As of yesterday, Matt and I made a monumental step in our lives: we are now officially debt-free.
No more car payments. No more student loans. And we're never going back.
Our quest for ridding our lives of debt once and for all began in 2009 when we completed a program called 'Financial Peace University' by financial guru Dave Ramsey. We completed the program after weekly lessons over a course of several months, and it truly was a life-changer for us.
Dave teaches on topics ranging from having an emergency fund, to college funds, to real estate, and investing. But one of the biggest thing Dave emphasises is living life debt-free.
His principle on not having debt is as simple as can be: if you don't have the money to buy something, don't buy it. Of course, Americans have been programmed over the past few decades that it is just a part of life--to buy things on credit and take out loans as needed/wanted. But we haven't been taught the repercussions of living this way. Most Americans have debt and to an extent that it seems like a dream to imagine not living life from paycheck to paycheck. Dave teaches that aside from purchasing a house, nothing should be purchased that you don't pay for up front.
We've learned to have a totally new outlook on finances and the possibilities for our financial future. I'll be honest though...living life on a budget....it's not easy and it's not fun. But the results are beyond worth it, and that's what keeps us on track.
We are so thankful for the principles we've learned from Dave's program. I would very highly recommend this program to anyone, or at least recommend to take the time to learn from Dave's principles. You can check it out here.
1 comment:
Congratulations! That's awesome! I might argue that education is another expense you can't often pay up front, but pays itself off in the long run. Chris and I don't have credit card bills or any other debt except for our car, which we just purchased, and his medical school loans. Med school loans are ridiculous! Luckily we know he should make a salary in the near future will allow us to pay them off rather quickly (?). At this point I can't imagine ever being debt free, but I'm jealous and very happy for you! :-)
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