Did you set a New Year’s resolution? If so how did you do? Towards the end of 2018, I stumbled upon an episode of the Dave Ramsey show, which prompted my 2019 resolution. At the time, I had been reflecting on my gratitude to my parents and in-laws for blessing us with a beautiful wedding and honeymoon in Europe. Daniel and I shared we hoped we would be able to do the same for our future children, while also knowing it may not be possible. Neither of us earn tremendously great incomes, so while we would always be comfortable financially, it was hard to know if we would be able to achieve the same level of financial success as our parents.
I was drawn to Dave Ramsey’s no-nonsense approach to financial wisdom–pay off your debts (including your house) as quickly as possible and plan ahead for big expenses (including car purchases) so that no further debt is accrued. I loved his focus on achieving financial success, not so you could own nice things and take nice vacations, but so that you could strengthen your marriage and change your family tree. Daniel listened to an episode or two, and he was willing to give Dave’s ideas a try.
Daniel crunched a few numbers and told me if we paid an extra $3,000 each month we could have a paid off house in less than five years. I responded with disbelief– how on earth could we pay off a 30 year mortgage in 6 years? How could we possibly spend an extra $3,000 each month without drastically changing our lifestyle?
I decided I should probably try Daniel’s plan before determining it didn’t work. The first few months were HARD. It was hard making a regular mortgage payment and then 2-3 weeks later watching another $1500 disappear from my bank account. I’m a saver by nature and it felt weird spending so much money. It was also hard scaling back our lifestyle. Although we did not live extravagantly, we enjoyed going out to dinner or brunch a few times a week and taking a few weekend trips in addition to a few larger trips each year.
It was really annoying losing the cushion in our budget to go out for Mexican on weeknights when neither of us wanted to cook or saying no to a trip with friends because we really didn’t have an extra $150 in that month’s budget. Now, it just seems like the new “normal.” We plan ahead so that when we want to eat out or take a trip, we have money dedicated in the budget. I find that I actually enjoy the experiences significantly more because they feel like a “treat” and I don’t need to feel guilty because I know they fit within our budget and within our vision for our life together.
Don’t get me wrong, it is still hard and sometimes I feel tired. When that happens, we talk about our dreams–our dreams to hire contractors to redo our kitchen and bathrooms, to have a the freedom to retire early or work part-time, to travel more often, and try all the restaurants which opened since we met Dave Ramsey 😉
The goal that seemed impossible last December, we were able to surpass. We paid an extra $40,000 towards our mortgage in 2019! Unless something drastically changes, we will be debt-free (house and all) well before turning 40! Indirectly, we have managed to strengthen our marriage and build a stronger vision for what our life will look like together.
Did you have a goal for your financial future? Maybe it’s time to start dreaming!