Living a Debt-Free Lifestyle: An Expert Roundup
debt.com/money-tips/living-a-debt-free-lifestyle
By Steve Horton June 12,2019

Debt.com strives to provide our users with helpful information while remaining
unbiased and truthful. We hold our sponsors and partners to the highest industry
standards. Once vetted, those sponsors may compensate us for clicks and transactions
that occur from a link within this page.
There are many paths you can take to achieve a debt-free lifestyle. The road you
choose depends on your life circumstances, the amount of debt you have, and what
you are willing to do to achieve your goal.
Debt.com spoke to dozens of debt experts and asked them about their approach to
becoming debt free. Check out their advice and their websites to help on your journey
toward financial independence.

What steps should people take if they want to live a debtfree lifestyle?
Two Kids and a Coupon
Having paid off tens of thousands of dollars in credit card and student loan debt, mybest advice to anyone and everyone is to live below your means. With all the credit
offers and promotions, it can be easy to be tricked into borrowing more money thanyou need, and you can get into trouble fast.
Taking out a mortgage is a key example: we were approved for triple the amount we
asked for, and Realtors® and lenders kept trying to push us towards more expensive
homes and mortgages. However, we have stuck to our budget and got everything weneed, and still can afford our house payment despite many job changes and layoffs
over the years.
To get started tackling your debt, look for simple ways to cut expenses such as using
coupons and cash-back apps for shopping. Consider cutting the cord on cable, andcomparison shop for services like car insurance and cell-phone plans. Evaluate how you
are using those services and make sure you are not overpaying for what you need.
Entertainment and meals can be a couple of the easiest areas to save, and it’s easy tofind fun and free things to do, and delicious meal options to make at home instead ofdining out. With the extra you save, pay down your debt as much as you can afford, andstock away extra for a rainy day.
1/27

–Kim Ritter

The Frugal Girls
Don’t think how much money you’ll save at the end of each month. Instead… plan tosave it all, and think about how little you can spend. This simple idea to reframe yourthinking about money can really help you get out of debt fast, and supercharge yoursavings!
–Heidi Miller

The Penny Hoarder
Make a monthly budget, an annual budget, and a five-year budget.
You can’t be debt free if you don’t know what’s coming in and what’s going out. It
sounds like a big project, but people who live on monthly budgets alone often don’tplan for annual costs, like an annual membership renewal or property taxes. These are
not unexpected expenses that your three-month emergency fund is intended for, so
take a bigger picture look at your finances. If you know you’re going to need a car inanother two years, start budgeting for it now. Planning for bigger purchases andexpenses in advance allows you to escape the debt cycle.

Recognize your weaknesses.
Where in your life are you most likely to overspend? Can you limit your exposure to thetemptation? If you habitually overspend online, remove your credit card number fromyour account so it’s tougher to click and buy on a whim. If eating out is draining yourbudget, make sure you have an appetizing array of food stocked in your pantry so
you’re not tempted to stop by a restaurant on the way home from work. Simply
recognizing your pain points can serve as a reminder to close your wallet when
temptations beckon.

Make more money.
At some point, after cutting everything you can from your budget, you’ll either be living
debt free or you won’t be living. Cutting your life to bare bones can work temporarily,
but it’s not sustainable if you’re sitting in an empty room eating dried beans every night.
If your current income can’t cover a realistic budget, consider either asking for a raise atwork or finding a side gig to bring in additional money. The Penny Hoarder’s Work from
Home portal includes new opportunities daily for adding the income you need to live adebt-free life.
–Tiffany Connors

Money Crashers
2/27

Your best bet if you want to live a debt-free lifestyle is to get on a personal budget. The
website Mint is a great resource, but there are others. Next, reduce your monthly bills
as much as possible. There are plenty of ways to cut energy, grocery, water, TV, Internet,
and smartphone bills. Use the Internet if you need help. Once that’s complete you
should find yourself with a surplus in your bank account, which should be directed
towards any existing debt balances.
Consider reducing entertainment expenditures until you are debt-free as well. Stay on
track by creating annual and monthly goals. Those are the tips for people currently indebt. For those that aren’t in debt, there’s really just one rule to live by. If you can’t
afford to pay for something in cash or have it paid off by the time the bill comes in, thenyou just can’t afford it. In simplistic terms, it’s called living below your means. Follow
either of those two strategies, and you’ll be certain to live a debt-free life.
–Andrew Schrage

The Frugal Navy Wife
We are all told to bring in more money or sell items to pay off debt. A little trick is to pickup free items off the side of the road, off Craigslist, and even sites like FreeCycle, andwith a few minutes of work cleaning it, and sometimes small repairs, you can sell themand it’s all profit. Add that money right to savings or to paying off debt.
–Danielle Leonard

Money Talks News
There are plenty of simple tips you can harness to live debt free. In fact, if you’re reading
this, you’re undoubtedly already familiar with many. Things like automating yoursavings, creating a budget, paying extra on your debts, embracing coupons, avoiding
Starbucks…yada, yada, yada.
But if you’ve already heard all this stuff, why aren’t you already on a path to a debt-freelife?
In a word, motivation.
Living debt-free requires change. Change requires rearranging your priorities by
rewiring your brain. If you’re not heading in the direction you want to go, your problem
likely isn’t instruction, it’s motivation.
Where do you find the motivation to harness the tools you’re already aware of? Bywrapping your mind around the fact that debt is robbing you of the single mostvaluable thing you have: your time on this planet. The time you could spend doing
things you want to do – the things that make you happy – rather than what you have todo, like working in an unfulfilling job.
3/27

As I said in my first book, Life or Debt: “Paying interest is trading your life for someone
else’s profit. So, make a decision today. Decide to either look rich now or be rich later.
Because you probably won’t live long enough to accomplish both.”–Stacy Johnson

Money Q&A
You’ve got to get rid of your credit cards if you want to live a debt-free lifestyle once andfor all. If you’ve worked so hard to become debt free, keeping credit cards can still be atemptation even if you keep them just in case. Get rid of the temptation altogether.
–Hank Coleman

