Welcome new readers from the Yahoo! Finance, Fox Business News and CreditCards.com article. yes, my family was $50,000 in debt and we paid it off in less than 3 years. Check out this television segment for a few pointers on how you can get started yourself.
*****************
If you’ve been here long you know that my family was $50,000 in debt (actually it was closer to $60,000, but you get the idea) and paid it all off in 30 months, which is 2 1/2 years. When we committed to get out of debt in June 2006, we also committed to stay out of debt for the rest of our lives. Pretty radical, huh?
I get asked a lot of questions about how we did it and how others can get started. I hope to write a book at some point, but until then I will share what I can with you here on Pocket Your Dollars. I’ve written some articles about it, and you can look through them here, but Twin Cities Live did a nice piece summarizing our story and pointing out some clear action items for you to get started.
Watch the Twin Cities Live Super Saver segment that tells our story. Not only does this piece highlight our story and words of advice, but it is my husband Marco’s television debut and Victoria’s most prominent appearance, of which she’s quick to remind you.
If this piques your interest to hear the nuts and bolts of what to-do, stay tuned because I’m going to post a list of the trainings I am doing this spring through a variety of Community Ed programs. Be sure to sign up for one, because it will change your financial destiny. I am also available to speak to your organization, congregation or staff on how-to get out and stay out of debt forever. Email me to schedule a speaking engagement.
Your turn: After watching the video, what is one thing you are going to do right now to start getting out of debt?
Way to go Carrie. Our family chose years ago not to have debt (except our mortgage). Which like you and motivation from Dave Ramsey, we are trying to pay off. We have chosen to adjust our lives to live within our means and we are able to give so much more to our church and other charities then we ever thought possible.
BTW – you have a beautiful family.
Great post. I have been doing tons of thinking in this area. My first goal is to manage our food expenditures. I think that is where, other then health care, we spend the most. The next goal is I want to get my business going more, which will again help my family.
Nice clip Carrie. As weird as it may sound I am going to find the motivator/goal to get out of debt. I have been going along knowing I HAVE to pay off the debt because……. but never really added a motivator to it-a final goal. It gives me something to look forward to other than just getting out of debt….. Hope this makes sense but I liked your chocolate comparision! Thanks…….
Kim – Whatever works for you is what counts. –Carrie
I will admit that we are $32,000 in credit card debt. That does not include our one car payment. In October, we made a pact that starting this year, we will cut our credit card debt by half. I used the Dave Ramsey approach, modified a bit to fit our needs. I am a home childcare provider and my husband works on commission so I had to base what we can pay on cc off my income, which of course can fluctuate. Before watching your video I made a list of all our monthly bills…but did not add the “extras.” My next step to pay off $15,000 in cc debt this year will be to track ALL our expenses. ALL of them! This site has been a huge motivator. Ultimately, I would like to have Christmas in Cozumel in 2011…and pay CASH for it!!
Erin Lynn – I want you to have Christmas there too and come tell me about it! Getting honest about all your expenses is a great first step.
My goal for the next three years is to pay off the $20k in student loan debt we have, save a minimum of $30k for a down payment on our next house (or to pay off our current mortgage faster if we decide to stay where we are) and be able to afford for my wife to stay at home full time when we have our next child (tentatively scheduled for 2-3 years from now). It can be very overwhelming at times thinking about these large amounts of money. Thankfully we have no credit card debt and only one very managable car payment for another two years. I know we’ve made a few mistakes in the last few years, like buying a house at just the wrong time with no down payment and having our first child before we were probably financially ready (not that I would give him back for anything though!) I feel well equipped to make some serious changes that may suck at times over the next few years, but will free us up big time after that. It helps a lot to know that people out there overcame far more than we’ll have to do.
Nate – I like your focus on the long-term goals you have for your family. Without it the moments that suck, well, they really suck. At least now you put it in perspective that it is worth it in the long run. That’s what we did. Seriously, when I didn’t have to cut my husband’s hair at home anymore – hallelujah! But, we did it for 3 years because that $20 could go toward the debt instead. Keep it up!
I too, loved the segment! We also are trying to be a bit gazelle-like and pound out the debt. Our food bill seems to be our biggest expense after all the misc. bills. (especially when trying to eat healthy!)! I am curious what you think of Dave Ramsey…as I think he’s fabulous…and it seems like you have very similar view on this topic.
