History Main / PerpetualPoverty

* ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics:'' The Chaotix, post-cosmic reboot. Even saying they don't have the money to keep the lights on would be generous, since they can't afford lights ''at all''. No matter what they do or who hires them, they barely break even. One case to find and rescue a princess does end with them getting paid, only to find the foreign currency they're paid in has an awful exchange rate, meaning all they can buy is one packet of crackers for Charmy.

* TeamRocket in ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' are ''constantly'' hungry, to the point that they'll offer [[ResetButton temporary loyalty]] to anyone who'll feed them, even Ash and the gang, yet they never seem to starve. They also very often complain about having no money. This is because they always blow their salary on HumongousMecha in their schemes to steal Pokémon. On occasion, they have taken regular jobs. But only until they have enough money to pull off whatever scheme they've been concocting. In one episode they even comment that they never keep any cash more than 24 hours. And in "Dues and Don'ts", it's revealed that the three had been unknowingly kicked out of Team Rocket at an unspecified point for never paying their dues and constantly taking out loans. [[GeorgeJetsonJobSecurity They're allowed back in by the end of the episode]] due to labor shortages resulting from members getting arrested, but a Team Rocket Delibird chasing after them to collect their debt becomes a RunningGag for the remainder of the Johto saga. It gets worse for them in ''Anime/PokemonJourneysTheSeries'' thanks to [[TheScrappy James' Morpeko]] and its [[BigEater bottomless stomach]].

** As of December 2008, [[spoiler:Torg's and Aylee's funds gained by the collapse of [=HeretiCorp=] were unfrozen. They are now millionaires (likely to be nullified by fraud, theft, or having to pay for collateral damage)]].

** Phoenix doesn't do much better. Every other client of his is wealthy to some degree and probably rewards him generously, so you'd ''think'' he'd be pretty well off. The problem is that [[RunningGag he always ends up being forced to foot the entire bill for the post-trial victory celebration]], so all of that money disappears pretty quickly. Especially since his friends tend to invite as many people as possible, seemingly ''because'' it's all on his dime (at the very least, they tend to use it as a selling point). [[Anime/AceAttorney The anime]] shows that he doesn't even have a car (or a license for that matter) and has to rely on taxis and cycling to get from place to place, while Edgeworth drifts up to the courthouse in his red sports car.

* Deconstructed in ''Manga/RamenFighterMiki'': Miki has little money, no TV or video games... because she is TheSlacker sponging out his mother. Kayahara-sensei tries to be a SaveOurStudents teacher who is so depressed that only manages to be TheDreaded among her students... her room is completely empty except for a calendar and a TV she won at a contest. Maybe she has a LimitedWardrobe because her jumpsuit is her only clothes.

* ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'': {{Exaggerated}}. Al even gets sent to Hell in one episode, but he's so thrilled to be away from his family that no matter what torture Satan enacts, it's still an improvement over his normal life. Naturally, Satan eventually figures out the one thing that could bring him eternal anguish: return him to his home and [[StatusQuoIsGod preserve the status quo]].
* ''Series/TheMonkees'': For the eponymoys characters, there's often a threat of running out of food or being kicked out of the beach house for non-payment of rent, but the status quo is maintained.

* Basically everyone in ''Series/TrailerParkBoys''. The main goal of Ricky, Julian, and Bubbles is to get enough money to retire (even though they don't actually work). Because they're criminals and not very bright, they never succeed. In the rare case that they actually do get a decent sum of money, [[AFoolAndHisNewMoneyAreSoonParted they will always lose it through one means or another]].
* ''Series/{{Cheers}}'': It's mentioned several times, especially in the Rebecca years, that the bar, despite an apparent steady flow of customers, barely makes any money. Though some of this is because it's hinted several times that Sam and Rebecca have no idea how to actually run a bar (Rebecca at least has {{Flanderization}} to blame for that - by the final season, she's supposed to be the manager, but figures lottery tickets are the only way to make a financial gain). Others instances also suggest the bar would probably be doing a lot better if Sam actually made Norm pay back some of that decades-long tab of his.
* ''Series/SanfordAndSon'' are always trying to scrape together money, but never actually end up bankrupt.
* ''Series/TheYoungOnes'' are prey to the oddest swings of fortune: they complain of hunger, but never run out of lentils (which, admittedly, only one of them actually likes); they wind up burning all their furniture for fuel at one point, but suffer an unlikely windfall shortly thereafter; and, indeed, they never get kicked out of their lodgings until the last episode of the series.

