It’s been three years later, I can still remember the first call I had with Jan.
When she first spoke, I instantly knew she was squarely in the middle of a very hard time.
A dark place.
At the age of 55, she had been unexpectedly widowed, and was feeling overwhelmed by her failing finances and grief. It wasn’t just the fact that her husband was gone, and that she would now need to make it by herself. See–she and her husband had lived beyond their means for years, and now she would have to pick up the pieces alone.
When we began working together, she had $48,000 in credit card debt with a monthly income of $3,000.
Each month the minimum payment for her credit cards was $1,800, which is more than half of her take home pay!
You can imagine the pressure.
With financial stress and the sadness of suddenly losing her husband, Jan needed someone who could lead her through her immediate financial needs, but also someone who could encourage her to slow down. In the fog of grief, she was not in a position to make long-term decisions.
So we worked together slowly until the waves of emotion subsided a bit. We began working through the (lengthy and tedious) process of getting her finances in order after a loved one has passed.
This included obtaining a death certificate, taking care of life insurance, investments, homeowner’s insurance and car insurance. Soon we began working to refinance her home to get a better interest rate.
She was not in a place to handle complicated problems, so I broke everything down into manageable steps so that she was not overwhelmed while grieving.
We worked together to decide how to allocate the $150,000 life insurance policy. Jan made the decision to pay off the debt, except for her mortgage, and to create a large emergency fund. She also decided to purchase a car with cash to replace her 20+ year old car that she had not been able to replace previously. This had helped to create more stability in her life and to take some of the drama out of her finances.
Next we focused on creating more income because that had been greatly reduced.
We worked together as she planned out how to renovate her finished basement so that she could rent it on AirBNB. We planned the budget to help her stay on track for the required renovations, and also worked to market the listing.
She was successful at both renting out this space, and staying on her own personal budget. She was so tired of the stress of living beyond her means and was ready to handle this once and for all.
I am happy to report that Jan has retired two years early! Jan and I will continue to work together as she transitions to living solely on her retirement income.
Jan was knocked down by life, but was determined to pick herself up and make the best financial decisions possible. She was willing to pause when she was in a fog of grief, then she was willing to get resourceful when needed.
If you are feeling knocked down a bit too, please know that you have not been defeated. You may just need a guide to take you where you haven’t been before.
Jan recently said, “You have been more than a financial coach to me. You have been a counselor.”
This month I will be leading a small group (affordable) workshop to help you get your finances in order for the rest of 2022.
For just $7, you can join our online, live upcoming workshop! I will be holding it on September 22nd, 2022. To join us, click here to grab your seat.
Let’s get your budget on track so that you can go into the holidays with full peace of mind!
