How Can I Pay Off My Student Loan Faster? 3 Programs to Help

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There’s no doubt that American college students are in deep–deep in student loan debt, that is. 

The average college graduate who has student loan debt walks away with roughly $25,500 in debt.  To pay those loans off in 10 years, the graduate will have to pay nearly $300 a month and will pay almost $10,000 in interest over the life of the loan.

New college graduates in this tough job market often must settle for low paying jobs to gain experience before they can move up to a better paying position.  Factor in rent, food, a car, health insurance, and a professional wardrobe, and tacking on a steep student loan payment can be difficult.

While there is no easy way to get out of student loan debt quickly, there are a number of programs that are available to help graduates pay off their debt faster.  These programs won’t erase student loan debt, but they can give graduates a little extra help paying off their loans.

3 Programs to Help You Pay Off Student Loans Faster

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Balance Transfer Credit Cards – When Does It Make Sense to Use Them?

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Dave Ramsey and other popular financial pundits are fond of saying things like “You can’t borrow your way out of debt!”

The advice is to those that would like to open up a new credit card for a balance transfer, or get a new home equity loan or home equity line of credit in order to pay off their current debts.

And generally speaking, borrowing money to pay off borrowed money is a losing game.

Their advice is for those that can’t handle the financial responsibility of paying off the debt and spending less than they earn at the same time.

If you continually spend more than you earn, no amount of balance transfers or new lines of credit will save you.

Since many people calling into the financial shows can’t handle that responsibility (they are up to their eyeballs in debt currently, right?) the advice points against this strategy.

However, that doesn’t mean transferring a balance from one credit card to a new one is always a bad idea.

If you are smart about how you handle the balance transfer it can actually save you thousands of dollars in interest and result in you being debt-free a lot earlier than you would have been otherwise.

How Does a Balance Transfer Credit Card Work?

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Should You Ever Cosign a Loan? Probably Not

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One of the absolutely most risky financial decisions you can make is to cosign a loan for someone.

The FTC has even done research to show consumers exactly how atrocious of a decision cosigning a loan is.  It can be really hard to turn down the need to cosign a loan; usually the person asking you is a relative or very close friend.  They are promising that it won’t be a big deal and they’ll be able to pay on time.

But is that true?

Should you ever cosign a loan?

For anyone?

Ever?

The Risks of Cosigning a Loan

Here are three risks of accepting the offer to cosign a loan.

The Person Asking is a Credit Risk

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When is Bankruptcy a Good Option?

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1,376,006.

That’s the number of bankruptcy filings in the United States (according to US Courts) for the 12 month period that ended March 31, 2012 – the most recent 12 month period for which statistics are available.

Obviously, if you are filing for bankruptcy you have plenty of company.

But when is bankruptcy a good option?

Bankruptcy has become so common, that is no longer carries the stigma it once did.  In there are folks out there that think ‘YOLO, I’ll just declare bankruptcy if it gets bad.’   That doesn’t mean you should file for bankruptcy or that it doesn’t come with risks.

The Cost of Bankruptcy

When I talk about the cost of bankruptcy, I’m not talking about attorney fees or court filing fees – what I’m referring to is the effect it will have upon your life.

That will be much more expensive than a couple thousand dollars you will pay for the bankruptcy procedure itself.

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Can We Break This Spending Cycle? Do We Want To?

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Amy Dacyczyn, author of the wildly popular 1990s The Tightwad Gazette, wrote a post one time about the television show Roseanne.

She noted that Dan and Roseanne are always struggling financially.

One time, they get an unexpected bonus of $50, and each Dan and Roseanne spend the money on things for themselves without discussing their purchases with one another.  Now, instead of having an extra $50, they are $50 in the hole.

Dacyczyn noted that every time Dan or Roseanne got extra money or worked overtime, they developed a “Yipee!-We-can-spend” attitude.  Yet, when money is tight, they scrimp and save and “feel poor” because they can’t spend.

Is America a Nation of Dan and Roseanne Connors?

The last several years have been rough ones financially for American citizens.

Many people lost their houses, and even if they were able to keep up with payments, they may have found themselves underwater.  People lost their jobs, and even if they were able to stay employed, they may not have seen a raise for years while health care and other costs escalated.

Yet, there are signs that the economy is improving.
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3 Debt Lessons from Game of Thrones

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“A Lannister always pays his debts.”

Growing up, Tyrion Lannister learned that lesson from his father.

Whether the debt was in promised payment for a deed done, or whether it was revenge for a debt of honor, that theme is something associated heavily with Tyrion Lannister in the A Song of Ice and Fire books (made famous by the HBO show Game of Thrones).

Warning: There may be spoilers, since this piece is based on the books, and not the TV show.

Even though it might take time to engineer your plan to get out of debt, it’s important to do what you can to reduce your obligations, and Tyrion Lannister is a perfect example of this.

Debt Lessons from Game of Thrones

Make a Plan to Pay Off Your Debt

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How Compound Interest Can Work Against You

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We hear a lot about compound interest, and how it can help you build your retirement.

Indeed, the power of compound interest is the subject of many articles on how to build wealth over time.

Even though compound interest is powerful, it’s not just a force for good.  In fact, compound interest, like so much in the world of finances, is itself neither good nor bad.  It’s how you use it that matters.

Understanding how compound interest works is essential.

A quote, commonly attributed to Albert Einstein (although it hasn’t been completely substantiated), points out that, “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it earns it, and he who doesn’t pays it.”

Compound interest can work against you just as well as it can work for you.

The key is to earn it — and not pay it.  Debt is the way that you pay compound interest, and it works against you.

Simple Interest vs. Compound Interest

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ReadyForZero | Review – Pay Off and Manage Your Debt

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Some people just have a single loan or two that they want to get rid of.  Others have so much debt that what they really need most is an hour or two with a bankruptcy attorney.

But for everyone in the vast space in between the two extremes is an online debt management tool called ReadyForZero.

It isn’t a traditional debt management service that will actively manage your debts for you, but a debt management tool that will give you what you need to do the job yourself.

How ReadyForZero Works

When you sign up for ReadyForZero it links to your loan accounts and assembles your information – account balances, interest rates and minimum payments.  This will include not only credit cards, but also student loans, car loans, mortgages and any other loans you have.

It will display the information on all of your accounts on a single page and update it daily.  This will provide you with that all-important big picture view of your debt situation in one convenient place.
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The Debt Movement – Pay Down Your Debt, An Interview With Jeff Rose

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Are you in debt?

I don’t mean to get all personal on you.  It’s OK to admit though, many of us are in debt in some way, shape, or form (we are).

If you want to get rid of your debt help is here – The Debt Movement.  

This will be a HUGE 3-month push to pay down debt.  You will have the opportunity to join together with personal finance bloggers as well as people like yourself who are working their way out of debt.

I had the fortune of shooting a few questions to Jeff Rose, The Debt Movement’s founder and chief evangelist , also known for his excellent site Good Financial Cents.

Me: Jeff, what is The Debt Movement all about?

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How to Consolidate Your Debt and Pros and Cons

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Getting into debt is really easy if someone is willing to give you a credit line. It’s the getting out of debt that is the hard part.

Many financial gurus advise against debt consolidation.  There’s the old adage of “You can’t go into debt to get out of debt.”

While consolidating does have its risks, it can be beneficial in helping you turn your finances around.

Pros and Cons of Consolidating Debt

First let’s look at the positives and negatives of using debt consolidation to helping you get out of debt once and for all.

Pros of Debt Consolidation

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