Our Debt Free Family

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Pre-Baby Debt Update

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debt update

We have less than two weeks before our baby arrives and things are falling into place. As mentioned in some of our recent posts, the main focus for us has been saving and preparing for the new arrival. That doesn’t mean we’ve stopped paying off debt by any means, but it hasn’t been a hyper-focus of ours in a few months. We are preparing to shift our focus back to paying off debt. Before we do, here’s a quick snapshot of where we stand.

Where We Stand

This year has brought some MAJOR changes for our family. First, my husband started pursuing a new career. He is freelance writing for several websites and is doing a phenomenal job! (You can catch some of his posts over on Clever Dude). He has quickly caught up to my salary with what he is able to produce each month with his writing, which is fantastic. This takes a lot of the financial burden off of us and will make it easier to pay off debts and reach our goals.

Speaking of debts, it has been a while since I provided a numbers update. Here’s where we stand:

  • Credit cards: $451 – This will be paid off in full soon.
  • Collections: $1,213 – We are working on getting these removed.
  • Car loans: $16,398
  • Student loans: $24,185

We are continuing to take the federal student loan payment break during this time. Once payments resume, we will attempt to tackle that debt in a similar way that we plan to pay off the car (see below).

Plans for the Coming Months

There are some things changing in our finances over the next few months. Of course, we are having a baby. So, household expenses may be a bit higher than they have in the past. Additionally, we will need to add our little one to the health insurance. We are also looking into purchasing life insurance just in case something was to happen to one of us.

On top of those additional expenses, our rent is also going up by $110 per month. This is to renew it another year. If we were to renew for two years, it would go up another $140. Neither of us wanted to make a two-year commitment to renting here, so we are going with the one-year renewal. So, our rent is going from $1,495 to $1,605 (plus the $25 pet rent). Hopefully, within a year, we will have some savings and enough debt paid down to look at buying a home.

Our car payment is another big monthly expense we are hoping to trim down. The car still has under 75,000 miles and we will drive it for several years. However, the $488 monthly payment can be crippling. So, we are hoping that my hubby’s additional income will help us pay it off sooner. We hope to double the monthly payment and get it paid off within the next year or so.

Outside of that, we are going to continue trucking along our financial journey with our new baby. We can’t wait to keep you updated on our progress!

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Slow Progress is Better Than No Progress

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slow progress

When it comes to our debt freedom goals we are pretty far off from where we’d thought we would be a few years ago. Of course, life has thrown some unexpected curve balls our way. We moved to Atlanta for a job that didn’t quite work out and then the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the entire world. Through it all, we have been able to maintain at least the minimum payments on everything and have avoided taking on new debts altogether. So, slow progress is better than no progress, right?

Our Slow Progress

If you read last month’s debt freedom update, not much has changed. We’ve made a payment on each of our accounts to stay current but there are not any huge changes. In June, we will make a little bit more money, but most of that will be stashed away in savings as we prepare for our firstborn child to arrive at the end of the summer. There are only 10 short weeks before she makes her appearance!

While the slow progress can be a bummer at times when we consider where we wanted to be by now, there are times we sit back and think to ourselves, “Wow, look how far we’ve come.” Just a little over four years ago we were living in a motel. We were trying to pay off rental debts to get into an apartment. Things looked pretty bleak and we were taking on new debt just to improve our lives.

Flash forward to now when the only significant debt we hold is our car and my student loans. We’ve paid off accounts in full, moved four times (once four hours away to a different state). Debt or no debt, we love the lives we are beginning to create for ourselves.

A Few Motivational Thoughts

Sometimes this slow progress can be discouraging. However, slow progress is better than making no progress at all. Or worse, we could be going backward. Thankfully, we are trucking forward. Here are a few reasons even slow progress is a reason to pat yourself on the back.

