Debt Progress Like Woah

Woah. All I can say is woah. Since June of 2014, just 16 months ago, I have paid off almost $27,000. Thats 27 THOUSAND dollars. Is that right? Yes, this is true. I just did the math. I'm so proud of myself and excited at my progress. I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

This past weekend I made a final payment on my 3rd student loan and what remains is this little guy below. This little guy that isn't so little, a mere $20k, will be my final debt. Instead of concentrating on the large amount, i'll be taking it one step at a time month by month.

Liabilities	Min Payment	Balance	Interest Rate
Student Loan 1	$227.05	$20,879	2.36% / 6.8%
	227.05	$20,879

I am so excited to be getting these debts out of my life once and for all. And the thought of instead of $1,600+ every month going out the window to paying off debt, will instead land in my savings account and allow me to live a completely different life is such a motivator. I will be able to go after goals that I have placed on the back burner because of this dead weight debt. What a great feeling to have on a Monday! Have a great week!

How is your debt payoff going? Do you have a plan in place? Follow me on Twitter @financegirl 

If I Can Get Out of Debt, So Can You!

Roughly $6,000 later...I'm down to my last 2.. let me repeat that. TWO of Six remaining debts. 

Today, I made my last payment of $184 to student loan #3 and closed the door to that bad decision, never to relive the mistake of taking a loan out for something that I can't pay for in cash. 

I love the feeling of knocking these debts off my list, one by one. Sometimes I get a little ahead of myself and start thinking about how much i'll be able to save once i'm completely free from these last 2 mistakes and what kind of freedom I will experience. 

My life will be completely different.

I started this blog in June 2014 and I've gone from $47K in debt to just under $29K. In 1 year i've scraped up nearly $20k to get these things out of my life. In 2013 I would have never dreamed this was possible! This year, i'm determined to dream a little bigger and pay the last $29K off in 12 months.

Can I do it?

I think I can but stick around and see for yourself! I'll show you how I do it. 

This is A Girls Journey to Financial Freedom.

Do you want to learn more about how to get out of debt? Send me a message and tell me about your own debt problems. Follow me on Twitter @financegirl

Want to Know What Getting a Net Worth Feels Like?

Guess what? I just paid off my credit card today! I made the final $300 payment and i'm not looking back. Goodbye forever, credit card debt.
I'm down to my last 3 debts totaling roughly $31,000, down from $47,000 just 1 year ago. Wow! Can you tell I'm excited?? Whats even better is that next month i'll be paying down the last $2,000 on Student loan #2. I can't believe i'll be down to my last 2 loans and $29,000 of debt after sitting on them for 10+ years. The tunnel is still long, but I am really beginning to see the light at the end and I couldn't be happier. It is an incredible feeling. What will I do when I don't have to send $2,000/mo to debt collectors? I will finally be out of the negative and begin to actually have a net worth at a rate of about $24,000 per year to be specific.
I never gave too much thought to net worth before, but if you're in debt chances are you have a negative net worth. Which sucks! To me, saying, "I have a negative net worth" sounds way crummier than "i'm in debt". I think i'll make that my new mantra when contemplating purchases that aren't in the budget.

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How I'm Getting Rid of My Debt - FAST

That's kind of a trick blog post title, because I actually don't think there is a FAST way to get out of debt. The secret to getting out of debt is persistence and considering all purchases carefully.

'Do I really want to spend $30 on a meal out tonight or do I want to get out of debt $30 sooner?'

I was listening to a finance podcast yesterday with a sometimes arrogant albeit entertaining host and he was talking about people who act rich. They have all kinds of fancy clothes, drive nice cars, etc. but they're up to their eyeballs in debt. They have no savings, no retirement and no paid for house. He yelled into the microphone, "Stop ACTING like you're rich!". I loled. It's so true. Sometimes I find myself planing and justifying luxury sunglasses and bags purchases, and then I hear that sentence in my head and I stop.

Stop ACTING like you're rich! 

Lets get out of debt so we can ACTUALLY GET RICH and then go shopping. 

Send me a message. Did you love the post or hate it? What would you like the next topic to be? Follow me on Twitter @financegirl 

GOALS For 2015!

2015 Finance Goals

Happy New Year everyone!
I love a fresh start. The ending of one year and the beginning of a new year is something that I look forward to, probably because of how much i've screwed up during the year in the past.
The following are my (perhaps lofty) goals for 2015.

1.) Pay off $12k of debt this year. By using 75% of my tax refund and anticipating a at least 4% raise in March, I should be able to pay an average of $1000/month on my debt bringing my end of year debt balance down to $27k.

2.) Double my business sales from 2014 and sell $5K in 2015. Whooptiedo! I have a small clothing and accessories line which I am creating and selling when i'm not at my day job. I do craft and art fairs around holiday times and have sold consignment to stores in the past. I'd like to do even more of this in 2015, which brings me to my 3rd and last financial goal.

3.) Get out there more! Participate in 1 Spring market and 2 holiday fairs. Sell to at least 1 store and creating more online buzz.

What are YOUR goals for 2015? 

Send me a message. Did you love the post or hate it? What would you like the next topic to be? Follow me on Twitter @financegirl 

Tips for Finding More Money in Your pocket This Month!

One way to find more money in your pocket and tackle that debt! is to first take look at your expenses to see what you are spending your hard earned cash on. You might be surprised at what you find.
Once you have your list, decide if there are any expenses that you can eliminate. My list looks like this:

Rent

Utilities

Cell phone

Internet

Student loans

Credit card payments

Netflix

Gym

Groceries

Metro Card

My list is pretty pared down, however, I could still make some changes. I could find a less expensive cell phone plan. I could cut that payment in half and have $50 extra/mo in my pocket. I could look for an apt with less expensive rent, something that I am seriously considering. (The rent is too damn high!) I am all about health and fitness and I am a regular at my gym, but do I need a gym membership in the warm months when I can run outside? Or maybe I could find a less expensive gym.
Just a few small changes here and I could have another potential $200-$400 extra in my pocket every month.
It's worth taking a look. Don't let your expenses weigh you down.

Have you tracked your expenses? Where will you cut some corners?

Send me a message. Did you love the post or hate it? What would you like the next topic to be? Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @financegirl