When students graduate from college, they have a shiny new diploma to hang on their wall, a well-earned sense of accomplishment, hopefully a job interview or two lined up and—more often than not—tons of debt.
Student loans can easily total tens of thousands of dollars. For newly-minted grads who are trying to figure out how to pay rent and the rest of their bills, this huge amount of debt probably seems overwhelming.
Fortunately, there are a number of effective strategies that can help you to pay off that student loan debt as quickly as possible. Check out the following suggestions:
Moonlight on Your Own Schedule
In addition to your regular full-time job, look into a part-time gig that is flexible and can be done on your own time. For example, you could work for a company such as Amway and become an independent business owner, running your business in the evenings and on weekends. Check out Amway’s YouTube page to learn more about the company and how it is a great alternative to the 9-to-5 workday. If you are a budding entrepreneur, this type of side hustle can be especially appealing. Other ideas that can help bring in extra cash are to drive for Uber or Lyft or get a part-time job delivering pizzas or newspapers. Make a pact with yourself to put all of your moonlighting income toward your debt and enjoy watching as the balance starts to noticeably drop.
Cut Back Your Expenses as Much as You Can
Having more money does not always involve working more hours. You can achieve the same goal by cutting way back on your spending. For example, consider moving to a less expensive apartment, skipping going to happy hours with your buddies and canceling whatever subscriptions you can live without—at least for a few months. Start with the things that you never use, like a top of the line cell phone plan with tons of data and minutes, and ask to switch to a cheaper option. Then, look for other ways to save money; for example, bookmark a coupon website like Coupons.com and challenge yourself to bring three or four coupons to the store each time you shop. You’d be surprised at how quickly a dollar saved on cereal and 50 cents knocked off the price of apple juice will add up. Try to eat out once every 10 days or so, get your hair cut every eight weeks instead of six and check out local consignment stores for new outfits.
Pay More Than is Due—But Be Careful
By getting your side hustle on and/or trimming back your budget, you should be able to whittle away at your student debt and pay more than the minimum every month. Since there are not prepayment penalties, you will not be dinged for making extra payments. If you can swing it, try to make one extra payment once every three months; this will bring your total yearly payments to 16, according to Forbes. In order to be sure the extra money is being applied to the main principal, send a letter to your student loan lender and explain that you want your extra payment amounts to go only to the principal, and not to the following month’s balance. Then, follow up by phone to be sure they received the letter and are following your request.
While your student loan debt may seem overwhelming, it will not last forever. By taking on extra work when you can, spending less on pizzas and beer, and being sure your hard-earned money is paying off the balance and not interest, that huge number will soon start to shrink, as will your debt-related stress levels.