* Even more the case in ''Series/{{Farscape}}'', who for long periods had no higher goals other than finding a way to get [[DogFoodDiet enough to eat]] to stay alive and avoiding capture. They knock over a bank in the climax of the second season, however, which eases most (but not all) of their money troubles.
* Not quite as severe day to day (but with a worse overall situation given the population difference) was ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}'', which also included several episodes attempting to get enough food, water and fuel to keep surviving. The ships were constantly getting more damaged and even the clothes getting worn out, and even when they had enough supplies to get by it was still eking out a miserable existence in rooms the size of closets (if you were lucky enough to get a room -- very few did even among the senior crew, Admiral Adama being a notable exception) with nothing much to relieve the crushing monotony and basic nature of their lives, eating algae processed muck as a staple. It comes as no surprise they always made sure they had plenty of booze around. This was also the case, though less emphasized, in the original; at least two episodes revolved entirely around getting new seed, or supplies of fuel, and a segment of "War of the Gods" showed just how low living standards are for most of the Fleet's population.
* Practically every character living in the neighborhood in ''Series/ElChavoDelOcho'', with the possible exception of Doña Florinda, judging by her house, her solvency, and the little greasy restaurant she owns later in the series (Still, one could ask why, given her snobbishness, she couldn't move to a better place). Don Ramón being the most prominent example, so much it's a RunningGag having his landlord, Sr. Barriga, charge him from his [[ComicBookTime 14 months]] due of rent.
* ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' takes this to ridiculous extremes. Al even gets sent to Hell in one episode, but he's so thrilled to be away from his family that no matter what torture Satan enacts, it's still an improvement over his normal life. Naturally, Satan eventually figures out the one thing that could bring him eternal anguish: return him to his home and [[StatusQuoIsGod preserve the status quo]].
* Private detective Seiji Hayami from ''Series/CuteyHoneyTheLive'' fits this trope to a tee. He claims to be living in poverty as a way to infiltrate the underworld of Japan... whether or not that can be believed when you consider his luck with clients and general ineptness at his job is up to the viewer.
* Honestly, how would [[Series/MagnumPI Magnum]] survive without the good graces of Robin Masters and the loyalty, gullibility and infinite patience of his friends?
* A major theme of ''Series/TheHoneymooners''. Both Ralph and Norton have steady blue-collar jobs, but Ralph is constantly throwing away their wages on foolish [[GetRichQuickScheme get-rich-quick schemes]]. And there's an infamous episode where he quits, and the situation isn't rectified by the end of the show.
* Maddie in ''Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody''. She often mentions being poor, but goes to a Catholic school and always has new clothes. While not impoverished, one can understand why she may feel she is, since she's best friends with a hotel heiress, one who constantly remarks how poor she is, at that.
* The main family in ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''. There are several episodes throughout the show that emphasize how much they are struggling to make money and support their four dysfunctional children. The fifth and oldest goes through this as well, but subverted in that he constantly travels around trying to make ends meet. Justified as neither Hal or Lois earn very much (he's an average blue-collar office worker, and she works in a convenience store) and providing for 4 (then 5) children and sending Francis to military school costs a lot. The GrandFinale has Malcolm and Reese working as janitors after graduating high school and moving out (although Malcolm's attending Harvard at the same time), and Lois realizing in horror that she's pregnant with a ''sixth'' child just when they had two less mouths to feed. The parents frequently engaged in actively destructive behavior that kept them in poverty. The father admitted as they sabotaged Malcolm's attempts to get away to a school in Europe that the financial benefit of his being gone didn't matter to them as much as keeping him around to fix the problems that their own self-destructive behavior caused.
* The Malloys in ''Series/UnhappilyEverAfter''.
* Jim Rockford of ''Series/TheRockfordFiles'' fits the stereotype of the perpetually broke PrivateDetective. While he does have many successful cases, the various methods that his clients use to avoid paying him is one of the show's {{Running Gag}}s.
* ''Series/TenspeedAndBrownShoe'' made this trope a running gag. Quite a few episodes have ReformedCriminal E.L. slipping back into his old con artist ways to counteract this, often with results that either help or hinder solving the case of the week.
* For ''Series/TheMonkees'', there's often a threat of running out of food or being kicked out of the beach house for non-payment of rent, but the status quo is maintained.
* The main characters of ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' often complain about being short on money, the episode "My Fruit Cups" explores this in detail where JD says that they barely make more than a waiter and had to pick up shifts and work at a free clinic to make ends meet. This is a case of TruthInTelevision; any real-life doctor has spent their education and the early years of their careers as the hospital's ButtMonkey. When they finish their residencies and become fully autonomous doctors in the fourth season, money ceases to be as big an issue excepting big expenses. By the later season as they become part of the hospital leadership they are explicitly making good money as doctors do.
* From ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'':
** Penny is a waitress who is struggling to be an actress, but only getting in a few plays. She complains about being poor, yet somehow can afford living in a single bedroom apartment and keeping an impressive collection of clothes, given a new outfit of hers every episode. She also freeloads off her neighbors. However, it's strongly implied that she buys most of her clothes on credit, and that she's rarely up to date on her rent. When she quit waitressing and started work as a pharmaceutical representative this turned around for her. She's stated that, in a good month, she can make more than Leonard. But she does seem to have a lot of credit card debt.
** Stuart, a StarvingArtist who owns the [[LocalHangout comic book store the main male scientists frequent]]. How little profit the comic book store makes has become Stuart's RunningGag. Among other things, he's mentioned having to sleep in the store, going without meat, and having to shower at Leonard and Sheldon's apartment. Like Penny, he stops being financially insecure late in the series' run, in his case due to the sudden popularity towards his comic book store thanks to ''Creator/NeilGaiman'' making a random visit to the place and tweeting about it afterwards.
* The entire gang from ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia''. They've lost everything they own multiple times over, yet they are somehow keeping their bar afloat. Frank, however, is explicitly very well off and is stated or implied to have bailed Dennis and Dee out of trouble on more than one occasion, but he lives in relative squalor (by choice) and only lets any appreciable amounts of money go when it comes to funding whatever schemes the Gang wants to get up to.
* The main cast in ''Series/OnlyFoolsAndHorses'' seem to be just a few days/weeks from failing to pay rent and ending up evicted. The episodes with the poker game and the psychic reading one come to mind here, since it's mentioned in universe how everyone's completely skint. Somehow the Trotters still don't run out of money for food or other essential items, or get thrown out.
* [[TheSlacker Max]] on ''Series/HappyEndings'' switches between jobs frequently, though most of the time he doesn't have one at all. He [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial inadvertently]] reveals that Dave, who had moved in with him, was deceived into paying all of the rent while he believed he was only paying half. One episode revealed he did things like go to various support groups for the free food.
* Joey from ''Series/{{Friends}}'' would fall squarely into the trope if it wasn't for his friend and roommate, Chandler. Joey is an actor that goes from gig to gig, so the pay isn't very high or stable, while Chandler has a steady and well paying job in an office. Despite how desperate for money Joey is to get by, he refuses to accept money from Chandler directly, believing that he shouldn't borrow money from a friend. One episode makes a point that with Joey as a struggling actor, Rachel as a struggling waitress and Phoebe as a masseuse they don't have the disposable income Ross, Monica and Chandler have with more stable jobs, which becomes an issue as they like going to pricey restaurants to celebrate events.
* A recurring conflict in the sitcom ''Nikki''. Nikki and Dwight live off meagre salaries as a showgirl in Las Vegas' crappiest hotel and a semi-pro wrestler respectively, which isn't helped by bad choices in pursuit of stardom. Their situation gets so bad in the third season, that they briefly live in an RV.
* Many of the jokes on the ''Series/FlightOfTheConchords'' HBO series revolve around the band's permanently dire financial situation.

