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- [00:00]
Inner Child
Hi friend. It's your inner child calling. And they want churros, a new toy and a new adventure.
- [00:18]
Jen
Or maybe five with the bestest besties on earth. Find your moment at Walt Disney World.
- [00:27]
SephiRun
Resort.
- [00:30]
Apple TV
SephiRun Season 2 is coming to Apple TV.
- [00:33]
Jill
What you all did five months ago.
- [00:35]
Michelle
Was one of the most painful moments.
- [00:36]
Jen
In the history of this company.
- [00:38]
Jill
Our message got out. We're famous. All of us equally.
- [00:41]
Michelle
Or one of us is like the star. What did you see? My audi's wife was Ms. Casey. If you want to find out what happened to her, I'll help.
- [00:50]
Jill
She's still alive. I want to see my wife.
- [00:53]
Michelle
He should have left severance.
- [00:56]
Apple TV
New season streaming January 17th only on.
- [00:59]
Inner Child
Apple TV plus Spectrum business knows that small business owners put in the work. It's unlimited hours, unlimited effort, and unlimited passion, all to unlock the unlimited potential of your business. Get fast reliable Internet, advanced WI fi with security shield and an unlimited mobile line, all only $49.99 a month. Learn how Spectrum Business can connect your business to unlimited possibilities@spectrum.com business. It's your business made limitless. That's Life Unlimited. That's Spectrum Business. Restrictions apply often not available in all areas.
- [01:30]
Michelle
Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide. And every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn more@discover.com credit card based on the February 2024 Nielsen report, Amazon Pharmacy Presents Painful Thoughts the guy in front of me in the pharmacy line is halfway through an incredibly detailed 17 minute story about his gout, a story likely more painful than the gout itself. Next time, save yourself the pain and let Amazon Pharmacy deliver meds right to your door. Amazon Pharmacy Healthcare Just Got less Painful.
- [02:29]
Jen
Episode 475 Top 6 money making scams to look out for in 2025.
- [02:40]
Michelle
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.
- [02:56]
Jen
Welcome to the Frugal Friends Podcast. My name is Jen.
- [02:59]
Jill
My name is Jill.
- [03:00]
Jen
And today we are talking scams that are on the rise. We listen and we don't judge because everyone is susceptible to scams and especially.
- [03:14]
Jill
When they're getting so much more nuanced and sophisticated and looking like the real deal it can be so, so easy, fall into some sort of trap, especially if we're not on guard. I know so many people personally who have found themselves a part of a scam. It depends on how far they've gotten into it. But realizing, whoa, that almost got me, or that did get me, and so it doesn't discriminate. Anybody could fall victim. So we're gonna talk about that and help you to be more equipped for kind of detecting these things and protecting yourselves. But first, this episode is brought to you by the Real Deal. We're not doing fake, cheap stuff over here. No knockoffs or scams. We're talking the pure, legit, real thing. Like us, in the flesh. Doing a book signing at Tombolo Books in St. Petersburg on January 14th from 7 to 8pm it's the real Deal, folks. Hope to see you there. If you are in the area, if you're local or even within a short driving distance, come see us January 14th at 7pm at Tombolo. It'll be fun.
- [04:31]
Jen
Yeah. Head to Tombolo's website to RSVP and can't wait to see you there. So it is January, and in January, a lot of people make the goal to pay off their debt. I know the first thing I did when I decided to pay off debt was figure out how can I earn more money so I can pay this debt off faster. And when you're trying to make money on the side, you can get into some dodgy places. And the, the dodgiest of places are the things that scam you, but they scam you off the back of something that actually can make you money. And so that's a lot of what we are seeing in 2025 for these scams that are on the rise. We went to the ftc.gov website and looked at their past year of scam updates, specifically just for making money. We love scams. We do periodic scam.
- [05:32]
Jill
We don't love that they happen. Right, right, right. Just are obsessed.
- [05:35]
Jen
We are learning about them, are obsessed with them and helping people. Because the more more we read, the more we realize that anybody can get scammed. It is truly a, you know, scammers spray and pray for you to be at the wrong place, wrong headspace, wrong time, and that's it. That, and then they've got it. So this is definitely where a lot of people will be at the wrong place at the wrong time looking to make money. But if you also are obsessed with scams, some of our past scam episodes, we did episode 380, love and money romance Scams with April Helm. And we also did episode 350, My Favorite Money Murder scams, where we just read some of our favorite Reddit posts where scammers have murdered people's money. And I believe that we should. That was a Halloween episode and I believe I want to do something like that again. Because Reddit never fails with the R scams. If you are interested in learning more about scams R Scams on Reddit, I'm sorry, that's better than Google right now.
- [06:48]
Jill
It was a little bit of a departure from our typical episodes, but it felt so right.
- [06:53]
Jen
Yeah, it was so good. All right, so let's start out with just a couple of overall tips to take with you. Some. Some mindsets when you are looking for a side job or even a different job. So maybe you're trying to make more money, switching careers, industries, going back to work, whatever. So the first thing. And some of these are going to seem obvious, but we've. It's good to be reminded. It is. So the first one is, are they asking you to pay for a job? Honest employers, including the federal government, will never ask you to pay to get a job. Anyone who does this is a scammer. Even if they are asking you to pay for education through their company to get their job, it's not pay for the equipment.
