by Hope
We have now made it past the second contingency period. The inspection has been reviewed and accepted. The appraisal is done. The closing date is just a couple of weeks away. I’m sure you all know that I’ve been playing with the numbers for months now.
But I still don’t know how much I’ll actually take away from the house sale. However, I’ve got a solid plan for where the money will go. Obviously, the house will be paid off. The total for that pay out will be around $127,000.
First, the painter will be paid the remaining $600 I owe him.
Second, I will repay my dad for the loan from January, 2024 for the new furnace.
Third, I will pay off ALL of my credit cards. All except three of them will be closed. Eliminating the temptation. I will be leaving my Apple CC, Sam’s Club CC, and USAA CC open. They are already locked (and maxed out so the lock doesn’t really do anything.)
Between, these three items, $23.850 will be spent.
Based on my guestimates, that will then leave me with a nest egg of…
I do not plan to rush to pay off my student loans. At this point, they will be my only debt, and I’m comfortable with just starting to make regular monthly payments.
I have several other things I’d like to do, but I think the best thing would be to:
- Put at least $7500 in an EF. That would be essentially 3 months of living expenses should something happen to me/my work.
- Pay my car insurance through this 6 month period. My auto insurance is my highest monthly bill. And while there is no interest to make monthly payments, I’d like it to be paid. Then I can “pay myself” monthly so when it renews in September, I can pay it all at once. This is just a peace of mind thing vs a financial thing.
- The remainder will be used to jumpstart my Move fund in a high yield savings account.
I’m certainly open to feedback.
Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