* One of the main plot points in ''Shameless'' (both the [[Series/ShamelessUS US]] and the [[Series/ShamelessUK UK]] versions) is that the Gallagher family is always living in poverty due to Frank, the alcoholic father, spending all their money on drugs and booze (and paying for the damages he does while drunk). If someone in the family manages to save some money, sooner or later Frank will find it and steal it.
* The López-Pérez family from ''Series/{{Vecinos}}'' are struck with this, not helped by Magdalena's attempts to cover it up, be it by lying about being the richest people in the neighborhood, refusing to pay for bought expensive goods, or ''stealing'' them.

* In ''LightNovel/ThePetGirlOfSakurasou'', Nanami's parents [[FantasyForbiddingFather objects to her aspiration to become a voice actress]], and refused to pay her way through it. So she has to pay her living expenses ''plus'' the cost of training by working several jobs-- and even so she was behind her [[BoardingSchool board]] and has to withstand hunger. Her moving into [[QuirkyHousehold Sakura Hall]] was [[ClingyJealousGirl partly]] motivated by this trope.

* TeamRocket in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' are ''constantly'' hungry, to the point that they'll offer [[ResetButton temporary loyalty]] to anyone who'll feed them, even Ash and the gang, yet they never seem to starve. They also very often complain about having no money. This is because they always blow their salary on HumongousMecha in their schemes to steal Pokemon. On occasion, they have taken regular jobs. But only until they have enough money to pull off whatever scheme they've been concocting. In one episode they even comment that they never keep any cash more than 24 hours. And in "Dues and Don'ts", it's revealed that the three had been unknowingly kicked out of Team Rocket at an unspecified point for never paying their dues and constantly taking out loans. [[GeorgeJetsonJobSecurity They're allowed back in by the end of the episode]] due to labor shortages resulting from members getting arrested, but a Team Rocket Delibird chasing after them to collect their debt becomes a RunningGag for the remainder of the Johto saga. It gets worse for them in ''Anime/PokemonJourneysTheSeries'' thanks to [[TheScrappy James' Morpeko]] and its [[BigEater bottomless stomach]].

* In ''Franchise/{{Noob}}':

** Detective Dick Gumshoe, although not a private eye, fits the trope and is constantly taking cuts to his police salary. At one point, he mentions that he can no longer afford '''ramen''', and he admits in the third game that he can't always pay his electric bill. It is hinted though, that Edgeworth rewards his moments of competence handsomely and would never let him become too broke.
** Phoenix doesn't do much better, to the point where it's a RunningGag he gets made to foot the bill for everyone else. Every other client of his is wealthy to some degree and probably rewards him generously. Although it's shown in the [[Anime/AceAttorney anime]] that he doesn't even have a car (or a license for that matter) and has to rely on taxis and cycling to get from place to place while Edgeworth drifts up to the courthouse in his red sports car.