Doctor of Credit
I think the most important things to do are as follows:
1. Create a realistic budget and stick to it. Creating a budget is probably the mostimportant step to remain debt free. Before starting, I always find it helpful to lookat expenses from the last 2 to 3 months, as often you’ll be surprised by how muchyou’re spending on particular categories or old subscriptions you’ve forgotten
about.
2. Build an emergency fund for unexpected expenses. If you have a healthy
emergency fund, then this will help you from having to go into debt whensomething bad happens (e.g car breaks down, or you lose your job). The added
benefit of this is that when something does happen, your stress levels will bedecreased, as the financial hit won’t be as bad as it otherwise would be.
3. Only go into debt for large purchases (e.g home or auto loans). Often, you’ll
see people go into debt for relatively minor expenses, and the long term negative
financial impact can be a lot worse than it might at first look.
–William Charles

Personal Profitability
If you want to live a debt-free lifestyle, it’s important to carefully track your income andexpenses each month. If you have debt you are looking to pay off, follow the Debt
Avalanche technique, focusing on the highest interest debts first. If you struggle juggling
all the bills, look for financial big wins where you can save the most. That is usuallythings like housing, cars, and subscriptions like cable TV and your cell phone. Anything
you can cut helps and even a few dollars per month adds up over time!
For example, I drive a 10-year-old car and have not made a car payment in eight years.
At $300 per month, that is $28,800 in savings over eight years compared to someone
who gets a new car every few years. I cut cable in 2011 and saved $70 per month. At
4/27

that rate, I’ve saved over $6,000 in the years since. I’ve also saved big by switching cell
phone providers and car insurance companies. Look at your own recurring expenses tofind the biggest places you can save. Then get on track to pay down your debt and keep
it paid off. You’ll be so happy you did.
–Eric Rosenberg

Jackie Beck
The most important step is to only spend the money you already have. The rule is thatyou can buy or do anything you want or need, so long as you have the money for it first.
Building up an emergency fund and having enough insurance are key to making that
happen. If you’re already in debt and want to live debt-free moving forward, use a debt
snowball as well so you can pay your existing debts off.
–Jackie Beck

Madam Money
Financial abstinence and financial protection are excellent tested actions to taketowards a debt-free lifestyle. In my book “Financial Fornication,” I discuss practicing
financial abstinence by avoiding the use of credit cards while you are paying down
debt.
Also, it is essential to practice safe financial habits and protect your lifestyle by using abudget or spending plan. A spending plan will help you make the best decision on how
to redirect money that is spent on wants, to pay off debt and save more so you canenjoy your new debt-free lifestyle.
–Tarra Jackson

Crushed by student loan debt and worried you’ll never pay it off? There ishelp available.
Discover More

Making Sense of Cents
The top step I recommend people take when paying off debt is to find a way to makeextra money. The average person spends around 30 to 35 hours a week watching TV,
and that can all be time to put towards making extra money. Even if you can just put
half the time towards paying off debt, that’s still over 15 hours a week where you canmake extra money. And, there are many things you can do to make more money, suchas finding a part-time job, starting a side business, taking on more hours at work (ifyou’re paid hourly), and more.
–Michelle Schroeder-Gardner
5/27

Dividend Diplomats
Try to avoid debt, in the first place. See every alternative possible for auto, student andpersonal loans. However, if you have debt and want to be debt-free, try to refinance
down to lower rates, to start. Next, pay down the highest rate first. Third, if the rate isfor sure higher than all other savings rates and investment return potential, pay thosedown until completely finished. Debt can drag your life down and the goal is to try to rip
those chains off as fast as possible!
–Dividend Diplomats

Trim
Pay a little bit more toward your credit card balances every month. Spend a little bit lesson everything else. Lower your interest rate (APR) while you’re paying it off. At Trim, we
help folks with all three: automating payments, negotiating other bills, and negotiating
your APR, too.
–Thomas SmythMy Millennial Guide
In order to live a debt-free lifestyle, you should first get a grasp on how much you owe.
The first step to becoming debt-free is to fully understand how much you owe and how
you can pay it all back. You can use free online tools like Mint or Personal Capital to findout the full debt amount, and how much you should be putting away each month topay off your debt. Knowing how much you owe is the first step towards becoming debt
free.
Next, you’ll want to work out a feasible budget and recalibrate your life in a way that
frees up more cash for debt repayments. Prioritize your most urgent, high-interest
debts and then figure out where you can trim your spending to pay these accounts off.
Simple steps like not eating lunch out daily will save you thousands every single year, so
leave no stone unturned when looking for savings.
As you get your spending and savings in check, you’ll want to focus on maximizing yourincome. Explore avenues for maximizing your income as a way to pay off your debt.
This can be as simple as renting out a spare room, finding side gigs, and other countless
ways to boost your income. Do some research and see which ones work for you.
Once you have your budget in control and your debt is slowly being paid off, don’t stop
there! Look for other ways to save and be sure to monitor your progress as you go. It’s
always smart to make adjustments as you progress and start building your emergency
fund.
–Brian Meiggs
6/27

oXYGen Financial
Don’t succumb to lifestyle inflation. The absolute key is to make sure you save one-thirdof every raise you get, and you’ll avoid having long term debt.
My other main tip is to never have more than two credit cards. This leads to lesstemptation and lets you keep a closer eye on debt.
–Ted Jenkin

Debt Discipline
Living a debt-free lifestyle is a simple concept on paper, but much harder to practice inreal life. There are many pitfalls we encounter as we begin our financial lives andhandle money full time. Things like not having a formal financial education, higher
education cost, and not having a plan for our money.
Being successful at living a debt-free life takes a bit of planning, education, and selfdiscipline. The basic principle of living debt free is to spend less then you make. Thatcan be a hard task in the modern world with social media highlight reels, and advertiser
doing their best to separate you from your money.
Spending your money intentionally and on things that matter the most to you is a great
starting point. Having some type of cash savings for the unexpected things life canthrow at you is a close second. Finally, having regular check-ins on where and how yourmoney is being spent may help prevent you from spending too much, and taking on
debt. Ultimately it will be up to you and the behaviors you adopt when it comes tomoney and debt.
–Brian Brandow