- [07:46]
Jill
I've heard of that too. Which sometimes that will happen, right? If you are a. If you're a barber, you're gonna have to pay for your own equipment to start at a salon. So the reason that we can fall victim to this is because it does happen for some people, or if you're kind of getting into a new field. I knew a guy who this had happened where he was starting a remote job. He had never worked remotely. And so they were like, you have to buy your computer, you have to do these different things. He's like, okay, like, I've never done this before. That seems like it would make sense that I'd have to purchase my equipment to do this job. And turns out it was a scam. But yeah, you. You really can't fault them for that.
- [08:25]
Jen
What do you know about them? So search online. This is probably the most important thing you should do with any opportunity is to search online for the name of the company plus the word scam, review, complaint. Do all three of those searches to figure out if they've scammed other people.
- [08:44]
Jill
Also make sure that the reviews about this company, this job, are real. Sometimes success stories and testimonials might be too Much of a glowing success story, which could be really misleading. So be wary of the ones that just look so positive, so too good to be true. Maybe even click on some of these profiles, see if the people who are reviewing have ever reviewed other things, make sure that they are legit reviewers. So do a little bit more digging.
- [09:15]
Jen
This is so, so, so important. I was just reading on Reddit this morning of a social media this is a survey scam specifically. But they took this girl's TikTok, who is a real influencer. They stole her video, very good quality and they just put like a $700Amazon gift card over it. They sponsored the post. So this is a paid post that you would be seeing in your feed and basically saying how she does surveys to make money. She's not talking about this company and she's also not talking about making $700 on a survey for, for this company. And so it was a scam. But they stole the, they stole the video so it looked legit. They also bought likes and comments and you would have to see that you would if you clicked on the commenters, if you clicked on the profiles of all these likes and commenters then you can see there's like no followers, no interaction, they're all bots. But you'd have to click through and look, do your research before you figured that out. It's very easy though to see once you click through and that leads into the last one, what does a trusted friend or loved one think about the offer? So go and don't just take influencers words for it because it might not really be their words. It could even be AI. And we'll talk about AI later. They are taking the likenesses of influencers or just random people and having them talk about false things. So talk to real people that you trust in real life and actually listen to their opinions.
- [11:03]
Jill
So the first scam that we're going to talk about here is a car wrap scam. This one seemed to be on the rise in 2024 and they usually will target college students, but kind of anyone in particular who's looking to make money. They usually are going to be offering around $600 to $700 a week to drive around with an ad for some wrapped around your car, like literally like a big billboard that your car could get wrapped in. They're saying that usually it's an energy drink that they're saying, you know, wrap your car in this advertisement for this energy drink. We'll pay you 600 to 700 a week just to drive around and basically be advertising. And the thing about this is it is a legit thing. I do know people who have done car wraps, got paid for it. It's something Eric and I had even talked about doing when we lived in our rv, was we're going to be going on road trips. We could get our RV wrapped and practically pay for all of the renovations of our rv. We didn't end up doing that, but it's one of those things that is legit. And then people are capitalizing on that and taking your money. So here's how this scam would work. They would send you a check for a certain amount of money. Let's say they're sending you 600, $700 up front, and they're telling you to use a portion of that money to wrap your vehicle. And they, of course, are handling the wrapping as well. So they send you this money. It's a fake check. However, the bank will clear the check. Banks won't usually catch fraudulent checks until days, possibly even a week after the check clear.
- [12:56]
Jen
It'll be about a week.
- [12:56]
Jill
So the money is, like, technically somewhat accessible or at least pending in your account. And then they're saying, now you pay us, let's say, $400 to wrap your vehicle. You pay them. Then out of your own pocket, the bank catches that it's a fraudulent check, they reverse the transaction. So now the money's no longer there, and you are out. The money that you had paid back to the scammer to, quote, unquote, wrap your car, but it never ended up happening. Plus, you might end up paying a processing fee or some sort of. Yeah, bank fees. Because the chunk was fraudulent. Yeah.
- [13:35]
Jen
In the comments, people are saying Dr. Pepper is a big one that they've been trying to get that they've been saying to get wraps for G Fuel is another one. I'm seeing amounts for $5,000 checks, $3,200, 1,500. And that's all like, they deposit it, and then one week later is when the bank finally tells them it's fake. So it's a real thing. But do not. If somebody approaches you, then it is a scam, and maybe you won't fall for it. But if you have young people in your life that are in college, then make them aware of stuff like this.
- [14:17]
Jill
Because you might be thinking, well, they gave me the money, so that makes sense for me to have to pay. But it might not. It might not be real money.
