Dear Aja, Today I just paid off my student loan debt from Undergraduate and Graduate School!! It took me 2 years after I graduated grad school to do this, and your videos/debt free journey really pushed and motivated me to work on my own #FinancialFreedom. Now that I have paid of my student loans, my next step is to pay off my car, build my EF and save more money for my wedding in October ! (depending on how covid pans out). Just wanted to say THANK YOU for sharing your journey and inspiring people like me.
You have been such a inspiration. I’m 26 and as of last week.... I am debt free for the first time since turning 18. I’ve always owed money and I’m finally done. Life has always been so challenging but I’m so happy to move forward and try to set a different path for myself moving forward.
Ms. Aja Dang, You have inspired me to talk about my finances and how having financial freedom is our choice. Thank you for the tenacious, consistent, no filter, no bullshit way of being your true self. I admire you for your bravery of putting yourself out there about your debt. Thank you for choosing financial freedom and don't listen to those people who wished they had your income; you have worked hard for the income you have earned. Thank you.
I paid off over six figures of debt in 2 years, working like crazy for that one goal of being debt-free. I'm on the other side of debt, and I have to tell you it's definitely worth it, especially in our current times. Now, I'm working towards increasing my emergency fund. I've got so much respect for people who are able to consistently stick to their financial goals. It's difficult, it's against the norm, but it's also possible!
Congrats!!! When you talked about not being sure how much to save up for a house because you weren’t sure where you wanted to live, I heard online for that situation, you should save up money for the the most expensive place you have on your mind. The reason for this is because it will make you save up more money. If you do choose to buy a house in a cheaper area like Houston instead of LA, having that extra money will help with unexpected house issues, such as flooding, real estate taxes, and renovations
Congratulations on funding your emergency fund!! With regards to moving, I totally understand not being sure about where to set down roots (even for the next step of your life). I am in Charlotte now, and for me, this is everything I was looking for in a city. I moved here right after I turned 29 and I love it here. What helped me was making a dream wish list of what I wanted (even really frivolous things) and looked for cities that aligned with it.
I have been following you for a few months now and you have empowered me to take control of my finances. You are a great female role model in finances. So, thank you!!
Aja you and everyone else who've navigated this path are such an inspiration. I'll be completing BS2 after over 5 years in 3 months. This is so awesome!!! Congrats!
I love seeing Aja Dang more and more financially stable as the years go by! Its truly inspiring, but also just glad she's feeling lighter! You worked so hard for this and I am proud of you girl.
I'm so happy for you! I want to thank you because since I found your budget videos I have a budget since January. I was always afraid to do one. Now I actually have a emergency fund and savings and that is a BIG step for me. I paid off my home in 2018. Now the only debtI have is a car payment and I have started paying extra on that. I love your videos they really get me motivated. Don't let anyone tell you that what you did was not that great because it was a long hard journey and inspired many! Thank you
YEAH GIRL! Congratulations! I agree that paying off my student debt felt a bit anti-climatic, but having an emergency fund makes you feel free and so empowered!!!
That wasn’t my mindset at all when buying my first home. I bought my first home in a place I knew I didn’t plan to stay in long term, but could commit to owning the home for at least 5 years. It became a rental income property once I was ready to move on and I’ve repeated the same process 3 more times. It was always more worth it to me to buy a home versus pay someone else’s rent and then whenever I’d move out or move on I could sell it or rent it without any issue. I’ve since has to sell all properties because of a divorce but my goal is to get back to that spot on my own and continue to invest in real estate
When you say you rent it out do you mean that someone else took over your mortgage payment? You rented out your first home and it was paying itself off?
congrats aja!! I stumbled upon your financial journey when I first began Physician Assistant school 3 years ago and have been loving your channel ever since! You have inspired me to make a very realistic and balanced budget. My husband and I have been able to pay off a decent amount of our debt despite being a one income household while I went to school and now as I am having troubles finding a job in our tiny town (+ covid19). Keep up the good work! Also, I love hearing about the things you've decided to treat yourself with now that you're financially free!
Congratulations Aja! So excited for you and I can’t wait to be in that position. Your videos helped me get out of CC debt. Now tackling some other loans. On the path to being debt free.
Aah I'm so happy for you! I paid off all debt two months ago and now trying to save up for my emergency fund. It's soo hard but I'll stick to it! Thank you for the inspiration, Aja!
Congrats on funding your emergency fund!!! 🥳🥳 Would Brian be willing to do a video with you to talk about finances? My boy and I have been together 9 years and looking for different methods of discussing and managing finances. xx
agreed! i would love to see a video like this. My bf and I have been living together for over 2 years and would love to learn different ways to manage finances as a couple.
YES AJA! I’ll have my emergency fund in place in the next 2 weeks. I’m doing a 3 month emergency fund before I start paying off my BIG debt (already done all my little ones) just for my own peace of mind and knowing I’m secure in case anything does go wrong I’ll build it up to 6 months once I’m completely debt free. And then we can start saving for all the big life things!
AWESOME GIRL! My EF was started a year ago.. and then I was laid off. Luckily I am back on track saving and its providing SO much comfort. I highly recommend to everyone.