Horkey Handbook
Basically, you’ll want to inventory your situation by figuring out your budget (how muchmoney comes in vs. goes out per month), get $1,000 saved in a cash reserve accountand prioritize your debt by type and interest rate.
Use any discretionary income (i.e. any surplus from your income minus expenses) to
put towards your highest interest (or smallest balance) debt and pay the minimum
amount on the rest. When that debt is wiped out, continue on to the next one, applying
the total payment you were making to number one’s debt, plus the minimum payment
of debt number two.
Lastly, start paying cash for ALLLL of the things. Stop purchasing things you don’t havethe funds for and save up money to buy a new (to you!) car, rather than financing thisyear’s model. If you pay cash, you don’t have to have comprehensive vehicle insurance
coverage either, plus your annual taxes will be a heckuva lot less!
7/27

–Gina Horkey

Family Money Plan
If you are wanting to live a debt-free lifestyle then it’s important to know why you wantthat life. Because a debt-free lifestyle has two parts. The first is becoming debt free, that
can take time to get there and has been written about a million times. But once you are
there (debt free) you have the second part which is living debt free. That can be a lotharder than it sounds.
Living debt free means that you have to make choices to only buy what you can afford.
So if your car goes, then you have to repair it instead of buying a new one. It also meansthat you are consciously choosing to delay buying things until you have the money
saved up in full. Which means you need to be patient. Living debt free requires planningand thinking beyond the day-to-day. You need to start thinking of your upcoming
needs and be saving for them on an on-going basis. Otherwise, you can find yourself
back in debt.
It’s a different mindset, but it’s worth it.
–Andrew Daniels

Sure Dividend
Becoming debt free is a result of just 2 factors:
1. Your income
2. Your expenses
To live debt free, it helps to think of your financials like a business. Your income simply
must exceed your expenses. The specific steps to take to achieve this are to first get an
idea of where you are. Write down your monthly income and average monthly
expenses. Then see how much money you have left over to pay down debt each month.
If there’s nothing left over, you must either focus on raising your income through sidehustles, overtime hours, or other means.
Or, you can focus on reducing your expenses. Then, pay off your debts, starting withthe debt with the highest interest rate. And once you are debt free, the journey to true
financial independence through investing for passive income begins.
–Ben Reynolds

Financial Best LifeThe key to staying debt free is saving for purchases — both big and small. An
emergency fund is obviously a must, but I like to recommend smaller savings accounts(like the ones offered through automatic money saving apps) to help fund larger
8/27

purchases, like a vacation or new TV, in cash.
–Lauren Bowling

Don’t waste another sleepless night worrying about debt!
Let Debt.com connect you with professional debt help today.
Learn More

Freedom is Groovy
It all boils down to habits. And the very first habit you must incorporate if you want tolive debt-free is tracking your spending. And I mean every last cent. No expense is too
trivial—even that candy bar you occasionally get at the vending machine at work.
Everything. It’s very hard to live debt free if you don’t know where you’re hemorrhaging
money. A tracking spreadsheet, such as the Groovy Expense Tracker, is thus a great tool
to curb frivolous spending and help you live within your means.
The second habit you must incorporate if you want to live debt-free is stopping at
enough. For instance, when I was in college, I would routinely hit the campus bars andget drunk. It never occurred to me that I didn’t need ten beers to have a good time. It
wasn’t until I was in my 30s that I realized that two or three beers were enough. Well,the same applies to personal finance. Do you really need the latest iPhone to makephone calls and send text messages? Or will a $50 smartphone from Walmart beenough for the job? Always be asking yourself, “What is enough?” “What is the bareminimum I need to accomplish what I want to accomplish?” And then simply default to“enough” when you’re making your spending decisions. A great trick I use to stop at
enough is something I call the half-normal challenge. Just research what the normal
American spends on something and then spend half or less on that particularsomething.
Finally, if you want to smite your debt and remain debt free, you need to act like yourjob is going away. A job loss is catastrophic when it comes to personal finance. Suffer
prolonged bouts of unemployment and it will be impossible to live a debt-free life. So bea little scared. Assume your company or industry is going to take it on the chin in thenext year or so and you will be downsized. Keep learning. Keep improving your job
skills.
–Mr. Groovy

Money Manifesto
Living a debt-free lifestyle is very freeing and worth the sacrifice it takes to get there. If
you want to live a debt-free lifestyle, you need to take a close look at your life andexamine your values and priorities first.

9/27

Most people say you need to look at your income and expenses first, but I find looking
at values and priorities first gets you in the right mindset before you look at yourfinances. Once you know what your values and priorities are, it makes choosing how to
optimize your expenses much easier.
Chances are you didn’t say you valued or prioritized having a brand new car but instead
valued time with family. When you see that one of your biggest expenses is yourmonthly car payment, you’re more likely to realize that the car payment isn’t helping
you focus on your values. You could get a cheaper but reliable vehicle, instead, andspend the difference getting out of debt so you can spend more time with your family.
Go through all your expenses and cut the ones that don’t help you focus on yourpriorities and values. Then, take that money and apply it to extra payments on yourdebt to accelerate your journey to freedom from debt.
Getting out of debt can be overwhelming, but we’ve put together a series on Money
Manifesto to help you figure out how to get out of debt when you don’t know where to
start.
–Lance Cothern

Women Who Money
1. Determine your needs versus wants for both today and the future.
2. Track expenses and establish a budget or spending plan to address those needs,
paying particular attention to the big three items – housing, transportation, andfood – while spending less than you earn and saving the difference.
3. Establish an emergency fund and use it only for true emergencies.
4. Establish sinking funds to pay for expected expenses that are not part of themonthly budget, i.e., car repairs, annual insurance premiums, vacations, gifts, etc.
5. Avoid lifestyle inflation.
6. Save at least 15% for retirement.
–Amy Blacklock

