I’ll Date A Guy Who’s Broke, But Not One Who’s Cheap

I’m in my twenties, which means there aren’t a lot of guys my age who are making bank. No big deal! I’m not looking for a rich guy and I have no problem dating broke dudes, but after my relationship with my miserly ex, I’ll never date a cheapskate again.

1. They’re all up in your financial business instead of worrying about their own. My ex was always commenting on how other people manage their money, which is honestly the main reason I couldn’t handle him. I couldn’t deal with him constantly breathing down my neck whenever I made a frivolous purchase. He’d tell me that he didn’t think it was a good idea for me to spend my money on this or that and how I wasn’t being smart with my finances. Excuse me? I’m a millennial with a full-time job and absolutely no debt. Sit down.
2. They don’t understand the concept of value. Money doesn’t grow on trees, I get that. When you’re on a budget or even just trying to save as much money as possible, it’s important to be frugal. Still, being frugal doesn’t mean you have to be stingy. What was so annoying about this dude was that he refused to splurge, no matter what—even when it came to important things! He was too focused on the price tag. He’d pay the cheapest amount possible for his jeans but couldn’t realize that was actually costing him money, especially seeing as they wouldn’t last and he’d have to buy a new pair every month.  
3. They won’t fight you for the bill. The cheap guy I dated was a gentleman because his parents raised him right. Whenever he’d ask me on a date, I truly think he had every intention of paying. But because I wasn’t rude, I’d always take out my wallet and quietly say, “Did you want me…” and instead of saying no, he’d take my card and we’d go dutch. Can you believe it? I certainly didn’t mind paying my own way, but it would’ve been nice to be treated at least once.
4. They don’t really care about looking their best. Being fly and looking swag isn’t cheap. Not only do you have to spend some money, but you also have to know what to spend money on. The guy I dated knew none of this because if it cost more than $15 bucks, he wasn’t interested. Therefore, his clothes were mostly from Goodwill, and not in a trendy way. He never fully looked put together when we dated and it was rather irritating.
5. They’re annoyingly creative with their excuses. He was a pretty smooth talker. He’d act like he just wanted a cute night at home with me but in reality, he just didn’t want to be forced to spend any money if we went out. You can’t trust a cheap guy fully because his compliments are typically being used in a manipulative way to keep you sitting in his crappy studio apartment watching Netflix.
6. They’re always looking for a deal. On the off chance he did take me on a date, it was because he had a coupon (or a Groupon). I’m not lame—I know Groupon can throw out those date night goodies, but after a while, I got tired of bowling and playing putt-putt golf, especially seeing as I didn’t like bowling or golf all that much to begin with.
7. They’re obsessed with talking about money. For someone who acted like he didn’t have a lot of money, he always talked about it. Not only was he always looking at the price of stuff he wasn’t buying, but he was always discussing the number he saw… in depth. “Can you believe this salad is $10? That’s almost criminal! Why would someone ever pay that much money?” Talking about money like that is tacky and annoying because it’s so unnecessary. If you don’t have the money for that item, simply leave and/or order something cheaper.
8. They’re always looking to be reimbursed. There’s nothing wrong with politely complaining when your meal at a restaurant is burnt or not what you ordered. People do that all the time. This guy, however, took it to the next level. He’d come up with reasons why his meal wasn’t meeting his McDonald’s standards just so he could get reimbursed/discounted. It was the most dramatic thing ever. He once complained for at least 10 minutes about his burger not coming with enough mayo… but he still ate it.
9. When they do splurge, it’s not on you. A cheap guy isn’t going to be cheap all the freakin’ time, and when he does decide to spend his money, it’ll be quite the purchase. The only problem is the splurge won’t be for you, it’ll be for himself! This guy never bought me flowers, rarely paid for my meals, and typically always made me drive. Still, he had the funds to buy some Yeezys, which cost hundreds of dollars. What??? 
10. They make you feel sort of unloved. OK, so I’m not saying that love is determined by how much money someone’s spending on you. Definitely not. However, it can be a little concerning when a guy doesn’t ever want to spend money on you and actually goes out of his way to avoid doing so—and not because he’s not able, but because he’s too freakin’ cheap to do so. A guy who loves you should want to treat you right and yes, that should sometimes mean spending money.