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'We paid off $11,360 in 6 months! | Employee and NHFCU Member since 2017...tells her story | Wednesday, June 5, 2019 "We paid of $11,360 in 6 months!" Employee and NHFCU Member since 2017, Mary Bouzan tells her story at the NHFCU 77th Annual Meeting.
“We became members when my husband financed his car. We learned about the financial education classes at NHFCU…Being young and naïve newlyweds…We went to the first time home buying class and learned we were definitely not ready to buy a home…
For better or worse…
Not long after…things started going downhill for us. A series of unplanned, unanticipated events occurred and threw us into a tailspin – illness, a family emergency – and in just a few months, we realized we were drowning in $52,000 worth of debt and didn’t’ know what to do.
This was our rock bottom!
We knew we had to do something, and I remembered how helpful the people at the Centers for Finance & Education had been when we took the home buying class. I reached out to them because I felt comfortable with people I knew who had already helped me.
My first step was to set up an appointment with, Liliya Kroll, Financial Wellness Coach, to have a one-on-one about our finances. I sat down with Liliya and John Young, NHFCU President and CEO, and talked about my situation. Our debts were a combination of bills, credit card balances and more. Looking over the list, I remember sitting there thinking, “This is not where I wanted to be at 23 years old.”
With John and Liliya’s guidance, we set up a 6-month plan. In March of this year, we reached our 6-month goal. We moved into our own apartment, having previously lived with family for a short time, and have paid off over $12,000! And…both our credit scores are up 100 points! We are on track to being debt free thanks to the help of John Young, Liliya Kroll and all the wonderful people at the Centers for Finance & Education.
Though we still have a ways to go, we have a plan and the right people to guide us through it. We’ve continued taking classes including Home Buying 101, Get a Grip on Credit & Improve Your Score, Build Your Spending & Savings Plan and Money Makeover. They have been extremely helpful.
I’m feeling good about our success. I have a slogan, (Which drives my husband crazy), which is “Knowledge is Power.” It really is. We didn’t have control of our finances because we didn’t KNOW what we were doing.
My advice to anyone who feels like they can relate to my story is to get a financial education!
If you want to live a debt-free lifestyle, or send your kids off to college, or have a good retirement someday, we can help. I’m saying “we” because I’m a member and employee of NHFCU and I know I’m not alone, because I’ve lived it.
Just remember, here at NH Federal Credit Union, we exist to make a positive difference in the lives of those we serve through financial education and services!
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