David,
your books are great! Most of the concepts aren’t new to me, having read Kiyosaki, Tracy, etc. Thanks most of all for publishing Start Late, Finish Rich, as this is closest to the situation I’ve put myself in.
Anyway, here’s the success story part: Less than 2 years ago I was struggling to keep from falling further behind in rent (I’ve never owned real estate yet), was regularly late on loan payments, and worked ridiculous hours at a job that was failing to live up to its promise. As soon as I quit this job (which was 1099’d as for income) I was amazed at how much I was spending just to work 80+ hours per week so I couldn’t even squeek by. Before long I got 2 jobs & started tracking (and therefore controlling) my spending. I didn’t “budget” per se, just got in the habit of looking what I was spending my income on & asking “why do I need this?” I was able to move into my own apartment, and started taking steps to return to a career that I actually enjoy. Since I’ve been out of it for so long and the job market is way down now, it’s still tough. However, I’ve controlled my Latte Factor so well that I’m able to survive on a net income of only $1250 per month. This includes transportation and food. I’m actually able to pay $150 per month on my (negotiated down to) 4% credit card and $92 per month on my student loan from the last century. The card balance is down to ~$6k and the student loan to maybe $12k.
At this point, I’ve realized that if I find work that GROSSES $40k per year I would actually be able to INCREASE my standard of living as well as have saved as much as $20000 in ONE YEAR, which would be a down payment on real estate.
I’d like to close with a question: I’m 44, never owned real estate, no kids, no wife, have a stale Bachelors’ Degree, and my FICO is only 596. I may have put myself in an unusually bad situation for a man my age, but what would you suggest as a next move? What should I be doing differently than I’m doing now?
Many thanks & keep cranking out the good info!
Mark Stachyra,
Mesa, Arizona.
