About
Hi! My name is Kelly Anne Smith and welcome to my personal finance and lifestyle blog! At Freedom In A Budget, I help people of all ages to achieve financial freedom within their budget and become intentional with their money. Wait what? Budgets are constricting and makes it so I can’t spend money!! NOPE! Not here, my main goal is to not only share my life and how I became debt free but also share how budgets truly can give you freedom! Budgets help you stay within your means and puts YOU in control of your money rather than your money in control of you!
Just a couple years ago I was living paycheck to paycheck, getting collection calls multiple times a day and was even afraid to answer a knock at my door because I was so in debt that I felt that Sally Mae herself was going to show up, take all of my furniture, my car and even my cats! Yes, that is a little extreme but it shows you how deep in debt and collections I was!
Enough was enough and I decided to do something about it and take control of my money. I read every personal finance book I could find and found a ton of personal finance YouTube channels and decided to make my own YouTube channel to keep myself accountable.
Freedom In A Budget has over 2 million views on YouTube and has been featured in Forbes, CNBC, US News & World Report, CBS Evening News as well as The His & Her Money Show.
My husband Jayme and I live in South Florida with our two fur babies, Skylar and Piper.
YouTube and Podcast interviews:
His & Her Money: How Kelly Got Out Of Debt Even While Paying Cash For Her Wedding
The Money Nerds Podcast: Financially Preparing for Kids, Motherhood, and Entrepreneurship
Budget Girl: How To Look Professional On A Budget
Plenteouz of Money: How to Become Debt Free | Living The Debt Free Lifestyle
Wendy Valencia: Which is Harder? Single or Married Budget?
Slay This Debt: Staying Motivated on Dave Ramsey’s Baby Step 2 and 3
The Budgeting Wife: Money & Marriage Q&A
Let’s Talk Money! with Joseph Hogue, CFA: How to Find Freedom In A Budget [How She Paid Off $23K Fast]
TruFinancials: Easy Grocery Tips for Saving Money
Baby Steps Brad: Tuesday Talks | Kelly From FREEDOM IN A BUDGET!
Lydia Senn: Getting your spouse to budget, facing debt fears and self-care
His & Her Money: How Kelly Paid Off Her Student Loans In 18 Months
Debt Free Millennials: Debt Free Motivation | Words of Encouragement from SIX Millennials
Marissa Lyda – The Budgeting Wife: UNEXPECTED FIRST TIME HOME BUYER EXPENSES
Mike Damazo: Freedom in a Budget – How You Money
The Money Mindset Podcast: #10 How Kelly Paid Off $30,000 in Student Loans in less than 2 Years!
Budget Girl: How Different Life is Without DEBT – Zero Debt Living
Marriage Kids And Money: How Living on 50% of Our Income Helped Us Reach Financial Freedom
A Sunny Side Up Life: SIDE HUSTLES AND EARNING EXTRA INCOME
Slay This Debt: Dave Ramsey Baby Steps ● Myths and Misconceptions ● Debt Free Journey
Zay – The Wealth Strategist: FIRST GENERATION WEALTH BUILDERS INTERVIEW SERIES EP 4 | Kelly – Freedom In A Budget
Money Under 30: “You Got This”: Female Entrepreneurs on How to Make it in Business
Winning To Wealth: HOW BUDGETING HELPED THIS COUPLE SAVE HALF THEIR INCOME
The Andrew Lopez Finance Podcast: Episode 12: Kelly from Freedom in a Budget & How to Budget for Beginners
Simple Money Tips: Hanging out with [Kelly Anne Smith] from Freedom in a Budget
East Orlando Chamber of Commerce: Money Saving Tips for Survival During Covid with Kelly Anne Smith (Freedom in a Budget)
Smiling at the Future with Christi Rose: Checkmate: Winning Against Your Finances with Kelly Ann Smith
The Money Nerds Podcast: GETTING OUT OF DEBT WHILE PAYING CASH FOR A WEDDING | KELLY SMITH, FREEDOM IN A BUDGET
I have been featured on the websites below:
WPTV News Channel 5: Families search for extra source of income after financial stress of pandemic
Forbes: How To Plan A Budgeting Date Night With Your Spouse
US News & World Report: 7 Personal Finance Rules It’s OK to Break During a Pandemic
CBS Evening News: Online spending to hit a new record
CNBC: 4 simple ways to keep your holiday spending in check
Medi-Share: How To Lose Weight On A Budget
Midlife Balanced Money: Budgeting: How I keep track of all those numbers
The Money Manual: These 3 Very Different People Experienced Financial Windfalls. Here’s What They Did With The Money
Debt Free Millennials: Debt Free Motivation – Advice from SIX Millennials
CNBC Grow + Acorns: How to best use a paper day planner to help you meet your money goals, according to experts
Emma App: Top 50 Personal Finance YouTubers in the US
Women Fitness: Love Yourself This Valentine’s Day
Vee Frugal Fox: 6 PROVEN Ways To Pay Off Debt On A Low Income
The College Investor: THE BEST PERSONAL FINANCE YOUTUBERS TO FOLLOW (RIGHT NOW!)
Money Under 30: The Past, Present, And Future Of Female Empowerment And Entrepreneurship
Debt. com: 21 Inspirational Stories from Instagram Influencers on a Debt-Free Journey
Bankrate: Sinking funds: What they are and how they might help you achieve your savings goals
Porch. com: Marriage or Mortgage: Navigating Home Ownership and Wedding Planning