Congrats! We just finished baby step 3 too! On figuring out where to settle down. The approach we took was to stay where we were for the first year after having our first child, which was the small town I grew up in. Rural California girl over here! Once we had him I could see what life was like there with a baby. I realized that while it was nice living in a small town for somethings, there weren’t the opportunities for our careers or for our child that WE wanted to provide. We decided before his first birthday to move back to the city. We are so happy with the decision and he loves all of the day to day activities and opportunities we have here. I think it’s ok to wait and see. There’s no “proper” order to do something. Take your time. Loved your video. Best wishes!
I bought my house 9 years ago. I always thought we would move. And having that option was what made me feel relaxed about buying. However we recently decided we are staying here forever. I don’t anticipate ever moving. It’s actually freeing knowing this is our forever home. It’s a small modest home. So my advice is buy a house with the mindset that you can always move. Don’t make it more complicated and stressful. Just buy a home that you will be able to sell fast. A first time buyer home, if that makes sense.
I’m almost at the end of baby step 3! My end date will be the first paycheck of December though I’m going to do as much as I can to get it done sooner. After this is to fund my smaller emergency funds aka car maintenance/deductible and then my health deductible. As a single mom I have to put myself in a more secure place before I start saving for a house. But also I’m going to get a Roth IRA and a 529 for my son once I get the funds funded!
You are amazing and so inspirational! I started following your journey a couple years back. I followed in your steps and finished paying off $86k in student loans earlier this year! Now I’m working on my emergency fund so I’m so stoked you’ve done it! I’m so grateful for your advice and for you sharing your experience. It’s life changing! I’m also thinking about saving for a house and I still have a car to pay off. I’m more excited and inspired than ever because of you. So, thank you!
My advice for buying a house/home for you is this. You have three states in mind, choose a lifestyle, because these three states offer different lifestyles, choose a city within these states that offer you the lifestyle you want, choose three neighborhoods, choose three streets in these neighbourhoods. Decide if you want a fixer upper or a house that is already made, or buy land and build your own home, do you want to live on a up and coming street, or a street that is already established. When you've decided all of this if you can visit these neighbourhoods different times of the year and spend a week, it will give you a chance to know the area. Hopefully, this will help you, I have friends who have done this and it's helped them discard certain locations. I live in England so this may not be useful for you.
For me, being near my family is absolutely important! I lived in LA for college but moved back home and settled there. Now that I’m a mother I’m so happy I made that decision bc it really takes a village to raise a child.
Congratulations! Hit 3 months EM and decided to increase it to 6 months now given thr pandemic. Living life on a positive cash-flow with money for emergencies is just so gratifying. I feel rich because I know have a level of safety now. The best form of self love out there!
Congratulations! I’ve been following your inspirational story for the past two years and have been implementing your advice into my own life. In those two years it seems like my goals were postponed, but I’m still pursuing financial freedom as a single mother in my late 20’s!!
Congratulations on getting your FFEF. Yes, it is a great feeling which is different from paying off all the debt. It is also a different good feeling after paying off the mortgage.We paid off our mortgage on 5/29. Dave is right, the grass does feel different when it's paid off.
Congratulations!!! 🙌🍾 This pandemic really opened my eyes to trust in my self to get financially secure. I personally stopped step 2 and am working on step 3. I have so much anxiety about my 4 walls due to my childhood so I'll be more comfortable paying off debt with that safety net.
Congrats! few people get to where you are. I started on my 6 month Emergency Fund and $1000 cash first before my debts. It was due to occupational breaks and unsteady employment.
@@AjaDang thank you for keeping us motivated! I know this is older video but I just paid off my car loan early and I thought “ oh I need to tell Aja” lol. I live in Bay Area, as you know the CA rent is ridiculously high, so I am so happy to be debt free. Thx again!
Where you live will greatly determine where your kids can go to school. So I suggest thinking about where you want your kids to go to school, and then buy a house there. I have spent some time in Houston and overall it did not seem like a pleasant place to settle down. It does not have enough to offer, though it does have great tacos.
So happy for you! I will be fully funded by the end of July, but even so far, I feel so relieved that I have a good chunk of money aside and don't fear if something happens! "Minor inconvenience" things become, rather than then feeling like the end of the world :)
I started following you years ago, last year I tried to pay off my cc but I fell in the hole deeper. Thanks to you and your videos I will be debt free next month!!!!!
Everyone's different, and the fact that you were able to figure out how to manage your money in a way that works for you, and to pay off the things that were important for you to get out of your life is so incredible! Anyone who ever tries to bring you down for your income should be more focused on their own income than making you feel bad about yours tbh. Congratulations on funding your Emergency Fund, you make me excited to get to that point too!
Congrats on the fully funded emergency fund! You are radiating peace in today’s video 👏 It would be interesting if you did a video with Todd on what’s his like to work with people on their financial goals or to just do a Q&A with him and have your audience send in questions.
$160k in debt not including my mortgage. You have inspired me that I can do this! I turn 31 next month and am going to push to be debt free by thirty threeeee!