Compounding Pennies
In order to live a debt-free lifestyle, you need to do one main thing.
You need to control your wants and needs. Too many times we mistake wants forneeds and spend money that we don’t have. Other times we try to keep up with othersor show off our success and this gets us into debt. By controlling your wants and needs
and making smart, rational decisions you can easily avoid getting into debt.
A way of helping with this is to track your spending. By having a budget and knowing
where your money is going, you more easily avoid overspending.
10/27

–Jon Dulin

A Richer You
My #1 recommendation for living a debt-free lifestyle is to increase your income. You
end up in debt when your lifestyle costs more than what you earn. To live a financiallyhealthy and meaningful life, you should be able to invest 20% of your income, give away
10% of your income, and use the rest to afford your desired lifestyle — including paying
off any current debt obligations.
Yes, you should consider reducing how much money you spend on your three largest
expenses (typically housing, transportation, and food), but beyond this, the best use ofyour time is increasing your income. There are three ways you can increase yourincome:1. Find a higher paying job: If you earn $25 or less per hour, it’s not unreasonable
to assume you could double your salary in the next 5 years through either apromotion or your same job at a different company. This has happened to me
and many people I know. Start preparing for this now by working closely withyour boss to learn what they do, how you can better support them, and what
would be required for you to qualify for their position. Additionally, update yourresume and LinkedIn profile —and apply to a new job every week. Even if you
aren’t actively looking, you may find yourself with an interview for a great job
paying more than you currently make.
2. Embrace the sharing economy: Rather than downgrading your house and car,consider turning these extra “luxuries” into moneymaking opportunities. Airbnb
allows you to rent out spare rooms in your house. Turo lets you rent out yourvehicle when you aren’t using it. Services like these allow creative people to live
the lifestyle they want without going into debt.
3. Start a side hustle: I’ve been able to make an extra $100,000 over the last 5 years
from my side hustles. I did this through writing blog posts, managing social media
accounts, building my own websites, and investing in real estate (without muchmoney). I’ve known other people who double their income by selling products on
Amazon or Etsy, buying domain names, managing a lawn care service, or driving
for Lyft/Uber in their spare time. Not only does a side hustle help you earn moremoney, but it gives you less time to spend the money you make!
By finding ways to make your time more valuable, you can decrease your debt while
increasing your contribution to the world around you.
–Robert ErichMad Money Monster

11/27

The easiest thing you can do to live a debt-free lifestyle is to live below your means andavoid using credit cards. Now, I know living below your means doesn’t sound nearly as
flashy as having the latest iTrend or new clothes, but over the long haul, living a lifestyle
you can afford can prove paramount in your overall wealth. Paying cash for the things
that everyone else finances will set you apart from the crowd, and can even eliminate
the emotional stress that often comes along with being deep in debt.
Obviously, it’s not always possible to pay cash for everything. There are times when you
might need to finance a necessity, like a car. But as long as you’re smart about it, anddon’t buy more car than you can easily afford, you’ll be far ahead of the curve. Living
below your means and focusing on staying out of debt is a simple strategy you canadopt at any age, and can set you up for a lifetime of financial success.
–Lisa Harrison

Financial Mentor
A debt-free lifestyle requires 3 things:
Your “wants” must be less than your income: That means learning to value
experiences over stuff, and not falsely buying based on consumer-driven values.
You need to get clear on what truly makes you happy and how it has little to dowith spending. When you align your expenses with these deeper values it solves
the overspending problem.
Track every penny you make and spend: That which you track is what you
improve. Ask two question for every expense. (1) Is this taking me closer to mygoals, or away from my goals? (2) Is this getting me the highest and best value formy money? The increased awareness around your spending caused by thistracking and questioning will automatically lower your spending with no willpower
or self-discipline on your part. It naturally aligns your expenses with your goals
and values while dramatically reducing wasteful spending.
Maintain a reserve: Everyone has occasional setbacks. It could be a medical
emergency, job loss, or the car breaking down. You must have a reserve fund to
fall back on, so you don’t go into debt whenever adversity strikes.
When you do these three things, you’ll enjoy a permanently debt-free lifestyle!
–Todd Tresidder

FITnancials
Create a strategic plan of where you want to be. This plan should include how much anindividual wants to pay off in dollar amount each month, and how long it will take toreach the end goal. When you have numbers in place with a strict goal each month, it’smuch easier to stay on track and reach your goals.
12/27

–Alexis Schroeder

The Busy Budgeter
Step #1: Figure out where you are now. You need to meet this situation
head on.
1. Add up your net worth. The amount of assets you have minus the amount ofdebt you have.
2. Categorize your spending. Track everything you’ve spent for the last month tosee how much you’re spending and on what.
3. Deal with your debt. Figure out the interest rates on all of your debt and thetotal amount of your debt payments every month.
What could you buy if you weren’t spending all that money on debt?
When we started this process, I was paying almost $800 a month just for my minimum
debt payments. The idea of having $800 to blow on whatever I wanted every month
was a significant motivator in paying off my debt.
Spoiler Alert: Once you pay off your debt though, you get smarter with saving andinvesting so it’s unlikely that you’ll end up blowing $800 a month on shoes or fishingrods. But, there’s no need to tell yourself that yet.
However, it’s not just about knowing your numbers…

Step #2: Figure out the root cause of how you got into this situation.
Is your income too low to support the lifestyle you’re currently living? Then you need todowngrade the car, the house, and your entertainment, or you need to increase yourincome. Sometimes you may need to do both.
Are you chronically disorganized? Or, do you technically make enough money so thatyou shouldn’t have debt, but you find yourself constantly eating out and spending
money because you don’t have the time to cook at home or budget?
I focus on helping people who are chronically disorganized, so I can tell you that the key
is learning how to automate your home routines and focusing on only the mostimportant things. You want your lifestyle to start supporting your efforts to save money.
Once you look at your numbers and make a plan, you need to reduce your spending.

