06.25.25 Warehouse Club Wisdom / Working Your Way Out Of Debt

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Clark Howard Podcast – June 25, 2025

Title: Warehouse Club Wisdom / Working Your Way Out Of Debt
Host: Clark Howard
Release Date: June 25, 2025

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Introduction

In this episode of The Clark Howard Podcast, Clark delves into the booming sales of warehouse clubs and explores practical strategies for individuals striving to eliminate debt. Combining personal anecdotes, expert advice, and listener interactions, Clark provides a comprehensive guide to smart shopping and effective debt management.

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Warehouse Club Wisdom

Clark Howard begins by expressing his enthusiasm for warehouse clubs, emphasizing their growing popularity due to significant savings they offer. He notes impressive sales increases across major warehouse retailers:

• BJ's Wholesale Club: Sales up 4%
• Sam's Club: Sales up 7%
• Costco: Sales up 8%

"People recognize they're getting a better deal at them," Clark states at [02:15], highlighting the value proposition that attracts consumers to these clubs.

Personal Experiences and Observations

Clark shares his recent visits to both Costco and Sam's Club, detailing the high demand and crowded environments:

• At Costco, he observed unprecedented parking lot congestion, with customers aggressively vying for parking spots and displaying frustration through honking.
• His experience at Sam's Club on a Sunday revealed unusually long checkout lines, despite all registers being open, indicating a surge in membership and patronage.

"You do want to spend early in the week, in the evening when the store is quiet or much more quiet shopping," Clark advises at [04:10], suggesting optimal times for shopping to avoid the chaos.

Innovations and Drawbacks

Clark praises the potential savings at warehouse clubs but also points out a particular practice by Costco that he disapproves of:

• Free Delivery Services: He lauds the availability of free delivery with premium memberships, which aligns with modern consumer preferences for convenience.

However, Clark expresses reservations about certain operational aspects, hinting at controversial practices without delving into specifics, leaving room for further discussion later in the episode.

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Working Your Way Out Of Debt

Transitioning from warehouse clubs, Clark addresses the pervasive issue of debt among Americans. He underscores the reality of rising debt burdens exacerbated by inflation and increasing interest rates on credit cards.

Key Statistics and Insights:

• Record Number of Part-Time Workers: Over 9 million Americans are juggling part-time jobs alongside their regular employment.
• Experian Study: Nearly 40% of individuals who successfully eliminated debt did so by taking on additional part-time work.

"It's not a fun thing to say to you... it's like a con," Clark remarks at [14:20], critiquing deceptive marketing tactics that promise easy debt solutions.

Practical Advice

Clark offers actionable strategies for debt reduction:

1. Supplemental Income: Encourages taking on part-time or gig work to increase income streams, emphasizing the importance of balancing additional work with personal expenses.

   "Working part time is one of the best things to get your finances back under control," he asserts at [17:05].

2. Expense Management: Advises vigilance in managing expenses even when income increases, as additional funds can sometimes lead to increased spending.

3. Avoiding Quick Fixes: Warns against "magic pill" solutions for debt, promoting sustainable financial practices over quick, often deceptive fixes.

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Listener Questions and Expert Responses

Throughout the episode, Clark engages with listener inquiries, providing tailored advice on various financial concerns.

1. Jonathan from Florida [07:14]

Question: Concerns about the Borrow feature from Cash App versus credit card debt.
Clark's Response:

• Dismisses Cash App's Borrow as a preferable alternative to credit cards, citing high effective annual interest rates (over 60%).
• Acknowledges it as a better option than payday loans but overall discourages reliance on such borrowing mechanisms.

"If somebody's in a position to consider doing a payday loan or doing the Cash App loan, the Cash App loan is the least bad option," Clark explains.

2. Amy from Georgia [08:27]

Question: Encounter with a potentially suspicious individual at a nail salon and concerns about identity theft.
Clark's Response:

• Suggests the scenario is likely an overzealous friendly interaction rather than a sophisticated attempt at identity theft.
• Reiterates the importance of not handing over personal devices to strangers.

"I would say that's pretty far out there. This may just be somebody who's really gregarious," he reassures at [09:45].