  1. Slow progress doesn’t mean you are failing. Progress is progress. You are not failing just because you are moving slower than the person to the left or right (or how fast you think you should be going).
  2. It adds up over time. As mentioned above, my husband and I have come a long way. We were essentially homeless living in a motel a little over four years ago. Every financial change we’ve made has been for the better, even if the progress has been slow for us.
  3. Slower progression allows you to adapt to more things. If there’s anything I can attest to it is that we’ve both become adaptable to changes as they come. We have a tight week financially? No problem! I’ll just trim the grocery budget. We’ve learned to roll with the punches.
  4. You become resilient. Slow progress will make you more resilient. You will learn not everything is the end of the world and that, eventually, you’ll reach the goals you have your sights set on.
  5. It teaches you not the give up. Most importantly, slow progress teaches you to keep pushing forward. Things don’t always work out according to plan and that’s okay!

Readers, how do you monitor your debt freedom progress? Share your methods in the comments!

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Debt Update: May 2021

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debt update

If you are a regular follower of Our Debt Free Family you may have noticed there hasn’t been a hard numbers debt update from us in a while. Honestly, with COVID-19 last year, moving, and then finding out we are expecting a child, our debt progress hasn’t been front-and-center like it used to be. However, that doesn’t mean we haven’t still been making progress.

Debt Update: Where We Stand

As of May 2021, we are holding about $42,000 in total debt. Here is the breakdown…

  • $525 credit card debt
  • $621 in collections
  • $24,185 student loans
  • $16,842 car loan

Considering where we started just a couple of years ago, we have paid off more than $20,000 in debt. That is great progress, but we thought we’d be so much farther along by now. Last year, my husband lost his job and then switched careers. I have been taking advantage of the break from student loan payments, for now, trying to save for our new baby (and praying for student loan forgiveness to pass). We’ve been paying minimums on everything else just trying to get caught up from last year and the move.

All in all, that’s okay for us. We’ve stayed afloat and that’s more than a lot of Americans can say after the cards that were dealt to many people in 2020. For that, I am thankful.

Goals

So, what’s next for us?

We certainly want to shift our focus back towards paying off more debt. Of course, having the debt paid off means more cash flow month-to-month. More specifically, we’d like to pay off the car loan and free up the $488 per month we make in payments there. With the new arrival coming, our main goals have been focused on saving money and preparing though.

Some of our main goals right now include having a substantial emergency fund stashed away before the baby arrives, paying off all the credit card debt, nixing the new phone upgrades in September to save money on our bills, stocking up on items for the baby and food so we have lower month-to-month expenses when she arrives, and creating a nice space here in our home. We haven’t gotten much of a chance to settle in yet over the past few months. We are still in need of a dresser for our room, for instance. My husband needs a desk (so we don’t have to share one) and we need a frame for our bed.

Once all of those things are properly tackled, we are going to focus on doubling up on our car payment every month to hack away at that quicker. If we are successful, it should help us have it paid off within a year (a full two years early). Then we will shift our focus to getting the rest of our finances in order to hopefully buy our own home and save a good chunk of the $1,520 in rent we pay each month.

While we haven’t made the progress we were hoping for by now, the debt freedom journey is always humbling. You have to go with the flow and shift your focus as needed.

Readers, how have your goals changed during your debt-free journies? 

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How to Tell If You Are Suffering From Burnout

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burnout

Here lately I’ve been feeling pretty burnt out. I’m burnt out on work. I am feeling burnt out with friendships and daily activities. All in all, I am really feeling the need to unplug, take a step back, and just breathe. However, I always find myself feeling guilty for taking that time off. I should be working, doing this and that. That guilt got me thinking about how burnout affects other parts of my life and how to identify when that break is needed.

Signs of Burnout

Signs of burnout can be different for everyone, but there are some common symptoms that many people experience. According to Psychology Today, if you are feeling any of these things you may be experiencing burnout on some level:

Physical/Emotional Exhaustion

  • Anger
  • Anxiety
  • Chronic fatigue
  • Depression
  • Increased illness due to weakened immune system
  • Insomnia
  • Impaired concentration
  • Loss of appetite
  • Physical symptoms, such as chest pains, heart palpitations, and headache

Cynicism/Detachment

  • Feelings of detachment from others
  • Loss of enjoyment in things you usually love
  • Negative self-talk or pessimism
  • Self-isolation

