Keke Palmer shares her top financial habit— ‘If I have $1 million in my pocket, my rent is going to be $1,500'

Yahoo

20-05-2025

Palmer, a multi-hyphenate entertainer and personality in the limelight since she was a child, shares her philosophy on saving and frugality.
Keke Palmer is letting us all know how she manages to keep her pockets lined with money and it's not what you think. Sure, she stays booked and busy—Palmer is an actor, podcaster, singer, author, etc.—but she also makes sure to live waaaaay beneath her means, a lesson she learned from her parents, according to CNBC.
'I live under my means. I think it's incredibly important. If I have $1 million in my pocket, my rent is going to be $1,500 — that's how underneath my means I'm talking. My car note is going to be $340. I don't need a [Bentley] Bentayga, I'll ride in a Lexus,' said Palmer. Now, living beneath her means is one thing, but she needs to spill the tea on where she found a place to live for $1,500. I'm guessing she's probably a homeowner, several times over, but still, $1,500/month sounds beautiful. Either way, that lesson in saving and being responsible with money is an important one.
Palmer has been in the public eye making money for years and if there's one story we've heard over and over, it's that of a young Hollywood darling who ends up broke after the opportunities dry up and money mismanagement comes into play. That doesn't seem to be Palmer's problem, though, another lesson she picked up from her parents.
'I learned from my parents very early on because they knew their limitations with money and finances. I believe in saving and frugality … I don't play around with that,' shared the 31-year-old actor who taught us all how to spell 'pulchritude' in her breakthrough role as Akeelah Anderson in 2006's 'Akeelah and the Bee.' She also shares her money with her parents in a nod to all of the sacrifices they made for her to become who she is today.
'My dad gave up his pension for me to have an opportunity for my dreams. My mom gave up everything so she could travel with me. What's mine is theirs and what's theirs is mine … I would sacrifice 20 more years of my life working in this industry so that I can provide and we can have the business we have today.'
While the old rules of thumb for saving and expenses aren't quite holding up how they used to — the 50/30/20 rule; 50 percent for household expenses, 30 percent for saving, and 20 percent for living — Palmer's methodology of living below her means would likely work for everybody, which means learning and reading up about how to save based on where you are in life and where you want to go…another lesson Palmer said she got right at home.
'Be curious about that kind of stuff, because you don't want to do things based off of survival. You want to do them out of choice. That's something that my mom and my dad taught me very early on.'
More must-reads:
President Trump signs Take It Down Act, addressing nonconsensual deepfakes. What is it?
Denzel Washington receives surprise honorary Palme d'Or at Cannes premiere for 'Highest 2 Lowest'
What inspired Tina Knowles to write 'Matriarch'? Beyoncé and Solange's future grandbabies: 'My kids never met my mom'