Welcome to a new series from Borrowell – Money Worries to Wins! We're featuring Borrowell community members who are taking control of their finances and creating success from money stress. We feel privileged to tell their stories.
Amanda: New mom getting her finances back on track
Amanda is an intelligent, kind and resilient woman in her early 30s. Living in Canada's largest city, Toronto, she comes from a family that struggled to make ends meet. Growing up, her family never had enough. This scarcity led to a vicious cycle of credit card debt and constant financial stress.
Money knowledge wasn’t passed on to her. When she signed up for her first credit card, she found herself spending money she didn’t have on her friends, taking them out for dinner and buying them clothes, without fully realizing she would eventually need to pay it all back.
Credit cards are a convenient way to make purchases but often not the best way to borrow
Before Amanda knew it, she was in her 20s, struggling financially and feeling extremely overwhelmed by debt.
“The moment I realized I have to change things was when I looked at my credit statement and saw that it was going to take 73 years to pay it off, paying only the minimum," Amanda said.
Not knowing where to turn or how to fix her money mistakes, she did what any 20-something would do – she called her mom for advice. That advice ended in Amanda filing for bankruptcy. This had a major impact on her credit score and financial health in general, and she's experienced a lot of financial hardship since.
Life changes can help spur a fresh financial start
Amanda recently gave birth to a healthy baby boy. When she found out she was pregnant, it was a bit of a wake up call for her. She was determined to pass on better financial knowledge to her son. She wanted to help him avoid learning about money the hard way, so she took action and searched “credit score” online.
That’s when Amanda found Borrowell and started to actively monitoring her credit. She also found Molly, Borrowell's AI-powered Credit Coach, a free tool that provides personalized tips and products to improve her credit. After learning as much as she could, she started to turn her money situation around by writing down when bills were due, paying her bills on time and keeping her financial statements organized.
Where is Amanda now?
Now, Amanda is continuing to work on getting her finances back on track and improving her credit score. Not only for herself, but for her son, too. She understands the financial options available to her and knows a good credit can help her access the best products. Amanda feels optimistic about the future – and that's important!
“The more I use Borrowell, the more I can see my financial health improve, and I really do trust it. I recommend it to my friends and family," Amanda said.
Amanda's words of wisdom
Amanda has a few words of advice to share for anyone looking to get their finances back on track.
"When you're using your credit cards, make sure you have enough money to replenish whatever you do use, so that you keep your credit in good standing," she said.
You can also start making great money decisions with Borrowell's free tools:
Make late payments a thing of the past! Borrowell's bill tracking feature securely links to your bank account, helping you track your bills and notifies you when a bill is coming due.
Molly, Borrowell's AI-powered credit coach, is designed to make it easier to understand your credit score. She’s an expert when it comes to your credit. She’ll give you personalized advice to improve your credit score, based on your unique credit profile. The Credit Coach does all the hard work for you, you’ll get a free credit check, credit monitoring, an analysis of your credit profile, and she’ll even send you tips on what you can do to improve your credit score.
Credit scores are complex, but understanding them doesn't have to be. Borrowell’s mission is to help people just like you to make great decisions about credit, and that means helping you understand and improve your credit score. With Borrowell, you'll receive your credit report for free on a weekly basis and customized tips on how to improve your credit score.
You can access all the tools above from your phone with Borrowell's mobile app.
Isn’t it time you turned your money worries into money wins? Learn how to take control of your finances with Borrowell, just like Amanda did! Download the Borrowell app to get started today.
Rachel Surman is a digital writer at Questrade and a former content marketing specialist at Borrowell. Rachel is passionate about helping educate others about credit. She's also a big fan of budgeting and saving - mainly so she can visit all the places on her bucket list.