. Like and then once it just becomes too cumbersome time wise or, or crests that 4,000 mark then, then it's time to get it a new one.

[Jill]

And a new to you car, we always recommend three to five years. I would say you could push it to seven. I'm gonna say three to seven years.

[Jen]

I prefer three. So we'll split the difference at five.

[Jill]

You want them to have been out on the enough to know what are the issues and you can go to carcomplaints.com and, and look at what are the common issues for, for this make and model but also that specific year. So not only can you get a reduced cost car that is new to you, probably still relatively low mileage, but you can also know what types of repairs do I need to be preparing myself for when I purchase this car. So that's going to be the sweet spot.

[Jen]

Let this woman, you know, repair the, the door handle and whatever's going on. Like let her do all of this and then you can buy this car in a few years once they've worked

[Jill]

out the case in it.

[Jen]

Right.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Okay.

[Jen]

So this last one, this was a six minute story that I had to cut down for time. But it was so thought provoking and I thought it does relate to everyone like here on this couch and watching at home. I, I wanted to include it. So if it seems like a smidge out of context to some extent, know that was a six minute story that I think I've cut down to one minute. But I really want you to like tune back in if you zoned out for the car one to listen to this very last buyer's remorse a bag

[Ad Voice]

I never Use and could never declutter. I remember when I found this on ebay, I was shocked at the price. It was like 500. But I never use it, and I can never declutter it. So I'm gonna talk about why. Here she is. Look at her. Isn't she pretty? So why don't I use it? Is it because it's non functional? Because the zipper is bad and gets jammed? Is it because the interior only has, like, one pocket? Is it that it lacks a crossbody strap? Actually, not any of those things. The reason why I don't use this gore gorgeous bag is because I bought it for the wrong reason. I bought it because I didn't have the courage to go after something I actually wanted. Objects are doing a lot of emotional work for us, but they can never do the actual work.

[Jen]

Yeah, her story was that she was friends with someone who's a lot wealthier than her, and she always wanted to deepen that relationship, but she did not feel secure enough in herself. She was in college. Like, she didn't feel secure enough in herself to actually, like, pursue that relationship because she didn't come from means. And so this girl carried that bag throughout college, and that was why she bought it, and that was the things she didn't do. And I just feel like we all have that bag. Like, hers is a, you know, a $3,000 Prada bag she got for $500. But we all have that thing in our closet, in our house, in our life that we bought because there was work we needed to do that we didn't do, and so we bought something to make up for it.

[Jill]

The shortcut to the identity.

[Jen]

I love her line at the end is that things can do some work for us, but they cannot do the work. And I think that's important to remember is that things can hold, like, meaning and value, and they can, to some extent, be healing, but they cannot do the work.

[Jill]

Yeah, I think it's a great summary for this episode because there's reasons that we bought things in the moment that we later regretted. Because I think part of the regret is realizing that didn't do the thing I thought it was gonna do. So what was it that we thought it was gonna do? Probably something de Than just clean the tub. We thought it was gonna make our house a certain way, make us feel a certain way, look a certain way. That that's really what we're talking about here when we're talking about regret purchases. And so there is something to be said about looking back at those Regret purchases and, and learning more about ourselves not just for the sake of how do I stop stop impulse purchasing because of the math in my budget, but what is this telling me about the way I view myself, What I might be perceived to be lacking, what I might actually need, what might actually fulfill that need? Our regret purchases can tell us so much about ourselves and can provide such a good blueprint for the way forward, not just for our wallets, so that's a great perk, but also for ourselves and our own internal growth and journey. So yeah, nailed it on that one.

[Jen]

If there's, if there's one thing I want you to take away from this episode, it's not just, you know, viral stuff on TikTok is, is crap, right? It's that we will waste more money buying the person we want to become. Then we will spend time and effort to become her. Don't let your regret buy be that category. Let them be the Medicube skincare that you don't know what order it goes in. Right? Like do not let it be because you are buying someone that you should be putting time into becoming.

[Jill]

You know what we continue to put time into because it has allowed us to become and keep becoming the women that we are today.

[Jen]

Who we are meant to be.

[Jill]

The Bill of the Week.