One question for you: We are completely upside-down in our mortgage (we owe nearly 30,000 more than it’s worth…which doesn’t feel so ‘gazelle-like’). Do we even try to sell or stick with it and focus on getting out the other debts?
I have zero regrets in the kid dept. (we have 3 girls). But I agree with the last post…I think we bought a house at the wrong time when everyone was getting approved because they could breathe! =]
I am very content with what I have…and right now, in the wake of the earthquakes in Haiti…I’m even grateful for small things like a WALL to hang my girls’ art projects on! Man, are we blessed!!
Steph – I didn’t know of Dave Ramsey when we got out of debt, but have read his stuff since. Love it!
I am also trying to go debt-free. My husband is more of a live-for-the-moment guy, so it’s been a bit of a struggle. We have also been going about it a little backwards as our house is paid off but we still have credit card bills and a car payment.
We had a bad year financially in 2009 (as did many) with my husband being out of work for almost the entire year and my job being cut to part-time but things are turning around now. With the grace of God, we will have both all the credit cards and the car paid off by this time next year, leaving us with just my student loan. I am currently driving an old car that can’t go over 40 but it gets me to and from work, which is what we need the extra car for. We will save up and pay cash for a replacement after getting the current car paid off.
What I really wanted to say is that, if it weren’t for the people like Carrie and Dave Ramsey, I shudder to think of where we would have been after going from two FT incomes to 1 PT income! Instead, we are doing better than ever! Thanks, Carrie!!!!!
Sheila, my story is similar. My husband has been out of work for a year. We are deeply in debt and although we’ve had many discussions (that I initiate) over the years about our finances, my husband doesn’t seem to want to jump on board with getting our finances in order. I feel like I’m trying so hard to take that ‘one step forward’ in the right direction but his actions (or lack thereof) bring us ‘two steps back.’ Any advice anyone?
E – Set aside a talk about money for the moment. Do you and your husband have any dreams or passions in life that you’d like to fulfill? Buying a cabin and fishing every weekend? Retirement? Self-employment one day? Can you and your husband spend time talking in the next few weeks about what your dreams are and get motivated by those. Money becomes a follow-on to that because it takes money to reach our dreams and the short-term sacrifice is put in perspective when you have a long-term goal. My two cents. Others?
I totally agree with Carrie’s approach of finding your motivator. My husband is very hard to motivate, too. He just doesn’t see why our $40,000 in credit card debt is a bad thing! But to give him a motivator helps keep him on track in our saving and paying down debt. We also institute a 72 hour cool-down rule. When we want to make a purchase, instead of acting impulsively, we wait 72 hours to see if we still really want to make that purchase and take that time to figure out where the money will come from if we do purchase. 99% of the time, we don’t want to make the purchase that much!
Carrie ~ Can’t wait for your list of trainings you will be doing through Comm. Ed. programs! If there is one that works into my schedule and in my area I will definitely sign up! I love your story and am amazed at how many people’s lives you have impacted in such a short period of time. Thanks for all you do!
This was a great segment Carrie! We are already committed and having been working on getting out of debt for what feels like a long time. I too have wanted to ask how you did it because at times it’s hard. I don’t think we’ve had a vision so I’m going to talk with hubby about that right away!
I loved this segment! Myself and another women from church recently taught a class about Money Saving Tips to the sisters and highly recommended your website since her and I use your site regularly. I just wish I would have known you did speaking engagements, you could have taught the class for us! I definitely think you should write a book about this, your advice is spot on and honestly what people need to hear to. My husband and I who are in our early twenties recently paid off 1/2 of our debt (paying about 5K) in the last year, while that may not seem like much we are in our mid-twenties and after having our first born we decided our financial priorities were not in the right place, and there was defiantly room to sacrifice! Thanks again for your blog, I’m sure it’s a ton of work but you really are changing peoples lives!
Great site Carrie! It has motivated both my husband and I to finally take action on paying off our debt. I’ve always tracked where our money goes each month but it has never really made us change the way we spend it. My plan is to take out a set amount of cash each pay period for groceries, household items, entertainment, etc. (everything except bills) and spend no more than what’s available. The extra money still in our account will then go towards our loans. The goal: pay off $10,000 worth of debt by the spring of 2011. Then we can start thinking about putting an addition on our new home to make room for our growing family. Thanks so much for the encouragement!
