How To Pay Off Student Loans

There’s a lot to wrap your head around if you’ve borrowed money for school. You might be wondering, what’s the best way to repay my loans? How fast should I aim to pay off the debt? Is there any way to delay payments while I get my finances in order? What about forgiveness? These are common questions, and this article aims to provide some ideas and suggestions to help you ask the right questions and take action.

How to start repaying student loans

As a borrower, when you’re confronted with your first payment, it can feel pretty overwhelming. Here are some things to consider before payment comes due:

• Grace period: Your grace period is usually a time frame of 6 months after graduation, during which you do not have to pay back any money. Utilize your grace period to start budgeting for your upcoming loan payments. Set aside a little extra cash per month, and start to think about what your repayment plan could look like.
• Income status: How’s your income looking? Have you landed a job, or are you looking for work? You’ll have the 6-month grace period to think about how you’ll fund your repayments. This is a great time to get serious about planning for the upcoming payments so you can avoid forbearance (or deferment) or other repayment options that could cost you more in interest over the life of your loans. Make sure you’ve got the date for your first payment clearly marked in your calendar, and use it as means to motivate yourself and plan your budget carefully.

How to pay off student loans quicker

Once you’ve started making regular monthly payments on your loans, you might want to explore ways to pay down your debt sooner. Though it’s not for everyone, this is when you might consider refinancing, through which you can alter the terms of your loan to suit your needs. Note that if you refinance federal loans with a private lender, you lose access to government benefits, such as certain repayment and forgiveness programs. Here are a few of the most common ways to change the length of your repayment term.

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Repay student loans on your terms

There are many choices when it comes to student loan repayment, and it’s important to choose the strategy and program that is right for you. While some may explore faster repayment timelines or more favorable loan terms via refinancing, others may qualify for federal forgiveness or more efficient payment programs. Whatever your needs, federal payment plans, budgeting strategies, and refinancing can all offer the flexibility and potential added savings that could make a real impact on your future financial health.

If you qualify for federal repayment or forgiveness programs, our student loan consultation specialists can determine the best repayment plan and assist with enrollment. Get in touch today to see how we might be able to help, or check out more of our resources for all of your student loan questions.