Frugal Five Meet Rita from Minnesota

Rita   is a  single mom and nurse  in her late  30s from  Minnesota.

What is your financial life?

I was married in my late  20s and divorced the bum  by 33. My ex-husband was very controlling of money and it often caused stress between us.  Money problems  are often the cause of divorce and it was a main reason we got divorced. We have one daughter who is now 8 years old and the light of my life   I am  I purchased a condo 3 years ago with a 30 year mortgage.

What is your budget buster?
I love my condo but I probably overspent on it.  It is 35% of my monthly income. I am hoping my income goes up and I will have a little bit of breathing room. 

What is your favorite money saving tip?

Stay out of the store. I am a reformed shopalic I realized I don’t need to be at the mall every single weekend.   I would spend $200 a weekend on clothes.

If you had an extra $1000 what would you do with it?

Luckily I don’t have any credit card debt but am still trying to build up an emergency fund. 

What is your best resource for frugal living?
I spent some time on Mary Hunt’s message board and they help keep me out of the store.