My husband and I were feeling the crunch of being “house poor” until we started budgeting and figuring out where our money went. We calculated our monthly income and bills and after a year of budgeting, we ended up refinancing our house and paying off debt. Our mortgage didn’t fluctuate much and we have a great handle on paying it now. We are credit card debt free, 2 almost paid off cars in the garage, $15, 000 in savings and $1, 000 EF and do the half payment bill method. Our house is valued at $475, 000 in Southern California and our mortgage is $2300. I absolutely love it and wouldn’t change anything for the world. Great location, close to work and family and manageable with our current income