Where Did All This Debt Come From?
I decided to go to grad school to get my Masters in Public Health degree in the Fall of 2015. Despite earning a 10,000 scholarship and graduating a semester early, I still found myself with $25,000 of student loan debt.
I paid off the minimum amount due of my loan each month and I would probably throw in an extra $50 every once in a while. I patted myself on the back for making ‘extra contributions’ while also spending the same amount of my student loan payments eating out each month (YIKES).
More Debt Please
I then bought a brand-new car in January 2018 and added on an additional $21,123.23 of debt. I will remember that number. FOREVER. At this point I still had about $23,580 left on my student loans.
All of this debt accumulation was before I found out exactly how expensive it is to finance a brand new car and definitely before I discovered the FIRE Movement.
Okay I Am Tired Of Debt
Shortly after getting my car I started listening to podcasts at work and my entire financial outlook changed. I am not exactly sure how I stumbled onto the world of personal finance. It was probably by searching Stitcher for something along the lines of ‘Women And Finances’.
When I first discovered Farnoosh Torabi’s So Money Podcast, I was hooked. I knew I did not want to be in debt forever, I just did not know where to start. Farnoosh’s podcast truly opened me up to the world of financial podcasts.
The conversations she would have with her guests made me see that another existence was possible. An existence in which one does not have to live paycheck to paycheck but can instead have control over their finances.
December 2019 Debt PayOff Progress
I kicked my butt into gear all of 2018 and 2019. At the time of writing this, I have managed to pay $13,416.26 dollars to both my student loans and car loans over the last two years.
Next month begins 2020 and I am setting on one of my most audacious goals yet. To pay off the remainder of my loans and finally be…debt…free.
Each month I will be using the debt snowball method and tracking my progress via Personal Capital. I will report back here monthly for accountability. If you have any loans you are trying to get rid of, feel free to come along the journey. For example, you can track along with me and share which methods you are using to eliminate your debt!
Current Debt Payoff Progress
In total I have over $31,000 to pay back. I have the ambitious goal of paying off this debt in the next year. Yes, I have a good salary, but paying off this total in 12 months will require a lot of cutting back.
My plan is to put over half of my monthly income to my debt. However, even if I manage to do so, this would still leave me short about $5,000.
How do I plan to make up that gap? Win The Lottery of Course.
Or more realistically, get started on some side hustles.
- Student Loans $17,329.96
- Car – $13,957.01
Total Debt As Of December 2019: $31,286.97
Going Forward
- Current Thoughts on December Debt Payoff: It is the end of the year and I feel good about my debt payoff progress.
- Goal For Next Month: Kick ass and take names.
TLDR: I have student loans and a car loan I aim to pay off by the end of 2020.