[Podcast Host/Announcer]

That's right. It's time for the best minute of your entire week. Maybe a baby was born and his name is William. Maybe you paid off your mortgage. Maybe your car died and you're happy to not have to pay that bill anymore. Duck Bill. Buffalo Bills, Bill Clinton. This is the Bill of the Week.

[Listener/Caller]

Hi Jen and Jill. My name is Lauren and I'm from Massachusetts. My bill of the week is the decision to not pay my whole life insurance bill anymore. I just submitted my surrender form for a whole life insurance policy I'd been carrying for years and just hadn't looked into. But thanks to you guys just inspiring us to look at our spending each month, I did some research and realized my term life insurance policy covers everything us and is a more frugal option. Thanks for all that you do.

[Jen]

Bye. Oh wow. So we are learning a lot about whole like permanent types of life insurance versus term and that one just, it got me because I just finished the insurance chapter reviewing the insurance chapter and yes for most people term life insurance it's always the more affordable option and for most people it's going to be the most appropriate option. Whole life is very low yield and it's, it's very much a, a tax saving strategy for older wealthier people. It definitely has its place, but it's a very niche financial product and honestly it's very it's not even as

[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

offer

[Jen]

like people aren't using whole as much as they're using like like a indexed universal life or something. So good. You know I'm not your financial advisor, but it sounds like a good call to me.

[Sponsor Voice]

Yes.

[Jill]

Well done. Thank you for sharing that bill. If you have a bill that you want to share, if it has to do with reviewing your bills and figuring out what bills you don't have to pay anymore, lowering bills or being bill frugalfriendspodcast.com bill we can't wait to hear it.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

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[Sponsor Voice]

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[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

Make your summer wardrobe feel easier. Go to quints.com frugal for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Q-U-I-N C-E.com frugal for free Shipping and 365 day returns.

[Jen]

Quince.com frugal I try to walk 8 to 10,000 steps a day and in the summer in Florida that can be a challenge. I need to be on top of my water intake because hydration isn't just something you do when you're behind, it's how you stay ahead. Which is why I like to keep electrolytes like Drip Drop on hand.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Jen]

Drip Drop's Zero sugar plus is a breakthrough, fast absorbing formula with an advanced blend of six key electrolytes, 15 essential vitamins and nutrients, and no sugar or artificial sweeteners.

[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

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[Jen]

zero sugar plus options. My favorite is the classic zero sugar, which I use daily, sometimes multiple times a day if I'm training for a half marathon.

[Sponsor Voice]

Right now, Drip Drop is offering podcast listeners 20% off. Your first order, go to dripdrop.com and use promo code FRUGAL. That's dripdrop.com promo code FRUGAL for 20% off. Stock up [e-mail] and use promo code frugal.

[Jill]

And now it's time for the lightning round.

[Jen]

Here we go.

[Jill]

All right, what's the most recent thing you regret buying? You knew we were gonna get there in our vulnerability. Lightning round.

[Jen]

Okay, so. Oh, this one's a hoot. I regret buying soda and cookies for a potluck I had at my house. House where 15 kids were in attendance.

[Jill]

You didn't know 15 kids were gonna shut up?

[Jen]

I said, in my defense, I did not know it was gonna be 15 until the last minute. And then in my panic, I was like, oh, well, we need a little bit more food. Go out. What do kids like? Cookies and soda. And I didn't think critically through that. That sentence was all. And Travis was like, okay, I'm gonna just go off and get it. Neither of us thought critically about it.

[Jill]

Cookies and soda. Jen, it's 20, 26. Do they even sell soda anymore?

[Jen]

We bought the eight ounce cans.

[Jill]

Okay, Okay.

[Jen]

I was like, do not get a 2 liter because I'm not gonna drink it all.

[Jill]

Caffeinated soda, huh?

[Jen]

Okay. I said, here was my thing. I was like, okay, this is for the soda was for the parents. I was like, get a eight pack or whatever they sell it in of the little 8 ounces because I have a little whiskey in the pantry. Yeah. So that was. You cannot send Travis to the grocery store because those cans were bogo. So he comes back with not two, but four. Oh, no packs.

