That Time I Paid off $30,000 of Debt in 14 Months: A Single Mom’s Story
By: Allison Giuliano
Tags: Budget, Debt, Dave Ramsey, Finance, Single Moms

Me. The Burren. Cuz I payed off my shit and could afford a trip for the first time in my life. Photo by www.davidleeblack.com

Thank God my Realtor was a long-time friend of mine, because I had just stomped off in an adult tantrum during a house showing.

This was in the early days of 2018. There was snow on the ground. My ever-patient Realtor friend had just finished explaining all of the [very accurate] reasons why I shouldn’t buy that house. I was 33, about a year out from a divorce, living independently for the very first time (with two kids), and my grand plan to make it rich in real estate was crashing and burning because I couldn’t afford anything that wasn’t either rotting from the inside out or next door to a drug dealer.

I went around the block, got my shit together, returned, looked him square in the eye with tears and snot freezing over my face and said,

“I refuse to roll over and accept being poor.”

I wasn’t really “poor.” I make a decent salary. I’m graduate-educated. I’m smarter than the average bear (if I do say so myself). I’m ambitious. I did everything “right.” And yet I was living paycheck to paycheck. I wondered, “What are all the rich people out there doing that I’m not? Surely if they can do it, so can I.”

Like anyone does when they’re desperate, I went home and consulted the ever-omniscient Google. Probably some crap like, “How to get rich.” A familiar name appeared in my search: Dave Ramsey. I’d ignored him prior because a) he’s so popular, he must be a gimmick, and b) his Christian affiliation made me cringe (insert flashbacks to Baptist school childhood here). But there I was, ordering a used copy of his book The Total Money Makeover on Amazon. I don’t even think I finished it before I embarked on the journey that changed my life (Don’t judge my cliche. I say what I want.)

On March 1, 2018 I tallied up all my debts — about $30,000 — a credit card, student loan, and car loan trifecta. Turns out, I was paying out almost $800/month in debt payments!

And so I budgeted. I said “no” to my kids — a lot. I drove out of my way to shop at Aldi. I planned ahead. I don’t think I bought myself a single article of clothing for a whole year. I paid for most things in cold, hard cash (rather than debit). I budgeted. I hid my credit card. I packed so many lunches I can do it in my sleep. I leveraged my talents and side hustled my way to more income. I took advantage of kid-friendly freebie activities. I budgeted. I stayed motivated with visual charts and graphs and stayed accountable by talking about my goals. Did I say I budgeted? But most of all, I wanted it. I was determined. Every possible cent chipped away at the grand total. I still don’t remember what the inside of a shopping mall looks like.

By mid-May 2019 I made my final car payment, and with the click of a computer mouse, it was all gone. As of the date of this writing, I’ve also got a decently-padded emergency fund consisting of a few months’ living expenses in my savings account. Sigh of relief.

I’m not “rich” (yet), but I’m proud of myself. Going without has given me so much more in return. I share this because so many people feel stuck. I share this because it’s taboo to talk about finances, but I firmly believe that it’s important to talk about taboo things sometimes. I share this because you can do it too, if you want to.

(And I did end up finding the right house.)