Miriam is a self-appointed wealth advocate and has been studying personal finance since 2007. Miriam grew up in the Washington DC metropolitan area and has been working in the financial services and lending industry for over a decade. She went from saving $1 a day to $50 a month to over $13,333 a year! She also walks us through how she got $50,000 debt monkey off her back.
Miriam blogs at Greenbacks Magnet.
This ‘get out of debt’ episode is a special one you don’t want to miss.
Table of Contents
What do you do for a living?
Check out our post on why student loan debt is bondage and 7 ways to set yourself free.
Do you have a degree and are you currently using your degree?
How long have you worked in your field and what is your current salary range? Only if you want to, however, it is better to give our readers some perspective. If they are low-income earner vs high-income earner, the strategies might differ.
What major debt have you paid off that you feel is a hurrah moment for you?
Describe to us in detail, the strategies you used to pay off that/those debt(s)
Do you have any other debt left? What kind of debt? What are your goals to pay off this debt?
Do you budget? Why or why not? Which method do you use?
I basically limit what I spend and set savings goals. That is about it.
I make a high savings goal and then cut out any expenses that would keep me from reaching my target. Tada!!! So
1. I set a high savings goal.
2. I slash expenses to meet that goal. And
3. This is a hat trick…I automate everything. I have my bills and savings and investments on automatic payment. That is my equivalent to pulling a financial rabbit out of a hat.
Thank you, thank you, folks, I’ll be here all week!
What percentage of your monthly income do you save?
I save roughly 40 percent of my income including investments.
Do you have any passive income sources?
Only the interest I receive from my savings at the moment. I’m working on expanding this.
Do you rent or own your own home/condo/apartment?
I own a home.
Which side of the argument are you in terms of paying off mortgage vs investing?
I think if you are paying more than 5% interest, you should concentrate on eliminating this debt from your life ASAP. Otherwise, make investing a priority.
Sometimes, I split the difference. I will have 50/50 split of the half to my savings go for investment and the other toward the debt. You should always have cash reserves. I do not worry so much about stuff or FOMO.
Get the money first, then you can do whatever you want. I keep my eye on the prize: freedom.
Why do I save so much? See my post Why I and Halle Berry Save So Much and find out.
Here is the link to binge on all the get out of debt series
Other posts in the series include
This 22 Year Old Public School Teacher Inspired Us To Be Debt Free! – Rachel Scott
Dog walk your way out of $150,000 debt by frugal wallet
Financial independence African style – How to pay off $35,000 debt in one year!!
Xrayvsn crawled out of $600,000 debt and the worst divorce in history and still managed to reach financial freedom.
From one Geek To Another became debt free at a tender age of 27.
Money Saved Is Money Earned is the master in stretching that dollar. Low income did not stop him from getting out of debt.
How We Paid Off $340,000 Mortgage In 3 Years By Saving 86.5% Of Our Income (By HisHerMoneyGuide)
Wealthy Doc became financially independent in 17 years after starting his real job.
Marc from Vital Dollar paid off his 30 years mortgage in just 4 years.
Millionaire Mob, a guru investor showed us how to get out of debt.
The frugal fellow lived with his parents to pay off debt and he is not ashamed of it
Check out some of the tricks we used to pay off over $200,000 student loan debt by 6 months out of training.
5 strategies to pay off $55,000 debt In 4.5 Years by Spills Spot
I am a pulmonary and critical care doctor by day and personal finance blogger/debt slaying ninja by night.
After paying off close to $300,000 in student loan debt in less than 6 months into my real job, I started on a mission to help others achieve the same. There is no magic to this than to strap up and get it done. Some of the ways we achieved this include side hustle, budgeting, great negotiation skills, and geographical arbitrage.
When I was growing up, common knowledge in Nigeria is that there is one thing you cannot trust anyone else with, and you guessed it – your money.
Being frugal came easily to me based on my background. However, the concept of building wealth did not solidify in my mind until when I finished medical school. I wish I knew what I know now when I was 14. Still, I don’t know enough and I am constantly learning to improve my knowledge.
My goal is to reduce financial illiteracy among young professionals. I am catering to the beginners – babies and toddlers in financial literacy.
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