Step #3: Reduce your spending.
To give yourself the best results with the least amount of effort, focus your energy on
reducing your spending in the following categories…

13/27

Food Spending: This is usually the largest chunk that you can cut back, but also one of
the toughest if you struggle with meal planning and home routines.
Housing: This is another easy place to cut, but not always possible. For example, if you
own a home but are underwater or if you have to wait for a lease to expire.
Vehicle: Like housing, this can usually reduce your monthly bills by a lot, but it’s notalways possible if your loan is more than your vehicle is actually worth.
We used a tax refund to sell our nice car, pay off the difference and then bought acheap minivan for $5k. It was the best decision, ever! We haven’t had a car loan in 7
years.
Entertainment: This is another easy area to reduce your spending that can have a big
impact. It includes things like your hobbies, and how you socialize. We learned how tohave a really exciting life (in fact, significantly better than when we spent a ton of moneyon this) for a fraction of the price.
One of my favorite substitutions was when we stopped meeting friends out for dinnerand drinks. Add up the babysitter, the dinner and the drinks… those evenings used tocost us $100-$200 a night!
Now we host game nights where friends bring their kids in pajamas and the kids have apajama movie night (and even fall asleep here) while the grownups drink homemade
mules and play games.
Games nights are so much better than those stuffy dinners and they cost us a total of$15 for our share of snacks and mule ingredients.

Step #4: Make debt-free decisions.
Once you’ve got your debt paid off, it’s easier to stay debt free by focusing on the big
decisions.
Housing: Live in a house or an apartment a little under your budget, so you can spend
the extra money to make it feel like home and still live comfortably.
Vehicles: Flip cars by finding great deals and then buying them with cash. Sell themafter a year or two for the same amount you paid for them or, even a little more. Then
upgrade to buy another.
We’ve done this for years and have essentially paid nothing to drive the cars, since wealways sell for the same amount or more. Plus, we’ve had a lot of fun cars along the way
like vintage Corvettes, Jurassic Park Jeeps, and fully loaded minivans with DVD systems.
There’s so much info available on used cars today that you don’t have to be a car buff todo this. Just use Kelly Blue Book to find great deals, cross reference a deal with
Consumer Reports to look at common problems in that year and model, and then have
14/27

your local mechanic review the car and give you his advice.
When we first heard about living debt free, I think we had a preconceived notion that
we would be sitting around every weekend counting our cash while life passed us by. In
actuality, it’s been the total opposite.
We have a significantly better and more fulfilling life now and the freedom to spendmoney on the things that matter to us.
–Rosemarie Groner

Super Saving Tips
Plan ahead. When you plan ahead for the things you know you will want or need, andput money aside each month for it, you are way more prepared for any situation.
Planning ahead for financial needs is a big step in chasing after a debt-free life and the
avoidance of debt now.
For an unplanned need or emergency, putting money away in advance and using it only
for an actual emergency will prevent going into debt, even for the short term.
Finally, if you cultivate a sense of gratitude and appreciation for what you have, you areless likely to spend wastefully on things you don’t need.
–Gary Weiner

Debt.com can connect you with a certified student loan specialist that
can help you make a plan to eliminate your student loan debt!
Get Help Now

Three Thrifty GuysIf married, I suggest making sure that both you and your spouse are on board with adebt-free lifestyle. If one or the other is not interested, it will make the road much moredifficult. Also, set a goal for yourselves and where you’d like to be in five or 10 years.
Then, start tracking your income and expenses, making sure to include savings andinvestments as an “expense.”
If you’re single, setting a goal of where you’d like to be in five or 10 years is also helpful.
Track what is coming in, and also include savings and investments as an expense.
I think it’s also important to know why you’re doing something. Ask yourself, “Why do I
want to be debt-free?” Also, if you’ve always struggled with financial issues, there could
be something deeper at play here than just self-willing yourself to debt freedom. It may
be good to talk to someone you trust (who is wise with money and knows yoursituation), or even a mental health professional.
15/27

–Aaron Shepherd

Marriage Kids and Money
1. Create a Budget
The first step my wife and I took to eliminate our $50,000 of consumer debt was to truly
understand our monthly expenses with a monthly budget. Once we understood where
our money was going, we became empowered to control it.

2. Craft a Realistic Plan for Eliminating Debt
Based on our current spending and our income at the time (around $100k), we made agoal of becoming debt free within 1 year. This required us to live on around 50% of ourincome.
If living on 50% of your income feels too unrealistic, find the percentage that works foryou. If you’re able to live on less, you’ll crush your debt faster.

3. Increase Your Income
If you’re excited about becoming debt free, use that enthusiasm and find ways toincrease your income. During our debt destruction phase, I was in a sales role and I was
rewarded for selling more. With $50,000 to crush, I used that as motivation to exceed
my goals at work and make more money.
If you’re not able to make more money at your 9-to-5, consider a side hustle that will net
you some fast debt-crushing cash. Your extra effort will pay dividends down the road.
–Andy Hill

Sarah Titus
Several years ago, my ex-husband of 14 years of marriage abandoned me and my kids
and we ended up homeless and in $30k+ worth of debt. Today, I make millions ofdollars online each year, still as a single mom! If I can do it, I am 100% confident, you
can too! The very first step you should take is to start living below your means. Call yourbills every single year to find out if there’s a way to reduce them. Many times, you’ll findout there IS! I still do this to this day. This year, I just ditched my satellite TV bill($102/month) for Netflix and Hulu. It saves me so much money! Once you get your bills
under your income, begin creating an emergency savings account. Life WILL happen.
Emergencies WILL come and you need to be prepared. First, shoot for $500 in youremergency savings, then $1,000, then 3 months of your living expenses.
During that time, look for opportunities online to make some extra cash. I’ve been
making money online for over 21 years now! There are literally hundreds of solid ways
to earn extra money. Put all the money you earn in your savings account and don’t
16/27

touch it for anything but emergencies. After you have a good $500-$1,000 in savings,
begin paying everything extra you can on your debt. Pick ONE bill (the lowest debt) to
keep yourself motivated as you see debt by debt disappear. Work on the biggest debt
last. Over time, as you practice these steps, you will become debt-free. It may take awhile, you may mess up every now and then, that’s okay. You’re not looking for
perfection, you’re looking for progress.
–Sarah Titus

SuperMoney
If you are currently in debt, follow these steps:
1. Take time to get a handle on your financial situation. Find out where yourmoney is going and set up a realistic budget.
2. Reduce and simplify your interest expenses. It may be a good idea toconsolidate your debts if you have access to reasonable interest rates.
3. Choose the best payment method for your situation. Usually, this is as simple
as pay as much as you can on the credit card or loan with the highest interest ratefirst.
4. Make more money. Consider getting a side job that will help you pay off more ofyour debts.
5. If nothing works and you feel bankruptcy is the only option, get a freeconsultation with a debt relief expert. Check your options before you make adecision.
If you are already debt free, these steps will help you stay that way:

Build an emergency fund.
Forty percent of Americans would have to borrow if faced with a $400 emergency
expense. Build a rainy-day fund so you can avoid getting into debt when theunexpected happens.