3. Lisa from Minnesota [24:55]

Question: Advice on maximizing savings for her teenage children using Fidelity Youth accounts.
Clark's Response:

• Recommends ensuring money market funds yield a reasonable return.
• Encourages educating children on investing and considering Roth IRAs for long-term savings as they begin to work.

"The purpose should be to start building the building blocks for long term wealth," Clark advises at [25:31].

4. David from Ohio [21:07]

Question: Comparing co-signing private loans versus Parent PLUS loans and concerns about credit inquiries.
Clark's Response:

• Explains that Parent PLUS loans are generally more favorable than co-signing private loans due to potential loan forgiveness options and typically lower interest rates.
• Clarifies that multiple credit inquiries for student loans may not affect credit scores as severely as other types of loans if done within a short period.

"With the private loans where you are a cosigner, you need to make sure before you cosign," Clark emphasizes at [22:07].

5. Miguel from Washington [27:25]

Question: Being falsely accused of smoking in a hotel room and dealing with potential fraudulent charges.
Clark's Response:

• Offers empathy and shares personal experiences with similar situations.
• Advises addressing such issues immediately during the stay to prevent unresolved disputes.

"It's the prevention is the best cure in your case," Clark suggests at [27:46].

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Notable Quotes

• "People recognize they're getting a better deal at [warehouse clubs]." [02:15]
• "Working part time is one of the best things to get your finances back under control." [17:05]
• "Don't use [Pays]... at least for now." [11:17]

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Conclusion

In this episode, Clark Howard effectively intertwines the benefits of warehouse club memberships with practical debt management strategies. By highlighting real-world examples, addressing listener concerns, and providing clear, actionable advice, Clark empowers his audience to make informed financial decisions aimed at saving money and reducing debt.

Listeners are encouraged to subscribe to Clark's free newsletters at clark.com for ongoing financial tips and to take advantage of resources like ClarkDeals.com to maximize their savings.

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Connect with Clark Howard:

• Submit your questions at www.clark.com/askclark
• Follow the conversation on social media and stay updated with the latest episodes and financial advice.

Transcript

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[Clark Howard]

It's great to have you here on the Clark Howard Show. You know, our mission is to serve you with advice and information that empowers you so that you make better financial decisions in your life. I hope one of the decisions you make is to sign up for one of our free [e-mail] newsletters. They're not just free, they're priceless. Because when you open up that newsletter, it's gonna be a lot of stuff that gives you ideas to stretch every dollar to rethink how you make financial decisions day to day. Speaking of which, if you have listened or watched me for any period of time, you know I am obsess with the warehouse clubs. Is it an unhealthy obsession? No, it's a very healthy obsession. And the sales of the warehouse clubs, the revenue they're bringing in, booming, booming sales at BJ's Wholesale are up 4%, Sam's Club up almost 7%, Costco up 8%. Because people recognize they're getting a better deal at them. And I want to talk about that straight ahead. There's also something Costco is doing that I don't like at all. But coming up ahead, later in the podcast, I want to talk about how people get out of debt. And there's a way that people are getting out of debt that maybe you haven't thought of if you're facing debts in your life. I'm going to talk about that later in this podcast and YouTube show. But right now, I mean, you can see it. I was at a Costco. Well, that's new. I was at Costco the other day. Not a space in the parking lot. And people were getting really, well, unruly in the parking lot. Fighting over space is not physically, but I'm sure that happens. Honking at each other when they thought they were waiting for a space that somebody else zipped into. And that's how strong the demand is. And I was in a Sam's Club. This is really a shock. I was in a Costco one day in Sam's the next day because they sell different stuff. I was at the Sam's, something you shouldn't do. I was in the Sam's on a Sunday. Okay. The checkout lines were unbelievable. So they were back in the aisles in the Sam's Club, way back where the merchandise is long, long, long, long lines all the way. And guess what? Every register was open. That never happens, right? They were all open and these lines were huge. So people have switched how they buy because the price differences are real. And so I actually enjoy the experience. But I was very upset. There was a quote in the Financial Times of London. I want to see if I can find it in this story because it really bothered me. It's a little bit of a grudge shop. You don't want to spend your Saturday afternoon roaming around 100,000 square foot box. You don't. I do.

