Last month, we talked to Greta Booth about her new book A Singular Life: Secrets To Living Well With Or Without A Traditional Partner (‘Greta’ is a pseudonym to protect her identity and others’, including her exes). She shared her dating experiences and advice for how single women can build a rich, fulfilling life. Now she’s sharing how she went from drowning in debt to thriving financially. And btw, this is financial advice anyone could benefit from!
Greta Booth says it can be scary to be single, including when it comes to finances. “The world’s designed for couples. People in romantic relationships often seem to get a 50% discount in life. Rent and mortgage are so much easier to pay when you’re splitting them down the middle, as well as other household bills. A lot of women don’t want to be single because they assume that they need a partner to afford a house or to live the lifestyle they want.” Greta thought the same.
With her book, Greta wants to help single women thrive financially. “I’m not a financial expert, but I know what’s worked for me.” She doesn’t think the conventional advice to work hard, save, and invest is enough.
Age 25, with her finances in a mess, Greta moved back in with her parents to grieve a breakup and save some money. “I thought only losers live with their parents after a ‘certain age’.” But she was wrong. It was a reset, especially for her finances. First she paid off thousands of dollars of credit-card debt. “Then my mom made me write her a cheque in the amount of my old rent and utilities every month, and she put it into an account I couldn’t access.” The US$8000 (NZ$13,000) she’d saved would be put towards a house or investment. And Greta preferred to pay off a mortgage of her own rather than someone else’s. “Until age 28 or so, I always thought I’d meet a guy first, get serious, then buy a home together – or I’d just move into his house.” But she didn’t want to wait any longer.
“If you want to do it the traditional way, buy one home. But it’s hard to do that alone and there are other ways, if you’re strategic.” Her friends have asked her how she did it – and she wants to share that with readers.
Greta started looking for a house. Because she couldn’t have paid a mortgage on her own, she accepted she’d need roommates. Then her brother-in-law suggested she look into buying a duplex. (A duplex is two living units joined together, either side by side, or one on top of the other.) “If done correctly, he said, the renters would be paying most of the mortgage, and I would be able to have my own private space.” Aged 29, she bought a duplex for around US$200,000 (NZ$334,000). “The best investment I ever made.”
But how could she afford a deposit in the first place? “In America we have a loan program where you only need to pay 3.5% of the total property cost as a down payment.” The deposit was only US$8000 (NZ$13,000). “The downside is there’s an additional insurance payment every month tacked onto the mortgage – mine is about $200 a month.” Greta initially rented out the three-bedroom apartment (on the second and third floor) and lived in the one-bedroom unit (on the first floor). Her mortgage was about $1400 a month (including that $200 insurance payment), and her tenants paid $1000 of that.
I tell Greta that in New Zealand we usually need a 20% deposit – and that our real-estate prices are extremely high. “That stinks. I’d recommend that readers reach out to a mortgage broker who has great references for a consultation. They might know of programs or loopholes.”
Duplexes aren’t as common in New Zealand as in the U.S. but we’re seeing more of them in our cities. A term you’ll hear more often is “home and income” properties: these provide both a residential living space, and rental income. Typically, this includes a main home for the owner – and a separate, self-contained unit that’s rented out.
Otherwise, you could get flatmates to help cover the mortgage. Or buy a multi-generational home where you split the mortgage with some family members.
But back to Greta, who decided to renovate. “I want to share with readers how refinancing your house works, because I don’t think many women picture themselves buying a home on their own, let alone renovating one.” Because the value of her duplex had doubled, her mortgage broker helped her refinance. Greta got a loan to pay for renovations – without putting any money down – and started repaying the loan monthly with her existing mortgage payments. Post renovations, she moved into the three-bedroom unit, and could now rent out the one-bedroom apartment for about US$1400 (NZ$2300) a month. “That meant I was only paying around US$700 [NZ$1120] a month of my own to live in a beautiful three-bedroom apartment.”
Minimising expenses
Greta says that, “for single women to get ahead, we must be creative and minimise our expenses as much as we can”.
“Rethink and reexamine all your expenditures that may have gone up or may not really be necessary in the first place. Be ruthless. It’s amazing how much bills can creep up over time when contracts expire and you’re not paying attention, especially when autopay is involved.” When the contract for her home-security system expired, she realised she’d been paying $300 more a year via her monthly instalments. “I called and said if they didn’t revert back to my original rate, I would cancel the service that day.” They instantly said yes.
Where possible, Greta researches cheaper options for her bills, and when contracts are up, calls her current service providers. “I very nicely state that I plan to transfer to another provider unless they can beat, or at least meet, their competition’s rates. They almost always meet or beat the rate.”
Greta says the following is a must. “I go through my bank statements and personal-budget spreadsheet line by line. If you don’t already have a document like this, make one that lists every single expense you have. I saw how much money I was wasting, especially in this subscription economy.”
She also says it’s crucial to have an emergency fund that could cover at least three months, if not six months, of expenses. “And I’ve been learning about the stock market and mutual funds [which pool money from multiple investors].”
Earning more
Greta says it’s important to get creative with money – not just how you spend it, but also how you earn it. She was earning US$50,000 (NZ$83,000) – and realised that, in her career, she was unlikely to get to three figures.
“Honestly, I think pursuing a side hustle or new business is more worth your time in the long run. It is, in my opinion, much more empowering to start your own business where the sky is the limit than to beg someone else for crumbs.”
After someone offered her a consulting contract for a monthly retainer – something she couldn’t do on top of her fulltime job – she “took a leap of faith”. She quit her full-time job, and set up her consultancy. Yes, it was daunting. “I would have to take a step back before I could move forward.” Initially it involved effectively taking a pay cut, as she had one client but had to recruit more of them. Which she did. Now she charges hourly, or a monthly retainer, and makes six figures a year, as well as choosing her own hours.
Greta knows becoming self-employed is scary. “But it’s infuriating for me to see friends of mine – these very smart, credentialed, competent women – being passed over for promotions and being stuck at the same salary for years. And I just wish they would take power into their own hands.”
“However consulting isn’t the only avenue to building financial freedom. Maybe you want to start slowly and keep your full-time job while having a part-time side hustle.”
It’s a basic equation: spend less, earn more.
But this doesn’t have to mean less fun. “You only live once, and what is all this grinding for if not to enjoy at least some of this f**king fruit?!” Greta explains how, now she’s more financially secure and less worried about the future, she has the freedom to decide how to spend her time, energy and money. While staying within a budget, she can afford to travel, eat out, shop, go to live events, buy books, and enjoy a home that is her haven.
Buy Greta’s book through Amazon; it costs about NZ$33 for the paperback and NZ$12 on Kindle.
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