Settle for a cheap but reliable used car.
Buying a new car is a terrible investment. The value of a car drops 10% in the firstmonth and 20% in the first year. After that, expect it to lose 10% per year. Paying
interest to buy a new car only adds insult to injury. Few people can afford to buy a new
car with cash. If you aren’t one of them, don’t get a loan to pay off a car you can’t afford.
Instead, get a reliable used car that is cheap enough to pay in cash.
–Miron Lulic

Money Smart Family
1. Don’t spend more than you bring home.
17/27

2. Evaluate where you’re spending your money. What monthly expenses can you
reduce or live without?
3. Set up a budget that is reconciled twice each month. This should track everything
you spend and all your income.
4. Liquidate assets to pay off your smallest debts. Sell unneeded technology,
furniture, musical instruments, sports equipment, artwork, etc.
5. Take up a side hustle to bring in additional income.
6. Have a plan for bonuses and cash windfalls. As you get your finances in order,
windfalls will happen more often.
7. Establish a maximum lifestyle and enjoy life once you reach debt freedom.
–Steve & Annette Economides

Celebrating Financial Freedom
If you want to live a debt-free life, there are two essential steps you have to take.
First, you have to change your mindset about money. You have to understand deep
down in your soul that a debt-free life is a pretty radical way of thinking compared tomost people. Your priorities will be different, and that’s a good thing!
While most people have resigned themselves to car payments and credit card bills, youunderstand that those things only keep you enslaved to the lenders that let you use
their money. You understand that having patience and a plan gives you a freedom thatyou just can’t get when you owe tons of money to lots of people for too much stuff.
Thinking differently about money and debt are essential!
Second, you have to follow through! I can’t tell you how many people I talk to who, on an
intellectual level, know that getting out of debt is the best way to live your financial life.
But when you look at how they live, it’s totally obvious that their actions don’t match
their beliefs.
Because their beliefs and actions are at odds, they are stressed out financially. It affects
their mental stability, their health, their relationships, and ultimately their happiness.
They never can seem to make themselves do what it takes to totally erase their debt
and enjoy all the obvious benefits that come with taking action.
Following through with a good debt-free plan and practicing debt-free habits for thelong term is how you succeed!
–Dr. Jason Cabler

Abandoned Cubicle
The most important tactic is to live in a walkable city or town with mass transit.
Minimize your commute, making fancy or financed cars less desirable.
18/27

–Cubert

My Money Chronicles
I have a couple of steps that people should take if they want to live debt free.
First step: Eliminate your debts as soon as possible. Get a part-time job, work extra
hours, or find a side hustle. Do what you have to do.
Second step: Have multiple streams of incomes. Having money come in different ways
will set you up for success. It will allow you to pay off debt quicker. Also, it will allow you
to save more and invest.
–Jason Butler

NewRetirement
You know that it is a good idea to live debt free. However, getting rid of your debt iseasier said than done. One of the best ways to get motivated is to really look at yourfuture with and without debt. Get detailed and dig into the numbers. It is motivating to
see what your current and future finances look like if you eliminate your debt sooner.
Can you retire earlier? How much more money you will have without the debt?
The NewRetirement Retirement Planner allows you to try different scenarios. You can
immediately see exactly how your finances are impacted if you: increase your debt
payments, transfer everything to a low-interest credit card or use a home equity loan.
Research suggests that visualizing your future in great detail is a great way to makebetter decisions now. See what is possible without debt!
–Stephen Chen

Even Steven Money
Eliminate Expenses
When I first began getting out of debt, I found that I had more money going out than I
had coming in each month. One of the big keys to surviving my mistakes was to correct
them. I eliminated big expenses like selling my Mercedes Benz. I paid off debt
eliminating my credit card bills and eventually my student loans. Each expense waschipped away at until it was eliminated.

Reduce Expenses
While it’s great to eliminate each expense, not every expense can be brought down to
zero. So instead I began reducing expenses on smaller items. I started with my cell
phone plan and was able to switch carriers to a low-cost provider, Republic Wireless,and save $75 per month. It didn’t end there. I cut the cord and went with Internet only,
19/27

reducing my bill in half each month. There are a number of ways to reduce expenses
from switching providers, negotiating with your current provider, or simply reduce yourconsumption. Chances are you will barely notice the difference.

Understand Your Values
You eliminated some big expenses, reduced or negotiated some others: great job. Oneof the things I had to learn was to actually spend money. Sounds crazy right, but it’strue. I realized after becoming debt free that I had money to spend. That’s why it’s
important to understand your values and what matters most to you. I personally love
spending time with my wife, traveling, and making health and fitness a priority. I
intentionally spend more money on those items. If there is something that I can buy or
do to make my wife happy, I will spend more money almost every time. We really enjoy
spending time together traveling while checking out new restaurants and coffee shops
after a day of an adventure or exploring the city. My health and fitness are equallyimportant in my values. It means I spend more money on organic meats and vegetablesat the grocery store or local farmers market. It also means spending extra money on a
gym membership: I go to my local CrossFit gym and I pay an extra price for group
fitness, coaching, and the accountability it provides.
If you want to live a debt-free life, it’s going to take eliminating and reducing yourcurrent expenses. It’s not all eliminate and reduce though: you need to spend your timeand money on the things you value most.
–Steven Donovan

Don’t let student let debt hold you back! Talk to a student loan debt
professional that can help you pay off your debt faster, with lower
monthly payments.
Find Out More

