Through the past few years, we have been incredibly frugal and it has paid off.  We have paid off large amounts of debt and we are now living debt free.  We have also moved and once our house sells, we will no longer have a house payment.  We will be completely and totally debt free, including our house!  I’m so excited!!!!!!

Now I’m in a place I’ve never been in before.  I’m debt free, we now have two incomes, and I have nothing to spend my money on.  Seriously, I live out in the boonies.  We had to drive around for over 20 minutes trying to find somewhere for us to eat for my birthday.  We finally found a fast food Japanese restaurant and it wasn’t good.  I miss my favorite restaurants, that’s for sure!

I have been spending more than I’d like on buying things for the apartment.  You know how it is when you first move.  You need shower curtains, rugs, and other things that easily add up. 

For now, since we don’t have many expenses I’m catching up on buying socks, underwear, and things like that.  Now it’s time to look into some investment options.

Are you debt free? Trying to be debt free?  What kinds of investments would you recommend?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Dave Ramsey’s site has a list of places in your area where his Financial Peace classes are being held.  All you have to do is type in your zip code to find out more information.  Click here for the Class Finder.

These classes are becoming more and more popular, as people are seeing the bondage that debt holds and that they can successfully follow this program.  I was amazed to find two upcoming classes where my parents live and seven in my area.  I hope you’ll see if a class is offered where you live.

Also, some of you have asked about Dave’s books.  Although I haven’t read it, I’ve heard great things about his book Total Money Makeover.  Right now, the book is on sale at his site for $14.99.  My friend also told me that this book is on sale at the Christian bookstore right now. 

I hope you’ll join the many others on the journey to Financial Freedom.  It truly is freedom!  You’ll be amazed at how things flow more smoothly once you’re debt free.

Good luck and please let us know how it goes.

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Last year, I told you about the Financial Peace classes my husband and I were taking at church.  These classes helped my husband and I to get on the same page financially.  We both saw the bondage that debt had on our lives and ever since then we have worked hard to get out of debt.

It didn’t take long for my husband and I to start selling some of the things we had accumulated.  We’ve been married for over 10 years, so you can only imagine the hobbies, toys, and things we had collected.  One time a friend of ours said that our basement looked like an ebay store.  lol

In the last year, our family has nearly completed baby steps 1, 2, and 3 for financial freedom.  In case you don’t remember, here are the steps:

1.  Save $1,000 to start an emergency fund
2.  Pay off all debt using debt snowball
3.  Save 3-6 months of expenses (This does not mean 3-6 months of income.)
4.  Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
5.  College funding for children
6.  Build wealth and give!  Continue to invest in mutual funds and real estate.

In the past year, we have paid over $12,000 in debt!  Isn’t that amazing?!?  We have our $1,000 emergency fund and were working on 3-6 months of expenses.  And in case you’re wondering, we don’t make a lot of money.  You can do this too!

Let me tell you a fact that most people don’t know.  Within the past year, my husband has been laid off from his job for more than four months!!!!!!  It wasn’t long ago that something such as that would have sent us scrounging for money, stressing to the limits, and racking up tons of debt to stay afloat.  I can’t honestly say that we’re doing fine.  Some days are hard because thoughts of uncertainty sink in, but we’re ok. 

God has provided by allowing us to sell a bunch of stuff that we no longer needed and through other unexpected ways.  Of course, our tax refund and stimulus check helped out too.  I’m just amazed when I think back to where we were last year and where we are now.  I’m looking forward to where we’ll be in another five years.

Have you heard of Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace classes and his book, Total Money Makeover?  What do you think of it?

image from Dave Ramsey

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

I realize most of you have graduated high school and have gone on with your adult life.  I also realize that some of you may be considering college or have children that will soon be attending college. 

Here are some tips to help you pay cash for college:

1.  Go to community college the first two years.  I did my first two years of school at a community college and it was great.  I lived at home, paid cash for all my classes, worked part-time, and all of the classes transferred for equal credit.  Actually, I wish I would have taken a few more classes at community college because it would have saved me hundreds of dollars.

