Hello! Today I’m sharing an inspiring debt payoff story from Zach Buchenau, a reader of Making Sense of Cents. He explains how he and his wife paid off $34,000 in debt during the first six months of their marriage.
About two years ago, my wife Katie and I were relaxing on our honeymoon in Arizona. While most newlyweds focus on decompressing and enjoying time together, we used that quiet time to finalize our debt payoff strategy.
It might not sound romantic, but when we combined our individual debts at marriage, the total was a daunting $34,000. We were both overwhelmed by that number—honestly, even now it makes me a little queasy. The good news: after six months of focused work, we paid off every last dollar. It was one of the best financial decisions we’ve ever made.
How did we eliminate $34,000 in six months? Below I’ll walk through the exact steps we took and why we chose to tackle our debt so aggressively.
Related debt payoff stories:
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- How This Family Moved To The “Hood” and Paid Off $120,000 in Debt
- How Amanda Paid Off $133,763 In Debt in 43 Months
Why We Got Out Of Debt: The Question That Changed Everything
Before explaining the tactics we used, it helps to share the turning point that pushed me from indifferent about debt to determined to be debt-free. A few months before our wedding, I was eating lunch at my desk and watching woodworking videos on YouTube—I’m obsessed with woodworking. One video caught my attention: “How I Got Out Of Debt.” The presenter was a woodworking YouTuber I followed, but the video focused on his journey to becoming debt-free.
The video was simple—no flashy editing, just a man talking to a camera. He explained how reading The Total Money Makeover helped him and his wife transform their finances. Then he asked one question that changed everything: “If you didn’t have any debt payments, how much money would it take for you and your family to survive?”
I’m a numbers person, but I had never separated living expenses from debt payments. When I did, the reality hit: Katie and I were spending nearly $1,000 a month on debt payments for things like cars we couldn’t truly afford and credit card purchases that didn’t matter. Seeing debt as a burden and a risk to our future family united us—when I asked Katie the question, she felt the same way. We both wanted better, so we decided to get it.
How We Got Out Of Debt
While planning the wedding, we agreed to delay the full debt attack until after the ceremony. We squeezed every possible dollar from our wedding budget so we could start strong. We also made finances a daily topic, spending 10–15 minutes each day logging expenses and tracking progress so we wouldn’t lose sight of the goal. By the time our honeymoon ended, we were ready to get to work.
Side Note: Personal finance is personal. What worked for us might feel extreme to some and insufficient to others. Use our story for practical ideas and motivation, and adapt the strategies to your own situation.
We Got On The Same Page
Successful marital finances require alignment. We spent time planning our path, agreed on a strict budget, cut expenses, and set an aggressive, realistic timeline to pay off our debt. Daily check-ins helped keep us accountable and focused. Looking back, this alignment was one of the most important steps we took.
We Prepared For Emergencies
After the wedding, we had around $12,000 saved from our budget cuts and wedding gifts. Instead of throwing it all at debt, we followed expert advice and reserved about $4,500 as an emergency fund—this number matched our max out-of-pocket health insurance costs at the time—then applied the remaining $7,500 to debt. We didn’t want to start our debt-free journey only to be derailed by an unexpected medical bill.
We Got Aggressive
To become debt-free quickly, we made temporary, significant sacrifices. We cut our food budget in half, planned every meal down to the cent, and stopped dining out—tough for someone who lived on Chipotle burritos. We canceled subscriptions, trimmed other living costs, and limited recreational spending to $25 per person per month. The idea was to endure intense short-term discipline rather than long-term slow sacrifices.
We Used The Debt Snowball Method
After reading Dave Ramsey’s The Total Money Makeover, we adopted the Debt Snowball method: pay debts from smallest balance to largest. As each debt was eliminated, we rolled that payment into the next one, building momentum. The debt snowball gave us quick wins that kept motivation high and simplified our financial picture by reducing the number of monthly payments to track. While mathematically the debt avalanche (highest interest first) can save more money, the behavioral benefits of the snowball were crucial to our success.
We Used The Debit Card Only Rule
Simplicity helped us stay disciplined. We stopped using credit cards entirely and used only our debit cards linked to a joint checking account. This prevented new debt, simplified budgeting by consolidating spending in one place, increased accountability—every purchase showed up in our shared account—and removed financial tension from the relationship. The rule worked so well we still avoid credit card spending to this day.
We Eliminated Temptation
Self-discipline is easier when temptations are reduced. We unsubscribed from marketing emails, cut cable to avoid restaurant ads, and significantly limited social media time. Removing triggers that encouraged spending helped us stay focused and made it much easier to resist impulse purchases.
We Played Financial Offense
Rather than only defending our budget by cutting back, we adopted an offensive mindset: aggressively reduce expenses and pursue additional income to attack debt. We sold items on Craigslist, built and sold furniture, and applied our tax refund directly to our debt snowball. That proactive approach shaved months off our timeline—we initially expected 10 months but reached our goal in six.
We Read About Personal Finance
I committed to reading at least one personal finance book per month so I could learn how to handle money after becoming debt-free. Although I wasn’t a natural reader, this habit fueled my motivation and shifted my focus toward wealth-building and compound interest. Over six months I read a dozen books, and the knowledge I gained became a powerful motivator.
Final Thoughts
Getting out of debt is challenging but entirely possible with a clear plan and consistent effort. Our approach included:
- Getting on the same page
- Preparing for emergencies
- Getting aggressive
- Using the Debt Snowball Method
- Using the Debit Card Only Rule
- Eliminating temptation
- Playing financial offense
- Reading about personal finance
What’s your debt-free plan, and what motivated you to get out of debt?
Zach Buchenau is a web developer, blogger, and self-declared personal finance enthusiast. He founded Be The Budget, a blog focused on paying off debt, saving money, and maximizing financial potential. When he’s not writing about money, he enjoys woodworking, fly fishing, and searching for lost golf balls in the weeds.