Lack of Accomplishment Due to Burnout

  • Feelings of apathy
  • Irritability
  • Lack of productivity
  • Poor performance

Avoiding Burnout

Burnout is not unavoidable. In fact, there are a number of things you can do to make sure you don’t run yourself ragged (I just haven’t been doing them). Mommy Thrives is a mom blog that has covered some great ways to avoid burnout that you should try and implement in your day-to-day life. Here’s a quick list…

  • Change up your routine
  • Keep up with self-care
  • Schedule days where you are not working at all (or doing anything else for that matter)
  • Start a gratitude journal

How Burnout is Affecting Me

Like I said, great ideas, but I have not been doing any of that. I’ve been feeling a bit drained recently and I began thinking about the last time I truly took time off for myself. When you look at the list above, I ticked just about every box. Getting things done has been difficult. Some days it is hard to focus on all of the things that need to be done. It impacts my mood, my productivity, and, at times, it has an effect on our finances too.

More recently, I have had a lot of trouble sleeping, which was the biggest sign for me. Normally, I sleep pretty well and get around eight hours per night. Over the last few weeks, however, I have been waking up multiple times throughout the night. The sleep tracker on my smartwatch says I average between 30 and 50 minutes of deep sleep per night (Woah!). Now, this lack of sleep could be contributing to the rest of my symptoms, but when it comes down to it, I am burnt out. Period.

My mom always says, “The only thing you have to get done today is what you get done today.” I laugh when she says this because I think of my to-do list, which is normally about a mile long. But, really, how do you start to recover from burnout? What do you need to do to climb out of it and come back to your regular duties actually feeling refreshed?

Steps to Recover

Healthline wrote a great blog post about burnout and how you might be able to best recover if you hit that wall as I have.  Some of the suggestions include things like being firm about your boundaries and leaving work at work (two things I always struggle with). The blog also talked quite a bit about being in-tune with your own personal needs. On your days off, clear out your schedule and just relax. I’ll be honest, on my days off I’m usually running around checking even more things off my to-do list.

The Mommy Thrives blog mentioned mental health days and going on a hike. Hiking is one of my favorite things to do and I have not been on a hike since August 2019 (Yikes!). When it boils down to it, I’m not taking my downtime to truly tune into my personal needs or do anything I really enjoy. Instead, I’m thinking about all the things I could be doing.

Well, thankfully, I have a supportive husband who has seen this burnout coming from a mile away. He has been pushing me to do more things I enjoy and things to help my stress levels. I have started taking two yoga classes a week (which has been amazing) and in about a month we will both be unplugging for a long weekend at the beach. We never got our honeymoon and still actually have an Airbnb gift card from our wedding two years ago, so we will get one night free. While I’ll still have a month of work to do in the midst of this burnout, it is so nice to know I have these things to look forward to, to help me re-center.

Readers, how have you been able to recover from burnout in your own life? What tips do you have?

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Update: Settling Into Our New Home

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new home

There has not been a lot of time to stop and reflect on financial or life updates for the blog recently. We have been running around like crazy for about four weeks now preparing for a move, moving, and settling in. Finally, we are starting to have what resembles home and a new routine for our family. Here’s how we are settling into our new home.

Goodbye, Atlanta!

new home

I met some truly fantastic people in Atlanta, but living there was not good for my mental health, my marriage, or my relationships with others. My husband and I started looking at homes to rent closer to our original homes again (back to North Carolina). A few weeks into our search, we decided we would probably wait until March to move so that we could be financially prepared. No more going into debt just to improve our immediate circumstances, right?

Well, the universe had different things planned.

Our tiny 450-square foot apartment got bed bugs (again – the second time in two years). Thinking about having to deal with an exterminator coming in, finding a place to go during COVID, and the multitude of other concerns on my plate, I was pretty close to having a mental breakdown. I didn’t even want to be in Atlanta anymore, why were we fighting so hard to stay?

A few things crossed my mind. “Just abandon the lease, there are bed bugs in the apartment.” “We can sleep on an air mattress for a few weeks.” “We have to call the landlord.” “Oh, God, we are in no way financially prepared for this right now.”