[Jill]

Oh, no. And then put it all out for

[Jen]

all the kids to grab.

[Jill]

And then what kind of cookie? Paint the picture.

[Jen]

The chocolate chip one's from Publix.

[Sponsor Voice]

Okay.

[Jill]

Yum.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Yeah.

[Sponsor Voice]

Kids.

[Jill]

Kids need cookies. I'm with you on that.

[Jen]

The only other dessert was the tray of brownies I made.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And I, you know, I had made chicken nuggets for them. And I was like, okay, chicken nuggets, cookies. They'll Be fine. And it was Lord of the Flies at my house. Took me 24 hours to, like, come back down to earth because I left my brain, left my body. I had to dissociate. And it went great, Was fine. We actually hired my friend's teenager to watch the kids, like, while the parents were. Because we live on a double lot, so they would be outside. So I hired her to, like, just, you know, kind of manage the mischief. And I needed to. I needed an adult. Like, I.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

It was.

[Jen]

I needed someone. There was too much happening.

[Jill]

Fifteen children hopped up on soda and cookies. Oh, man. What. What would you have done differently? What are you realizing, looking back? Were the brownies enough? Brownies and water.

[Jen]

Yeah, I shouldn't. Oh, we should not have had four packs of soda. And I needed another teenager. And the cookies weren't a big deal. Well, no, we should have just. No, no cookies. Just brownies. Just brownies.

[Jill]

What kind of identity were you buying for, do you think?

[Jen]

I wasn't identity buying. I was panic buying. I was panic buying.

[Jill]

So true.

[Jen]

So that. That happened and we survived, and nobody hurt themselves on, you know, in the backyard.

[Jill]

Few.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Few.

[Jen]

Yeah. How about you?

[Jill]

I regret buying beef tallow potato chips from Costco.

[Jen]

You do this. How big was that bag? How big was that bag?

[Jill]

You know how big the bag was?

[Jen]

Big.

[Jill]

No, but it was a big bag.

[Jen]

We were at Costco Saturday, and Travis was like, like, beef tallow is. Is healthier. And I was like. Because we were passing by steak and shake, and they were like, fries and beef tallow. I'm sorry. Fried things. Things that are fried. I don't care what they are fried in. Automatically makes them unhealthy. I don't care if they're in seed oils, if they're in, like, secretions from other animals. You have taken a perfectly healthy vegetable and made it unhealthy. Just saying beef tallow doesn't negate that.

[Jill]

One option is a little better than the other. But, yes, at the end of the day, I want potato chips. Okay? So we might as well just go all in on some good potato chips.

[Jen]

If you're going to eat potato chips, eat the potato chips.

[Jill]

Like, it's just pick where. Looking at the packages. And a lot are saying, made with bioengineered food ingredients. No bioengineered ingredients. They're not even calling it food. I don't know what that means, but I don't like it.

[Jen]

And that's the problem with America. That right there is the problem.

[Jill]

Do you know? I mean, I Have googled it. Like what's a bioengineered ingredient? And it is, it's something that doesn't exist naturally. It's something that is not going to on its own grow. It is engineered.

[Jen]

You know what doesn't exist naturally? That you want to eat a potato chip. Potatoes exist naturally. Chips do not.

[Jill]

It can. I don't think you're understanding violence in here.

[Jen]

I don't think anybody trying to eat healthy like we're just being over complicated.

[Jill]

I'm telling you it's a regret. Okay, we did. We made it. We made it like, like halfway through the bag. We did do our good old college dry on those beef tallow chips. And you know the steak and shake fries. I do like them. So I was thinking this will be good. It's fine, we'll like it. And then by, by that, by halfway through the bag it was just like I can't. And will I ever learn to not get bulk sized guys snacks that I haven't tried yet from Costco? I don't know. Stay tuned because I haven't learned the lesson yet.

