Wondering how to save money or how to buy a house? Single mom shares budgeting, credit card tips

One single mom is sharing how “credit card fasting” labored for her, serving to her go from dwelling paycheck to paycheck, to shopping for a dwelling.

Credit card debt is simple to pile on, however arduous to repay. For Lisa Samalonis, it was the important thing to rebuild her life after divorce.

“It was essential for me to protect a few of that money in order that I may put it down for a down cost, and in addition to protect by the divorce, to protect my credit rating in order that I’d be eligible for a mortgage,” Samalonis stated.

The New Jersey native stated she had to modify to dwelling as a single mom of two on one revenue. So, she determined to go on what she calls a credit card quick.

“Not utilizing my credit card to start with was a key think about that, as a result of while you’re utilizing money or debit, you may see it as quickly as you understand you do not have sufficient money, it is proper there, having the attention to know that you simply’re really spending greater than you’ve,” Samalonis stated.

Now, the one mom owns her own residence and is sharing her prime three steps to turning into financially free. Step one is breaking down your funds.

“Just had a pocket book, and I wrote down a lot of my bills, those that had been most essential on the prime, like meals and my mortgage or housing. And then, down the record of issues that had been much less essential. By type of breaking it down and actually being sincere or like getting actual with myself, that really gave me management as I went ahead,” Samalonis stated.

She stated step two is use zero-based budgeting, when you should use a credit card.

“When you utilize your credit card, you’re taking money that you’ve got in your account and you place it into a class or you allocate it to what you have simply spent,” Samalonis stated.

And lastly, she stated, plan forward.

“I began to plan higher. When sudden bills got here up, both if it was issues that had been owed or if it was issues that we needed to do, I attempted to plan forward and so I’d find a way to save money every month in direction of that objective,” Samalonis stated.