Welcome to my November 2019 debt progress!

If you are new here, every month, I post the progress I’ve made on paying off my student loans. I’ve done this since I first started paying down my loans in July 2017 and it has been so worth it.

I do this to hold myself accountable and to share my debt progress with others who are also facing debt payments of their own.

Debt paid this month: $3,333.65

Debt remaining: $59,933.07

I house every month’s debt progress from the very beginning here if you want to check out the progress so far.

Debt Updates for This Month

November flew by in a blur. I had a huge goal in mind which was to get into the $50k’s zone in my student loans. While it was rough and my checking account now looks very depleted, I made it out of the $60k’s, scraping by into a balance of $59,933.07.

With only 1 month left before the end of the year, I know I won’t make my goal of getting into the $45k zone as I had hoped for in the beginning of the year.

I am slightly disappointed, but at the same time, by the end of the year, I will have paid ~$30,000 in student loans so I don’t think I did too shabby if I may say so myself.

There’s always room for improvement, and it’s not as if I threw away all my money into spending. I saved up an emergency fund and am due to max out my 401k and Roth IRA so that’s $35,000 saving this year.

Should I have put all that into paying down my debt instead? That’s always going to be up for debate, but right now I’m at peace with my choice.

November Budget

Fixed Spending

Nothing much here, just the usual expenses. I live at home but pay rent to my parents and am also paying back my personal loan to them at $500/month.

Other than that, my cell phone bill and Netflix make up the rest of my fixed spending.

Variable Spending

Over budget, especially with Black Friday online shopping that I did. Other culprits include birthday celebrations that added to both entertainment and dining out category.

Miscellaneous

In trying to use up my vision benefits before the end of the year, I ended up having to pay some money for a mandatory contact lens fitting to resupply my contact lenses that I probably won’t even need till next year. 

That’s what I get for trying to beat the system and take advantage of the medical premiums I pay every month. I would’ve saved money and time if I hadn’t even gone for the eye appointment.

An impromptu weekend getaway that was fun but actually caused some existential crisis cost me ~$200. 

The last added expense was paying the other half of what was supposed to be my Thanksgiving vacation. It had to be rebooked due to horrible weather over Thanksgiving day. I had to pay a bit extra to change the date, but it has now been rescheduled and is now a Christmas vacation instead.

Savings

I was planning to allocate all my paycheck to my checking account since my emergency fund was fully funded but forgot to change my direct deposit settings so $2,000 still went to my savings account. I guess that’s the beauty of automating your accounts. I saved even when I didn’t want to. 

Goals for Next Month

My goal for December is to end the year strong. With holiday seasons and Christmas shopping coming up, it’s highly unlikely I will be making much more dent in my student loans, but at least a $2,000 payment is what I’m expecting for December.

That’s it for my goal. I plan on making a more detailed list of my goals for 2020 at the end of the year.

Can’t believe 2019 is coming to an end! It certainly is the end of a decade…