Celebrities in Debt vs Frugal Ones – Which Side are You?

If there’s one thing that’s common between celebrities and normal people, it would be debt. While most celebrities may earn a thousand times than most people do, just like us, they get in debt too!

7 Top Celebrities Who Landed Themselves into Debt

In an infographic released by ClearDebt.co.uk, they’ve listed some of the lavishing spending habits of our favorite celebrities and how these spending habits have lead them into debt. Below are just some of the take-aways:

-Donald Trump was forced via court settlement to hand over his mansion, which at the time, was worth about $25 million.

–M.C. Hammer spent $2 million on his bathroom floor. It’s funny how something is expensive when you build the entire thing out of marble.
–Mike Tyson spends about $4,000 a month on his pet tigers.
–Nicolas Cage spent $276,000 on a dinosaur skull.
–Elton John spent $436,000 on flowers.
–Kim Basinger bought a whole town for $20 million. She resisted the urge to rename it “Basinger town.”

While some of the celebrities listed above may have gone into some financial troubles due to their problematic spending habits, there are still quite a few frugal celebrities – yes they do exist – who knows how to manage their expenses and can pinch a penny with the best of us.

10 Most Frugal Celebrities

1. Jay Leno – Always on top of the list of the most frugal celebrities is Jay Leno. He has conscientiously saved all of his earnings from “The Tonight Show while living on his income from stand-up appearances in Las Vegas.

2. Eva Longoria – Longoria said that frugal gene runs in her family, explaining that her dad would take her and her three siblings camping with no food. While her wedding in 2007 reportedly cost $1.5 million, the ‘Desperate Housewives’ star still scored a lot of freebies to give to her 200 guests: Van Cleef & Arpel 18K yellow gold charm bracelets, and L’Oreal, Cole Haan, and Bebe products were a few.

3. Tyra Banks –Hr woth may be estimated at $75 million but this 34-year-old model is an avowed penny pincher. “I am frugal. I’ve always been this way. When I was young, my mom would give me my allowance, and I’d peel off a little each week and have some to spare”, she said in a June 1 ‘New York Times Magazine’ profile.

4. Sarah Jessica Parker – Contrary to Parker’s character in ‘Sex and the City,’ the 43-year-old isn’t such a slave to fashion and in fact, she reportedly used to get sick from buyer’s remorse and return items the next day.

5. Paul McCartney – Paul McCartney may be worth more than $1 billion, but he reportedly made the guest on her ex-wife’s birthday party pay for their drinks. Stella, his fashion designer daughter, reportedly called him “a tight bastard” for sending her and her three siblings to local state schools rather than posh private ones.

6. Tobey Maguire – Thanks to three ‘Spider Man’ mega-hits which made Tobey Maguire’s valuation jump up to $26 million a picture, he still is usually snapped wearing lived-in t-shirts and jeans. “You know those Lotto winners, who win big and blow through all that money? That would never happen to me,” says Maguire. He credits his poverty-stricken childhood as the impetus for his quest for financial security. “I just never wanted to put myself in the position where my spending was so huge that I had to keep making movie after movie.

7. Halle Berry – Berry, whose mom struggled to raise her and her siblings, is an unabashed saver. “I am pretty frugal. I save a lot because I’m always worried about when this trip is going to stop. So I’m saving for that day so I can have a life that is secure and comfortable.”

8. Queen Elizabeth – While most Royal families may often be seen spending their their money on some luxurious and expensive things, Queen is frequently alluded by the British tabloids for her passion for turning-off the lights around Buckingham Palace.

9. Zooey Deschanel – In the divorce papers which Zooey Deschanel from Ben Gibbard reveals that the actress makes about $95,000 a month and spending only about $22,550 a month. That frugality has allowed her put more than $1.5 million in the bank. She has no credit card debit and has almost $2 million more in stocks, bonds and real estate, etc.

10. Warren Buffett – Last, but certainly not least, is the financial celebrity who has become rich and famous yet who has remained totally unpretentious. He eats burgers or steaks for lunch and dinner, and he recently traded in a six-year-old Lincoln Town Car for a 2006 Cadillac DTS.

Now that we have both list of celebrities that have crazy spending habits and those who penny pincher, maybe it’s about time to review your own spending habits. Saving doesn’t have to start right away and getting out of debt doesn’t happen in just one day. You may want to start by collecting online discount coupons and buying only what’s necessary. Getting out of debt requires financial planning and discipline. Just like how these celebrities don’t become instant sensation in just one night, the journey to saving and getting out of debt may take some time but what matters most is you’re on your way towards that path. May their examples will help you become more motivated to save and stay out (or get out) of debt.