For many couples, it's the American dream to buy their own home, and through many years of hard work eventually paying it off.
For one Arizona husband and wife, the entire process took only three years. Jackie Beck, who also works as a finance blogger, is now sharing the story of how she and her husband were able to pull off the improbable feat through some careful planning and very prudent spending.
Beck and her husband had already paid off their credit cards and students loans back in 2008 when they decided to buy a home, and the two then turned their strong financial focus to the housing market. They purchased a home in Tempe, Arizona, and decided to focus on paying off the mortgage as quickly as possible.
"We knew how great no longer having a student loan, car payment, and credit card debt was," she told Business Insider. "I just kept thinking about how great it would be to be completely debt-free. We wanted to make it happen so that we would have the freedom to do more of the things we love."
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As the report noted, the couple didn't exactly have a plan on how to pay off their nearly $100,000 mortgage balance when they started. But they began making extra payments toward the principal, and went small at first, giving just an extra $35 per month. They gradually increased the payments over time, the report noted.
"When we got extra money, we sent it in to go toward the principal," she said, noting that some months they made multiple payments, including one month where they did it eight times.
The couple ramped up their efforts from there, finding ways to get extra money to put toward their principal and even taking on extra work. She would sometimes complete online surveys, and take the $5 payment directly to her mortgage company.
Beck said there was no payment too small when it came to their larger financial goal.
"I would say that every little bit helps, especially when you make paying off your house a priority and want to stay focused on your goal," she told Business Insider.
With their plan working and the principal on their mortgage being chipped away, the Becks had one more strategy to push past the finish line and get their home paid off -- working with the bank. As Business Insider noted, the couple refinanced for a lower interest rate. With their monthly rate slashed down to $200 per month, the couple decided to keep making their normal payment of close to $770 -- and kept paying extra as often as they could.
In the last month, the couple pulled into their savings for close to $13,000, and the home was paid off -- just a little more than three years after they had bought it.