** The Weasley family, whose wands, books and robes have been handed down through seven children in order to save money. Despite this, the Weasleys have no problem letting Harry and Hermione (both well-off) stay with them for all or part of the summer. They even manage to hold on to their Perpetual Poverty despite winning the lottery in ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban Prisoner of Azkaban]].'' Rather than buy new robes, they opted to blow the lot on a trip to Egypt. This could be simply because the Weasleys feel that a family trip is more important than material possessions, though; and it was the first time they'd seen Bill, who worked there as a curse-breaker, in some time. The Weasleys' situation never seems to improve, even after the five oldest children move out. Although once the Weasley twins receive seed money from Harry at the end of ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire Goblet of Fire]]'', they become wealthy in short order (and all the Weasley siblings become [[BadassFamily very successful in their chosen fields]], even if those fields don't always pay well.)

* Abel Nightroad in ''LightNovel/TrinityBlood'' generally gets very little to eat, to the point of sometimes subsisting on 13 scoops of sugar in his tea. Justified by the fact that he's a priest and has taken a vow of poverty. Presumably he takes that vow so seriously that he won't access Vatican expense accounts unless it's ''absolutely'' necessary.

* Akihisa Yoshii, the lead of ''LightNovel/BakaAndTestSummonTheBeasts'', lives in a state of constant financial woe. It's noted that he frequently prioritizes new video games over his food budget, so it's mostly self-inflicted. He has to eat salt and sugar water for energy, has no hot water, and divides up his meals into 1/64ths so he can survive. His situation improves somewhat after his big sister moves in, but not by much.

* In ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'', Touma often complains about being low on cash, since he has to pay for [[BigEater Index's]] meals and for the hospital bills of his battles.

* ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'' has Shizuo Heiwajima, who has been fired from several jobs as a result of his SuperStrength and (unfortunately) HairTriggerTemper. His current job has more toleration for his destructive tendencies, simply taking monetary compensation by deducting his pay (which is presumably a lot considering Shizuo gets angry so easily), yet Shizuo doesn't really seem strapped for cash at any rate. He doesn't even mind the deductions from his pay -- if anything, he's surprised that he's paid at all.

* Glenn in ''LightNovel/AkashicRecordsOfBastardMagicInstructor''. Despite receiving a decent salary as a magic teacher and not having to pay rent due to living in his foster parent's house, he still routinely finds himself short on money to even buy food (said foster parent refuses to help him on any other expenses). This is his own fault as he wastes money on things like gambling.

** Remus Lupin is always described as thin and shabby looking, because [[FantasticRacism no wizard will employ]] a werewolf and between transformations he's often ill or injured. Pottermore revealed that James and Lily financially supported Lupin before their deaths- so he wasn't all alone. Remus's father is also still alive and loves him, and Remus loves him too, who refuses to burden his father with his problems as an adult.

** Remus Lupin is always described as thin and shabby looking, because [[FantasticRacism no wizard will employ]] a werewolf and between transformations he's often ill or injured. Pottermore revealed that James and Lily financially supported Lupin before their deaths- so he wasn't all alone.

* TeamRocket in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' are ''constantly'' hungry, to the point that they'll offer [[ResetButton temporary loyalty]] to anyone who'll feed them, even Ash and the gang, yet they never seem to starve. They also very often complain about having no money. This is because they always blow their salary on HumongousMecha in their schemes to steal Pokemon. On occasion, they have taken regular jobs. But only until they have enough money to pull off whatever scheme they've been concocting. In one episode they even comment that they never keep any cash more than 24 hours. And in "Dues and Don'ts", it's revealed that the three had been unknowingly kicked out of Team Rocket at an unspecified point for never paying their dues and constantly taking out loans. [[GeorgeJetsonJobSecurity They're allowed back in by the end of the episode]] due to labor shortages resulting from members getting arrested, but a Team Rocket Delibird chasing after them to collect their debt becomes a RunningGag for the remainder of the Johto saga.

* In WebVideo/OutsideXbox's ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' campaign, the group never has any money because, for [[RuleOfFunny some godsforsaken reason]], they keep leaving it in the charge of Dob, the mildly unhinged half-orc bard, who does things like vastly overpay for goods and services, donate large sums to random animals, and throw all his money in lakes as a tribute to nature. Corazón, the rogue, used to crash-tackle him on a regular basis to stop this, but at this point Andy seems to have just given up and moved to trying to work around it.

* ''TabletopGame/TheDresdenFiles'': One disdavantage makes poverty a part of the character, not just a circumstance or temporary state, so fate stymies any chance of financial success. Since the game is written from an in-universe perspective, Harry Dresden comments that this explains why he is perpetually broke.

* In the ''Literature/DirkGently'' series, Dirk lives the stereotypically broke life of the PrivateDetective, all the more so because karma has apparently latched on to him and decided that no matter how many mysteries he successfully solves, none of his clients will ever pay him.

* Abel Nightroad in ''LightNovel/TrinityBlood'' generally gets very little to eat, to the point of sometimes subsisting on 13 scoops of sugar in his tea. Justified by the fact that he's a priest and has taken a vow of poverty.