- [14:26]
Jen
Next one, I think is one that might get a lot of people and that's appointment setters. So there's this new trend on social media claiming that you can work from home and make big money as an appointment setter for different companies, sales staff, potential clients to close deals. You're typically paid an hour hourly rate, but you might earn bonuses based on the number of appointments you successfully set if you need. So this is a real job, but it's a modestly paid job and it will be far more overinflated what you can make by these people on social media. They will say you need training that you need to pay for. That is absolutely false. If you get an appointment setter job, any training you need, your employer should offer it at no cost to you. So again, modest income, it is something that can be done like very easily if you can get it, if you can get the work, then it's not bad. It's some good extra money. But the truth is honest employers will never ask you to pay to get a job and no one can guarantee you a job. These scammers will also guarantee these jobs and they just, they can't. So do your research again. Check Google company review, company scam, company complaint, and take into consideration those things we talked about at the top of the episode.
- [16:02]
Jill
The next one that we're going to talk about is fake investment opportunities. This could be anything from business opportunities to investments. There's a lot of scammers out there using, kind of like infusing AI into the frauds and scams that they are operating. So it could be that when you're asking, you know, you're chatting with some chatbot about a business opportunity or some sort of investing that you're not even actually talking to a real person, but they're kind of like faking a real person that these scammers have trained the chatbots to respond in a way that's fraudulent, misleading, giving you incorrect information, probably causing you to then invest monetarily your money. And none of it is real. So this one's a wild one.
- [16:57]
Jen
And we talked about this in our other scam episodes for romance and my favorite money murder that they will impersonate someone you know. This will not just look like it's coming from a rando you've ever, you've never met. And they can use the AI technology. You can get on the phone with them and think it's somebody that you know that you are talking about a business opportunity with. It is wild. The favorite Money Murder 1, they were using the AI voice to make it sound like someone you love is being held hostage and you need to send money to get them out. And that was all AI. And one of the things one of the recommendations was is hang up and call the person who is supposedly kidnapped. But AI is getting more and more sophisticated. And so if it gives you a bad feeling, especially if it's a business investment or a stock or a crypto investment, then like reach out to the person like in another way or anybody else who may know them or any of that to get verification.
- [18:11]
Jill
They also recommend that if you're thinking about buying into a business opportunity, ask the seller to give you a one page disclosure document which is required by law by legit businesses. So if the seller makes any earnings claim, they also must give you an earnings claim statement. And if they then say anything that contradicts what's written in their disclosure document or their earnings claim statement, this could also be a sign of a shady business. I think some of the biggest takeaways here is just even more research, not just trusting the things at face value.
- [18:47]
Vanta
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- [19:55]
Inner Child
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- [20:05]
Jen
Hiya pal.
- [20:06]
Inner Child
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- [20:25]
Jill
Wasn't that delicious?
- [20:26]
Jen
So good.
- [20:27]
Jill
Your bill, ladies. I got it. No, I got it. Seriously. I insist.
- [20:32]
Jen
I insisted. First don't be silly. You don't be silly.
- [20:36]
Apple TV
People with the Wells Fargo Active Cash credit card prefer to pay because they earn unlimited 2% cash back on purchases.
- [20:42]
Jill
Okay.
- [20:43]
Jen
Rock, paper, scissors for it.
- [20:45]
Jill
Rock, paper, scissors.
- [20:46]
Michelle
Shoot.
- [20:46]
Jill
No.
- [20:48]
Apple TV
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- [21:55]
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- [22:56]
Jen
The next one I think will also be huge in this community or could be. And it's task scams. So they create the illusion of making money and it will always start with you getting a message. Actually, I don't Want to say it will always start with you getting a message, but essentially what it is in a task scam, scammers ask you to do simple, repetitive tasks such as liking videos or rating product images online. The supposed job is to complete tasks in an app or online platform for which you'll earn money from a quote, unquote commission on each click. But those promises are fake. They aren't real commissions. There are no commissions and nobody but the scammers make money. And the reason this really caught me is because I did something like this legitimately to make money. When we were paying off debt, I was in, I think it was Lion Bridge was. I was evaluating search. I was a human search engine optimizer. I was looking at what I think it was for Facebook, what the search was and then what the results were. And I was kind of rating what the search results were, or I was watching, like videos to kind of help the algorithm make sure it was giving the best search results. That's what I was doing. But it was for a legitimate company that I had applied for that had not reached out to me. And it was, it did not feel scammy. It was on the up and up. And I did make money doing that. So this is like those influencers or people, it's like get paid to watch videos and just make it sound too easy. It was not complicated work, but it was still like time consuming. So it's. It worries me so much that these tasks are so close to what actual money making like tasks could be. It's insane. So in order to avoid these and ignore generic or unexpected tactics or WhatsApp messages about jobs, real employers will never contact you unless you contact them first. And never pay anyone to get paid or to get a job. I never had to pay for anything. And don't trust anyone who says they'll pay you to rate or like things. That's not what I was doing. I was not rating. I was not liking. I was helping the algorithm. I was a human brain teaching a computer algorithm, which now sounds like I'm helping our robot overlords take over. But.
- [26:05]
Jill
But training it in the good way, not in the fraudulent way.
- [26:07]
Jen
Yeah, it was real funny stuff. Like real bizarre, real random. It was always. It gave me interesting things to learn.
