Have you heard my story of debt freedom? A fan asked me to share my family's journey to our life without debt by answering a these questions. I hope you enjoy it. How long ago did you becoming debt free? We became debt free except for our mortgage when we paid off my wife's SUV thirteen months after buying it. That was back in January 2006, not quite in time for Christmas but sooner than the 48 months the loan was scheduled for. How much money have you paid off? That loan was for … [Read more...]

My wife's nine year old Nissan Pathfinder surpassed the 100,000 mile mark this month. It has been a workhorse for us and expect that it will run for another 100,000 miles. We have a Whirlpool clothes dryer that is not much younger than I am. The clothes come out smelling just as fresh as they had been three decades ago. The Wii TV in the basement doesn't have sound so I hooked it up to a small amplifier and speakers. You can still hear the whoosh when I miss the ball with my Wii bat. If … [Read more...]

This is the final post in a series on paying off the mortgage in half the time. We've discussed choosing a 15 year mortgage over the traditional 30 year and the how refinancing can save you tons of interest. What should we do if we can't refinance and are stuck in a 30 year mortgage? We can make accelerated payments. Monthly Accelerated Payments It is possible to reduce the balance on a mortgage and save tons of money simply by sending the bank a little extra each month. Applying $100 extra … [Read more...]

If you already have a mortgage and are looking for ways to pay it off faster then refinancing is a smart option. When refinancing makes sense You can save thousands of dollars each year by refinancing (refi) an existing mortgage to a lower rate loan. Here are a few questions you must answer before talking to a loan officer: How long you will live in the home How much are the closing costs Is the house worth more than the mortgage balance It wouldn't make sense to refi if you plan … [Read more...]

The first step to paying off the mortgage in half the time is to make the decision to get out of debt. The next step is to take action! The best way to can become completely debt free in half the time, house and all, is by chosing a 15 instead of a 30 year mortgage. My first home purchase was with a 30 year mortgage My first purchase was a condo that was financed with a 30 year loan. Why? I was told that it was a lower monthly payment and "that is what everyone else does." You know what … [Read more...]

Duane and his wife are paying off the mortgage in half the time. They took a check to their bank and reduced the principal balance on their home loan in half. WHAT? That's crazy! Who does that? They are weird people Why would a young couple be paying off the mortgage? They should be taking that money and celebrating the smaller wins (like paying off a credit card or car loan) with BIG celebrations. Instead, they should have gone on a $10,000 cruise or remodeled a bathroom. Using their … [Read more...]

You can be anyone you want to be and do anything you want to do. There isn't a pill or one-click solution that will make it happen, but there is a step-by-step process: Learn how things work Most successful people don't stumble into something and become an overnight success. They grow up with an interest in that field and built experiences around it. They probably dove right into it and learned more about the inner-workings of the gadget or process or human behavior. Want to be a doctor? … [Read more...]

If you are like me then you are looking for ways to get your spouse on the same page with your money. You probably aren't getting anywhere with an excel spreadsheet or budgeting software program. Why is it so hard to get them to see what we see? Loss of control One of the reasons my wife didn't like budgeting (which is weird because she brought up the topic early in our marriage when I wasn't interested) was because she didn't feel like she had much control over it. When I started paying … [Read more...]

You could make some money on gold today. But if your motivation is to make a quick buck or is out of fear in the value of the American dollar then you're investing for the wrong reason. Here is how it would likely play out You buy the gold today and watch the market kick up for a while You get comfortable with the price and stop watching You don't hear about the price going down the toilet until it gets to a level that is newsworthy Because you stopped paying attention to it, the … [Read more...]

Chase Bank performed a survey and found that many of their customers want to manage their money themselves. That's great news except for the other data the survey showed: Most of the people that said they wanted to manage their money themselves, weren't. The promise of "I'll get to it next week" gets broken, the investment vehicles that get set up don't get funded, or the money that was invested goes stale when the market shifts. Time is on our side when the money is working for us, not when … [Read more...]