What a great story on TCL! Truly you are helping people one dollar at a time. My husband and I recently created a board on things that we want to accomplish (being debt free, moving to the country, having a family) this is now hanging in our office, and hopefully I can keep my husband motivated to get us to that goal…he’s the one that really likes to spend :( Will definitely continue to follow the blog, and tell everybody about it. Thanks again for the wonderful advice.
Jennifer – Be encouraged that my husband was the spender and he came around in his own time. Maybe I can get him to share more of that here or elsewhere sometime. There is hope!
When I got pregnant with our second kid, we paid off 22,000 in debt in 7 months. The only debt we have now is our reasonable mortgage. This has enabled me to stay home full time for 18 months before I will go back.
I am amazed by the success people have had in getting out of debt. I am on disability and my husband was laid off for 8 months last year. We accumulated debt. I am hoping with using coupons better for food control and other changes we can get back to just a mortgage and vehicle. In this economy it is best to keep debt at a minimum. Thanks for all the inspiration and help this site offers. Let me know when you write the book!
Thanks much
Carrie, hi there. New reader. Already luv ya! My hubby and i made a lot of sacrifices moving up here to msp 4 years ago, primarily…our debt increased..trying to maintain two homes (two mortgages). flash foward, we’re STILL in debt. I’ve had enough…this year i’m shredding the debt. Thank you for your help thus far..we’re paying for everything in cash…cold hard cash..not the debit card…and starting TODAY i’m keeping a record of it. thanks.
Loved your segment and will look forward to your book! I have a “What would you do?” to throw out there. We currently have only our mortgage and a $5000 loan for a motorcycle to pay off. We also have a little chunk of change in our emergency fund–enough to pay off the motorcycle, but it would leave us with only about 1 month of survival should we need it. What would you do? Just try to pay off the loan more quickly or go ahead and pay it off in one fell swoop and lose a little sleep over the emergency fund?
Elle – I would keep the emergency fund and pay down the motorcycle a little at a time as you have extra money. Especially in this economy you should aim for 6 month’s of living expenses on hand because tomorrow really is uncertain.
I have not been able to get your segment on TCL to load. I have tried many times but the screen on the TCL remains blank.
Carrie,
Fantastic job! I know I can always look to you to keep things real. While we don’t have any existing debt aside from our mortgage, we are doing our best to pay it down and still save as much as possible. The first few years we were in our home, we believed the hype that we won’t pay off our mortgage. We were told, “It simply isn’t done.” I always found something terribly wrong with that statement but resolved to it nonetheless. Well, I’ve opened my eyes in the last year or so. Aren’t we fiscally responsible for paying back the debts we have and not continuously borrow more and more? With that, I have been on a crusade to put as much extra toward the mortgage a month as we can. It is a large debt but we will pay it off, someday, well before its final due date. Thanks again for giving us all the perspective we need!
Absolutely love your site, Carrie! You are truly inspirational! I wish you lived closer to me so I could see where you’d shop here in Philly!
Carrie, I just love your website and thought I would tell you my story. Mainly because it is doable and alot of people do not realize it is a reachable goal in life. I never did until almost 6 years ago… after I was able to actually see the “debt” going away.
Eight years ago when my husband and I met, I had $60,000 worth of debt. My husband had $0 in debt and had a small house completely paid for. By the two of us working together and using my income for 4 1/2 years we were able to pay off the $60,000 worth of debt I had entered the marriage with… and bought a much bigger house and have paid it off too. All the while, we have had four beautiful children ages: 6, 5, 4, & 3. Since we have paid off our bigger home in the last couple of years we have manage to acculumate a one year “rainy day” fund.
What I have realized in the past eight years is that two people can accomplish alot especially if they “work together” instead of against each other.
One of the tools I used to pay all my debts was a plan. I made a budget based on minimum income, allowed for necessaries, and emergencies. I allocated what was left to outstanding balaces, paying off the high interest stuff first. I figured out It would take me 80 weeks to pay if all off.
I wrote the number of weeks to go on the brim of my cap, and on the brim of my hardhat. When I got a chance to work overtime, I d look at the running total and find motivation.
Good weeks we paid off two, bad weeks we had to add. In about a year and a half we paid off all outstanding debt.
In our own mind we were richer than Donald Trump, because he could never say he owed no man.
The problem with getting out of debt is that it takes too long and most people get impatient. Same as losing weight
to pay off 50K seems easy when you make over 100K a year. But when me and my wife only make around 55K a year its really hard to pay off our 20K debt. I wonder how much you guys made yearly during these 3 years you payed off the 50K?