- [26:18]
Jill
I think that's funny. Okay, the last one for me on here is post office jobs. And I found this one so interesting. But also I feel like I've also seen these as well. Like specifically looking for a postal job. And maybe part of it is because there Is, at least for me, this idea that that's a good job. Like, they make good wages, you've got good pension, and they're hard to come by. Like, they don't often. There's not a lot of turnover within postal work. So this is just my impression of these types of jobs. So maybe that's in part why this particular type of job is so useful for scamming. But essentially, they are. The scammers would be reaching out as if they are the usps. They will post an ad or a listing maybe to your email, and it will link to a website that looks like a real USPS website. It has the logo, it has everything, but it's actually a copy. And so when you're on this kind of fake website, everything is created by the scammers. And they may ask you for a registration fee or application or employment package fee or a fee to apply or a fee to take the postal service exam. The pattern here is that they're asking you to pay in order to get this job. And so the takeaway here is that it is free to apply for jobs. You should not have to pay an application fee to apply for jobs and to go to the true legitimate websites. I think being wary of any link that is sent to you through a text, through an email on social media, instead going to the website itself rather than taking the link that someone is just sending you. Because even though it looks legit, it might not be. It could just be a very, very good copy.
- [28:23]
Jen
Mm. I'd like to give an honorable. Do I still have one left?
- [28:28]
Jill
Yeah.
- [28:28]
Jen
Do we do six? Okay. I wanna. I wanna say I have an honorable mention after this.
- [28:34]
Jill
Okay.
- [28:34]
Jen
Okay. But my last one, this is another one I did while I was paying off debt.
- [28:40]
Jill
I've done this one too.
- [28:41]
Jen
Mystery shopping. So mystery shopping is where companies will send mystery shoppers into stores, into restaurants, to try products or services. Like to see how the service is by the wait staff, how the food is in restaurants, all kinds of. Just to get the overall customer experience. I did a couple movie ones where I had to go to the bar and see if I was id.
- [29:10]
Jill
Oh, nice.
- [29:11]
Jen
And one time I was not. I know. Oh, gosh. I felt so bad. I was like, no, I'm gonna get you fired. I'm. I'm so sad. But I got to see a free movie and get a free drink.
- [29:25]
Jill
Nice.
- [29:26]
Jen
So while some mystery shopping jobs are legitimate, there is Bestmark Coil. Those are the only two come coming off the top of my head, I was working with like, Four or five at a time. They specialize in different things. Like coil is just hospitality. So it's restaurants and hotel stays. But you really got it. You got to do a lot with them in order to get a hotel stay. Best mark is like oil changes. Like a lot of going to car dealerships and test driving cars, all kinds.
- [30:00]
Jill
Of things, but which are legit and.
- [30:03]
Jen
You can do those things right. But no mystery shop being company will ever send you a check and say deposit it to buy gift cards. That is not a mystery shopping job that you will ever see. And so they want you to send them like the numbers on the back of the gift cards and then they say you get the money, but they're taking it all. So no mystery shopping job will ever ask you. They will see, this is where it gets dicey. You do have to pay for your meal or your product during the mystery shop.
- [30:48]
Jill
Yeah.
- [30:49]
Jen
And then they reimburse you and pay you usually on top of it. So it is. Buying a gift card could seem like an actual thing that you would have to do as a mystery shopper. But that is not something they're ever going to that particular thing going to ask you to buy. They don't ask you to buy something specific. Like if you go in, you order to a restaurant, you order whatever food you want. They'll say order two entrees and two drinks, but you get whatever you want like in those categories. Same like if you go into Target, you buy like buy a beauty product. They're not going to tell you exactly like what to buy. So they're not going to tell you to buy a specific thing. That's a sign of a scam.
- [31:32]
Jill
Yeah, that was the thing with mystery. Like the legit mystery shopping that I didn't love is that you had to pay it all out of pocket and then it took like three months to get reimbursed. So that was just too long of a time for me when I'm in the midst of debt payoff.
- [31:48]
Jen
Mystery shopping is not a way to like really make money for us. It was a way to get out of the house and do things without spend like without dipping into our budget. That's what we used it for. So we didn't do a lot of. I still get emails from these companies right now. They have one where they are doing. They're helping a company do like a total like restock of. They're changing their branding and so they're taking everything out and putting everything back in. So that's something you like people can get paid to help with right now. So we didn't do stuff like that. We just did like the restaurants, the movie theaters, just the fun stuff that we could get out of the house, have a date night and have it covered. But I would have to spend like an hour, hour and a half after writing a report. I would have to take pictures during it. So like it wasn't something we did often. It did not seem glamorous.
- [32:48]
Jill
Right.
- [32:48]
Jen
So if it seems too good to be true with mystery shopping, it absolutely is.
- [32:55]
Jill
I think the gift cards, the gift card thing is one of those red flag pieces. Like if someone's asking you to get gift cards, that should raise some alarm bells that oop, this might be a scam. This is probably a scam. Okay, what's your honorable mention?
- [33:10]
Jen
My honorable mention is MLMs. Because they do fit several places on our list of money making scams.
- [33:22]
Jill
They did come up quite a bit. If you were to Google money making scams, you are going to see MLMs on nearly every list.
