She Strengthens

From Financial Secrets to Financial Freedom

A Journey of Trust and Teamwork

My partner and I have been inseparable since high school. After four years of dating and a year-long engagement, we tied the knot, ready to start our life together. We both came from families that valued hard work and financial responsibility. My family was open about money matters, offering advice on spending, investing, and avoiding debt. His family modeled frugality and living within their means. I encouraged my partner to get his first credit card in his early 20s, and during college, we enjoyed carefree weekends exploring Southern California’s museums and coffee shops.

The Shocking Discovery

Six weeks before our wedding, our financial bubble burst. My partner revealed a shocking credit card debt of $10,000, which left us both in tears. I was devastated, feeling betrayed by his secrecy. We spent the rest of the night wondering how we got there and how we would escape this financial hole.

Taking Action

After calming down, I jumped into planning mode. We started by creating a budget, vowing to be transparent about our expenses, savings, and debt. With a combined income of $55,000, we set out to lower our expenses and tackle the debt as quickly as possible. We discovered a debt payoff “hack” – transferring the credit card debt to a balance transfer card with a 0% introductory interest rate. This allowed us to pay down debt without interest, making it possible to pay off the principal amount quickly.

The Road to Recovery

We paid $500 a month, and any extra money went toward our debt. When the introductory period expired, we borrowed money from a family member to avoid interest. Using a debt repayment calculator, we realized that paying off the remaining balance of $6,000 at an interest rate of 22% would take 14 months and cost us $839 in interest. We decided to borrow the remaining amount from a family member to pay off the card immediately. This saved us almost $1,000 in interest.

Lessons Learned

Paying off our debt taught us valuable lessons. We made being debt-free a lifestyle, cutting expenses, and staying on-budget. We limited our grocery spending to $200 a month, restaurant spending to $150 a month, and individual spending to $100 a month. We also used the cash-only method, but eventually switched to debit cards and credit cards for online purchases.

Rebuilding Trust

Living on a tight budget forced us to have honest conversations about money. I had to fight resentment when I couldn’t buy things I wanted, and seeing our extra money go towards debt was painful. However, this experience brought us closer together, and we’ve proved that we can save more money than we thought possible on our entry-level incomes.

Empowered by Adversity

If we had started debt-free, we might have stressed less about our spending habits, and our savings account would be bigger. But being on the other side of this challenge, I wouldn’t change the hardship early on. It empowered us to set and crush big goals together, like paying for graduate school. We’ve learned that financial knowledge is key to achieving our dreams.