Darius Smith always knew how to make money, but wasn’t very good at saving it. Growing up, he had jobs ranging from delivering phone books, to running paper routes, to even putting up eviction notices on homes. He opened his first bank account when he was around nine years old! So how did Darius end up with almost $170,000 in debt? An even better question may be, how did Darius pay off all that debt in only a few years?Darius spent time at multiple different colleges, racking up $40,000 in student debt, then buying a Mustang, paying for a wedding, putting some charges on credit cards, and finally combining his wife’s debt with his. They started to use the “debt snowball” method, but after having to take out business loans, the debt grew even more.This is when Darius decided that he and his wife needed a plan to conquer their finances. They moved into a friend’s extra room for cheaper rent, stopped going out as much, began working more than one job, and siphoned all the money they could into savings and debt payoff. As of July 2021, they are debt-free!In This Episode We CoverHow to prepare to take on student debt (when needed)Avoiding lifestyle creep and finding ways to lower your expenses The “reverse house hack” and renting a room for far cheaper living expenses Mortgage forbearance and student loan forbearance in 2021“Isolating yourself” from friends or influences that will cause you to spend moreHaving a money date with your partner and going over finances regularlyAnd So Much More!Links from the ShowBiggerPockets Money Facebook GroupBiggerPockets ForumsFinance Review Guest OnboardingScott's InstagramMindy's TwitterGet Tickets to BPCon 2021Net Worth CalculatorDebt Pay Off Plan6 Month Spending TrackerSinking Funds TrackerLifetime Earnings CalculatorBiggerPockets Money Podcast 121 with Seth JonesBiggerPockets Money Podcast 73 with Ramit SethiBiggerPockets Money Podcast 127 with Ramit SethiCheck the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/moneyshow221See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.