- [33:31]
Jen
So and my girly pops, if you are buying from your friend's mlm, you are perpetuating the problem. You are part of the problem. Even if you're not joining one and participating. If you are buying from one scentsy, I can't bod. Well, a lot of them have changed to affiliate models in 2024, so that is something to be aware of. Some of Your least favorite MLMs are no longer MLMs like Saint Arbonne Body, which was Beachbody, are no longer MLMs.
- [34:07]
Jill
Oh, that's good.
- [34:08]
Jen
Yeah. So let's just, I mean be aware that you have to pay for this business opportunity and then you have to pay monthly for either website fees or product minimums. If you're not selling your minimum and you want to, you know, maintain in the company, then you have to buy product. That is, that's a scam. You're, you know, there is, there is not. And according to the, I think it was the, the ftc, some, some part is in order to avoid legal action, they actually consider like the person at the top and their downline. Their downline. You know, boss babes are legally considered customers. So you're not to your upline. You're not a, a boss babe, you are their customer.
- [35:02]
Jill
Yeah, yeah.
- [35:02]
Jen
You're not supporting it. That's in the contract.
- [35:05]
Jill
You're not supporting small business owners. And when most of the money is made off of recruiting others who have to buy their own inventory, research shows the people at the bottom are not making any Money, it's the top 1% that's actually making money. But yet all these promises of if you work harder, you hustle harder, you get more people in your downline, then you'll do it, you'll finally get there, you'll finally arrive. And it just doesn't get there. Because really, the population, there's not enough people for you once you're at level 6, 7, 8 for you to actually make any money. It's just statistics and math.
- [35:49]
Jen
MLMs are declining. They declined greatly. The ones that still are multilevel are just dropping. I love to watch Cece Suarez and Hannah Alonso just, like, totally go in, like, nerd out on these things. I think our biggest issue right now is that we do still see buying from your friends MLM as supporting small business. And really, you are supporting scammers. So that. I think that's why I wanted to give it an honorable mention, because it is not a scam on the rise, but we could still be contributing to it by purchasing these products. So be aware.
- [36:31]
Jill
Yeah. And that's not to be, like, rude to the friends who are involved in this, but I think that there can be some education and information that happens to kind of help people have legitimate paying jobs. Because I think the desire is real. Right. Like, we find ourselves in these. Any of these scams that we've listed off out of in some circumstances, desperation for. I need to be able to pay my bills. I need to be able to earn a little bit more income. I want to, you know, to keep living in this house, but the cost of living keeps rising. So what do I do? And I think that that urgency, that desperation can make us even more vulnerable to some of these things that are like, oh, man, that wouldn't require a ton of time. I can make a lot of money. And oftentimes it's just. It's too good to be true.
- [37:23]
Jen
I think, honestly, it comes back to that I deserve mentality. Like, they. They will get you with. You deserve to be a business owner. You deserve time, flexibility. And you're like, okay, yes, I. I deserve this, but we're thinking too small is the problem. Yes, you deserve it, but you deserve more and you can do better. But we just don't think that we deserve that level that we are truly capable and deserving of. Like, we're talking now about, like, how do we invest in businesses in our local community? Like, just not just to, like, build up our local community, but to also make money and, like, honor this desire in ourselves to be business owners. To be our own boss. And there are a lot of ways that you can be a business owner of a legitimate business with not hundreds and thousands of dollars of capital. And there's just. It's who you surround yourself to figure out. Like, are you surrounding yourself with Internet and social media influencer scammers who are trying to lead you down the quote, unquote, passive income scam path? Or, like, legitimate, like, business owners who have experience and can mentor you?
- [38:48]
Jill
Do you know what else we deserve? In every single episode is really the.
- [38:53]
Jen
Biggest and the best, and it has inspired me to be greater.
- [38:57]
Jill
The bill of the week.
- [39:09]
Michelle
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 bills. Buffalo Bills. Bill Clinton. This is the bill of the week.
- [39:29]
SephiRun
Hi, Jen. Hi, Jill. This is Michelle from Southern Orange County, California. My bill of the week this week is our new refrigerator bill. Our fridge went out Labor Day weekend, and I saw on the friend letter that there's usually appliance sales during Labor Day weekend. But luckily, even before then, my husband, his name's Jeff, he actually looked into how to maybe fix the fridge first. When that wasn't going to work out, we went to the Home Depot and we got a fridge, and it was a little bit above our budget, but he decided to ask if they could do anything about that, and they did. And they gave him a huge discount on top of the Labor Day sale. So that was awesome. And then when they delivered the fridge the next weekend, we were able to get even more of a discount because there was a small damage. And he just called the person up and said, hey, this is what happened. The delivery people said this amount. And the person's like, okay, well, let me give you an extra hundred dollars off. So our bill went from like 4,000 down to, like 2,200. So that's my bill of the week. Thank you.
- [40:47]
Jen
Bye. Whoa. Yes. Yeah. So in the friend letter every month, we're talking about. We don't just talk about freebies, but also, like, when the best sales are. Because we know, like, we can be tricked by sales, right? Sometimes sales are like, oh, it's one of a kind, but it never is. But if there truly is, like, a best sale time, we're gonna tell you about it. Like, appliances. I went into Home Depot and was like, when are the best sales? And dude was like, fourth of July. And Labor Day, sometimes Black Friday.