[Sponsor 1]

I do.

[Clark Howard]

I want to save that money. I want to look what's up in the steel. I want to save that money. You're not going to believe who said that quote. It was the CEO of BJ's Wholesale Club. Come on, Bob, get with it. It's not a grudge shop. You do want to spend your. Well, do. You don't want to spend your Saturday or Sunday. You want to spend early in the week, in the evening when the store quiet or much more quiet shopping. And I know there are people who say, what a ripoff. I have to pay a fee to shop at this place. Let me tell you, it is worth it because you're going to save so much money. So going back to the Sams when I was in one on a Sunday because I hate myself. How did I deal with those long checkout lines? Like every Sam's Club member should with your phone use scan and go. You check yourself out, you scan your own items, you walk out the door never having to wait in a line other than if the AI says, hey, we need to check your purchases. Otherwise The AI automatically says you're good to go, and you keep walking out the door. But this is the real deal, the money you can save at warehouse clubs. And I know there are people who don't love being with packed aisles and all the rest. Better deal at Sam's than at Costco. If you buy their premium membership, you get free delivery at the same price as you pay for an item in the store on almost everything. Free delivery. So you don't even have to leave your phone or your laptop to go deal with the parking lot to deal with shopping inside. It's your money.

[Co-host]

All right.

[Clark Howard]

How long have I been obsessed with warehouse?

[Co-host]

I mean, since before I knew you for sure.

[Clark Howard]

I go all the way back to Price Savers and Pace Membership Warehouse.

[Co-host]

Yep.

[Clark Howard]

Both long gone. Do you know who owned Pace Membership Warehouse?

[Co-host]

No.

[Clark Howard]

It was started by what was then the world's largest retailer, Kmart.

[Co-host]

Kmart. Oh, wow. All right, we're going to questions. Jonathan in Florida because Affirm Costco is taking Affirm now.

[Clark Howard]

I hate that.

[Co-host]

Yeah, that's what you're upset about. So you'd mentioned that you're upset about that.

[Clark Howard]

Yeah. I cannot stand paying for. I mean, it is digging people a debt hole that is really ugly in their lives.

[Co-host]

That was the thing you don't like that Costco is doing. So Jonathan, Florida wrote in with this. I wanted to ask if you've heard of the Borrow feature from Cash App. It appears most start out at $25. However, I've seen where people can get up to $1,250. You can pay back weekly or monthly, but have to pay back within four weeks. The fee is 5% of the borrowed value. Would you see this as a better option than charging on a credit card?

[Clark Howard]

No, because credit card interest per month is lower than what we're talking about with cash app. So remember, if it's 5% for the month, what is that per year? If you compound that, it's. It's quite a bit more than 60%. Now, if somebody's in a position, though, that they're having to consider doing a payday loan or doing the Cash App loan, the Cash App loan is the least bad option. It's much cheaper than taking out a payday loan. But, no, I don't like any of these gimmick borrowings at all.

[Co-host]

Okay. And then Amy in Georgia says, clark, I think of you as the authority on scams and identity theft issues. I would like to run a scenario by you and your team to see if you think I have a reason to be concerned. Or if I'm just being paranoid, well, getting a pedicure. The lady in the chair next to me struck up a conversation. You're somewhat forced to be polite to strangers at a nail salon as you can't really walk away. Your hands and feet are literally stuck. The woman was asking me what I did for a living, telling me the ages of her children, all the normal things. She got up to get another nail salon service and struck up a conversation with a college age girl. I assumed they knew each other, but later found out they did not. She was telling this woman all about her family, their ages, where her siblings went to school, even photos on her phone. She came back to my chair to see my nails and started asking me where I was going in the summer. She asked my name, joked about getting my phone number, asked me a million questions about my favorite beaches and vacation spots, saying she was from South Africa. She had the accent and wanted to know places to see with her family. She started pressuring me for specifics. Name of the condos we liked, what items I packed with me to go to the beach, where I was from, and what was my last name. I did not give her any of this information as my alarm was starting to go off. Is this a new way to record voices? She grabbed my phone at one point to see a beach photo. Help. Should I be worried?