* [[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas The Courier]] in ''Machinima/CouriersMindRiseOfNewVegas'' ends up constantly doing sidequests for the first four seasons of his adventures without getting paid for any of it. One of the first people who ''actually'' gives him money for his troubles, Ranger Milo, kind of screws him out of his first payment by stuffing his caps into ED-E, where they'll be stuck until he can git him to a workbench. Finally subverted in season seven, [[OneManArmy after practically turning the war with Fiends around single-handedly]], scavenging the Sunset Sarsaparilla bottling factory, and [[spoiler: looting the late Van Graff's energy weapon store]], The Courier and his [[BadassCrew companions]] have enough caps to walk into New Vegas like big shots, before being given their own luxury suite to serve as the team's base.

* ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroesIII'': Compared to the previous games, the trope is downplayed. Travis still live in the No More Heroes Motel, but with the help of Naomi he has installed a highly-advanced laboratory, where he can practice, enhance his current skills and earn new ones, even ''[[ReplayMode relive boss battles against the defeated assassins via a time machine]]''. He has likely embraced living a moderately modest lifestyle, especially in comparison to the assassination missions where his life is always at risk.

* In ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'', Ataru's parents are always struggling to make ends meet, even though Ataru's "wife" is a princess from a highly advanced alien planet (at one point, she casually pays an intergalactic taxi fare which amounts to the value of all the oil on planet Earth).
** Ataru's dad regularly worries about how many more payments he needs to make on the house. Not once does the word "foreclosure" ever come up, and at the end of the series he and his family still have their home (despite it being completely destroyed several times).

* In ''Anime/ZoidsNewCentury'', the protagonists have a huge mobile base shaped like a giant robot snail, from which they launch their HumongousMecha, but have trouble scraping together money for repairs. Most of the blame probably lies with Leena and her [[MacrossMissileMassacre attack spamming]] tactics. Paying for all of the rounds in just one [[CallingYourAttacks Weasel Unit Total Assault]] must be ''ridiculously'' expensive. This is pretty much said outright in one episode, where an off-the-books scuffle leads to the team withdrawing from the next day's tournament, as replacing enough ammo for Leena to compete with the team would put them below the break-even point even if they got top prize. Considering that even the ''design'' of the thing was ludicrous (MoreDakka to the point where Bit was wondering why she didn't stick a few nuclear missiles on it), all those weapons were probaby really expensive, too.
** Though their money woes become a bit odd as the show goes on because they keep winning Backdraft battles which frequently multiply the reward money to compensate for their overly destructive nature. If they're still barely making a profit after that one has to wonder how they could stay afloat at all otherwise.

* ''Manga/HellTeacherNube'': Meisuke "Nube-sensei" Nueno often doesn't have enough money even to eat properly, as he is often seen eating a single ramen for one (or two) days. He was outright haunted by the actual God of Poverty once.
** It's explained that he ''could'' make more riches, but that would involve leaving his work post as a teacher and/or doing either illegal or shady things, [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules which he refuses out of principles]]. As ''much'', he'll use once or twice his demon hand to cheat at the Pachinko games, where his students can't see him.
*** Lampshaded by the principal in one episode, when he asked Nube where all his salary went.

* In ''Manga/ExcelSaga'', various individuals fit this trope since the manga was poking fun at the recession Japan was going through. But the heroines in particular are always starving since they cannot hold down a temp job. However, their "emergency food ration" survives to the last episode.
** [[spoiler:This trend is broken in the manga after Hyatt and Elgala become executives of ILL (Il Palazzo's current and most successful world conquest vehicle). Menchi (the aforementioned ration) gains quite a bit of weight because of this.]]
*** This development led to [[spoiler:brief poverty for Dr. Kabapu and his employees as Il Palazzo revealed his embezzlement and general corruption, but he bounced right back since his secretary Momochi managed to hide most of the money even from himself.]]

** This is actually a depressing example of TruthInTelevision--some people fill their bellies with water when they don't have anything to eat. Of course, this being ''[[SliceOfLife Hidamari]] [[RuleOfCute Sketch]]'', it's more funny and cute than it is sad, especially when Yuno offers to split her lunch, despite losing some of the bread she brought as charcoal erasers to Miyako's hunger.

* TeamRocket in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' are ''constantly'' hungry, to the point that they'll offer [[ResetButton temporary loyalty]] to anyone who'll feed them, even Ash and the gang, yet they never seem to starve. They also very often complain about having no money. This is because they always blow their salary on HumongousMecha in their schemes to steal Pokemon.
** On occasion, they have taken regular jobs. But only until they have enough money to pull off whatever scheme they've been concocting.
** In one episode they even comment that they never keep any cash more than 24 hours.
** In "Dues and Don'ts", it's revealed that the three had been unknowingly kicked out of Team Rocket at an unspecified point for never paying their dues and constantly taking out loans. [[GeorgeJetsonJobSecurity They're allowed back in by the end of the episode]] due to labor shortages resulting from members getting arrested, but a Team Rocket Delibird chasing after them to collect their debt becomes a RunningGag for the remainder of the Johto saga.