Bob – Good question. We were two middle America working folks that didn’t make much above the national average. We adopted a phrase that we really believe in, “it doesn’t matter how much you make, what matters is how much you keep.” Someone could make a million, but spend it all and be just as broke as someone who makes less. On teh flip side, if you make $55k, then you need to figure out how to live a life that fits within a $55k budget.
Bob, I take home $1600 per month. My rent is $767 per month and I have to pay heat, electric, auto and health insurance. I was able to pay off $2800 in debt in less than one year. It can be done. I did without a lot of stuff I wanted, but I didn’t have to go without anything I needed.
One thing I think people do that seems to set them back is when they see something on sale or with a great coupon, they get it because they “save” money. They didn’t save anything, they still spent money.
Bob,
From my personnal experience, my husband and I together only made $45,000 a year but we did not have the expense of a house payment or a car payment (just my car payment). He had NO debt and I was the one with debt ($60,000 worth), so we made a deal between us that I would continue to work (bringing home $20,000 a year tops) but all of that would go towards my debt until I got it paid off. We both lived off of his income and had one baby a year for four years in a row. I was finally able to quit work and stay at home with the kids once “my” debt was taken care of. It took us about 4 1/2 years to accomplish because I never got paid during my maternity leave times and we had to save some money for a little bigger house.
Since then, he has achieved that 6 figure income that you talk about but we still live as if we were in debt and living off of the income we original start marriage with. We both drive newer automobiles but they are NOT fancy by any means (Kia Mini Van and Kia Sedan), we fund our children’s education accounts, we save money for retirement and have money set aside in a “rainy day” fund. We both have to be careful because I am a stay at home mother and my husband is self-employeed… needless to say, he does not get paid unless he has people or companies needing his business/services/products!!!
It is a doable thing to get out of debt, but you and your spouse have to be willing to go without things to do so… like my husband and I might eat out once or twice a year tops!! We have NEVER taken a vacation, we both drive the CHEAPEST automobiles that fit our needs, we limit the amount of materialistic things we give our children and ourselves. My husband has NEVER bought me a “gift” for my birthday, Christmas, special holiday or such… we always give each other a “coupon” for a FREE day to ourselves or whatever we might like. I think the only gift he has ever given me has been my diamond ring when he asked me to marry him (that could be why it is extra special to me too)!! But on the flip side… he has given me finanical security that I had NEVER had before in my life!!!
I don’t have much credit card debt, but I use my ATM/debit card too much. I’m going to curb that bad habit. Also want to set a budget and stick to it. Would like to buy a house in the next few years.
It helps me to use my debit card instead of cash so I know where money “disappeared” to. At one point I kept a notebook of every single thing I spent, regardless of the cost. Even a can of soda at Wal-Mart or a newspaper went on the list. That was an eye-opener for me. I was wasting about $5 a week on little things.
I was wondering if carrie used and read the crown money map book available at http://crown.org because that’s what we are following as a family and I think the book is really good. We only have two car payments left and we are really excited when it would be paid off. We will start paying off our mortgage after the car. Others can check the website.
It might be more impressive, but between the 2 of you, you had a 6 figure income. I am 3000.00 in debt and make under 25,000 a year now that I am unemployed.
We are now four months into the year and we have paid off over $5000 in cc debt! Like I mentioned in the post above, it has been using the Dave Ramsey approach. At this rate, it will over $20000 by the end of the year…what a relief.
I feel no matter how much money you make, unless you take it upon yourself to change habits one will remain in debt. It took my husband and I over 7 years to get this much in debt, so we formed a two year plan. This is for cc only…we still have one car payment, one car with over 300,000 miles on it that will soon have to be replaced, a first and second mortgage and all the unplanned expenses that go with life. So, our work has just begun.
In my opinion, put small amount in a savings account, each week $10 is put into our savings and $5 is put into each of the kids’ savings…it does not sound like a lot, but in the end it adds up and you don’t miss $10 each week like you would miss $50.
Hello Carrie..
Thanks a lot for this website. I am motivated after reading your replies to all the comments above. I will keep in mind all your advices. Please note that the Twin Cities Live Video isn’t working. I really wish to watch it. If you could please email me the working link. Thanks :)
there’s a list of segments below the black screen. click on “1/19 supersaver” and it will show up on the screen.