Reaching a Milestone
Sometimes the journey out of debt or just to a better financial picture can be long and tedious. It gets tiring, and you just get sick of it all. In order to counteract this fatigue, I choose financial milestones that I am looking forward to meeting as little points of celebration along the way.
This week, we hit a milestone that I have been looking forward to meeting for a LONG time.
I graduated in May 2000 with $16,000 in undergraduate student loans. Due to deferrals and forbearances, I didn’t really pay on those loans for 5.5 years. By the time I started paying on them regularly, in January 2006, the balance had grown to over $20,650- a 25% increase.
I went on a graduated repayment plan at that time, so progress has been a little slow. But as of this week, 11.33 years after I borrowed the money, and 5.5 years since I started making regular payments, I finally owe less than I borrowed. The balance is finally below $16,000.
I still believe that federally insured student loans are “good” debt. In part this is because they are so flexible. At the same time, the realization that every payment for the last 5.5 years has gone solely toward the interest built up over the previous 5.5 years (really, 5 years, since there’s a six month grace period), is rather depressing.
I am very excited to FINALLY be paying on my actual debt.
Hey that's a good milestone :)Here's to further progress!
Congrats!
Nice work! I'll join you in the fight to pay down student loan debt…
That's fantastic milestone. Sounds like it did the trick in pumpin' you up too.
Congratulations!!! Can't wait to get there someday myself – my balance is more than $40k and my loans have been in forbearance for the past year. I know I can't avoid them forever, but it's just SO overwhelming to think about it!I keep telling myself I'll start repaying again when my car is paid off, or when my emergency fund is at X amount. But I know there will NEVER be a perfect scenario in which paying $40k in debt becomes fun. I just have to bite the bullet. Sigh.
That has to be a great feeling, congrats! You'll have the rest paid off before you know it!
Great job, I'm happy to hear you are on the right track. Paying interest sucks no matter if it is good debt or not right? I can't wait until I'm done paying my mortgage and my money can start earning for me, instead of merely paying for my lifestyle.
Thanks, everyone.Andrea- There really isn't a good time. There just has to be a time when you say enough is enough. I can't afford to put this off any longer. And if it makes you feel any better, my total student loan debt (undergrad and grad loans) totalled $55,000.My University Money- Even though I get a tax deduction for my student loan interest (like with my mortgage interest) I actually pay way more than they let me claim. Good debt or not, I am so ready for it to be gone.
Hurray. Progress rocks. I hate paying on interest, it'll be great to know that you're now able to pay on the principle. I have a friend who has deferred her loans since the 90's and still is not paying (because she is disabled now). I can only imagine what her balance is these days.I love little milestones. The rest will go faster for you I hope.
First Gen: I worked in fianncial aid over 15 years ago, so my info might be a little old, but if your friend is permanently disabled, she needs to look into getting her loans forgiven. It's actually better for both her lender and her school if she does. Still, the lender may not want to help, so she should also contact the financial aid office of the school her loans are from. They should be able to walk her through the process.