- [41:22]
Jill
Yep.
- [41:22]
Jen
And those are the three best ones.
- [41:24]
Jill
Yep. Yep. We just got appliances as well with Black Friday and it was a legit deal and the deal did legitimately end and now they're back up to full price. So, yeah, sometimes, especially if you're in the market for these things, it's good to know when you can be purchasing these things and then be preparing for it. So great tips here. Congratulations. And also well done. Even negotiating further for a discount. Sometimes we can assume that these big box stores like Home Depot are not going to be able to offer us further deals and discounts, but you just never know what other deals could possibly be happening. Whether or not they're trying to offload certain products from the floor, who knows. And then, yes, when, when the item is delivered, if there are small, minor damages, that could also lead to a discount. So well done. This is an extreme drop in price and yet you still have a new fridge. That's so exciting. If you all listening, have a bill you want to submit. If it's about negotiating, timing the sales, getting new appliances, trying to repair your.
- [42:33]
Jen
Stuff first, yes, we. I glossed over that one, but well done.
- [42:38]
Jill
Then call it in. Leave us a bill. We just love hearing from you and all of your creative ideas about Bill. Frugalfriendspodcast.com Bill. We can't wait to hear it.
- [42:52]
Inner Child
Sail to breathtaking destinations in Alaska or Europe with Disney Cruise Line. Discover where onboard magic meets onshore adventures, where beloved characters.
- [43:02]
Jen
Hiya, Palmer.
- [43:03]
Inner Child
Meet alluring landscapes, where Broadway quality shows meet historic cities, where imaginative dining meets amazing wildlife, and where exciting experiences await the whole family. Book an adventure filled summer Disney cruise to Alaska or Europe.
- [43:22]
Jill
Wasn't that delicious?
- [43:23]
Jen
So good.
- [43:24]
Michelle
Your bill, ladies.
- [43:25]
Jill
I got it.
- [43:25]
Jen
I got it.
- [43:26]
Jill
No, I got it. Seriously, I insisted.
- [43:29]
Jen
I said first. Don't be silly. You don't be silly.
- [43:33]
Apple TV
People with the Wells Fargo Active Cash credit card prefer to pay because they earn unlimited 2% cash back on purchases.
- [43:39]
Jen
Okay. Rock, paper, scissors for it.
- [43:42]
Jill
Rock, paper, scissors.
- [43:43]
Michelle
Shoot.
- [43:43]
Jill
No.
- [43:45]
Apple TV
The Wells Fargo ActiveCash credit card. Visit Wells Fargo.comActiveCash terms apply.
- [43:51]
Cindy Crawford
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- [44:53]
Michelle
Oh, such a clutch off season pickup, Dave. I know right? I was worried we'd bring back the same team. Oh no, I meant those blackout motorized shades. MVP of the room lines.com made it crazy affordable to replace our old blinds. Hard to install?
- [45:08]
Apple TV
No, it's easy.
- [45:09]
Michelle
Even you could do it. Nice.
- [45:11]
Apple TV
I installed these and then got some.
- [45:12]
Michelle
For my mom too. You fly across the country to to do the install?
- [45:15]
Apple TV
Nope.
- [45:16]
Michelle
Blinds.com can do it all. All she had to do was pick what she wanted. She talked to a design consultant for free and scheduled a professional measure and install. Look at you. Hall of fame, son. Oh, I just picked the winning team. They're the number one online retailer of custom window coverings in the world.
- [45:31]
Jill
Oh.
- [45:31]
Michelle
Blinds.com is the goat. The goat.
- [45:36]
Inner Child
Shop blinds.com right now and get up to 40% off select styles plus a free professional measure and a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Save up to 40%@blinds.com blinds.com rules and restrictions may apply.
- [45:52]
Jen
Get in zone.
- [45:54]
Jill
Autozone.
- [45:55]
Apple TV
Welcome to AutoZone. What are you working on today?
- [45:58]
Jen
Ah, thinking about gas mileage.
- [46:00]
Michelle
You know, changing your oil with a.
- [46:01]
Jen
Full synthetic oil like Mobil 1 can.
- [46:04]
Michelle
Help your engine get more miles. Right now you can get 5 quarts with an STP extended life oil filter for only $38.99. Get started on your next job today with the parts you need when you need them at autozone or autozone.com.
- [46:21]
Apple TV
Restrictions apply.
- [46:23]
Jill
And now it's time for the lightning round.
- [46:27]
Jen
Pew pew. All right. A time you suspected you were being scammed online. Oh my gosh. Survey scams. Like it's normal for a survey, you do the onboarding and it's normal to not get picked for the actual paid survey. But like because of that I did several like survey scams that didn't get. I like never gave anybody like I never got any money sent to me or deposited any money or like took it too far. But it was just annoying when you're like, ugh, I just wasted my time and this is a scam. Like I don't, don't get scammed in the end, but like just the waste of time figuring out it's a scam.
- [47:20]
Jill
Yeah.
- [47:21]
Jen
Now I don't do any surveys anymore.