I can understand your stress about buying a home. My SO and I bought a house last year because we were committed to my SO’s duty station (he’s Air Force) for 4 more years and he is absolutely NOT an apartment guy and we have restricted breed dogs which made finding a house to rent hard. We just recently found out we are no longer committed to this duty station and immediately he decided that he wants to move back to his home town in 2 years (the time I need to become debt free). In hindsight we wouldn’t have bought the home and just suffered in an apartment until we found someone willing to rent a house to us. But hindsight is 20/20. Sometimes you just have to go with what you feel makes sense for your life at that time.
@@AjaDang OMG, are you going to be a family youtube channel like Ant an Christina? Sharing and vlogging the cute baby memories on youtube? It's going to be so beautiful I can't even fathom.
Congrats!!! We put our emergency fund in a High yield savings account. No fees and it accrues intrest at a higher rate than a regular account. That way your money isn't sitting too idle.
We built a house in a rural area outside of Houston 8 years ago, and we completely paid it off this year. The security of being in Baby Step 7 at age 38 is beyond amazing. We picked this area to raise our kids because it was close to family, 30 minutes from our jobs, great schools, and room to breathe. We also did a TON of planning before we built. We made sure the property was at a good elevation (tropical storm area), and we still did more dirt work to build it up. The planning definitely paid off because we didn’t flood during the recent disasters. Right now I’m focusing on putting more money in our kids’ 529 accounts, future family travel, investing, and giving. I think it’s really cool that you want to help other people reach their goals too!
Approximately one hour away from Houston. We like living in a rural area, but it is still easy to go to Houston for zoo/ museum outings, physician specialists, and shopping.
Congratulations!!! Maybe to make it easier on deciding on where to buy your future house the question to ask yourself is maybe not 'Where do I want to live' but more 'What kind of place would I want to raise my kids'. Do you want them to grow up somewhere with a lot of nature and a big garden? Do you want them to absorb the diversity of people in a big city? etc. I always find that thinking about my relation to other people makes it easier to discover what it is I truly want as well :) I found that buying a place to live based on needs instead of wants makes life more comfortable and will make you love the place you picked :) Hope this helps!
This has been soooo inspiring. I just recently paid off my credit cards and am credit card debt free myself and seeing your videos have been encouraging and motivating to do the same so thank you for sharing and being such a boss!
congrats on getting your emergency fund funded! We bought a house in LA and we plan on moving soon. Still trying to figure out what city. A house is just a house and it doesn't matter. At first it feels like a big deal but once you're in it it doesn't matter so don't beat yourself up. But def don't buy a house if you don't think you'll be there for 5 years. Renting buys you patience as you know. good luck
when you said people make more than you, but haven’t accomplished what you have you were right. my parents are part of the 1% and are struggling financially. they have never paid off their debt. they have horrible credit and they have to sell their house and move into a small apartment.
I get the feeling that you want to live in Texas. This is the second time I've heard you mention it. You can always buy a vacation home in Hawaii down the road to visit your family and what not. Congratulations on your finances!
We felt the same. Our first house is the house we will raise our kid (I’m pregnant lol) but honestly, it’s always closer to family. Makes life so much easier!!! 🙈😊 especially with kids, free child care ;)
I am sooooo happy for you Aja!!!!!! You have inspired me every step of the way on my debt free journey (half done!). This video comes at such a perfect time because I was just starting to feel down about imagining building up my emergency fund before spending on my dream vacation, but I want that happy freedom feeling you spoke of so much. Sending many thanks and can’t wait to see your next steps. 🙏❤️🙌
Congrats Aja!! I've followed your journey from the very start and I'm so grateful for all the information you have provided me, It's helped me so much on my own journey. The hardest thing about creating a budget is sticking to it and unlearning all your bad habits you have learnt along the way. In terms of the services you're wanting to provide , I know you're so busy that maybe even creating products such as budgeting / finance templates or trackers that you can download or print out for your planner (HUGE planner community out there), Creating an app, or a finance planner with all the templates needed to reach our goals. I'd love to support you and purchase anything that provides young women with the knowlegde they need to conquer their world.
Advice on house buying from parents: Kids grow and rooms and structures of a house are therefore temporary. Eventually and faster than thought, they will leave and you will be in the house on your own again. So in terms of spaces and use, think multi-use shiftable long term not temporary. For example, a Single floor house, so that when old stairs are not a hazard. Or a suite in the bottom for when old.
Congratulations on having a fully-funded EF, Ms Aja! Because of you, I also have this as my goal of the year and I am half-way there!!! Thank you so much for the inspiration. Love from the Philippines!!! Looking forward to you and Brian talking abt your views on finance!! Stay safe you guys 💕
I took a job offer in Chattanooga, TN and moved there from 3 hours away. I researched the areas and decided on my town outside of Chattanooga based on crime rate and school ratings. Remember, you can always sell a house :) don't think of it as permanent. I would visit some places and get a feel for the areas you would consider moving to and list pros and cons.
I just paid off all my debt and my first thought was all like....ahhhhhh now the 6 month emergency fund!!! It never ends haha... but it will, soon! Gonna be so glad when its fully funded.