[Clark Howard]

So, Amy, that's a lot of work for somebody to go through to engage in some form of identity theft or takeover fraud. It is possible, but I would say that's pretty far out there. This may just be somebody who's really gregarious and a little too forward friendly. I would be surprised because it's so easy, truthfully to do identity theft now that I don't think somebody would need to spend the time in a nail salon to do that. I think it's just somebody who made you and maybe the college kid feel uncomfortable by how they went. They went beyond personal boundaries there.

[Co-host]

Although, never hand someone your phone ever. Ever.

[Clark Howard]

Yeah, oh yeah, we've talked about that before. How dangerous it is to give anybody your phone because of how once you've unlocked it, if you have big bad Zell, you have cash app like we were talking earlier about Venmo. They can Venmo themselves money and there's nothing you can do once that's happened to get that money back.

[Co-host]

Amy in Wisconsin says, I received an email from my Chase credit card offering to enroll me in their new program called pays. We've gotten a lot of these questions, the offer says pays is a convenient way to pay online, brought to me by the banks. How is this different from Denzelle, which was also owned by the banks? You warned not to use Zelle because of a lack of financial protections provided by the banks. Is this new PAYS program any more secure?

[Clark Howard]

All right, so let me tell you the. I'll give you a short version because I talked about pays before. The banks are terrified of us adopting the world standard. Ours is called Fed now. And the banks are are terrified of anything that levels the playing field where apps and credit unions and small banks can compete with the big banks and all that. So the big banks put together ownership of an alternative to this very, very secure system called Fed Now. They don't want to use and they don't want you using it. So they're trying to act like pays is some kind of wonderful, brand new way for you to transact pay bills, send money, and all the rest. It is not clear that there are decent consumer protections because I haven't been able to find them yet using pays. And that's why I've said ignore the push by your bank for you to use Pays when there are clear laws and regulations for Pays that would make it a secure, safe platform for you to use, then it'll be up to the marketplace if Fed now or Pays or whatever else becomes another way for you to transmit. There's going to be a lot of action in this area because the banks are in terror of fintechs non bank actors taking more and more of the banking activity away from them. I mean, already banks have become nearly irrelevant in people's financial lives as money overwhelmingly has moved to Wall street players. And you think of big ones like Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard, they're so much larger now than the banks. The banks are doing anything they can to try to keep some amount of market share. But you know, if the banks did business where instead of trying to come up with cutesy little things like big bad Zell or now coming up with Pays, if instead the bankers woke up in the morning and said, how are we going to make things better for consumers? How are we going to make them better for customers? But that's not the mentality of modern American banking. They're always looking to get one over on you and Pays at this point is not a safe platform for you to use, at least nobody's been able to convince me of that. So ignore the pitch from the bank to use Pays. And I wish one of the big bad banks one of the giant monster mega banks could convince me why Fed now is not a vastly superior way to move money around versus them coming up with a proprietary Frankenstein that they've invented. Enough about that. Don't use it, at least for now. Coming up ahead, after the ravages of inflation, a lot of people are really, really struggling with debts. And to make ends meet, I want to tell you something. You say duh. How a lot of people are now getting out of debt requires some work on your part.

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[Clark Howard]

