A woman who was in major debt due to student loans, credit cards and frivolous shopping has revealed how she got herself out of it – and why she does a no-spend-month every year, saving £1,200 every time.

Julie Haneline, 36, from Greenville, South Carolina, US, first got into saving after doing a finance course at university.

Five years ago, she decided to give herself a challenge by not spending any money whatsoever – beyond necessary bills such as rent – and was blown away by just how much money she was wasting on frivolous purchases.

The experiment was such as success that Julie has done it every year since, usually saving between $1,300-$1,700 USD (£950-£1,200) each time – racking up a nest egg of around $8,500 (£6,000).

Although she chooses January for her month – a time when many people are low on funds after Christmas and NY celebrations – any month will do.

PAYING OFF HER DEBT

For Julie, saving money is an important personal goal, with the 36-year-old previously having found herself in a lot of debt, which she has since paid off.

It started after she graduated college in 2007, which left her in around $37,000 (£27,200) of debt with student loans, credit card payments and buying her car.

"Most of my debt was student loans and credit card debt," she told Jam Press.

"There was one point I had to start putting tuition and rent on my credit card in college because I wasn’t making enough money from my part time job.

"I also made poor shopping decisions. I loved buying new clothes. I didn’t have the self discipline in my early 20s that I have now!"

"I was in and out of debt until 2014 when I paid off all student loans and credit cards, then between 2007-2013 I made major sacrifices to save money and pay off debt.

"I lived with family members, which included my parents again, roommates, and even lived in my friend’s sunroom.

"Having a roommate wasn’t ideal in my late 20s but I did what I had to do so I could pay off debt and save for my first home."

In 2014, Julie was able to realise her dream and buy her first property, and soon decided she wanted to get into real estate investing.

She added: "After buying my first house I knew one day I would rent out that property and start real estate investing.

"I purchased a second home in 2019, moved into that one and rented out the first one."

That same year, the thrifty young woman bought two more properties, which she rented out."

The only debt she has in 2020 is the mortgage on her homes, but she makes a healthy income from them too.

Julie will rarely touch her savings, though she did treat herself to a cruise in 2019 where she travelled to the Dominican Republic and Turks & Caicos.

HOW TO DO A NO-SPEND-MONTH

For anyone looking to cut down on spending or do a no-spend-month, Julie has several tricks to help keep you on track.

Her top tip? Just say no.

She said: "So no eating out, no shopping, no alcohol, pause subscriptions and memberships that aren’t a necessity, such as gym memberships, beauty subscription boxes, apps etc.

"And try to hold out on hair and nail maintenance, and only buy items at the grocery store that are for a recipe or healthy snacks.

"There is no 'I might need this later' allowed, items like extra bags of crisps or extra cans of beans etc.

"If you want to, just pick one category not to spend money on, that’s better than nothing but to reach optimal results go full out!"

"It's [my savings] are usually anywhere from $1,300-$1,700."

Firstly, Julie recommends making a lifestyle change by cutting out cravings for snacks or unnecessary purchases, and planning ahead when it comes to food.

She said: "I don’t find it [the no-spend-month] that difficult because it’s only one out of the 12 months of the year and the reward is worth it.

"Another thing that helps me is that every January I also do some sort of fast, like Whole30."

Whole30 is a 30-day diet that emphasises eating nutritious, whole foods and eliminates some items such as sugar, alcohol, grains, legumes, soy, and dairy.

Julie added: "With Whole30 you can’t really go out to eat anyway so it helps me not be tempted to get take out because of the food restrictions.

"I’ve heard of people that go all out with no spend and don’t even buy gas so they’ll ride their bike everywhere once they’ve used all their gas, now I’m not that extreme but I think it’s awesome!"

Whether you try a new diet or not, another top tip is planning your meals before you embark on the no-spend-month, as well as getting creative with what's in your cupboard.

She added: "There are even apps and websites to help you.

"There are some where you can type in all the ingredients you do have available and it will give you recipes with those ingredients!

"Chilli and soups are a great way to save money because they make lots of helpings.

"Casseroles and crock pot recipes are great too!"

If you find it hard to stay on track with spending, why not rope in someone else to help?

Julie added: "Get a friend of family member to do it with you to hold you accountable.

"I have eight people in a group chat doing it with me and last year I had six!

"The people I have in the group chat are so excited about trying it, but it can be hard for some people."

After falling in love with finding easy ways to save money, Julie launched her own TikTok account (@juliehaneline), where she has 402,100 followers and regularly reveals her best money hacks.

Some of her most popular everyday tips include having two separate accounts; one for "fun money" such as shopping, nights out and gifts, and one for bills, gas and debt.

Another tip? If you're considering a big purchase – whether furniture, clothes or something else – give yourself 24 hours before getting the bank card out.

And to up the interest rate on the money in your savings account, she recommends going with an online bank as "their interest rates are higher than a bank with locations".

Julie added: "I love using my platform to encourage people, help them and bring positive energy to others."

"No spend January makes me very happy because it saves me money and resets my spending intentions for the year!

"It is also a great practice of self-discipline too which I think is a great quality in all aspects of life."