** Of course, they bought those train tickets before losing their money at the casino. And Elie always wins said money back at every casino (she never even loses once in the manga). There are a couple chapters dedicated to looking for someone to sponsor them, or ways to raise funds. And on occasion you'll catch them being self-sufficient.

* Pretty much the entire premise of the ''Manga/LuckyStar'' spinoff ''Miyakawa-ke no Kuufuku'': the titular sisters are perpetually in poverty because of {{Otaku}} older sister Hinata's constant spending and wasteful habits. The end credits song even has them singing about how poor they are.
** Said ending song is [[RunningGag repeatedly cut off]] during the opening few episodes because [[NoBudget Hinata couldn't pay the production company to finish it.]]

** In the ComicBook/MarvelNOW ''Avengers'' relaunch, [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]] lures ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, ComicBook/TheFalcon, and Spidey back to the team by each offering them something. His offers are respectively: beer, birdseed (sarcastically), and in Peter's case, money. [[MemeticMutation Peter is then shown dramatically hugging Tony]] while sighing "Oh, thank God."

* In Creator/JohnKovalic's ''Webcomic/DorkTower'', Matt and his friends are always short on funds for their hobbies and toys (not to mention the rent), yet somehow manage to stay in the same apartment and drive a car for years.

*** Italian stories also provide justifications on just why his creditors are still willing to do business with him and haven't sued him off everything he owns: on one hand, Donald is known to be friends with the local UnscrupulousHero Paperinik (alias ''himself''), so they don't ''usually'' cross certain lines out of fear of him coming after them (as it actually happened in some stories, as Donald ''does'' use his alter ego to settle scores, and being forced to sign contracts saying he'll pay them tenfold once he inherits from Scrooge or them outright laying siege to his house and devastating his garden is enough for him to grab the costume); on the other hand, whenever Donald brings home some riches he ''immediately'' pays off his tab (that's a frequent reason for him not keeping his riches), so they know they ''will'' get the money... Someday.

** Harry Dresden is always broke in the first several books. Magic doesn't pay well. Even later on, when he gets a job with the [[spoiler: Wardens]] that makes a decent amount of money, he stays in the same grotty little apartment and keeps the same run-down car - both because he's still far from rich, and because magic's tendency to mess with technology means that he doesn't get along too well with ''electricity'' (e.g.: icebox rather than freezer) much less anything more complex. (And because his landlady is remarkably understanding about things like zombies trying to break down his doors, and because Harry's not that big on change.)
*** It's never outright stated, but it seems that Harry plows down a pretty big chunk of his disposable income into paraphernalia for his magical research. For example, he has significant amounts of uranium dust and rhino horn lying around his lab (neither of which is exactly cheap, even if depleted uranium is legal and pretty harmless), paid someone to forge a ten-feet-in-diameter circle of copper and laid it into his lab floor (unless he did it himself, but that seems unlikely), is always improving his focus items (over the course of fifteen books, he's gone from one kinetic battery ring to ''seventy-seven'' kinetic batteries integrated into his staff), and at one point constructed an ''accurate scale model of Chicago'' to make it easier to track things.

** The Weasley family, whose wands, books and robes have been handed down through seven children in order to save money. Despite this, the Weasleys have no problem letting Harry and Hermione (both well-off) stay with them for all or part of the summer. They even manage to hold on to their Perpetual Poverty despite winning the lottery in ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban Prisoner of Azkaban]].'' Rather than buy new robes, they opted to blow the lot on a trip to Egypt. This could be simply because the Weasleys feel that a family trip is more important than material possessions, though; and it was the first time they'd seen Bill, who worked there as a curse-breaker, in some time.
*** The Weasleys' situation never seems to improve, even after the five oldest children move out. Although once the Weasley twins receive seed money from Harry at the end of ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire Goblet of Fire]],'' they become wealthy in short order (and all the Weasley siblings become [[BadassFamily very successful in their chosen fields]], even if those fields don't always pay well.)

** And likewise, of course, its original, ''Series/SteptoeAndSon''.

* ''Series/{{Firefly}}'''s crew is usually struggling to make ends meet, even keep their ship flying, on top of their higher goals. At one point, Mal actually manages to sell something without shenanigans going down... and then you see the laser sight on his buyer's forehead...

* Not quite as severe day to day (but with a worse overall situation given the population difference) was ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}'', which also included several episodes attempting to get enough food, water and fuel to keep surviving. The ships were constantly getting more damaged and even the clothes getting worn out, and even when they had enough supplies to get by it was still eking out a miserable existence in rooms the size of closets (if you were lucky enough to get a room -- very few did even among the senior crew, Admiral Adama being a notable exception) with nothing much to relieve the crushing monotony and basic nature of their lives, eating algae processed muck as a staple. It comes as no surprise they always made sure they had plenty of booze around.
** This was also the case, though less emphasized, in the original; at least two episodes revolved entirely around getting new seed, or supplies of fuel, and a segment of "War of the Gods" showed just how low living standards are for most of the Fleet's population.
* Practically every character living in the neighborhood in ''Series/ElChavoDelOcho'', with the possible exception of Doña Florinda, judging by her house, her solvency, and the little greasy restaurant she owns later in the series (Still, one could ask why, given her snobbishness, she couldn't move to a better place).
** Don Ramón being the most prominent example, so much it's a RunningGag having his landlord, Sr. Barriga, charge him from his [[ComicBookTime 14 months]] due of rent.
* ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' takes this to ridiculous extremes.
** Justified by the Bundy Curse, which keeps Al alive only to suffer. No, really.
*** Al even gets sent to Hell in one episode, but he's so thrilled to be away from his family that no matter what torture Satan enacts, it's still an improvement over his normal life. Naturally, Satan eventually figures out the one thing that could bring him eternal anguish: return him to his home and [[StatusQuoIsGod preserve the status quo]].