The Practical Saver
To live a debt-free lifestyle is to spend money responsibly and be a conscious spender.
With so many products that come out of the market that will tempt you, you need tounderstand what your priorities are, what expenses are most important, and where themoney you make should go, among others. Ask yourself if you need or just want to buy
things you have your eyes on.
Understanding your spending habits, knowing your limits, and living within a certain
boundary (i.e., live on a budget) will help you make the wisest decisions you could make.
Being responsible with money and being conscious with it will help you achieve a debtfree lifestyle without having to sacrifice a lot of things.
–Allan Liwanag
20/27

Liberated Stock Trader
Last year, my wife and I watched the movie “Minimalism – A Documentary About theImportant Things” on Netflix. The movie highlighted the importance of not continually
being sucked into the downward spiral of buying and accumulating possessions like
clothes, home décor, furniture, and electronics.
So my wife and I decided to inventory our clothing. My wife had 42 pairs of shoes andover 275 items of clothing and I was close behind her with over 20 pairs of shoes.
We made a bet with each other to see if we could go one year without buying clothes,
jackets, shoes, and even electronics. One year later, we have saved over $3000 on
clothing, and we still look good.
We have saved money, and even more importantly, we have saved so much time that
we would have spent shopping. The most surprising thing, however, is that it was not as
difficult as we expected to stop shopping.
–Barry D. Moore

Simply Safe Dividends
Debt often arises when you spend more than you earn. If you want to rid yourself ofdebt, you can either try to earn more or spend less, using the extra cash flow to begin
paying off what you owe. While neither option is easy, you probably have the mostcontrol over what you spend money on.
Start by tracking all your expenses for several months, and review every dollar goingout the door. Identify “nice to have” versus true “need to have” expenditures, andconsider cutting back in more discretionary areas. The American economy is built on
consumer spending but resist the urge to follow the herd. Moderation andcontentment can go a long way for people desiring a debt-free lifestyle.
–Brian Bollinger

The Wealth HoundFor many, getting out of debt seems like an insurmountable obstacle. However, throughhard work, frugality and some good old-fashioned hard work, the debt-free lifestyle isfar from impossible. Of course, the specific steps to getting out of (and staying out of)debt depends on your specific circumstances, but the following steps are a goodstarting point for anyone serious about putting an ax in their debt for good!

Step 1: Decide Why
To stay motivated, write down WHY you want to live a debt-free lifestyle. Save your noteand revisit it when you need a little motivation.
21/27

Step 2: Spend Less Than You Earn
If you’re spending more than you earn, you can’t pay off your debt and live debt-free.
So, spend less than you earn and put the difference to good use (see step 3 & 4).

Step 3: Destroy Your Debt
Go after your debt with a vengeance. Pay off as much as you can as fast as you can!

Step 4: Save & Invest
Save for emergencies and big purchases and invest for your future! If you’re notalready, eventually you will want to retire. You’ll need savings and investments to help
make your dream a reality.

Step 5: Protect Yourself
A sustainable debt-free lifestyle is one that is properly insured.

Step 6: Live a Little
Don’t forget to live along the way. If you deprive yourself of too many of the things you
enjoy along the way, you will undoubtedly fail. I highly recommend setting some money
aside to keep up with some of your hobbies or small luxuries that make you happy.
–JasonLacey Langford
1. Set goals. Knowing your goals and what you’re working towards helps you stayon track when life gets tricky or it gets tempting to overspend.
2. Stay in your financial lane. Do not compare your financial life to others—it will
only cause FOMO (fear of missing out) and overspending. Know your goals andhow you want to spend your money and don’t worry about what others think,because they’re not helping pay your bills!
3. If it’s broken, FIX IT! Things are going to break, but that doesn’t mean you haveto replace them every time. Avoid adding debt by figuring out how to fix what’s
broken. If you don’t know how to do it, someone on YouTube probably does!
4. Play the long game when it comes to spending. We all have wants and needs
we’d like to spend money on. Take your time when it comes to spending moneyon a want. Have a 24-hour “research/do I really want it” period before you spendmoney. Taking time to think through purchases can help save money or avoid
spending unnecessarily.
5. Keep it simple. Don’t overcomplicate your financial life by loading yourself downwith bills. Keeping your bills to a minimum will make it easier to manage and keep
track of them. Plus, it will reduce the amount of money you pay for items orservices you don’t fully utilize.
22/27

–Lacey Langford

MoneyHax
I take credit card debt really seriously. So what I do is treat credit cards just as if they
were debit cards. The moment I spend money through a credit card, I’m eagerly
awaiting to pay off the balance. So credit card companies allow you to do thisinstantaneously, whereas others require a few days to process. Either way, having thediscipline to treat credit cards as debit cards is a surefire way to avoid credit card debt,
while raking in the benefits of a credit card (i.e. protection, cash back, etc.)–Todd Weitzman

Money@30
The first and biggest step is to determine your priorities. It’s unrealistic to think you canjust suddenly start diverting all your income toward paying off debt. Instead, the best
way to figure out where to cut back is to look at your spending and decide what
expenses provide you the most value (monetarily or otherwise) and are the mostimportant for you to maintain. From there, you can start “trimming the fat” and using
those funds to tackle your debt.
What’s great is that this exercise will also serve you well in your debt-free life. Allowing
yourself to spend reasonably on what’s important to you, while cutting back on what’s
not, will help prevent you from “burning out” and dipping back into debt.
–Kyle Burbank

List with Clever
Paying off high-interest debt is the first step to living a debt-free lifestyle. Credit card
APR sits around 17%, so you’ll pay a ton in compounding interest each month. We know
from a study of 1000 Americans that half of Americans carry a credit card balance, and
72% of credit card debt holders carry more than $1000 in monthly balance. Cut up
those credit cards and pay down your debt ASAP.
Also, know that not all debt is bad. For example, a mortgage is a healthy kind ofamortizing debt, so each month you earn a little more equity. At the end of your loan,
you own the property. First-time home buyer programs offer mortgages that requireless money down, and with historically low interest rates, a home can be a great
investment (if you have the savings).
–Ben Mizes