Congrats on the fully funded emergency fund! I just met my savings goal (that I set for this year) this month too. I decided to pause aggressively paying down my debts due to the pandemic and also the uncertainty of whether or not my contract with my job was going to be extended. It’s been extended until September so I feel a bit more comfortable knowing I have some funds to fall back on if I find myself without work then. Thanks providing me inspiration and motivation! ❤️
In response to your buying a property questions, I just bought a condo in the city with my boyfriend who proposed to me a month after buying, we are thinking we just wanted to stop renting and have our money invested in a property. We think we'd live here for at least 5 years but don't think we could raise a family here, our neighborhood is rising in price so we hope to sell it for alot by the time we move out
Hi, greetings from an American expatriate and language teacher in Taipei, Taiwan (English as a Foreign Language and also Spanish, both online and at universities). I hadn’t seen your videos in a long time and I just realized that I’ve never Subscribed! OOPS! I just fixed that. Your videos are always fun and informative to watch. I’m getting close to retirement, but your information is still relevant to me. ¡Keep doing great things!
I love your videos so much! I can’t believe people could watch you grind it out so hard and say that they could do the same. You’re a powerhouse, girl! My husband and I just bought our first house this month. We got married young and are still a few years from having kids but we live in Canada and childcare can be really expensive in our area. We made the decision to buy near family members to hopefully alleviate some of that financial stress in the future. We also want our parents to be able to see their grandkids as often as they like. We knew we could be happy almost anywhere as long as we were together, but budgeting has taught me to look much further into the future than I would have before. 💓
Congratulations!!! This is so heart warming. I’ve heard it makes financial sense to buy a house as long as you plan to be there for 3 or more years, so there’s no reason you can’t buy a house in LA or even a nice condo and then sell it later or turn it into a rental property. If you wanted to get a start on rental property, you could do house hacking- where you buy a duplex and rent out one side that mostly or entirely covers your rent and then you and Brian live in the other side. (It’s no different than apartment living except your earning equity in your duplex)
Baby step 2 here! My husband isn't fully onboard with it all because he's a spender but it's not stopping me! We bought in Charleston SC but it's not the forever home or city. (I'm 35 and 3 kids). We knew itd be a resale bc of market value here.
My partner and I bought our first house at 23/24. We bought a fixer-upper which we plan on living in for 5 years or so, and are fixing up. For us, in the area we love, it's far better than renting, especially as house prices are rising so quickly, and doing it up will hopefully mean we make a decent profit on it. It's very much an investment, but our mortgage is less than our rent used to be and we overpay it every month to get the interest down. When we buy our next house (probably in the same area), it will be a bigger, longer term home we plan to at least start raising kids in.
For me and my husband. We bought a house here in Houston at age 24 weve owned it for 2 years and we will probably move within the next 3 years and keep this as an investment property and rent it out!
Yay!! I just became debt free yesterday. I can’t wait to start pouring money into that emergency fun!!
yes sis! CONGRATS! Life will be totally different now.
Whoo hoo! Congrats!
Congrats!!! 🎉
Congratulations!!
Yay!! Congratulations!!
You're my financial hero! I am debt free as of last week because of your tips!
LAST WEEK?! GIIRRLLL congrats!!
@@AjaDang yes Aja! In the middle of a PANDEMIC. Love you all the way from The Bahamas 🇧🇸🇧🇸🇧🇸
Whooooo! Congratulations!!!
CONGRATSSSSSS
Congratulations sis!!🎉🎉
The happier relief you're describing is "peace." 😊
Dear Aja,
Today I just paid off my student loan debt from Undergraduate and Graduate School!! It took me 2 years after I graduated grad school to do this, and your videos/debt free journey really pushed and motivated me to work on my own #FinancialFreedom. Now that I have paid of my student loans, my next step is to pay off my car, build my EF and save more money for my wedding in October ! (depending on how covid pans out). Just wanted to say THANK YOU for sharing your journey and inspiring people like me.
wow congrats! Today is a huge day for you!!
Congratulations!
You have been such a inspiration. I’m 26 and as of last week.... I am debt free for the first time since turning 18. I’ve always owed money and I’m finally done. Life has always been so challenging but I’m so happy to move forward and try to set a different path for myself moving forward.
yes girl! Congrats!
Ms. Aja Dang, You have inspired me to talk about my finances and how having financial freedom is our choice. Thank you for the tenacious, consistent, no filter, no bullshit way of being your true self. I admire you for your bravery of putting yourself out there about your debt. Thank you for choosing financial freedom and don't listen to those people who wished they had your income; you have worked hard for the income you have earned. Thank you.
Paying off debt is taking off that heavy backpack, while the emergency found is a shoulder rub. You need both to be fully comfortable.
@LindaKaizer that's a great way to put it!
Yes!!! The pure freedom you feel with no debt and a fully funded emergency fund! Congratulations!
I paid off over six figures of debt in 2 years, working like crazy for that one goal of being debt-free. I'm on the other side of debt, and I have to tell you it's definitely worth it, especially in our current times. Now, I'm working towards increasing my emergency fund. I've got so much respect for people who are able to consistently stick to their financial goals. It's difficult, it's against the norm, but it's also possible!