2.  Find a university close to home and commute.  I did this for a while too.  I lived at home and commuted an hour each way.  I carpooled with some other girls that lived in the same city as me.

3. Take classes online.  Isn’t technology great?  Sometimes it’s hard to believe that you can sit at home and get college credits.  I might not recommend this for someone just finishing high school, but for those of you that are working a regular job and want to work on your degree a little at a time, this is a great option.

4.  Attend a college within your state.  State funded colleges really sock it to you with out-of-state tuition fees, if you don’t live in their state.  Attending an out-of-state college can cost you thousands of extra dollars each year.

5.  Get a part-time job.  Earn enough to pay your way through.  This is ideal for someone living at home or a wife with no kids.

6.  Apply for financial aid early!!!  This is one of the many things my school didn’t tell me about.  I got to college and was clueless.  I understand this was years ago, but honestly a little guidance could have really helped.  I applied for financial aid and found out it takes a while to process everything.  Apply early! 

7.  Take some time and check into scholarships.  Ask the guidance counselor at your school for information.  Sometimes you can get a scholarship just for asking about it.  We have a friend that got some scholarships just because he was the only one at his school that applied for them.

8.  Ask your church, bank, employer, and/or credit union if there are any scholarships available.  You’d be surprised how many of them offer scholarships.

9.  Keep up your GPA.  Extra study time doesn’t just help your report card, it also helps keep college costs lower.  Most schools offer academic scholarships.  Some are based upon your grades in high school and some are based upon your grades in college.  If I remember correctly, I received some financial aid for my college GPA and I didn’t even have to apply for it.  Good grades are like money in your pocket.

10.  Agree to an internship or other program that will pay for your college tuition.  North Carolina offers teachers money for college if they will teach in NC when they are finished with school.  I’m sure there are other programs out there for different occupations.

And here’s a little something I found on Dave Ramsey’s website:

Dave endorses Southwestern Company.  This company began helping students offset their educational expenses by selling books.  Students get great experience for their resumes and have the opportunity to make a great deal of money for the summer: the average first-year student made $8,232!  In addition, many students have the opportunity to earn college credit for their participation. Call them at 888.602.7867 or go to their Web site at http://www.southwestern.com/.

Ok.  I said I attended community college for 2 years and then transferred to a university within my state and commuted. So, you may be wondering where all of my college debt came from.  After I got married, my husband and I moved and there was no university near us.  I had to finish my education at a private college.  I received a great education, but along with it came a big price tag. 

This list by no means includes all the ways to pay cash for college.  Do you have any tips?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

I was visiting Dave’s site last night because I wanted to give you some tools to use that are for public view.  Fortunately, Dave has graciously put a  lot of information on his site.

Here are the 6 steps:

1.  Save $1,000 to start an emergency fund
2.  Pay off all debt using debt snowball
3.  Save 3-6 months of expenses (This does not mean 3-6 months of income.)
4.  Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
5.  College funding for children
6.  Build wealth and give!  Continue to invest in mutual funds and real estate.

More information will follow to let you know what these baby steps mean.  Until then, begin saving $1,000 for an emergency fund.  You may think that you don’t have $1,000 and can’t get $1,000, but really the majority of us can get that money. 

Sell something, have a yard sale, take and extra part-time job, quit going out to eat.  These are ways to set up your emergency fund.  I’ve been using my blogging money towards getting us debt free and having an emergency fund.  You know what it takes.  It may take you having money drafted from your savings account.  This works because with a savings draft, you don’t touch the money.  You don’t see the money and that makes it easier to forget that you have the money so that it doesn’t get spent.

I hope this has inspired you to think about how you can enjoy financial freedom.  I hope you’ll stop by for more tips on saving time and money.

Post from: Thrifty Mommy