Brandon Kruse/The Post
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Doing volunteer work at local high schools gave home builder Brett Handler firsthand knowledge of the need for education about finance.
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Dear Graduate by Brett Handler
Three things young people can do to master their finances in this economy, according to Brett Handler.
Create a budget.'If you're thinking, "Well, I'll come back to this," you're dreaming,' says the author. 'If you get nothing else out of Dear Graduate, understand budgeting. You can't manage your money by sheer luck.'
Start saving. 'Find some kind of method of putting a few dollars away each month - before the rent and car payment,' Handler advises. 'Saving money is like a diet. When you diet, your body gets used to living on less calories. It's the same thing with your budget.'
Learn a bit of respect for money. 'Kids think it's 'just a dollar' or 'just 5 bucks' or whatever, but those numbers all add up to bigger numbers. When you toss away a dollar here and $5 over there, soon you have nothing left. You whittle away what would have been a big number - or at least enough to do something more meaningful.'
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Her take-away lesson from Dear Graduate?" I would say it's that the decisions you make at a young age can impact you when you're older, because of things like your credit score." She also was struck by the book's illustrations of how quickly savings can accumulate.
Shannon Lyles, who'll be a freshman at Florida State University, began keeping a budget last week, the day after she finished reading Dear Graduate.
"I started a budget list step-by-step according to the way the book described," said the 18-year-old Benjamin School graduate. "I just opened a debit account for college and I've been marking down costs for tuition, books, eating and free spending. The book taught me how to spend my money wisely and how to keep track of it."
Wish your child sounded this savvy when talking about money?
Every parent does, but a 2003 survey by Fleet Boston showed 74 percent of us feel ill-equipped to teach our kids about personal finance.
Brett Handler, owner of Dreamstar Custom Homes, is trying to fill the gap. During his 10 years of Junior Achievement volunteer work at high schools, he saw first-hand just how unprepared senior students were when it came to basic financial questions — and he vowed to make a difference with his self-published book.
With chapters on insurance, buying a car, forming good habits, saving, employment and credit, Dear Graduate covers the bases for kids who may ace their college exams but flounder when it comes to their own checking account.
"Can I swear they'll read it?," he asked. "No. But I pray they all do. It's written in a conversational style, which I think comes across. I'm not trying to make them brilliant about finance; I think some books give too much detail. I just want to give them the idea to put a few dollars of their paycheck into the bank on a consistent basis before they go spend the rest of it."
Handler, who studied finance at Towson University and received a bachelor's degree in business, spent seven years as a stockbroker before starting Dreamstar, one of the area's first businesses certified as a Green Professional by the National Association of Home Builders. He also serves on the board of directors of Junior Achievement of the Palm Beaches, as well as its finance committee.
When Handler saw how few students were equipped for financial success, he wanted to provide an easy-to-understand reference to have at their fingertips. His book cites a recent survey by Sallie Mae showing about half of college students accumulate more than $5,000 in credit-card debt while in school. A third of students pile on more than $10,000 in debt. Only one in five said they finish college free of credit-card debt.
But despite a challenging economy and job market, which forces many kids to move in with their folks during or after college, Handler says graduates can make it on their own if they learn to manage money.
"Making a commitment to achieve your goals is what separates you from the masses," he writes in the book. "Willpower and determination are the two most important traits for financial education and financial success."
The Palm Beach Gardens author admits he used his sons Evan, 17, and Scott, 14, as guinea pigs, asking them the same questions he asked his senior students during seminars. As a result, both boys now have saving programs and debit cards.
"They've learned to budget their money to make it last to the end of the month," Handler said. "I'm not a banker. They know they have to earn money."
'Dear Graduate' is $9.99 online at www.deargraduate.com or by phone, (561) 799-7777, Ext. 0#. It's also available as a greeting card containing the audio book on CD for $16.99.
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