Congrats!!! When you talked about not being sure how much to save up for a house because you weren’t sure where you wanted to live, I heard online for that situation, you should save up money for the the most expensive place you have on your mind. The reason for this is because it will make you save up more money. If you do choose to buy a house in a cheaper area like Houston instead of LA, having that extra money will help with unexpected house issues, such as flooding, real estate taxes, and renovations
that's true
Congratulations on funding your emergency fund!! With regards to moving, I totally understand not being sure about where to set down roots (even for the next step of your life). I am in Charlotte now, and for me, this is everything I was looking for in a city. I moved here right after I turned 29 and I love it here. What helped me was making a dream wish list of what I wanted (even really frivolous things) and looked for cities that aligned with it.
I have been following you for a few months now and you have empowered me to take control of my finances. You are a great female role model in finances. So, thank you!!
wow thank you!
Aja you and everyone else who've navigated this path are such an inspiration. I'll be completing BS2 after over 5 years in 3 months. This is so awesome!!! Congrats!
I love seeing Aja Dang more and more financially stable as the years go by! Its truly inspiring, but also just glad she's feeling lighter! You worked so hard for this and I am proud of you girl.
I'm so happy for you! I want to thank you because since I found your budget videos I have a budget since January. I was always afraid to do one. Now I actually have a emergency fund and savings and that is a BIG step for me. I paid off my home in 2018. Now the only debtI have is a car payment and I have started paying extra on that. I love your videos they really get me motivated. Don't let anyone tell you that what you did was not that great because it was a long hard journey and inspired many! Thank you
YEAH GIRL! Congratulations! I agree that paying off my student debt felt a bit anti-climatic, but having an emergency fund makes you feel free and so empowered!!!
Aja i have not seen you so light and happy until today!! You are amazing! So proud of you
im telling you, an EF is a game changer
@@AjaDang we are about 2/3 into saving for ours and I cant wait to be where you are!!
That wasn’t my mindset at all when buying my first home. I bought my first home in a place I knew I didn’t plan to stay in long term, but could commit to owning the home for at least 5 years. It became a rental income property once I was ready to move on and I’ve repeated the same process 3 more times. It was always more worth it to me to buy a home versus pay someone else’s rent and then whenever I’d move out or move on I could sell it or rent it without any issue.
I’ve since has to sell all properties because of a divorce but my goal is to get back to that spot on my own and continue to invest in real estate
Do you have any tips on purchasing foreclosures?
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When you say you rent it out do you mean that someone else took over your mortgage payment? You rented out your first home and it was paying itself off?
I’m going to be in BS2 for at least four more years (huge student loans, small shovel) but your videos really give me a lot of hope that I can do it.
Hi Kaz S. I will be on BS2 for about 2.5 years, it feels great when a debt is gone and paid. Have a great New Year.
Yay its a great feeling! Now is the fun part for you! Live like no one else!!!
congrats aja!! I stumbled upon your financial journey when I first began Physician Assistant school 3 years ago and have been loving your channel ever since! You have inspired me to make a very realistic and balanced budget. My husband and I have been able to pay off a decent amount of our debt despite being a one income household while I went to school and now as I am having troubles finding a job in our tiny town (+ covid19). Keep up the good work! Also, I love hearing about the things you've decided to treat yourself with now that you're financially free!
Congratulations Aja! So excited for you and I can’t wait to be in that position. Your videos helped me get out of CC debt. Now tackling some other loans. On the path to being debt free.
yes ! love to hear that
Aja Dang thank you 😊
Congrats!!🎉 I’ve been watching your journey for 2 years and it’s awe inspiring how far you’ve come.
Aah I'm so happy for you! I paid off all debt two months ago and now trying to save up for my emergency fund. It's soo hard but I'll stick to it! Thank you for the inspiration, Aja!
Congrats on funding your emergency fund!!! 🥳🥳
Would Brian be willing to do a video with you to talk about finances? My boy and I have been together 9 years and looking for different methods of discussing and managing finances. xx
agreed! i would love to see a video like this. My bf and I have been living together for over 2 years and would love to learn different ways to manage finances as a couple.
I'm planning to do a video with him soon. Not to talk about specific finances but to talk about our overall views of money and how we are different.
Patricia Bright has a amazing video with her husband
YES AJA!
I’ll have my emergency fund in place in the next 2 weeks. I’m doing a 3 month emergency fund before I start paying off my BIG debt (already done all my little ones) just for my own peace of mind and knowing I’m secure in case anything does go wrong
I’ll build it up to 6 months once I’m completely debt free. And then we can start saving for all the big life things!
Yes! Being deft free is a big stress reliever and then the FF emergency fund is more of a comfort/security relief.
AWESOME GIRL! My EF was started a year ago.. and then I was laid off. Luckily I am back on track saving and its providing SO much comfort. I highly recommend to everyone.
Congrats! We just finished baby step 3 too! On figuring out where to settle down. The approach we took was to stay where we were for the first year after having our first child, which was the small town I grew up in. Rural California girl over here! Once we had him I could see what life was like there with a baby. I realized that while it was nice living in a small town for somethings, there weren’t the opportunities for our careers or for our child that WE wanted to provide. We decided before his first birthday to move back to the city. We are so happy with the decision and he loves all of the day to day activities and opportunities we have here. I think it’s ok to wait and see. There’s no “proper” order to do something. Take your time. Loved your video. Best wishes!