Help From Mom

I started talking to my mom about what was going on. She was there throughout the first ordeal with bed bugs. I just needed to vent to someone, but she offered to help pay for us to move out immediately. Who could turn that down? So, we started looking for a new home as if “money weren’t an issue,” as mom said.

Within a couple of days, we found a cute three-bedroom and two-bath house close to where my husband and I grew up. We were approved within a couple of hours of applying and mom helped with all of the deposits, moving truck, and other moving essentials. Just like that, our lives completely changed (and for the better).

The move, in general, has been an immediate improvement in the quality of life for us. We are happier, there is more space, we can see people we love. More importantly, we have so many things to keep us busy.

Shopping and Gifts

We did not bring a single piece of furniture from our apartment in Atlanta. There was no use in risking us bringing bed bugs into our new home. So, instead, we started saving every penny we could to get some small essential things (i.e. a cheaper mattress, living furniture, new towels, etc). We have furnished the house (pretty much) for under $2,000 out of pocket.

Amazon has some great buys as far as mattresses go. We grabbed our 10″ mattress for about $300. My grandmother had a box spring she did not need that we got for free. We also got a side table for the bedroom for free. The living room furniture took some more digging. We spent $300 on a futon and ottoman for the living space and used our old coffee table, TV stand, and television.

new home

A family friend came by with a glass dining table, four chairs, and two barstools. These were a gift. They need to be reupholstered, but that will only cost about $100 to $120 in total. That isn’t too bad for a dining set and stools. Then, last, but not least, my mom bought us a refurbished washer and dryer set ($750 with delivery and installation).

new home

Today, a new desk arrived for my new office space ($65 on Amazon). A new office chair will arrive within a couple of weeks. By February, a beautiful sectional my grandmother purchased as a gift will be here.

Making This Our ‘New Normal’

Overall, as I sit curled up on my futon which will eventually be in my spare room, I can’t help but think about how very blessed we have been. There is no doubt this year has been hard for everyone, but I am feeling hopeful. It is hard to settle into this space when it feels like there is so much to do – so much to straighten up, so much to organize, so much to decorate – but it is already home.

In the mornings, we open the back door and the dog goes into our new backyard. We have a cup of coffee together, then I go into my make-shift office (photo for the laughs).

new home

We are beginning to have what we never did in Atlanta: a routine. Eventually, this little place will fill up with things that depict our character. Memories will flood the hallways and we will make a wonderful life here. For now, there is still a little bit of settling to be done.

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The Things We Do For Family

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things we do for family

In the last personal update on the blog I talked about taking breaks and how important that is. I took a weekend off back in July and it was great. Since then, life has been way more hectic and, guess what? I haven’t had a break since, mostly due to the things we do for family.

What Are The Things We Do For Family?

For everyone, familial relationships can be different. The things we will do for family members and close friends vary widely. Some people are very close with their families and they are a priority in their lives. For others, family doesn’t play as important of a role. My family has always been extremely close and when someone needs something, one of us comes to the aid of others. In some cases, the whole family is needed to put their heads together to resolve a situation.

About a month ago, I traveled to my home state, North Carolina, to help out with my grandmother. My whole family has taken some kind of time off for this matter, even my husband. Now, this weekend, we traveled even more: seven states, 17 hours in the car, and two plane flights. Ah, the things we do for family…

How Far Would You Go?

Everyone has their limits though. Not every family is as close as ours. Not every family gets along like we do and some relationships are just toxic to continue nourishing. When we set out on our journey to come home and help my family this weekend, it was a lot to ask but my husband and I didn’t think twice. We are exhausted, but we helped and did what we could.

Setting limits is important though. In the past, I’ve stretched myself too thin helping family members, especially where money is concerned. There have been times we gave our last $20 to another family member (seriously). Right now, for us, our boundary when it comes to helping out is money. We don’t have it to give currently. However, we are able to give our time and lend a helping hand when we can. Knowing your limits to how much you’re able to assist is important.

Conclusion

When it comes down to it, figuring out how important different relationships are in your life and determine boundaries. You can stretch yourself too thin, but if you define where your lines are and how far you’re willing to go to help you will save yourself a lot of hurt and trouble.

