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Default Sep 16, 2018 at 04:30 PM
  #1
I'm good with goals, now I'm determined to save money. I redid my budget several times. Figured out where I can cut down, determined in 2 years I will have a good amount saved.

That way I won't have to ask my brother for downpayment money, though I am going to try for a zero down loan. Than I can just do it on my own. That's my hope but we'll have to see how the saving goes. I put together a solid plan starting this month.

In 16 months my brother is paid off, in 10 months my mother is paid off. In 23 months disability is paid back, which I'm not really counting towards my income because my medical will likely go up. Planning is exciting doing is harder. One credit card is super close to being paid off the other is $400 and will take a few months. But I'm not worried about my credit cards too much.

I'll reapply for the zero down loan in March. If I'm not approved I'll go from there. I really want to own my own condo so I don't have to move and can live how I want. I may rent out a room for extra money because I'm definitely getting a 2 bedroom. My daughter will be graduating in two years.

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Default Sep 20, 2018 at 06:29 AM
  #2
Have you ever rented an apartment? I'm asking if you have any experience living independent of your parents. It sounds to me like that is what you most need to acquire. You need a space to call your own. A rented space can provide that. This condo that you are wishing for would actually belong to the bank, while there is a mortgage. That's really just a more complicated way of renting. Do you currently pay toward your room and board? It sounds like you have been very dependant financially on your family. Weening yourself off of that dependency is what you need to do first.

Congratulations on almost paying off that credit card. Now stop using credit cards, and stop borrowing from family. Borrowing for you has become an addiction. Break it. If you need 23 months to pay back your family and disability, then you can't accumulate savings over the next two years - regardless of what your budget tells you. You are not budgeting. You are fantasizing. Pay mother and brother back ASAP. Then you can save. When you set unrealistic goals, you are not planning. You are daydreaming. That is escapism. In the end, reality cannot be escaped.

Last edited by Rose76; Sep 20, 2018 at 06:44 AM..
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Default Sep 21, 2018 at 04:40 AM
  #3
That's just wrong. You can save while paying bills, you are never without bills and have to learn to work around them. Yes I pay mom rent. My brother loaned me money to buy a car, instead of going through a bank. So he's my car payment. Heck my dad saved all his life he had a mortgage and credit cards and car payments, insurance. But he saved. You are just wrong.

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Default Sep 21, 2018 at 11:17 AM
  #4
Whatever works for you is the way to go.
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Default Sep 29, 2018 at 04:31 AM
  #5
Is your brother even willing to lend you money? When you borrowed from him before, it caused problems between you two. You still owe him money for the car and you don’t even have that car anymore. He might not be interested giving you money for the condo because it’s not a necessity.

Are you calculating association fee into monthly payments on a condo? If you can’t afford moving out of your moms house, it will impossible to afford mortgage and association fee. Frankly this condo will not be yours. It will belong to the bank as you’ll be paying mortgage plus youd be paying your brother for a down payment. It won’t really belong to you anyways. Not for many years.

Why not rent your own place? Why not get subsidized apartment? We are renting (we don’t feel like buying honestly even though we make good money) and it’s decorared and furnished by us exactly how we want it. So it’s very much “ours”. You don’t need to get into further debt with bank and brother to have place that looks and feels like yours.

Are you being realistic? Maybe talk to a financial planner?
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Default Sep 29, 2018 at 07:17 PM
  #6
Working toward a soft place to land financially is most definitely a worthwhile goal.....And an absolutely beautiful feeling when achieved. Starting with the tough stuff small is a prudent way to go IMO. Making a lists of needs and wants will put your current finances into perspective....it's easy...everything on the want list takes a back seat. Even our need list can be whittled down, it's amazing what we can live without when we can see the end picture.

Many years ago I had nothing...not even a place to live. However I started working on small goals, and kept building on them. Some weeks I could only afford to save $2... But I made a rule that I must put something aside into savings every week...no matter how small.

I also learned early that credit cards are the bank's way of telling you that you can't afford something ....get rid of them....you can get yourself a low interest card for emergencies later down the track. Meeting our obligations and paying off debt isn't fun...but factoring in these financial anchors early into our long term goal will relieve stress and allow for a more realistic outcome.

Nothing worthwhile is easy...and it can take some time to start seeing long term results. But that homeless destitute girl that I once was now owns her second home and is 100% debt free. She still makes wants and needs lists, and saves her loose change...as she knows too well it feels like to have nothing.

I support your efforts 100% Aviza...just keep chipping away with the long term goal in mind...you will get there.

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Default Oct 01, 2018 at 07:08 AM
  #7
I agree with Quarter Life, that it is important to consistently put something away, even if it isn't much. I don't know if it there is any way to set up some sort of automatic transfer to a savings or investment account, that might make it easier. When I was making a lot less than I am now, I still managed to set something aside every month.


For me, getting out of debt was my first priority and I have been debt free for about 8 years now. It is a great feeling.

These days I am able to save about 1/4 of my take-home income from my regular job as well as some freelance income I have. Not having any debt means that we have more money available to save and we also consider saving a priority. What I do, is, as soon as I get paid, I transfer that 1/4 into savings-, I have an emergency savings account, mutual funds, stocks and a retirement savings account and split it among those.

I would say to sit down and figure out how much you can realistically put away every month. Then, as soon as you get paid, transfer it into whatever type of account you decide to use for savings. I think some sort of emergency fund would be the most important place to start. That way, after a while, you won't have to turn to credit cards if an unexpected expense like a car repair comes up.
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Default Oct 04, 2018 at 06:42 PM
  #8
I use credit cards for some songwriting expenses and lifelock. Otherwise I'm taking money from every check for savings. I get two checks from work and one from SSD. The last two paychecks were higher so I could save more. The month just started but I'm tightening my belt.

I have rented on my own twice before. My brother has said if i stay living with mom he'll use our inheritance to buy me a place after she's died. But he want me living with her because we both are happier having company.

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Default Oct 07, 2018 at 07:00 PM
  #9
I'm so proud I really have a good savings going now. So excited. My credit score went up 5 points and I have a nice start to my savings account. Now to keep it up.

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Default Oct 07, 2018 at 08:09 PM
  #10
Make sure you're not charging things on credit cards so that you can put money into your savings account. That would be just fooling yourself.
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Default Oct 08, 2018 at 08:23 AM
  #11
Does anyone use Mint? I love that. It loads all my accounts in real time. It seems like I have done nothing this year in terms of savings but my net worth this year has gone up substantially. (most of that is increase in the value of my home).

I am trying to have the cash on hand to pay off my home. That is my goal.

I have set up my account so money goes directly into my savings account every month and also directly into my retirement account. The only thing that goes into the expense account is what I estimate I will need for expenses.

What kind of savings account do you have? I have a high yield savings account.
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Default Oct 09, 2018 at 05:18 AM
  #12
I used Mint in the past but not right now. I'm just using a basic savings account. But I'm getting tempted to spend.

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