I bought my house 9 years ago. I always thought we would move. And having that option was what made me feel relaxed about buying. However we recently decided we are staying here forever. I don’t anticipate ever moving. It’s actually freeing knowing this is our forever home. It’s a small modest home. So my advice is buy a house with the mindset that you can always move. Don’t make it more complicated and stressful. Just buy a home that you will be able to sell fast. A first time buyer home, if that makes sense.
I’m almost at the end of baby step 3! My end date will be the first paycheck of December though I’m going to do as much as I can to get it done sooner. After this is to fund my smaller emergency funds aka car maintenance/deductible and then my health deductible. As a single mom I have to put myself in a more secure place before I start saving for a house. But also I’m going to get a Roth IRA and a 529 for my son once I get the funds funded!
Omg I love the idea of helping people with their debt... this could help so many people
Yes girl. Rock it. We are on step 4, 5, 6. It’s a great feeling.
Having a fully funded emergency fund just makes you feel so confident and powerful, right? Such a good feeling!
You are amazing and so inspirational! I started following your journey a couple years back. I followed in your steps and finished paying off $86k in student loans earlier this year! Now I’m working on my emergency fund so I’m so stoked you’ve done it! I’m so grateful for your advice and for you sharing your experience. It’s life changing! I’m also thinking about saving for a house and I still have a car to pay off. I’m more excited and inspired than ever because of you. So, thank you!
Yayyyyyy! We are in Baby Step 3B- saving for a home. So thrilled for you!!!! It feels so good to have an emergency fund.
My advice for buying a house/home for you is this. You have three states in mind, choose a lifestyle, because these three states offer different lifestyles, choose a city within these states that offer you the lifestyle you want, choose three neighborhoods, choose three streets in these neighbourhoods. Decide if you want a fixer upper or a house that is already made, or buy land and build your own home, do you want to live on a up and coming street, or a street that is already established. When you've decided all of this if you can visit these neighbourhoods different times of the year and spend a week, it will give you a chance to know the area. Hopefully, this will help you, I have friends who have done this and it's helped them discard certain locations.
I live in England so this may not be useful for you.
For me, being near my family is absolutely important! I lived in LA for college but moved back home and settled there. Now that I’m a mother I’m so happy I made that decision bc it really takes a village to raise a child.
Yay congratulations!! I graduated BS2 May 15 and hopefully I’ll have BS3 done by August. 🤞🏾
Congratulations! Your joy is infectious and it's clear you're proud of your hard work (as you should be).
Congratulations! Hit 3 months EM and decided to increase it to 6 months now given thr pandemic. Living life on a positive cash-flow with money for emergencies is just so gratifying. I feel rich because I know have a level of safety now. The best form of self love out there!
Congratulations! I’ve been following your inspirational story for the past two years and have been implementing your advice into my own life. In those two years it seems like my goals were postponed, but I’m still pursuing financial freedom as a single mother in my late 20’s!!
I think the feeling you were trying to describe is a feeling of safety and of being at ease. At least that what it feels like for me.
Congratulations on getting your FFEF. Yes, it is a great feeling which is different from paying off all the debt. It is also a different good feeling after paying off the mortgage.We paid off our mortgage on 5/29. Dave is right, the grass does feel different when it's paid off.
Extremely happy and proud of you! Now go treat yo self!!! ♥️♥️♥️
Congratulations!!! 🙌🍾 This pandemic really opened my eyes to trust in my self to get financially secure. I personally stopped step 2 and am working on step 3. I have so much anxiety about my 4 walls due to my childhood so I'll be more comfortable paying off debt with that safety net.
absolutely. I think that's a great idea
Congrats! few people get to where you are. I started on my 6 month Emergency Fund and $1000 cash first before my debts. It was due to occupational breaks and unsteady employment.
Mad props Aja!
I got my finances down, now it's time to perfect my gardening skills
@@AjaDang thank you for keeping us motivated! I know this is older video but I just paid off my car loan early and I thought “ oh I need to tell Aja” lol. I live in Bay Area, as you know the CA rent is ridiculously high, so I am so happy to be debt free. Thx again!
Where you live will greatly determine where your kids can go to school. So I suggest thinking about where you want your kids to go to school, and then buy a house there. I have spent some time in Houston and overall it did not seem like a pleasant place to settle down. It does not have enough to offer, though it does have great tacos.
And make a mock budget as if you had a house. What would the taxes be, trash pickup, insurance etc.
Congrats! You've been so inspiring to me on my financial freedom journey!
Yes, girl it's definitely easier because now that smashed debt is real income. It's such a beautiful feeling!
Yes!! If people don't have their priorities rights, they will never accomplish the goals that depend on them
So happy for you! I will be fully funded by the end of July, but even so far, I feel so relieved that I have a good chunk of money aside and don't fear if something happens! "Minor inconvenience" things become, rather than then feeling like the end of the world :)
I started following you years ago, last year I tried to pay off my cc but I fell in the hole deeper. Thanks to you and your videos I will be debt free next month!!!!!
