Thank you Lexington Law Firm for sponsoring this post. A high service partner and consumer advocate that will help you fight for the credit you deserve!
In case you missed it, we just bought a new house! Life has been a crazy whirlwind but we are so thankful for the journey (and even more thankful that it is starting to slow down a bit!) While this journey has been super exciting, it has also been a huge financial undertaking. Instead of selling our first home, we are keeping it to rent it which means we now have two mortgages. On top of that, we moved into a fixer upper that required a lot of work up front and still has a laundry list of projects to maintain. AND we are also having our second child in January! Life is always crazy but we use a budget to stay on top of our goals, keep our credit score high, and experience more by living within a budget.
Our budget helps us thrive not stiffles us. Sometimes we can think that budgeting and keeping an eye on finances hinders us from living the lifestyle we want (because you can’t just buy all the things all the time) but really it helps set itself up to help you live the life you want! Today I want to share with you how living on a budget, paying bills on time, and proactively keeping our credit score in good standing has helped us live the life we want.
Living on a Budget
Over the last seven years of our marriage we have not always been good with this. We go through phases of being very budget minded and other seasons of not. But when we knew we had some personal financial goals that we wanted to stay on top of, we really cracked down on a new budget.
One of the most important things to keep in mind when setting up a budget is being realistic. Don’t give yourself $10 for gas a month when you know it is going to cost more. Be as accurate as possible to help you know how much money you are spending each month. Things like groceries and clothing allowances you can refine and bring down but you need to then stick to them! When every dollar has a home, you will be surprised how much you spend in places that you would be fine spending less in. Those are the places you move money to savings and debt.
Paying Bills on time
If you have goals of owning a home or getting a bigger car for your growing family, you need to make sure you are paying your current bills on time! Every year millions of Americans are denied loans for homes and cars due to errors on their credit reports that can come from things as simple as late or missed payments. It takes months or years to fix these but only several missed payments to mess it up.
Before you take out a loan, you need to make sure you can afford the monthly payment. Add it to your budget right away so you can see where that money will come from. Being faithful with the little things will allow you to take on bigger projects in the future. Paying our credit card bills and student loans faithfully years ago helped set us up for buying our new house!
Keep credit in good standing
If you have goals of renting out your home (like we did!) it is so important to keep your credit in good standing. We currently have two mortgages (which sounds just as crazy as it feels) but the only way we were able to do that is because of our credit scores and our proof that we can and will continue paying our bills on time.
Right now there is so much information out there about credit scores – some fact and some fiction. If you don’t have the credit you want (or don’t know where you stand), Lexington Law Firm believes that you have a right to a fair, accurate, and substantiated credit report! They can help you navigate the crazy world of credit repair to get you to a place where you can reach your goals! Lexington Law Firm has different packages for different client needs so they can help you achieve what you are looking for. When working with Lexington Law Firm, you can rest assured you are working with professionals that have a deep knowledge of consumer protection laws and will leverage them for your benefit.
And that’s where we stand when it comes to budgets! Really, freedom comes with a little bit of organization. If you are not where you want to be in life, make a plan. It doesn’t have to be super complicated but when you map out where you want to go, the chances of you getting there are much higher than going at it mapless!