The debt burden is real and we have a lot of Americans who are struggling just to deal with the basics. Pay for food, pay monthly rent, stay current on a mortgage, pay for your car insurance. I'm talking about stuff, you know, I'm talking about have to's, I'm not talking about want to's, I'm not talking about leisure expenses or oh, wouldn't it be fun too? I'm talking about just paying for basics. And if that's not you, it may be your kids. Maybe a friend, maybe a neighbor is struggling right now financially. So how are people closing the gap? Do you know that we have the largest number of people ever in the United States working a part time job? 9 million people. In addition to the regular work they do, they're doing a part time job, they're doing an app based thing like Uber or the food delivery. And there are people who realize, hey, you know, I've cut every corner I can. The only thing that can give is giving up some of my free time and bringing in more money so that I can do those things so I'm not wheezing every single week, every single month just to pay my regular bills. It was a study by Experian that found that just under 40% of people who successfully got out of debt did it by having a part time job in addition to their regular job. I mean, that's not a fun thing to say to you. It's not fun to say you've already worked these many hours and if you want to tackle your debt, I want you to go work some extra hours somewhere doing something that's not fun. Seems a lot more fun when you see those signs at freeway exits that say wipe out your debt. Call this number or go to this website and they tell you they got the magic pill that's going to get you out of debt. Let me tell you, that's not magic, that's a con. Don't believe it. But if you do take on gig work or part time work in order to handle bills, you got to be careful with your expenses because sometimes when you then take on that part time thing, you start maybe eating out more because you're out of time. You got to watch those expenses as that happens. I'm in Ubers and Lyfts a lot. I had a Lyft driver recently who the reason that he drives Lyft is when it comes time to pay his daughter's tuition for college, he drives Lyft in order to come up with money to pay the tuition so that she doesn't have to take out student loans. I mean there are all different kinds of motivations why somebody works a part time job. In his case it was to avoid taking on debt and is cold. But defaults on credit cards are going up right now is fact at the same time that the average interest rate on a credit card has gone from high teens to mid-20s. So that's putting salt in the financial wounds you may be feeling. And I may be talking to you right now and this is irrelevant to you. Your finances are great, you're in solid shape. But know there are people around you that are suffering and I want people to not have to worry. Be afraid of answering their phone or getting a collection text or seeing a collection notice in the mail. And so whatever you can do that relieves that financial pressure that makes sense over time. And working part time is one of the best things to get your finances back under control. Remember, almost 40% of people who've been carrying debt were able to get rid of it by working a part time job. It's important and we have a couple.

[Co-host]

Of great [e-mail] 30 easy side hustle ideas and then how to make extra money 35 ways on that one David in Ohio says I have a daughter starting college this fall. She has some funds in a 529 but I intend to co sign on private loans to cover part of the cost. My first question Am I correct in thinking that co signing on private loans is slightly better than Parent plus loans? It seems like I only hear horror stories about Parent plus loans, but as a cosigner they seem effectively the same in terms of ultimately putting me on the hook. My second question if I started checking out various lenders such as Sofi, Sallie Mae or College Ave, am I going to get a bunch of hard inquiries in my credit? I know they say that applying for multiple loans in a short period of time shouldn't affect your credit much since you're clearly shopping around. But in my experience with shopping for car loans, I still ended up with numerous hard inquiries on my report. But which credit karma step was hurting my score for two years? Also, I want to mention how easy it was to schedule a temporary thaw on all three credit bureau websites. Thanks.

[Clark Howard]

Okay David, thank you very much for your question. So on the car loans and also for mortgages applications, multiple applications made in a very short period of time. Think a couple of weeks. Even though they show up on your report, they only impact your scores if there's one. They don't think you're trying to buy six cars at the same time or buy six houses or anything like that. Shopping around does create a hard inquiry, multiple hard inquiries. But in the scoring model that FICO uses, multiple inquiries in a short period of time are treated as one. I've not heard of that for student loans though, because it's possible somebody would be taking out student loans from multiple providers and so those hard inquiries I don't think are treated as one. I've never seen anything that says that maybe someone will let us know if I'm wrong on Clark stinks, but I do want to talk about people trash talking Parent plus Loans. The problem with Parent plus loans is the same as you co signing on a loan, except co signing on a private loan can be worse. With a Parent plus loan, what happens often is a parent out of love for their child and the child's desire to go to a particular school will take on more debt on a Parent plus loan than they can handle. So be realistic with yourself. Whether it's Parent plus or a private student loan that you would have to co sign for that, it's a level of debt you can afford. Most of the time the Parent plus loan will be cheaper than a private loan that you cosign for. A lot of private loans have floating rates and so whichever is cheaper for a fixed rate would be likely the better choice. You won't have any avenue for potential loan forgiveness with the private loans. You may well, depending on the circumstance, have partial potential student loan forgiveness eventually with the Parent plus, although all that is in flux right now. But with the private loans where you're a cosigner, you need to make sure before you co sign with any of those that you will receive bills as well as your daughter. Because when you co sign you have all the responsibility, none of the privilege of the loan if the bills are going to her and she is a young adult, just doesn't get around to telling you doesn't get around to paying them. Your credit's ruined and you're still obligated on the loan.