We will be headed back home today after 5 days of running around to help family. We are exhausted and have a lot to do when we return, but it was worth it and it always will be. If we are able, we will always go the extra mile for those we care about.

Readers, what are your feelings when it comes to helping family? Where do you draw the line?

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5 Motivational Hacks to Pay Off Debt

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5 Motivational Hacks to Pay Off Debt

When you decide to take your debt journey seriously, you might feel a burst of energy and motivation. You’re ready to slay your debt. Unfortunately, that motivation doesn’t last long. I know, because I paid off debt for many years. Over the course of nine years, I paid off $81,000 in student loans. I only got serious about it after graduating from New York University, when I still had $68,000 — which I paid off in 4.5 years. In order to do that, I had to make four-figure payments for years. When you can’t pay off debt quickly because your balance is so large, debt fatigue can creep in. Here are five motivational hacks to help you pay off debt. 

1. Write your debt number on a post-it

Paying off debt requires you to shift your behavior as well as your mindset. In order to do that, you need to keep your debt top of mind. You can’t just rely on willpower or motivation. You need to rely on discipline as well as gentle reminders. 

One hack that worked for me was to put my debt balance on a post-it. I took that post-it and put it on my credit card. So every time I wanted to spend money, I’d see the balance looking back at me. At that moment, I had to ask myself if the purchase was really worth it. This hack kept me from making mindless purchases and kept me going because I was so determined to see that number go down! 

2. Make a debt-free dream list

Debt fatigue is difficult to deal with because you’re so overpaying off debt. One thing that kept me going when I wanted to give up was creating a “debt-free dream list”. On that list, I wrote down all of my dreams and the things I wanted in my debt-free life. 

I wrote down that I wanted to be self-employed, move back to LA, get cats, and take my mom to Italy. At the time, I was living in Portland, Oregon and the weather didn’t agree with me but I knew I needed to stay to take advantage of the low cost of living. 

I was also desperate for my own cats and to have more adventures. But I went back to being disciplined and knew that a little bit of hard work now would mean an easier life later when I was older. 

Do you want to be a younger person in debt or an older person in debt? I think you know the answer. So for me, I sacrificed and hustled for years and kept in mind all of the things I would have and pursue once I was debt-free and had a positive net worth. 

You can create your own debt-free dream list by thinking about all the things you will do or items you will buy once your debt is completely gone. 

3. Use Pinterest/Instagram to motivate you

Writing down your debt-free dream list is one way to state what you want. But to take it to the next level, you can use Pinterest to motivate you. Create a board that showcases images and articles that keep you going. 

You can also use Instagram to motivate you too. Only follow accounts related to your dream. Use the ‘save post’ function to create a gallery of images that support your debt-free dream list. Instead of using social media to be tempted by ads or getting FOMO, you can curate your own feed to help you reach your debt-free dream list and keep going when times are hard and motivation is lacking. 

4. Make yourself accountable

I started my blog DearDebt.com to write about my journey of paying off debt. Every month, I’d write a recap on the side hustles I did as well as how much I paid off in debt that month. The blog was a wonderful accountability tool that helped me pay off debt. 

You can make yourself accountable by starting a blog. Think that’s too much? Create a microblog on Instagram and search #debtfreecommunity. You can also find a friend you can connect with who also wants to pay off debt and set up regular intervals to check-in. 

Having external accountability can help you maintain progress. You want to show up, not disappoint the other person, and cheer each other on. Find what works for you while striving to be consistent. 

5. Try these different methods to pay off debt 

If you research ways to pay off debt, it’s likely you’ve come across two common ways to pay off debt. 

  1. Debt avalanche
  2. Debt snowball

Both require you to pay the minimum on all of your loans but states you should put your extra money toward the highest interest rate (avalanche) or the lowest balance (snowball). The snowball method is very popular and can be a good option as it boosts motivation as you pay down small balances. The avalanche method can save you money on interest, which could mean paying off debt even faster. 

You can use this FREE tool from Undebt.it. They provide a mobile-friendly snowball/avalanche calculator app to help you live debt-free. The payment is easy to follow so you can finally eliminate your debt!