- [47:24]
Jill
Because it's just too much work to figure out is this even legitimate?
- [47:28]
Jen
Yeah. Whether it's legit or not, not worth it.
- [47:32]
Jill
I mean, I think I'm getting scammed. People are trying to scam me daily, whether it's in my email or a text message. I will often get text messages. I think just this week I got one from, well, claiming to be ups, that my package can't be delivered. Oh yeah, they need more information from me. But if you look at who is it coming from? Like, usually it'll be some random email.
- [47:59]
Jen
Oh my gosh. I got one yesterday. Yeah, okay, finish. I'm gonna read it after.
- [48:03]
Jill
We'll go for it. We're gonna read it now.
- [48:05]
Jen
So it's from an email address. It's an imessage. It says, hi, I'm Emily with Robert Half and we have remote online part time slash full time jobs. Your background and resume have caught the attention of several online recruiters. So we'd like to offer you a job you can do from home in your free time. This job is easy and has no time constraints. Daily Pay ranges from 200 to 5,000 and is paid on the same day.
- [48:29]
Jill
Oh my gosh.
- [48:30]
Jen
Join us and be part of America's booming job market and start a career you can be proud of. Requirements 22 +. If interested, please contact us on WhatsApp. That has a phone number and it's from an email address that's an at. It's Sharon Hinton. Vzmm2531mail.com so there you go. I got this yesterday.
- [48:54]
Jill
Yeah, I forgot about that. Those are the main things that stand out to me. And that is a random email address. Like it's not even a domain of some legitimate business.
- [49:07]
Jen
Yeah, anything's@gmailahoompton.net and just all those random numbers and everything.
- [49:14]
Jill
And then let's communicate on WhatsApp. That's another one. I mean, WhatsApp is a legit app and I do communicate with friends on there, but people offering legitimate jobs and income, they're not trying to communicate with you on WhatsApp. That's not where they're going. And so mine, too will be. The one that I got this week was about a package that they needed more information from me in order to deliver my package. And so it's the time of year, right? Like, we're recording this in December. So people, they're just. They're spraying and praying, like you said, already they're expecting that. You probably do have a package arriving. You're not sure from who. Is it UPS? Is it USPS? Is it FedEx? Yeah, you have a USPS parcel. Jen's just showing me a number. It's not a US number. Yeah, it's a plus 63 number. So that's not us, which. There you go. And then. Yeah, there's just so many things that are not legitimate in it, but if.
- [50:15]
Jen
You'Re not, you know, it totally aware.
- [50:17]
Jill
Of that, what, what that scam would be is trying to get your personal information and maybe even your credit card, because this is going to charge you in order to receive. Receive the package. I also am a part of, so I'm an adjunct professor as one of my side hustles. And so I'm on the university's email kind of domain. And I will get all of the emails that will also get sent out to the students. And there are weekly scams being sent to these college students about jobs, remote work that could pay them like 30 to 45 dollars an hour. And even me as an adjunct faculty member, I'm like, this is a great deal. And I mean, I can quickly know, like, this is not legitimate. But, yeah, when they are offering something that is so far and above and beyond what you think that job should be paid, it's probably not legit, which thinks it'd be awesome to work five, five hours a week and get paid tons and tons of money. But that's the thing. I think these scammers are preying upon people in vulnerable situations, the ones looking for extra work without a lot of time, involvement, flexibility, high hourly earning. So college students and moms and people who just.
- [51:46]
Jen
People paying off more money.
- [51:48]
Jill
Yeah.
- [51:48]
Jen
People who want to pay off debt and get their financial life right, like you guys. So definitely be aware. And thank you so much for listening. We love reading your reviews. So if this has helped you or helped you help somebody in your life, please let us know in the review section, either on Apple Podcasts or in the comments on Spotify or on the book. Our book is out and you can now review the book. So whether that's on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads, we would Love if we've helped you. If you leave a rating and review like this one from Nest for five plus Mama. Great information and great fun. There's no shame in this podcast game. Just tons of fun, laughs, information, vulnerability and practical truths to help you from a much better relationship with your finances and likely yourself. My college and high school daughters and I listened to the podcast together and we are all learning so much and having tons of fun. You simply must give it a listen.
- [53:01]
Jill
Oh, this is so kind. Thank you. Nest for five plus Mama. This is such a sweet review and I'm so glad that you have fun listening to this show. That there's laughter along with learning. That is. That's the old. That's the goal. If you haven't left us a review for the podcast, please do so wherever you're listening. Apple or Spotify would be most helpful. But also the book.
- [53:27]
Jen
Also review the book, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Target, wherever you've purchased it from, just. Just give us. Give us a like.
- [53:37]
Jill
Thanks so much everyone. See you next time.
- [53:41]
Jen
Frugal Friends is produced by Eric Sirianni.
- [53:55]
Jill
Oh, it stinks. To have to be so on guard, I think to need to be so cynical. It feels like when it comes to protecting yourself against scams, to just constantly be vigilant. But that is the world we're living in.