* Maddie in ''Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody''. She often mentions being poor, but goes to a Catholic school and always has new clothes.
** While not impoverished, one can understand why she may feel she is, since she's best friends with a hotel heiress, one who constantly remarks how poor she is, at that.
* The main family in ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''. There are several episodes throughout the show that emphasize how much they are struggling to make money and support their four dysfunctional children. The fifth and oldest goes through this as well, but subverted in that he constantly travels around trying to make ends meet. Justified as neither Hal or Lois earn very much (he's an average blue-collar office worker, and she works in a convenience store) and providing for 4 (then 5) children and sending Francis to military school costs a lot. The GrandFinale has Malcolm and Reese working as janitors after graduating high school and moving out (although Malcolm's attending Harvard at the same time), and Lois realizing in horror that she's pregnant with a ''sixth'' child just when they had two less mouths to feed.
** The parents frequently engaged in actively destructive behavior that kept them in poverty. The father admitted as they sabotaged Malcolm's attempts to get away to a school in Europe that the financial benefit of his being gone didn't matter to them as much as keeping him around to fix the problems that their own self-destructive behavior caused.

** Creator/StephenJCannell's followup series ''Series/TenspeedAndBrownShoe'' also made this trope a running gag. Quite a few episodes have ReformedCriminal E.L. slipping back into his old con artist ways to counteract this, often with results that either help or hinder solving the case of the week.

* The main cast in ''Series/OnlyFoolsAndHorses'' seem to be just a few days/weeks from failing to pay rent and ending up evicted. The episodes with the poker game and the psychic reading one come to mind here, since it's mentioned in universe how everyone's pretty much completely skint. Somehow the Trotters still don't run out of money for food or other essential items, or get thrown out.

* Joey from ''Series/{{Friends}}'' would fall squarely into the trope if it wasn't for his friend and roommate, Chandler. Joey is an actor that goes from gig to gig, so the pay isn't very high or stable, while Chandler has a steady and well paying job in an office. Despite how desperate for money Joey is to get by, he refuses to accept money from Chandler directly, believing that he shouldn't borrow money from a friend.
** One episode makes a point that with Joey as a struggling actor, Rachel as a struggling waitress and Phoebe as a masseuse they don't have the disposable income Ross, Monica and Chandler have with more stable jobs, which becomes an issue as they like going to pricey restaurants to celebrate events.

* ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'' has this as a rapidly increasing problem for [[MadScientist Geniuses]]: mad science is expensive, time-consuming and difficult to make a profit on. One of the few remaining advantages [[AncientConspiracy Lemuria]] has is a lot of money and weird science supplies.
** Fortunately for most Geniuses, there are workarounds: a Merit that makes mad science cheaper, working in sane technical fields or education, ''building giant robots'' and ''robbing banks with them''...

* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasyRoleplay'' 4th edition [[EnforcedTrope enforces this trope]]: When characters return from an adventure, they're first allowed to sell off any loot they found and buy whatever items they can get with the money. Next, they can perform the 'banking' endeavour to stash away whatever is left (be it in an actual bank or by burying it, leaving it with a trusted friend, or similar). Any money not spent or banked is automatically lost before the start of the next adventure, with the players expected to come up with a roleplaying reason for how it was spent (paying down debts, sent back to the family, wasted on wine, women and amateur theatre, etc). If given a week, characters are allowed to make skill rolls to earn money using their class skill, but for the most part it's little more than a cover for living expenses unless you're of a ''very'' high social status. This pretty much ensures that financial incentives will be able to drag the players back on the road.

* Dante from ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' is hinted to be this. He struggles to keep the lights on and water flowing in his office because he rarely makes money from his demon hunting business, either due to lack of clients; being too nice to charge people in serious trouble; or, [[Anime/DevilMayCryTheAnimatedSeries as shown in the anime]] (see the Anime and Manga section above), because [[DestructiveSaviour the cost of the damage he causes cancels out his payment]]. Then there was [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening that one time]] he accidentally leveled his own house with a sneeze... He's also [[MoneyDumb terrible with money]] and remains in debt to Lady and Morrison due to constantly borrowing from them and, according to WordOfGod as well as a radio drama tie-in for the anime, [[BagOfSpilling he ends up selling most of his Devil Arms and guns between games in order to pay rent]] and buy new {{Badass Longcoat}}s. ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' shows us perhaps the absolute nadir of Dante's financial woes, wherein he can't even pay the water and electric bills and has to discuss his latest job from Morrison in complete darkness.

