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Update: Where I’m At & Where I’m Going
So, I thought I’d do an update post because the last one I did was all the way back in March, which was, well, months ago now. There have definitely been some changes in that time, as I’m sure there have been with you…much to do with COVID-19.
I’ll get right to it…here is where I’m at:
Current Credit Card Debt:
Mastercard #1 – PAID OFF! (In March, it was at $921.60.)
Mastercard #2 – $3942.52 (In March, it was at $5787.75.)
Gym. Due to COVID-19, my gym had closed for a couple of months. Once it re-opened, I hmm’d and ha’d over whether I should go back or not. Before the coronavirus, I was not the type to worry much about germs. Now that has changed because of the pandemic. I finally made the “executive decision” and cancelled my membership. I am now saving $47.95/month.
My boyfriend recently moved into a condo that has a much less used gym in it, so if I need to, I’ll feel better working out there. I also used to work at home with workout DVDs so I can use those. Right now, I get my cardio with frequent outdoor walks or jogs. I also have free weights and bands at home that I use for strength.
Savings. Although, I am putting the majority of any extra money into my last credit card I’m paying off, I do have a tiny bit of money socked away in a high interest savings account. I always like to have a bit of a money “cushion” so I keep a bit set aside for a just-in-case situation. Because this money sits in a high interest savings account, it generates a bit of extra moula, also known as interest.
52-Week Savings Challenge. I talked about this in a previous post. It’s a challenge that my boyfriend and I decided to do together, which is good because we remind each other each week to transfer money over to each of our high interest savings accounts (gotta make that extra interest too!).
If you’re not familiar with this challenge, how it works is you start off your first week putting in $1, then week 2 is $2, week 3 is $3, and so on, until you get to week 52 which is one year later obviously. At that point, you are sitting at a grand total of $1378!
Surveys. This is a very easy way of making a bit of extra money. It’s not a huge amount or anything but it’s so easy. Did I mention how easy it is? I make about $50/month so it pays a bill for me. It’s like free money paying that bill. That’s how I look at it anyway. I sit there and do a survey on my lunch hour, or while watching TV, or waiting in line somewhere, doctor’s office, etc.
Seeking Passive Income. I’ve recently become very interested in creating multiple streams of income, so I’ve been doing some research into passive income. So, this is the type of income that will require some work in the beginning but then not so much after that is done. I like the idea of doing this so that I can still keep my day job in the beginning. I also like the idea of making money while I sleep.
Job Hunting. I’ve been unhappy at my current job for awhile now. I put off job hunting when the pandemic first started, but recently I’ve started going hard looking and applying again. The only thing is, is that the type of job I want may be tricky to get without the proper training, which I don’t currently have. This brings me to…
Where I’m going:
Course for New Job. As I mentioned above, I need more training for the job that I want, so I recently bought a course online, inexpensively at Udemy, to get me that training. I’ll be getting started on that soon. I just have a glitch in my system that I need my brother’s help with and he’s been busy lately.
Course for a Website I Own. One of my passive income ideas that I’m interested in doing is to “resurrect” a website that I created years ago, so there’s already a lot of information (articles, etc.) on it. I just have to tweak it up a bit, get some traffic and monetize it. BUT…I want to become an expert in my niche, so I want to buy an online course to gain more knowledge on it.
The course for the new job was on sale for a very inexpensive cost, and I’ve seen a great deal on the website niche course too, so I’ll be purchasing that soon before that deal is gone.
That about sums up what’s going on with me in my world to become debt free. Please feel free to share your ideas and where you are at. Until next time…
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7 Ways to Get Out of Debt Quickly
We all want to kibosh our debt as quickly as we can, am I right? I know I’m always looking for ways to do so! So I came up with a great list of seven ways to get out of debt quickly. Here we go:
1. Put all extra money towards debt. Things like government refunds (tax refunds, etc.), monetary gifts, money from a pay raise, extra money once you’ve paid something off (i.e. credit card, loan, etc.), work bonus, overtime work pay and any unexpected money you may receive.