- [54:15]
Jen
I know. I just, I want to, like, I want to believe that when, you know, this person is telling me, your Amazon account was logged into in Mumbai, India, if it's not from you, please verify your account in this secure link below and with letters and numbers and a short link. And I just want to believe that somebody's helping me out. Right? And not just like, this is just a picture of everybody's account is getting logged in specifically from Mumbai, India.
- [54:49]
Jill
Well, and there's so many actions that we're used to taking that are necessary. Like, you know when I am trying to log into my Gmail account on my phone, and then they're like, log into your email and verify that it's you. And so these are actions that we're accustomed to and then they can kind of become rote. Like, oh yeah, my accounts are constantly trying to be hacked. And I know that I'm constantly also needing to approve or deny certain things, that sometimes it's like, okay, you get this text. It's like, oh, no, that's not me. Let me deny this. But it's actually the scammer who's trying to get you to log on to deny this thing and preying upon our habits, even the good habits that we have of protecting ourselves. So it's just so overwhelming.
- [55:39]
Jen
Here's the scammiest thing I got. Let me read it to you. Ho, ho, ho. Kai, it's Santa. I couldn't wait to say hi this Christmas season. I didn't sign up for no text from no Santa.
- [55:52]
Jill
Are you sure?
- [55:53]
Jen
Guess what, Kai? For the first time in years, there's a new baby reindeer at the North Pole.
- [55:58]
Jill
That's cute, though.
- [55:59]
Jen
And a cute, actual cute picture.
- [56:01]
Jill
You must have signed up one time for, like, texts from Santa for your son.
- [56:07]
Jen
And then at the last one, it was four days of text. It was text on four different days in a row. Like four days in a row. It's been so much fun texting you, Kai. Tell a parent I sent a gift to their Gmail email. Check the junk folder too. Ho ho, ho. And I never checked the junk folder. I never checked.
- [56:27]
Jill
Well, now you're going to.
- [56:28]
Jen
Yeah, I just assumed it was a scam, you know?
- [56:32]
Jill
Well, it probably was.
- [56:33]
Jen
How they know it was my Gmail, right?
- [56:36]
Jill
Like, how do they know your son's name?
- [56:39]
Jen
Right. I think it was my mom who did it. And I can't find anything from Santa on that day. Yeah, I don't know.
- [56:57]
Jill
I just got a text from a friend asking me about this. This might be research we do after we hang up here. But this friend is asking. They came across this webinar about how to earn money using Amazon's free audible app. Now I gotta look into this and figure out, I don't know, is this a scam, but, oh, sure, already. It sounds too good to be true.
- [57:24]
Jen
Yep. Well, sounds too good to be true.
- [57:27]
Jill
It is. I think the takeaway is just like, hang out with real people in person.
- [57:33]
Jen
Yes, that's it.
- [57:35]
Jill
That's the most. Come hang out with us at Tumbelo Bookstore in St. Petersburg on January 14th at 7pm That'll be real. That won't be a scam.
- [57:46]
Jen
And I'll tell you how to make money online passively in your sleep.
- [57:54]
Jill
Bye.
- [57:56]
Michelle
Ah. And here we have travelers in their natural habitat enjoying guaranteed 4pm checkout at fine hotels and resorts booked through Amex Travel. And they don't even see what's coming at them. We're in.
- [58:06]
Vanta
We got the table.
- [58:07]
Michelle
Yep. With resi priority. Notify they're alerted when hard to get reservations open up.
- [58:11]
Cindy Crawford
Reservation for two.
- [58:14]
Jill
Save the best for last.
- [58:15]
Michelle
Thanks to Amex Platinum, the last day vacation brings yet another experience. That's the powerful backing of American Express terms apply. Learn more@americanexpress.com withamics Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide and every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn more@discover.com credit card based on the February 2024 Nielsen report Amazon Pharmacy Presents Painful Thoughts the guy in front of me in the pharmacy line is halfway through an incredibly detailed 17 minute story about his gout. A story likely more painful than the gout itself. Next time, save yourself the pain and let Amazon Pharmacy deliver your meds right to your door. Amazon Pharmacy Healthcare just got less painful.
- [59:24]
Apple TV
The new year means new health goals not just for your body, but your finances too. But did you know financial health is directly related to identity protection? You need Lifelock because your personal info is in endless places that are outside of your control. It only takes one mistake, and not even your mistake, to expose you to identity theft and lost funds. Lifelock monitors hundreds of millions of data points per second and alerts you to threats you could miss on your own. If your identity is stolen, LifeLock's US based restoration specialist will fix it, backed by the million dollar protection package. In fact, restoration is guaranteed or your subscription money back. Don't face drained accounts, fraudulent loans or other financial losses from identity theft alone. Resolve to make identity, health and wealth part of your New year's goals with LifeLock. Visit lifelock.com iheart and save up to 40% your first year. That's 40% off@lifelock.com iheart terms apply.
- [60:24]
Inner Child
Sail to breathtaking destinations in Alaska or Europe with Disney Cruise Line. Dis Discover where onboard magic meets onshore adventures, where beloved characters meet alluring landscapes, where Broadway quality shows meet historic cities, where imaginative dining meets amazing wildlife, and where exciting experiences await the whole family. Book an adventure filled summer Disney cruise to Alaska or Europe.