No Nonsense Landlord
Not all debt is bad; however, less debt is better debt. Increasing income helps decrease
23/27

debt. Doing things that others pay for, like cleaning your own home, mowing your own
lawn and changing your own oil saves money.
Anytime you are sitting on the couch, drinking a beer, or smoking a cigarette, that istime you could spend saving money by doing something. I mowed grass for 25 clients inmy spare time to make some extra money in my 40s. I kept my full-time job, andworked a lot on weekends and after work. You are never too old to get a side gig, andnever too good to do manual labor.
A dollar saved is like ~$1.50 earned, after taxes. No one ever makes a million dollars.
They make $1, a million times over. Even a company that makes billions likely makes it~$20 at a time.
When you buy something that is fairly large, think about how much money that item
would be in 20 years. Buying a kitchen table for $800, when you have a perfectly good
one already, means you have to work another month+ before you can retire. The tableor retire a month early: you should be asking yourself those questions. Always think
about what you are spending on, and if it is a want or a need.
–Eric Drenckhahn

Self Directed Retirement Plans
Have a realistic budget during your earning years and learn to live within this. Thisbudget should not be draconian, because you only live once, and you have to smell theroses along the way. By being conscientious about your budget, you will begin to see
your savings grow.
Then comes the delicious problem of where to invest those savings. Knowing the Ruleof 72 is of the utmost importance when you reach the investment stage of life. The Ruleof 72 will work inside a tax-deferred vehicle like an IRA or other qualified retirement
plans. By dividing the interest rate your investment earns into the number 72, you willknow how many years your money will take to double. Compound interest is the 8th
wonder of the world and the sooner one learns it, the more they can use it.
Remember is it not how much you earn, but how much you keep. If you owe thegovernment income tax – this is money that you cannot spend – it is gone. It isimperative to have a good financial advisor or CPA who can look at any and all legalmeans of reducing taxes now and down the road.
–Rick Pendykoski

The Ways to Wealth
I’m a big believer that the first step to getting out of debt is envisioning a bigger andbetter future for you and anyone else your debt impacts. Specifically, that means
setting goals for what exactly you want your life to look like in three to five. Once you
24/27

have these goals you can work backward and put in place the tactics and strategies
you’ll use such as a debt snowball, or where to start cutting your expenses.
–R.J. Weiss

The Best Prepaid Debit Cards
Consider going to a debt weekly debt seminar for at least 10 weeks (not just a one-time
event).
Repeated weekly meetings with others that have struggled with debt will help you
develop a debt-free approach to living, and help you realize that you’re not alone withyour financial struggles.
Another related benefit is that such a class can help you change your attitude towards
living on credit, if you have not been able to manage credit responsibly.
A change in attitude will likely result in a change in your lifestyle, and that is a big key toliving debt free!
–Curtis Arnold

Dear Debt
In order to live a debt-free lifestyle, borrowers must look at their debt head-on. Figureout what you owe, down to the penny. Pay more than the minimum and stop thedamage by reverting to cash for a while. If you do use credit cards, pay them off in fulland if you get cash back, use that toward your debt. Cut out unnecessary expenses for
now — it doesn’t have to be forever. The key for me was to earn more money, so
people in debt should consider ways to boost their income. You can do things like petsitting, Uber, or graphic design in your free time. Becoming debt free also requires ahuge mindset shift. Realize that debt is not “good” no matter what kind of debt you
have, and that you want to be free. Focus on what your life will look like after paying off
debt to stay motivated.
–Melanie Lockert

Retire in Progress
The first step is to avoid debts in the first place! There are very few “good debts” one
can make, and usually, people list mortgage and student loans in this category.
Although I don’t fully disagree, be sure you get the minimum sustainable amount ofdebt to reach your goal. And be humble with your goals if you’re pursuing them on
credit. Get as few student loans as possible. Prefer a cheaper university, a public one
instead of a renowned one. The quality of your skills depends only 10% by which
university you attend. The premium you’re paying for an Ivy League school is one is fora shiny certificate.
25/27

Focus on skill building instead of certificate building. Nobody cares which school you got
a degree in after you get your first job. Is it worth a 100k extra loan to get a 10% chanceof a better first job? I don’t think so. Same for a mortgage. Get a starter home. Keep it
until your cash flow is solid. You don’t “deserve a better house” if you can’t afford it.
Other forms of debts are really stupid and you can avoid them all. Credit card debt issimply an offense to your intelligence. If you don’t pay in full your balance each monthand instead you let accumulate high-interest debt, you deserve to be a wage slave. The
rule is very simple: never purchase anything with your card if you don’t have theamount ready in your checking account. Never. No exceptions.
What about car loans? You don’t buy a car whose cost you can’t cover with yourchecking account. Full stop. Then maybe you can take advantage of some financing if
there’s zero interest and delayed payments, of course, but never buy anything below$20k you can’t afford right now. Yes, that means your first car will be a beaten-down 15year-old car purchased almost for free. Like I did. I’m car-free since 2008 and before
that, I owned 4 cars that I paid $2100 total for the four of them!
Is it too late? You already did something stupid and you’re now finding a way to fix yourfinances?
In this case, it’s gonna be hard, but the formula is still simple: spend less than you earn,
and throw your savings toward your highest interest debt first, while making minimum
payments toward the other ones. If you really care about getting debt free ASAP, cut
down your expenses to the bare minimum for a while. No dinners out, no
subscriptions, no fancy vacations. Killing debts will improve your cash flow (less interestowed) which in turns makes getting out of debts quicker. It’s a virtuous cycle! Onceyou’re free, you’d be a machine trained to produce positive cash flow. Then you canstart directing your savings toward investing, which keeps the virtuous cycle going
thanks to dividends and other profits.
–Mr. RIP

About the Author

Steve Horton
Steve Horton is a PFE Certified Debt Management Professional and an SEO Specialistat Debt.com. He's also the co-creator of a graphic novel biography of David Bowie,
among many other works.
Published by Debt.com, LLC

26/27

27/27