[Co-host]

Okay, Lisa in Minnesota says per your advice, I opened a Fidelity Youth account for my 16 year old daughter when she got her first job and then for my son when he turned 13. My daughter is doing a good job at saving. My son is too young for a job but has accumulated several hundred dollars in cash over the years. When I suggested we put some of it in his Fidelity account, he said I want to put it somewhere where I can actually earn interest. His fidelity account funds $175 are held in a Money market fund, as are my daughter's, aside from buying some stocks, which I'm encouraging them to do, what else can and should we do with the money to encourage them to save even more?

[Clark Howard]

Lisa, first of all, with Fidelity, as with Schwab, got to make sure that the money market fund you're in is one paying a decent yield. Fidelity and Schwab both have money funds where they pay you a puny amount of money and money funds where you're getting a good amount of money. So it'd be great for you to sit down with your daughter and your son separately. So you're each talking to each of them about money. She's 16. And talk about what is the purpose of this Fidelity Youth account? The purpose should be to start building the building blocks for long term wealth. Unless it's money she's going to use in the next few years. You're not using the Fidelity Youth account for either of them for the purpose it's intended, which is to teach them the basics of investing. I would rather see the money for each of them put into the zero funds. And I would sit down and look at the Fidelity website and talk through what the zero funds do. The in short, they're funds that charge no ongoing management fees, no commissions to go into them. So all the money is invested in the funds. And you sit there with your 16 year old and 13 year old and, and I would do it separately again and saying look at this and have them in control of the computer saying let's look at each of these zero funds, read what they do. Which one sounds the most interesting to you? Get them invested in investing. And that's the whole idea of the youth account. As soon with your daughter working, her money should be going into a Roth IRA. Your 13 year old. When the 13 year old starts working, the money should be going into a Roth ira.

[Co-host]

Okay. And Miguel in Washington says I was recently in Las Vegas for five nights. Stayed in an off the strip casino. As I checked out, I was accused of smoking in my room, which I don't even smoke at all. They informed me that every room has a fresh air sensor and gave me a smoking alert paper report which indicated a peak concentration at midnight when I was asleep. I.

[Clark Howard]

You smoke in your sleep. Do you know how dangerous that is, Miguel?

[Co-host]

I spoke to the general manager and had the smoking charge removed only after insisting on a room inspection with the gm. This feels like a junk fee new scam. Have you ever heard of this?

[Clark Howard]

I have never heard of this. And it's Possible that it was not a scam, that it was a sensor that was misbehaving. I'll tell you what I do. I stay in hotels at least 70, 80 room nights a year. And when I walk in a room and it has the stank of smoke, I go right. I don't even unpack my suitcase. I go right back to the front desk and say, somebody smoked in that room. I can't stay in it because I don't want them to then find me hundreds of dollars for smoking to have happened. So the prevention is the best cure in your case. Miguel, this is bizarre because their sensor said you were smoking when you weren't. Who knows if it was something with a ventilation system, somebody was smoking in another room. Who knows if their sensor just messed up. But you did the right thing solving the problem while you were there. Really, really important. If you just say, well, I'll deal with it later. Whether it's an airline, hotel, car rental, anything in travel, once you're not there, it's very hard from that point to solve a problem later. And I'm so glad you advocated for yourself and got the charge removed and the GM did the right thing. It's crazy because I used to smoke forever ago. I haven't smoked in many decades, but now I'm really sensitive to the smell of smoking. And not only do I not want to sleep in a room that has that smell, I don't want to get a bill saying I did it. So I hope you have a great, great day. You know what else stinks? When I used to smoke, how much did it cost me for a pack of cigarettes? It was about 30 cents. Imagine that today, if you're still a smoker. Think about that. I mean, back then it was actually affordable to get sick from smoking. Today it's not at all. Well, that might generate a Clark Sticks. Anyway, speaking of Clark Stinks, that's coming up on Friday and I hope you'll join us for Friday's Clark Stinks edition. And have a wonderful day. And, and I hope that you learned something today that helps you save more, spend less, and avoid getting ripped off.

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