Everyone's different, and the fact that you were able to figure out how to manage your money in a way that works for you, and to pay off the things that were important for you to get out of your life is so incredible! Anyone who ever tries to bring you down for your income should be more focused on their own income than making you feel bad about yours tbh. Congratulations on funding your Emergency Fund, you make me excited to get to that point too!
I'm almost there with paying off student loans,no credit card debt, and have a emergency fund, this is very inspiring! I hope to get there soon!
This video is so encouraging...I’m in the middle of baby step 3 and this is just the motivation I needed. Thank you!
soo inspiring! really enjoy watching this journey with you!
Congrats on the fully funded emergency fund! You are radiating peace in today’s video 👏 It would be interesting if you did a video with Todd on what’s his like to work with people on their financial goals or to just do a Q&A with him and have your audience send in questions.
$160k in debt not including my mortgage. You have inspired me that I can do this! I turn 31 next month and am going to push to be debt free by thirty threeeee!
I can understand your stress about buying a home. My SO and I bought a house last year because we were committed to my SO’s duty station (he’s Air Force) for 4 more years and he is absolutely NOT an apartment guy and we have restricted breed dogs which made finding a house to rent hard. We just recently found out we are no longer committed to this duty station and immediately he decided that he wants to move back to his home town in 2 years (the time I need to become debt free). In hindsight we wouldn’t have bought the home and just suffered in an apartment until we found someone willing to rent a house to us. But hindsight is 20/20. Sometimes you just have to go with what you feel makes sense for your life at that time.
I thought they were having a baby. I was like YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!! The most beautiful baby in the world will be gifting the new world!
I need 3 more years
@@AjaDang OMG, are you going to be a family youtube channel like Ant an Christina? Sharing and vlogging the cute baby memories on youtube? It's going to be so beautiful I can't even fathom.
Congrats!!! We put our emergency fund in a High yield savings account. No fees and it accrues intrest at a higher rate than a regular account. That way your money isn't sitting too idle.
We built a house in a rural area outside of Houston 8 years ago, and we completely paid it off this year. The security of being in Baby Step 7 at age 38 is beyond amazing. We picked this area to raise our kids because it was close to family, 30 minutes from our jobs, great schools, and room to breathe. We also did a TON of planning before we built. We made sure the property was at a good elevation (tropical storm area), and we still did more dirt work to build it up. The planning definitely paid off because we didn’t flood during the recent disasters. Right now I’m focusing on putting more money in our kids’ 529 accounts, future family travel, investing, and giving. I think it’s really cool that you want to help other people reach their goals too!
what area are you in Houston? I'm only ever in The Heights or Montrose area
Approximately one hour away from Houston. We like living in a rural area, but it is still easy to go to Houston for zoo/ museum outings, physician specialists, and shopping.
Congratulations!!! Maybe to make it easier on deciding on where to buy your future house the question to ask yourself is maybe not 'Where do I want to live' but more 'What kind of place would I want to raise my kids'. Do you want them to grow up somewhere with a lot of nature and a big garden? Do you want them to absorb the diversity of people in a big city? etc. I always find that thinking about my relation to other people makes it easier to discover what it is I truly want as well :) I found that buying a place to live based on needs instead of wants makes life more comfortable and will make you love the place you picked :) Hope this helps!
This has been soooo inspiring. I just recently paid off my credit cards and am credit card debt free myself and seeing your videos have been encouraging and motivating to do the same so thank you for sharing and being such a boss!
I'm so happy for your accomplishments Aja. Very inspiring.
congrats on getting your emergency fund funded! We bought a house in LA and we plan on moving soon. Still trying to figure out what city. A house is just a house and it doesn't matter. At first it feels like a big deal but once you're in it it doesn't matter so don't beat yourself up. But def don't buy a house if you don't think you'll be there for 5 years. Renting buys you patience as you know. good luck
when you said people make more than you, but haven’t accomplished what you have you were right. my parents are part of the 1% and are struggling financially. they have never paid off their debt. they have horrible credit and they have to sell their house and move into a small apartment.
I get the feeling that you want to live in Texas. This is the second time I've heard you mention it. You can always buy a vacation home in Hawaii down the road to visit your family and what not. Congratulations on your finances!
Congrats Aja. As a long time follower I'm so happy for you.
Heartiest congratulations to you! 9 more months for me b4 I have a fully funded emergency fund. I'm looking forward ❤️❤️❤️
We felt the same. Our first house is the house we will raise our kid (I’m pregnant lol) but honestly, it’s always closer to family. Makes life so much easier!!! 🙈😊 especially with kids, free child care ;)
Congratulations. What an awesome accomplishment.
When choosing a candidate for trying to help another person with their budget - maybe you could choose a nurse or essential worker?
I am sooooo happy for you Aja!!!!!! You have inspired me every step of the way on my debt free journey (half done!). This video comes at such a perfect time because I was just starting to feel down about imagining building up my emergency fund before spending on my dream vacation, but I want that happy freedom feeling you spoke of so much. Sending many thanks and can’t wait to see your next steps. 🙏❤️🙌
Congrats Aja!!!! I'm on track too.
