Josh and I have both been through Dave Ramsey‘s Financial Peace University. We took it last summer, at a local church, and since that time have been following through by doing the Baby Steps.
- $1000 emergency fund.
- Pay off all debt using the debt snowball.
- Save 3-6 months expenses in an emergency fund.
- Invest 15% of your income for retirement.
- College funding for your children.
- Pay off your home.
- Build wealth and GIVE!
We are about to finish baby step #2 and become totally debt free! I’m really excited about it, since we both graduated in 2006, and at that point had close to $68K in debt. Thank God for the power to get out of debt and be able to save our money for better things than interest payments.
How did it happen so quickly? Josh and I have been living on a budget. We use cash for most purchases, to keep within our budget. Also, Josh works two jobs, and I work, and we live off of only 2 of our paychecks a month (out of 4+freelance). I sold my car, so we got rid of those payments, it’s maintenance, and insurance.
We could have finished earlier, but we have a penchant for travel, and took an expensive honeymoon… but we don’t regret any of that. It keeps us sane. 🙂
Should be debt free by mid-September… I’ll keep you posted!