I did it. Grad school loans paid off 7 years, 10 months ahead of schedule. $38k in interest savings. Huge feeling of freedom right now. Drinking with my shirt off.

r/PersonalFinance, I have a success story to share. Lurked, but never posted. I went to grad school (MBA) 100% on student loans. Graduated with shitloads of debt. Bad interest rates, huge monthly payments. But I made it a priority to pay these suckers off, and today I finally hit it. $125k in debt to start, and balance is gone!!!!!! I have my financial freedom back!! Happy to answer any questions, but the biggest question - how - is knowing that any payments over the minimum make a HUGE difference, and don't give up.

Edit: Trying to add some points on how. I don't know how to work the internet so will probably mess up the line breaks.

Edit 2: I can share my loan model (may or may not be helpful) if you PM me.

A) I got a starting bonus at work....100% of it went to student loans B) I set a limit on my checking and savings account. I put money away for savings first, but any time I hit my limit, anything over that I put to loans. C) I actively participated in my companies stock purchase plan, which we buy at a discount. We get a 15% discount, so I maxed that out - 10% of my gross income. It hurt for one year, but after that year, I could sell off, quarter by quarter. I sold and put it all toward loans. D). I received starting stock options. When I could, I exercised, and put towards loans. E). I drove my grandmas (who, rest her soul, passed away) car for four years F) I lived with a roommate G) I aggressively consolidated and refinanced. In the end, I did it three times. This pushed down my interest rate. But every time I did, I sitll kept paying the same amount month by month - just kept hammering the interest H) I built a loan model so I could see the effect, in terms of time and money, exactly how much interest and time I was cutting out by paying off extra. This was more psychological than anything, but it made me realize - hey, $100 against $100k doesn't sound like much....but if you do it enough times...it matters. I) Annual bonus - 100% to loans 

submitted by wildfandan to personalfinance

[link] [273 comments]



from reddit: the front page of the internet http://ift.tt/1BIP6nX

Categories: reddit22