2. Lowering bills or cancelling services you don’t need/use. Do you have a gym membership you don’t use often enough? Do you have utility services you could potentially get lowered? I just recently got my internet bill lowered by $35.00 so that extra money now goes towards my credit card debt. Right now, I’m also debating my gym membership. I might just switch to working out at home.
3. Side hustles. These can be very effective ways to get out of debt quickly, as there are so many options. A few examples of things you could do: sell a service on Fiverr (there are a range of different services you could offer on Fiverr), sell photos, sell arts and crafts (on Etsy, etc.), start a YouTube channel, online tutoring, house/pet-sitting, cleaning houses, proofreading services (if you are good with grammar, spelling, etc. of course), grocery shop for people, etc…the list goes on and on!
4. Sell your stuff. We all have items in our household that we no longer use, wear, etc. In these COVID-19 times, what better time to go through all of your belongings and sell them on eBay, Amazon or an online classified website such as Kijiji or Craigslist. You’d be surprised at what people will buy secondhand. One person’s junk is another person’s treasure!
5. Pay more than the minimum payment, even if it’s just a bit. Every little bit counts. This is one of those ways to get out of debt quickly just by being focused on it. For example, for me, it was frustrating to look at my credit card statement before when I was only making the minimum payment. I thought, I’m never getting rid of this debt. Ugh. Now that I’ve really gone hard on it, that is, always putting more than the minimum payment, I’m really noticing the difference. It’s finally going down, and at the rate I want it to.
6. Track your spending and see where you can cut back or cut out completely. This can be one of the most effective ways to get out of debt quickly if you can really keep an eye on your spending. I recently went through my online banking account to see what I was spending my money on and how often, for the year so far. It’s funny how things add up, I’ll tell ya! Even the little things, like buying a coffee every day, or a bottle of wine here and there, a lunch out, etc. If I were to use the unnecessary money I had spent this year so far on my debt instead, I’d be doing even better! Baby steps. I’m learning as I go.
7. Save on groceries. We can all spend less on groceries I’m sure. A good place to start is not going shopping while hungry. Other good tips I’ve learned along the way are buy sale items of course, but stock up on them. Especially the non-perishable items. I also love buying meat in bulk when it’s a good sale, and then just popping it in the freezer. Another way to save is to go in the store with the mind frame, “I’m only buying what’s on my list, nothing more!”. I’ve always been bad with that myself, but I’ve definitely improved on it.
Imagine combining all of these ways to get out of debt quickly? You’d be well on your way most definitely! Even try doing half of them and see what a difference that makes for you. Let me know if you have other ideas of your own that are working for you. Until next time!
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Save Money or Pay Off Debt?
Have you asked yourself this question? I know I have because I’m torn between the two. I want to do both. Then I asked myself, do I try to do both at once or just focus on one first, then the other afterwards? After much thinking, reading and researching, the answer became very clear to me on whether to save money or pay off debt.
My top two reasons for saving:
1. In the event of an emergency or unexpected expense (such as an expensive car repair), and…
2. If I lose my job, which in these trying (coronavirus) times, could be a possibility. You never know.
So, it would be great to have money set aside for either of these things. Now, with that being said, I also have two big reasons to pay off debt first. The only debt I really have left is my one credit card (and the money I owe my mom, which she has said she doesn’t want back but I still want to pay her). Anyway, here are the two reasons I want that paid off:
- The credit card has a high interest rate, and…
- To be completely debt free. I can’t wait for the feeling I’ll have when that day comes!
So again, the big question, save money or pay off debt? The one that ended up making most sense to me in the end was to pay off the debt first. The less time I want to be paying high interest fees, the better!
I think that if my interest fees were a fair amount lower, I’d be more willing to do both save and pay off debt, but to me, it doesn’t make sense to save money only to sit there paying interest fees. That’s more money I could be saving after all.
I’m currently going hard on my credit card, which actually feels pretty great. Looking at my monthly statements seeing that amount going down each time, mixed with my credit rating going up, is quite fantastic. Any unexpected or extra money I get, goes to that, and I won’t stop until that debt is gonzo!
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How COVID-19 Changed My Money Mindset
Hello! I hope all is well with you in these hard times.
I always try to find a silver lining in any kind of tough situation, and COVID-19 has been no exception. Actually, I didn’t seek a silver lining in this case…I just kind of realized it one day.
