If you’ve got student loans, you may have been required to resume your payments. What steps can you take to help ease the burden or reduce your repayment time?
For starters, sign up for autopay. It can help you avoid late fees and possibly earn a quarterpoint rate reduction.
Also, if you have a steady income and a reasonably good credit score, you might be able to refinance your loan and reduce your interest rate, so more of your monthly payments will go toward the principal.
And if you can afford to make extra payments, consider doing so. But you’ll want to check with your loan provider on ways to ensure these payments go to the principal.
If you have multiple loans, you may want to be strategic about making extra payments. You could save money in the long term by getting rid of the smaller loans first or whittling away at the ones with higher interest rates.
Finally, ask your employer if any student loan assistance programs are available By exploring all your options, you can help yourself make progress toward putting your student loans to rest.
This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor. Member SIPC