I’m Sexy and I Know It!
Have you ever thought, “finances are so sexy”?
No?
Me neither.
I have never been one to put finances and sexiness together, but Ally Bank conducted a survey that did just that.
Ally Bank’s Love & Money study asked 1,007 adults what was the most appealing financial habit in a significant other. The result might surprise some of you, it sure surprised me.
The responses were divided into four major groups: Attracted to those who have higher credit card limits and like finer goods; those who are bargain hunters and thrifty; those who pay-as-you-go to avoid any kind of debt; and those with strong budgeting and saving strategies.
Higher Credit Card Limits and Fancy Stuff
You would think that since people like to be wooed, those with higher credit card limits and like finer goods would be found sexy. But no.
Only 3% of people found these financial traits to be sexy or attractive.
So stop trying to woo people with your fancy stuff… it’s not working.
Bargain-Hunters and Thrifty
Being frugal is in! I keep telling people to stop spending all their money and live a more frugal life. Being thrifty and finding good deals is a good financial habit if you want to save more money, but is it sexy?
Not really.
Eighteen percent (18%) of people said they were attracted to bargain hunters and thrifty folks.
I still think people should try to find deals and be frugal. It might not be the sexiest trait, but at least it will help you save money and that’s always a good strategy to have.
Pay-as-you-go to Avoid Any Kind of Debt
I guess these people fall in the Dave Ramsey Camp – debt is evil so avoid it like the plague. I don’t necessarily disagree with this approach, and apparently neither did 21% of people who took the survey.
I am not a ‘pay-as-you-go and avoid any kind of debt’ type of guy because I use my credit card for everything and just pay it off at the end of the month. I guess it depends what “as-you-go” means.
Either way, I still agree that you should avoid debt whenever possible.
The last two traits are good financial habits to have, but they are not the sexiest financial habit. That title goes to…
Having Strong Budgeting and Savings Strategies
I guess JMoney is right in saying “Budgets Are Sexy!” An outstanding 55% of people said they were attracted to those with strong budgeting and saving strategies.
Budgeting might be boring, but it shows potential partners that you are serious about your finances and about your future, and that is indeed very attractive.
Start budgeting and be even sexier than you already are. And if you combine all the financial habits mentioned above, except for the high credit card limit and liking fancy things – that’s just silly – then you will be a catch for anybody that values their future.
Many guys believe that their chances of finding somebody who loves them increase with the amount of money they have, but maybe they are looking at this all wrong. Women might not be attracted to the amount of money some men have; they might just understand that those men have a lot of money because they budget and have strong saving strategies, and find those traits extremely sexy… maybe.
What do you think is the sexiest financial habit?
It weirds me out that a higher credit card limit was listed as one of the options. Mostly because it doesn’t mean much at all, other than the person has the ability to get into debt or utilize a payment method that’s plastic. I’m relieved to know that almost no one picked it
In this case, I’m with the majority, a strong savings ability is the besbest thing on this list.
Sticking to the budget is a pretty damn sexy trait in my husband I’d say. When we met, he didn’t budget at all. So now when I see him sticking to the budget and working towards our family’s goals? Mmmmm, damn sexy!
Having a savings account so you can splurge or go on a vacation is sexy. Worry all the time about paying the bills is a buzz kill for sure.
This is pretty funny. I would like to have seen the results of this survey before 2008- I bet they would have been slightly different!
Living below your means and have high savings rate are pretty sexy habits.
Of course I’m right! It took them 7 years to finally catch on 😉
Strong budgeting and saving strategies is the best on this list by far! Being willing to forgo that new toy in order to save … that’s where it’s at!
Alas, the man I love is terrible about money. But he is smart enough to just let me control the finances, so it mostly works out. And to be fair, he’s gotten much, much better about spending over the years.
I would choose the 4th option as well. I think it’s more important to be able to manage your money well than to have the mentality of spending less of your money. Not that it’s bad – finding good deals should be on everyone’s mind I think – but in general, I’d prefer someone who can handle their finances well. I remember this show on TLC called Cheapskates — the show might be scripted but the people there are so thrifty up to the point I don’t think I’d be able to adopt such lifestyle and live comfortably.
Was this a multiple choice question? If I had to choose one financial habit that is “sexiest” it would be an understanding of how assets can be leveraged for income. It sounds boring, but an understanding of it is actually really sexy.
I would choose the 2nd option! My wife is a bargain-hunter and it’s so much fun seeing her find amazing things that people would otherwise throw away and for a low price. I think that starting to minimize your spending habits you step on the right way for financial freedom. Of course budgeting is a must to 🙂
I love what you said: “So stop trying to woo people with your fancy stuff… it’s not working.”.
Unfortunately, we were raised in a society that puts a lot of emphasis on consumerism and “keeping up with the Joneses”.
Fortunately though, things are changing and people are starting to realize that spending money on stuff they don’t need is actually not-so-smart.
On this front, companies are using a reverse approach to “keeping up with the Joneses” to motivate people to save money (or lower their energy consumption) instead. They basically compare your spending to those of your neighbors to show you areas where you are spending more. It’s fascinating to see how motivated people get to ditch their cable TV when they learn that their neighbor is spending 1/2 of what they’re spending on cable TV…
Check out our site at https://aboutlife.com/ to learn how one can keep up with the Joneses in the right way. And save money in areas they didn’t think they could squeeze any more savings from.