Two other options that I shared in my book Dear Debt, are about engaging your emotions to help you pay off debt. One option is to pay off the debt that makes you angry. Maybe you have debt from a divorce or getting scammed by a friend and it makes you mad. Anger is typically not a great emotion and doesn’t help move you forward. But if you channel that into debt repayment, it could fuel your journey. 

The other option is to pay off the debt that will offer the most peace of mind. If you have a loan from a family member that is causing tension or a credit card bill that keeps you up at night, preventing you from having good sleep, pay that off first. 

Paying off debt is an emotional process and these are two ways to hack your emotions in your favor rather than fall in despair. 

Pay off debt now 

Paying off debt is never easy. It takes a toll on your emotional and financial life and maybe even your relationships, too. That’s why it’s important to do whatever you can to get out of debt ASAP and hack your motivation so you can keep going.

Melanie Lockert is a freelance writer, public speaker, event organizer, and founder of the blog “Dear Debt” — where she shared how she paid off a total of $81,000 in student loan debt. Her work has appeared in Allure, Business Insider, Huffington Post, and more.

It’s Okay to Call It Quits

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call it quits

If you have been following the blog, you know our move to Atlanta has been less-than-kind to us. From the job we moved here for going out of business to relocating again within the city to the craziness going on everywhere in the world, our fight-or-flight instinct is kicking in and everything in us is saying flight.

What Now?

That being said, we’ve decided to move again to somewhere cheaper and somewhere that has been calling to us for a while: The great state of Tennessee.

We’ve made it a personal goal to be moved by the end of the year. Currently, Chattanooga is looking like the top pick, though we have looked farther north in Eastern Tennessee as well. After doing some research, the cost-of-living there is much less and our taxes will be lower there, with us both being self-employed.

On top of that, the move all-around will buy us some happiness. We have always loved Tennessee and the mountains. Not to mention, we would be able to leave Atlanta behind and truly get a fresh start, with better financial prospects on the horizons (seriously, at least $400 in savings in rent per month alone). At the same time, we will only be about an hour and a half from our new friends here in the city.

It’s Okay to Call It Quits

I’m not going to say calling it quits doesn’t suck in some ways. It definitely does. We moved here in March of last year with stars in our eyes, thinking Atlanta would be life-changing for us and bring new opportunities. It just hasn’t been what we thought it would be or what we needed it to be.

You know what? That is okay.

What isn’t okay is continuing on in a place and mental space where you are mentally drained constantly. So, if your sanity relies on it, and (in our case) your finances also benefit from it, it is okay to call it quits. You aren’t a failure. This experience, place, thing, plan wasn’t for you.

Lessons Learned

Before we do move, we have discussed some overall lessons learned from this…

  • Don’t move anywhere that you’ve never spent time. At least go check it out for a weekend before making the decision.
  • Just because you can afford it doesn’t mean you should do it. This is especially the case with housing – we are overspending in Atlanta in a huge way.
  • Don’t be afraid to say no and also don’t feel like you owe anything to anyone. A lot of our problems here in Atlanta were due to us giving loyalty to people that didn’t deserve it.

Final Thoughts

This can be a hard thing to swallow, especially when you have put a lot of time and effort into making something work. However, it applies to just about everything in life: relationships, jobs, situations. It doesn’t make you a quitter or a failure. It means you know you want something different.

One thing we are both looking forward to is what this move will mean for us in terms of our debt freedom journey. I can’t wait to keep you updated on preparation for the move and how we continue to tackle our debt in the months to come.

Readers, have you ever moved to improve your lives financially or otherwise?

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Examining My Own Bad Money Habits

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bad money habits

We don’t have any huge debt freedom progress to share this month, and we probably won’t make more than the minimum payments for a while due to COVID-related money struggles. However, all of this has forced us to take a look at some of our bad money habits. While we have made strides towards our goal of being debt-free, we are still doing a lot of things to set us back.

How to Audit Your Money Habits

Examining your finances, or performing a financial audit, is no fun task. Unfortunately, most things with money aren’t all that fun. Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to set yourself up for success and get on track to addressing your bad money habits.

