The Budget Mom
Hi there! I’m Kumiko, or just call me Miko.
I was tired of living paycheck to paycheck and feeling hopeless. So I paid off $7,500 in credit card debt and became an Accredited Financial Counselor®
I created The Budget Mom to share my knowledge and to keep me accountable as I strive to live a life I love on a budget that I can afford.
Here you will find tips for saving more, spending less, and some ideas on how to make life a little bit easier.
The Budget Mom's Latest Posts
The Art Of Mindful Spending: 7 Psychological Secrets To Master Your Finances
Getting your budget under control often feels like starting a new diet. We can all relate to the invigorated feeling of committing to a new wellness plan, only to grab that irresistible scoop of ice cream after a long day. Before you know it, your diet is derailed, and you keep telling yourself that “tomorrow […]
How Much Money Do You Need To Save For Retirement?
How much money do you really need to save to retire comfortably? For many people, this question causes a lot of anxiety. On the one hand, you want to save enough so that you don’t run out of money after you’ve stopped working. Your retirement account should be large enough to cover you for the rest of […]
How To Improve Your Financial Mindset To Achieve Your New Year’s Goals
Each year, millions of people set New Year’s resolutions. There’s excitement around the promise of potential that a fresh start in January brings. But according to a study conducted by the University of Scranton, only 8 percent of people are able to stick to their New Year’s resolutions. Put another way, 92 percent of people fail […]
How To Improve Your Money Confidence
If you’re working on improving your financial situation, it’s pretty common to struggle with your money confidence. Many people feel embarrassed about previous financial mistakes and wonder if they have what it takes to build the financial future they want. But it’s important to begin developing money confidence right from the beginning. Money confidence will […]
Retirement For Beginners: The Roth IRA Explained
Roth IRAs offer tax-free growth on your retirement investments and significant tax benefits. If you are thinking about contributing to a Roth IRA, here is what you need to know. Before We Look at the Roth IRA, Understand a Traditional IRA. A Traditional IRA is a tax-deferred retirement savings account because any income tax or […]
What You Need To Know Before You Invest In Mutual Funds
When I was struggling to pay off my debt, all I wanted was enough money to pay my bills. Even though I worked in a financial firm out of college, I was not in a position to think about the future or investing for myself. However, no matter where you are on your debt journey, I want […]
What Is Universal Life Insurance And Is It A Good Investment?
There are so many choices out there for life insurance, and it’s SO EASY to get sucked into a life insurance policy that isn’t financially smart. I have talked about term and whole life insurance in the past, but today I wanted to talk about universal life insurance and whether it’s a useful tool for investing. How […]
Should I Pay Off Debt Using Retirement Money?
Many people come to a financial crossroad. That moment when you finally realize you have more debt than your budget can handle, and you’re ready to make a change. An immediate change. Like, right now. You want to pay everything off and start fresh, and continuing to make monthly payments feels too slow. Since you’ve […]
Should You Consolidate Your Debt?
If you are wallowing in debt from credit cards, student loans, and medical bills, it probably seems that ads for debt consolidation companies are everywhere. At least you’re very aware of them. They bombard you from every angle with promises to solve your problems, lower your interest rates, and eliminate your debt in one easy […]
Paying Yourself First: The Saving Rule That Is Helping Me Build Wealth
If you have done your homework, then you have probably read about one of the “golden rules” of finance. Finance experts are telling you to do it, money how-to books are shoving it down your throat, most finance blogs are praising it, but what the heck does it really mean? For the longest time, I […]
