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5 Things I’m Giving Up to Become Debt Free

I know you’ve probably heard that getting out of debt requires some sacrifice. Getting out of debt will change your life so you have to be willing to make some changes during your journey in order to get there.

I’ve made quite a few sacrifices over the past few years in order to get out of debt but I consider them minimal in the grand scheme of things and some of them are only temporary.

Here are 5 things I’ve given up in order to become debt free and how these sacrifices are making a positive impact on my debt payoff.

5 Things I’m Giving Up to Become Debt Free (4)

1. My Dream of Home Ownership

Okay, so not everyone dreams of owning a home but one day I actually do. While I have dreams of owning properties for rental income, I also would like to own my own home to raise my family in as well.

I’m content with apartment living for now, but know that it’s not for me long term. Yet and still, with debt being such a huge priority right now, I’ve put off my goal of home ownership and my husband and I throw any extra money we have toward debt instead.

Last year we paid off more than $14,000 in debt. That money could have been used to put toward a down payment fund but I don’t really feel comfortable taking on a mortgage until we’ve eliminated some of our other debt.

I know it sounds silly that debt is holding us back from taking on more debt but a mortgage is one of the only types of debt I’m somewhat okay with because we need a place to live and rates tend to be low. Plus your home can be seen as an asset later down the line once you build equity in it.

I don’t know if we’ll wait to buy a home until we are completely debt free but it’s definitely on the back burner for now.

2. My Time

My time is one of the biggest sacrifices I’ve had to make since starting to pay off my debt aggressively. I started side hustling almost two years ago in order to bring in more money to put toward my debt.

Last year was full of 60-hour work weeks and I had little time to enjoy a social life or even take care of my household. It was hectic and stressful, but I earned more money which allowed me to get one step closer to debt freedom.

Now, my work schedule isn’t as hectic, but I’m still working a lot because I’m trying to earn more than enough so I can put extra money toward my debt. My husband also works full time and side hustles so we don’t spend a ton of time together unfortunately.

On the flip side, we know that it’s only temporary and once we pay off my student loans this year and his car loan, we can slow down a bit and do other things with our time.

3. Private School For My Son

Sometimes getting out of debt can be a family affair and everyone in the household has to pull their own weight and make sacrifices. I really want my son to have a private school education, but right now we can’t afford it since we are throwing most of our extra money toward debt.

I figure if we enrolled our son in private school now, funds would be very tight and we’d be in debt longer. Since we have some momentum going, we’re trying to make as much progress as possible before adding private school to our list of expenses.

4. Non-Emergency Expenses

If I could make a list of all the things I want to fix, replace, or re-purchase, it would be comparable to a short novel. It feels like there are so many things that we need but in reality, they may not really be true needs or urgent expenses.

Currently, two of my car doors are broken and my driver-side window only works 50% of the time. All of our ‘non-stick’ skillets are worn out for cooking, the sheets on my bed are actually too small (we have a queen-sized bed and our sheets are full size), a few of our blinds are broken in our living room, we don’t have a T.V. stand for our television, and our DVD cabinet is broken also.

These are just a few of the things I’ve noticed but like I said, I could probably write a book if I really thought about it. Since we’re keen on paying off debt right now, we tend to let most of those things go as long as they are not hurting anyone. Yes, it’s inconvenient at times, but since we’re trying to spend as little as possible, we have to sacrifice some of these issues that cost money to fix, repair or replace.

In turn, we have more money to spend on debt and necessities for the time being.

5. International Trips

I have quite a few destinations on my travel bucket list, but all the international ones will have to wait until I am debt free. Traveling is expensive and while I love to see new places and experience new things, I’ve tried to keep any trips I do plan on taking in the near future super frugal so I can focus most of my money on debt pay off.

For now, I’m just doing staycations and cheap trips to nearby states if I feel like I need a relaxing getaway.

All of the sacrifices I’m making to pay off debt involve we not spending as much money on other expenses. If you want to get out of debt ASAP, you’re going to have to prioritize your expenses and keep them low so you can dedicate as much money as possible to debt payments.

Sometimes it sucks, especially when you’re working all the time, but remember, aggressive debt payoff is only temporary. Debt freedom can potentially be forever.

For more help getting out of debt read these other great articles.

Save Money and Stay Out of Debt
4 Things I’m NOT Giving Up to Become Debt Free
6 Financial Habits to Adopt When Paying Off Debt

 

What are you giving up to pay off debt?

Posted in: Credit and Debt

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