  1. First, set a time to perform the financial audit and put it on the calendar. Pick out a day and time where you truly have no other obligations so you can place your entire focus on your finances.
  2. Be sure you are looking at all of your finances. An audit is not effective if you are only looking at bits and pieces.
  3. Identify your money habits and trends in your finances. Then decide what habits are holding you back from your financial goals.
  4. Reexamine your expenses and see if there are any things you can cut from your budget. You may find you are overspending on items and services you don’t even use anymore.
  5. Come up with a plan for improving your financial situation and cutting those bad habits.

Our Bad Habits

So, we did that and WOW. I thought we were basically financially responsible, but after taking a closer look at our finances there were a lot of things that surprised me.

For instance, we spend about $100 per week on groceries. That only includes the big weekly shopping trip though. After taking a closer look, we stop at the store multiple times throughout the week and may even eat out, pumping that number up closer to $200 a week. For two people, that is INSANE.

Amazon also gets way too much of our money. Not only are we paying them for multiple subscription services, but we also order just about every little thing we might need from there. Sometimes we are even buying stuff we don’t even need simply because we are on the site looking at other things (ugh).

What Next

Once we sat down and talked about these things, we were both stunned by the fact that we were actually spending that much without knowing it. We’ve decided to move forward with a bit more strict budget and much less Amazon (and food).

Our first step is going to be clipping any unnecessary or unused subscription services through Amazon. To fix our food issue, we are considering looking into some food subscription services to help encourage us to eat food from home rather than eating out.

These will be the next steps for our family, but deciding what bad money habits you want to ditch will likely look very different. Remember, at the end of the day, a financial audit is only part of managing your finances. You also need a budget and a clear financial plan in place to reach your goals.

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How Refinancing Impacts Your Debt-Free Goals

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refinancing

Mortgage rates are going down pretty steadily amidst the pandemic. Because of this, many people are looking into refinancing their home loans. Like any other loan you take out, refinancing will have an impact on your debt-free journey, and it can be a good or a bad thing.

What Does Refinancing Mean?

To refinance something simply means to finance it again. This is done by starting a new loan, usually with a lower interest rate. Refinancing loans are typically for auto and mortgage loans, but it is possible to refinance any large loan you may have.

You may be thinking to yourself, “Wow, that sounds like a great idea, I could save so much money!” While it sounds really great, there are a few catches. You’ll need to weigh the pros and cons and thoroughly research your current loan and refinance offers.

How it Can Impact Your Debt Freedom Journey

Refinancing can be both good and bad when it comes to your debt freedom journey. In some cases, refinancing one of your loans may make it easier to reach other financial goals. If that is true for you, then, by all means, refinance!

Additionally, refinancing can help lower your interest rate (sometimes significantly). If refinancing your loan will drive that rate down, great. It is not worth refinancing if the rate drops less than 1% or 2% below your current rate. Regardless, it is still a good idea to try and pay it off in the same amount of time or less. Remember, your long-term goal is still to be totally free of your debt.

When You Definitely Should Not Refinance

While your reasons for refinancing may totally make sense, it isn’t the best option for everyone (or even a good one). Absolutely do not refinance if any of the following is true.

  • You are only refinancing for a lower monthly payment.
  • If refinancing is a way of consolidating debt for you, don’t do it. This can be a huge financial mistake! It perpetuates how much you rely on debt for everyday living and can cost you in the long-run.
  • You are planning on selling the home (or car) soon. It doesn’t make sense to refinance.
  • If your credit is bad, don’t refinance. You won’t qualify for lower rates.
  • You are unable to pay the closing costs of the refinance (for homes). This is usually between 3% and 6% of the loan amount.
  • The loan terms make your loan payment time longer. For instance, if you have paid on your 30-year mortgage for 10 years it wouldn’t make sense to refinance for another 30 years. That only makes it so you’re paying longer.

When it boils down to it if you are interested in refinancing you need to be sure you are doing it at the right time for the right reasons. Do your research and be sure it is the best decision for your financial goals.

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