I Paid Off $89K in Student Loan Debt in 5 Years: 3 Strategies That Helped Me Do It
Written by
Gabrielle Olya
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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Jas became an occupational therapist because he is passionate about helping patients develop, recover and improve their conditions and injuries. But as much as he loves his job, he was always unsettled by the $89,000 in student loan debt he had accumulated along the way.
Fortunately, with some careful planning and strategic financial moves — including refinancing his loans with SoFi — Jas was able to pay off his debt in five years. Now, he has been able to dedicate his extra income to saving for his daughters’ future in investment accounts, as well as saving up to buy a house.
Here is his story.
Taking a Strategic Approach
“In order to pay off my student loans, I needed to make sure that I took an approach that worked best for my circumstances,” Jas said.
He did this by implementing three main strategies:
- “Setting an aggressive monthly payment that would cut into the principal, but would still allow me to contribute to my savings.
- When major life changes happened, I modified the payments accordingly. For example, when I went on paternity leave, I lowered my payments, whereas whenever my income went up due to a raise or job change, I would make sure to increase my payments.
- I made sure not to let my loans take over my life. By this, I mean that I was mindful and made sacrifices as needed to make the necessary payments, but always made room in the budget to spend time with my family and enjoy all that life has to offer us!”
How Refinancing Helped Him Pay Off His Debt
“Refinancing was an instrumental part of helping me pay off my debt sooner,” Jas said. “When I refinanced with SoFi, the interest rate on my student loans was almost cut in half — going from 8% to 4.1%.”
Jas realized soon after graduating that keeping up with loans with an 8% interest rate would not be sustainable.
“When I graduated and the bills started coming in, I truly felt the pressure, and after doing the math on what 8% interest comes out to, I started doing a lot of research,” he said. “I knew that there had to be better options out there. That’s when I found SoFi and began my journey toward financial independence.”
His Advice To Anyone Struggling With Student Loan Debt
Jas’s story is all too familiar. There are currently 43.2 million borrowers with federal student loan debt, and that doesn’t include the millions of others with private student loans.
“If you are a recent graduate, do not put off [coming up with a plan to pay back your student loans],” he said. “Address your loans and work to understand your financial status as soon as you are able to. Since student loans usually charge an interest rate, the longer you put it off, the bigger the balance you have to pay.”
Jas also emphasized the importance of researching your payback options.
“Instead of [giving in] to the pressure that comes with a big balance, make sure you research all your options,” he said. “Explore all the loans you qualify for and compare different lenders’ interest rates as well as the overall benefits of the offer. For example, with SoFi, I found it very helpful that they did not charge a prepayment penalty for my student loans.
“While it may seem scary to confront these loans head-on, once you have paid off your student debt, your quality of life tremendously improves since you’re not constantly stressed about the next loan bill.”
Finally, Jas said to make sure that you still enjoy life while paying off your student loan debt.
“Do not feel the need to put off life milestones because of your student debt,” he said. “Once you have confronted the debt and have come up with a feasible payoff plan that you are confident works for you, stick to it while you enjoy what life has to offer.”
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