* Travis Touchdown, at least at the beginning of ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes'', is broke and lives in a hotel room, despite owning a [[CoolBike gigantic X-Wing styled motorscooter]], an insane amount of anime and wresting merchandise, and buying a [[LaserBlade beam katana]] from Ebay. Possibly the reason he's broke is that he [[{{Otaku}} spends all of his money on this stuff]].
** It goes so far as to his choice of ''pet'' -- look up the market price for Scottish Fold kittens one of these days.
** And in [[VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes2DesperateStruggle the sequel]] it's revealed that at one point [[spoiler:he commissioned a ''full scale and fully functional replica of a HumongousMecha from one of his favorite animes'']]. Granted, it turned out to be ''useful'' but still...

*** Reimu's main problem is that it appears to others that she does her job wrong. Her job description is youkai extermination, and lots of humans aren't particularly happy that she just befriends them instead, meaning she gets less donations than she might like. Of course, lots of humans [[TheMasquerade aren't aware of the fact]] that they live in a FantasticNatureReserve and that Reimu is essentially the reserve's warden, either. Meaning her actual job isn't to exterminate youkai, but just to quell them if they get too rowdy.

* ''VideoGame/GabrielKnight'' is shown as being rather poor -- at least in the first game; where he pretty much sells a family heirloom to make $100 and get past a specific plot point. He does manage to afford flights to Germany, West Africa, and back mostly because he charged them all to Mosley's credit card. In the sequel, a book deal [[spoiler: and some loot from the Voodoo syndicate base]] has given him the means to move to Germany and live in the family castle.
* ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'': Garrett, despite looting ludicrous amounts of gold, trinkets, and artifacts, seems to still be dirt poor and is constantly worried about paying the rent. His fence must be stiffing him.

** Phoenix doesn't do much better, to the point where it's a RunningGag he gets made to foot the bill for everyone else. Then again, pretty much every other client of his is wealthy to some degree and probably rewards him generously. Although it's shown in the [[Anime/AceAttorney anime]] that he doesn't even have a car (or a license for that matter) and has to rely on taxis and cycling to get from place to place while Edgeworth drifts up to the courthouse in his red sports car.
** The ''whole village'' of Kurain, once prosperous and in high regard across the country, seems to suffer from this nowadays, to the point of the Fey family keeping a "sacred" scroll entitled "Hundred-and-X ways to save money." ("X" because the list is continuously expanding.) It explains how Maya, the daughter of the Master and thus pretty much the ''Princess'' of the village, is addicted to junk food.

* In ''Franchise/{{Noob}}'', the player behind Gaea and the Noob guild itself. Gaea has a few schemes going on to make extra money, but she loops back into being a StarvingStudent between her investements into the MMORPG everyone is playing and CrackIsCheaper (just check out that bookcase in her living room). The Noob guild is in that situation partly due to Gaea (who is TheScrooge in-game) always finding a excuse to not contribute to its common fund.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' are repeatedly said to be always strapped for cash and having to use sub-standard food. They also have a giant house, two cars, and always seem to have money in their savings for Homer to spend to get the family into trouble. There have also been instances where Marge has been shown to secretly be thrifty so that when Homer does do something stupid, they can bail him out. She has also been shown to secretly buy regular meat instead of Veggie Meat for Lisa and trick her into eating it, as the Veggie Meat is more expensive.

* Chester [=McBadbat=] on ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddparents'' is shown to live in a trailer, has to reuse paper plates, and has mentioned eating out of the garbage. Despite this, he seems to afford a few frivolities.
** It seems most of his money goes to his dentist who in turn gives him free passes to the local skateboard grounds where he injures his teeth severely.

* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' shows the family occasionally cutting back on spending and have at least lost their house to their debt once (Peter had gone through several jobs before finally landing a stable job as a shipping clerk at a brewery, which doesn't pay too well), but the family is seen with two cars, a nice sized house with a backyard and four bedrooms, despite whatever money problems that hound them from time to time. While Peter's job doesn't pay a lot, it's implied that Lois may borrow money from her rich parents whenever things get tough.
** Earlier episodes established that the house was paid off. The only reason they nearly lost it was because Peter had put it up as collateral when he bought the fishing boat.

** H-B's WesternAnimation/TopCat uses conniving and hucksterism to keep his gang fed in an otherwise impoverished organization.

* ''WesternAnimation/CountDuckula'' is the quintessential ImpoverishedPatrician. A teleporting castle and a title of nobility is all he has left. Pretty much every episode is dedicated to whatever scatter-brained GetRichQuickScheme he comes up with that's [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption doomed to crash and burn]].

* ''TabletopGame/TheDresdenFiles'' had a disdavantage that meant poverty was part of you, not just a circumstance os temporary state. If financial sucess loamed fate would prevent it. Since the games i writeen as though Harry Dresden is writting it and leaving comments in the margins he comments that this explains why he is perpetually broke.