Thanks for keeping it real on this channel. I love when you call out BS haha
Congrats Aja!! I've followed your journey from the very start and I'm so grateful for all the information you have provided me, It's helped me so much on my own journey. The hardest thing about creating a budget is sticking to it and unlearning all your bad habits you have learnt along the way. In terms of the services you're wanting to provide , I know you're so busy that maybe even creating products such as budgeting / finance templates or trackers that you can download or print out for your planner (HUGE planner community out there), Creating an app, or a finance planner with all the templates needed to reach our goals. I'd love to support you and purchase anything that provides young women with the knowlegde they need to conquer their world.
Advice on house buying from parents:
Kids grow and rooms and structures of a house are therefore temporary. Eventually and faster than thought, they will leave and you will be in the house on your own again.
So in terms of spaces and use, think multi-use shiftable long term not temporary. For example, a Single floor house, so that when old stairs are not a hazard. Or a suite in the bottom for when old.
Im so happy for you Aja!! you have been such an inspiration to us all !
She is GLOWING!
Yay! This is so exciting! Way to go, Aja!
Congratulations on having a fully-funded EF, Ms Aja! Because of you, I also have this as my goal of the year and I am half-way there!!! Thank you so much for the inspiration. Love from the Philippines!!! Looking forward to you and Brian talking abt your views on finance!! Stay safe you guys 💕
Congratulations 🎉🍾 been here since the beginning proud of you
so excited for you to spend $$$$ on yourself!!!! you earned this girl
I took a job offer in Chattanooga, TN and moved there from 3 hours away. I researched the areas and decided on my town outside of Chattanooga based on crime rate and school ratings. Remember, you can always sell a house :) don't think of it as permanent. I would visit some places and get a feel for the areas you would consider moving to and list pros and cons.
Literally so proud of your journey😭😭
Congratulations Aja!🙌🏻 I’m really happy for you!!
I just paid off all my debt and my first thought was all like....ahhhhhh now the 6 month emergency fund!!! It never ends haha... but it will, soon! Gonna be so glad when its fully funded.
I liked your celebration dance lol. Congrats on your progress!
Totally unrelated to the video but your hair part looks different and I’m loving it!
haha thanks! It's a side part versus a middle part ;)
Congrats on the fully funded emergency fund! I just met my savings goal (that I set for this year) this month too. I decided to pause aggressively paying down my debts due to the pandemic and also the uncertainty of whether or not my contract with my job was going to be extended. It’s been extended until September so I feel a bit more comfortable knowing I have some funds to fall back on if I find myself without work then. Thanks providing me inspiration and motivation! ❤️
In response to your buying a property questions, I just bought a condo in the city with my boyfriend who proposed to me a month after buying, we are thinking we just wanted to stop renting and have our money invested in a property. We think we'd live here for at least 5 years but don't think we could raise a family here, our neighborhood is rising in price so we hope to sell it for alot by the time we move out
Hi, greetings from an American expatriate and language teacher in Taipei, Taiwan (English as a Foreign Language and also Spanish, both online and at universities). I hadn’t seen your videos in a long time and I just realized that I’ve never Subscribed! OOPS! I just fixed that. Your videos are always fun and informative to watch. I’m getting close to retirement, but your information is still relevant to me. ¡Keep doing great things!
I love your videos so much! I can’t believe people could watch you grind it out so hard and say that they could do the same. You’re a powerhouse, girl! My husband and I just bought our first house this month. We got married young and are still a few years from having kids but we live in Canada and childcare can be really expensive in our area. We made the decision to buy near family members to hopefully alleviate some of that financial stress in the future. We also want our parents to be able to see their grandkids as often as they like. We knew we could be happy almost anywhere as long as we were together, but budgeting has taught me to look much further into the future than I would have before. 💓
Congratulations!!! This is so heart warming. I’ve heard it makes financial sense to buy a house as long as you plan to be there for 3 or more years, so there’s no reason you can’t buy a house in LA or even a nice condo and then sell it later or turn it into a rental property. If you wanted to get a start on rental property, you could do house hacking- where you buy a duplex and rent out one side that mostly or entirely covers your rent and then you and Brian live in the other side. (It’s no different than apartment living except your earning equity in your duplex)
Congrats!! I appreciate your channel so much! 💕
Baby step 2 here! My husband isn't fully onboard with it all because he's a spender but it's not stopping me! We bought in Charleston SC but it's not the forever home or city. (I'm 35 and 3 kids). We knew itd be a resale bc of market value here.
My partner and I bought our first house at 23/24. We bought a fixer-upper which we plan on living in for 5 years or so, and are fixing up. For us, in the area we love, it's far better than renting, especially as house prices are rising so quickly, and doing it up will hopefully mean we make a decent profit on it. It's very much an investment, but our mortgage is less than our rent used to be and we overpay it every month to get the interest down.
When we buy our next house (probably in the same area), it will be a bigger, longer term home we plan to at least start raising kids in.
For me and my husband. We bought a house here in Houston at age 24 weve owned it for 2 years and we will probably move within the next 3 years and keep this as an investment property and rent it out!