Move over “girl math” and “quiet luxury,” a new personal finance trend is taking off on TikTok.
Social media users are embracing “loud budgeting,” a concept that went viral after TikToker Lukas Battle mentioned it as something he’s starting in 2024.
Now, just three weeks into the year, #loudbudgeting has more than 10 million views on TikTok.
What is loud budgeting?
Much like the name implies, loud budgeting is a financial strategy that emphasizes being vocal about your expenses and financial situation. Financial accountability, if you will.
“It’s not ‘I don’t have enough,’ it’s ‘I don’t want to spend,'” said Battle in his video explanation. He describes it as “the opposite of quiet luxury,” referring to a social media trend last year that involved a more subtle expression of your wealth through high-quality products that didn’t feature logos.
“[Loud budgeting] is all about talking about your personal finance and ensuring that you are advocating for yourself, especially in situations where sometimes you may not be an avid advocate,” said Zainab Williams, a certified financial planner with Elleverity Wealth Management.
The concept is taking hold at a time when rising costs are top of mind for many Canadians.
Canada’s annual inflation rate jumped to 3.4 per cent in December, according to data from Statistics Canada released earlier this month. Airfares, fuel, passenger vehicles and rent were some of the key contributors to the increase. The report also found that prices for food purchased from stores rose 4.7 per cent compared to the same time last year.
After backlash from shoppers, Loblaw says it will return to discounting products by 50 per cent when they’re about to expire. The company said it ‘listened to the feedback from our customers and colleagues’ after revealing last week the discount would drop to 30 per cent.
And while the trend of tighter budgeting and meeting financial goals is resonating with a lot of young people as something new, for some, it’s an established way of life already.
The philosophy is something that’s been a longtime habit for Reilly O’Connor, a Canadian content creator. O’Connor who’s also an early childhood educator, has multiple videos on social media describing what she calls a “realistic day in the life,” where she highlights things like budgeting and affording what she calls “basic living means.”
“We don’t get paid enough … so we just automatically have to make cuts and costs,” said O’Connor.
“I wanted to show a way that we can still live a happy life. Everybody has goals, but we can still be happy while we’re trying to make those goals,” she added.
“The moment that you’re realistic and open about your financial status, the easier it gets and the less of a burden it’s going to be, and the less you’re going to feel yourself comparing yourself to others.”
“I think it’s really helped just keep me accountable,” she added.
Williams agrees that loud budgeting can be empowering for some people.
“The really great thing about social media is the fact that it exposes us to various ideas … whether it’s to advocate for ourselves, when it comes to our money, stories, whether it’s to understand the types of questions you need to be asking your financial adviser, or any tips and tricks on how you should be saving money,” she said.
But at the same time, social media trends like this can create a sense of pressure for some people to participate in something that might not be right for their situation, according to Williams.
“It’s really a matter of being really true to yourself, rather than getting into feeling pressured to behave in a certain manner.”
Finance trends and social media
Loud budgeting isn’t the first finance-related trend to gain traction through social media. The aforementioned girl math and quiet luxury are both examples of social media trends centred around money.
Couponing and going out for meals less are just some of the ways social media users are practising loud budgeting. (Bryan Eneas/CBC News)
O’Connor says outlets like TikTok have been helpful for how she manages her own finances.
“It created a support system in a safe place on the internet where other people could share their tips and tricks as well.”
Participating in trends online, especially with your money, comes down to what you’re comfortable with, according to Williams.
“Money is such a personal thing to us. It may trigger different types of emotions in us whether it’s shame, whether it’s a feeling of pride, because you’ve accomplished something.”
The most important thing is being smart about what you’re consuming online, according to Williams.
“It’s important to check in and really evaluate what exactly you’re consuming and how that consumption is going to be impacting you down the line.”
TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.
The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.
The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.
Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