[Jen]

Stay tuned, but not to this episode. You'll have to queue up another episode. Thank you so much for listening. We would love to hear your purchase regrets in the comments so that we know what to stay away from and your thoughts on beef tallow. Let's just open it up to opinions on beef tallow. We've are we've devolved into nothingness. If you love this show or just like tolerated it up until this point. We would love if you would give it a like and subscribe to the channel because this is what we do. We're exposing our ingrained biases, the normalization and just trying to become more aware consumers. And if you, if you like that, you might like our book. Buy what you love without going broke. It talks about a lot of the same stuff and how we can become more intentional spenders as a result. This person liked it. Their name is reader and gave it five stars. And they say this book definitely gets an A from me. I'm not normally the type of person to read personal finance books. This is not a A. You should, you should, you should type book. And neither does it push you into panic because you didn't start earlier and now you have to catch up. The approach is much more gentle, more of a you can do this and this is why you are capable of it. And here's how to do it. Which is another point. There are real action steps along with a resources web web page you can get handouts for putting the action steps into practice. But honestly, one of my favorite things in this book is from the first section. And it's about looking at yourself not with judgment, but with curiosity. Not why can't I just do this right? But rather, what is preventing me from doing what I want to do. Is there a way I can work around the problem? Like, dang, my therapist is loving the content I'm getting out of this book. The content, the concepts are important for finances, yet it's actually so helpful with creating big, positive life change while not necessarily feeling like it has to come from some Herculean effort. Anyway, just by the way, book.

[Jill]

Oh, this is a beautiful review, reader,

[Jen]

but I love you.

[Jill]

You're a good reader and a good reviewer. If you too want the badge of being a good reviewer, go ahead and do that for us. It's free. You can leave us a review at Amazon even if you didn't get it there. And you can go on a Goodreads and leave a review.

[Jen]

Buy the book. Apparently you'll save a little bit of money on therapy. You probably save $25 in therapy, so it kind of, you know, it's a wash. It's a wash. And we'll see you next time.

[Producer Eric Sirianni]

Bye.

[Jen]

Frugal Friends is produced by Eric Sirianni.

[Jill]

I ran into somebody at our office yesterday.

[Sponsor Voice]

Sharon.

[Jill]

You know, Sharon. Wine. Sharon. Savoir.

[Jen]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[Jill]

And she said that she was talking with one of her employees just about podcasts. They're just having a conversation about podcasts. And this employee said that they really like this podcast called Frugal Friends.

[Podcast Host/Announcer]

Stop.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Yes.

[Jen]

Somebody listens to the show.

[Ad Voice]

Yes.

[Jill]

And Sharon goes, oh, they share our office. Like, we. We work at the same office. And this person was like, no way. What a small world. Like, there are people out there who they are telling other people. There's at least this one person who says they. They listen to Frugal Friends and they told someone else about it, not us. Telling people about Frugal Friends.

[Sponsor Voice]

Yeah.

[Listener/Caller]

Whoa.

[Jill]

And they live right here in St. Pete.

[Jen]

I thought all of our listeners were literally like a handful of our OGs,

[Jill]

just listening on repeat constantly. Thank you.

[Zenni/Quince/Other Sponsor Representative]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Thanks, Friends.

[Jen]

Yeah. Like, bless. It still shocks me when people. Out of the blue. Not out of the blue. I imagine everybody in the country listens to Frugal Friends except for the people in St. Petersburg. Nobody in St. Pete listens to Frugal Friends.

[Baby Product Reviewer]

Right.

[Jen]

But I imagine everybody else, even in. In Canada and Australia, Everyone. Yeah. Listens to Frugal Friends, I assume.

[Jill]

It's just crazy. That's so fun. I know people listen, but I know also know we're not huge, we're not huge podcast. So to get an organic mention like that.

[Jen]

Yeah, we have, we have thrown around the idea of should we interview celebrities and just ask them about their intimate lives? Because that seems to be what people want from female podcasts.

[Jill]

Every other podcast out there.

[Jen]

Or should we change our names to Alex? Because that also seems to be a thing. Like to be a female podcaster, your name must be Alex. So it's ideas we've thrown around. We'd love to hear your thoughts if that is a direction.

[Jill]

We should change our name and just interview celebrities.

[Jen]

Alex and Alex call her Frugal. Wow.

[Jill]

Let's go out.

[Podcast Host/Announcer]

Let us know.

[Producer Eric Sirianni]

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