How did it change? Well, I have become even better with my money now. Why? To sum it up in one very vulnerable word, fear. I fear getting sick and not being able to work, for one thing. Where I live, the government is currently giving “relief money” for that, but it’s less than what I make with my job, and also, I am sure at some point, they will stop paying that. After all, they can only afford to do that for so long. There is always unemployment insurance, but that is only a percentage of my regular pay, so again, less than what my job pays.
So, my money mindset had changed due to these fears because I am now even more careful of my money. I have one credit card that I am still paying down, and I am currently going “gung ho” on it because if I get sick and/or lose my job, I now, more than ever, don’t want to worry about debt.
After that one credit card is paid off, I will be completely debt free and want to then focus on an “emergency fund”. I want to save up enough money to get me through at least 3 months of not working, just in case.
Because of this money mindset change, I have actually never felt better about my future. That’s an odd feeling to have with COVID-19 instilling fear into me to be able to have this change.
Weird how something so positive can happen from something so terrible. I would love to hear if you have any inspirational stories coming from these past several difficult months.
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5 Best Free Budget Apps
So, I have been looking at budget apps to help me out with keeping track of my expenses, and all that fun stuff that goes with my eventual debt-free life. By research and trial, I have created a list of the 5 best free budget apps I have found. The key word in there being free. We don’t want to be paying for a budget app when we are trying to get out of debt, right? That’s just silly. Okay, here we go:
- Mint
- Created by Intuit Inc. (the name behind QuickBooks and TurboTax)
- Very secure
- Sync your bank accounts and credit cards
- Sync your monthly bills
- Create your budget
- Expense tracking
- Lets you know when your bills are due and the amount owing
- Reminds you of your payments
- Provides free credit score
- Receive an alert when you go over budget
- Receive savings tips
- Also has desktop version
So, for those of you who want a secure app that will be easy for you to manage, as it is connected with all of your accounts, Mint is one of the best free budget apps out there. It is my top pick actually.
Check out Mint for more information.
2. Wally
- User friendly (simple to use)
- Track your expenses
- Allows you to take photos of your receipts so you don’t have to manually enter everything
- Tracks the places you shop often so that it’s easier for you to add those in the future
- Set a goal for savings
- Assign recurring income
- Assign recurring expenses
I added this to my best free budget apps list because of its unique features that make it easier to use.
Check out Wally for more information.
3. PocketGuard
- Tracks your spending
- Easy to use
- Syncs to your bank accounts and credit card
- Charts and graphs so you can see your financial status
- Tracks your income (monthly)
- Tracks your bills/expenses
- Tracks your savings
- Includes a feature that looks at your bills and provides ways you can potentially save on each one
Although I personally don’t like that it goes by a monthly basis (I budget on more of a bi-weekly basis), I added it to my best free budget apps list because I do like the fact that it’s user-friendly and that it will even tell me when I can’t afford something!
Check out PocketGuard for more information.
4. Fudget- Very simple layout
- Easy to use
- Choose to use on a weekly, monthly, etc. basis
- Easily track expenses, including recurring ones
- Mark expenses as “Paid” or “Unpaid”
- Does not link to bank accounts, etc.
- Easily adjustable
I love the Fudget app because of its simplicity. It is very easy to set up and use. It’s also great for those who do not want their financial accounts in connection with an app.
Check out Fudget for more information.
5. Goodbudget
- Envelope system – without the envelopes (free version: 10 regular envelopes, 10 annual envelopes)
- User-friendly
- Can sync to several devices (works great for singles and couples!)
- Tracks spending and identifies where you might be overspending
- No bank information required
- You can transfer funds between envelopes and accounts
- Funds not used can be transferred into following month
- Free version covers most needs
If you work best with an “envelope system”, then this app is the one for you! I added it to my list of best free budget apps for those like the idea of using envelopes (virtual ones in this case of course). It also has great features and it works well for those who don’t feel comfortable linking their bank accounts to an app.
Check out Goodbudget for more information.
So, there you have it! Some pretty awesome apps to use to help you with organizing your finances and working towards getting out of debt. One of the best things about them is that they’re free to use.