Where Are You Getting the Money?

A good question posted by "anonymous."

I work part-time as a test proctor, and the large chunk that I paid recently was the result of stockpiling my checks in savings and then making one big payment. The final payment was made thanks to a sweet and unexpected gift sent to me from my grandparents.

Also, the more debts that I pay off, the more money that is available in the monthly budget to put towards the next debt.

For example, the Home Improvement Loan was almost $200 a month.
The car payment I dropped this year was $225.
And, we dropped a child's tuition that was $350/mo.

Right there is an additional $775/mo. to throw at debt in addition to what I am earning in my part-time work.

It truly is a "Debt Snowball" as Dave Ramsey refers to it. The more you pay off, the more money you have to pay off more.

Try it. You'll see.


Blessings!

PAID OFF HI Loan (Final $809.19 pmnt)

I'm doing a dance!! The home improvement loan is G-O-N-E! Buh--bye!

What's left:

Credit Card
Student Loan

May seem like a lot, but it's far less than we had before this process started.

$1,320 down...Less than $1,000 to go!!!

I put one more chunk on the home improvement loan. And, it's almost down to 0. Then, we're kicking VISA out of the house next!!

Another $510 down

Made another payment to the home improvement loan. Now, we've got about $2,000 left. I cannot wait to report on this account being paid off and closed.

$4,750 to the Home Improvement Loan!!

Exciting news! I hit a whopping blow to the home improvement loan this week. He's down, but not out...yet. There's still about $2,500 left, but I feel the momentum, and I'll keep pounding that bad boy until he's down for the count.

What's Your Story?

I wanted to respond to someone's comment asking how I am able to do what I'm doing.

Well, here are a few tips on how I'm making this financial lifestyle change happen...

1. I started making a written budget every month, and then the key thing was that I followed it. I know that sounds crazy, but many times in the past I wrote out a budget, but if we wanted something that wasn't in the budget, I went ahead and said yes to buying it.

2. I started looking at the budget to see what I could cut...
Cable, cell phones, restaurants...etc.
I set goals, and once a goal was reached (i.e. a big bill was paid off), I allowed us to bring back something little like cable.

3. Although we are a one-career household, we are not a one-income household. Here's the difference. My husband has a career-something he works regularly every week, has retirement, a steady income-and it's what we live off of. All of our necessary expenses are covered by his income.
However, I do work part-time. It is not a career. It's flexible, and if I needed to quit tomorrow to take care of family needs, I could. I do work that fits into my life, and the money goes to our debt snowball.

Recommendations for finding ways to bring in money...
Think about what your skills and talents are.
Decide what kind of schedule works for you. (i.e. after the kids are in bed or while the kids are in school, or only weekends)
Search, search, search...careerbuilder, monster, google, craigslist, about.com. Don't settle for something that requires you to sacrifice what you've made a priority. If you're persistent, you'll find something that works for you.

Good luck to you in your endeavors.

The Car is Paid Off!! $806.06 final payment!

Today is a day for celebration! The car is paid off. Next one to tackle? The home improvement loan. I estimate the end of the summer to get that one off our backs. I can't wait. 2009 is going to end with great financial successes!!