Student loan debt can put a strain on your finances for years after graduation.
Debt repayment can seem never-ending, but with the right knowledge, student loan repayment can become manageable and even empowering.
To help you with your student loan debt, The US Sun interviewed a financial expert to offer practical tips to ease your financial burden.
Shalae Morgan, content creator and entrepreneur, is an expert on all things money — from shopping to savings to Social Security.
She shares financial knowledge and tips with her more than 511,000 YouTube followers (@shalaemorgan), and she spoke with The US Sun to provide helpful information for those looking to pay off their student loan debt.
She paid off $173,000 in student loans in less than two years and offered tips for those in a similar situation.
Read more about student loans
LOAN TIPS FOR STUDENTS
In it videoMorgan discussed how she paid off thousands of dollars in student debt and offered seven tips for her followers.
- Check the National Student Loan Data System
Morgan said the first step to paying off student debt is knowing how much you owe.
She suggested that borrowers check the National Student Loan Data System, or NSLDSwhich gives you an overview of the student loans you have and the colleges you’ve attended.
“Don’t rush, don’t faint, don’t be intimidated. You’re not the only one. You’re just now one of the statistics,” Morgan said.
“You’re doing what most people wouldn’t do – you’re looking at [the debt] and trying to get in front of him. So just log in and get the number and everything will be fine.”
two. Create a plan and conduct research
Once you know how much money you owe, the next step is to come up with a plan.
Morgan suggested figuring out how much you want to pay and over what period of time, then researching programs that can help you reach your goal.
“I have found that the most effective way to reduce my student debt is to research the programs I qualify for and take serious steps to pay it off,” Morgan told The US Sun.
His initial goal was to pay $25,000 annually toward student loans.
Morgan advised borrowers to thoroughly research any state programs, such as student loan forgiveness or student loan repayment programs.
She also looked to see if her job offered student loan repayment assistance, but noted that neither her employer nor her state, Alabama, offered any programs.
Morgan noted that she qualified for a federal student loan forgiveness program because she is an active member of the military, — but was deterred by a 10-year waiting period.
However, Morgan’s research proved fruitful for his private loans, which have a different set of rules than federal loans.
“You can apply for private loans and see if there is anything or any circumstances that you can apply for. And that cost a lot of my money,” she said.
She explained that borrowers can submit private loan applications to request relief or assistance based on extenuating circumstances, disabilities or if they have filed bankruptcy.
Morgan called Navient, a student loan servicer, and reported that she had served in two wars and was in the military.
She was told she didn’t qualify for anything, which she refused to believe was true. Morgan ended up calling the company every other day.
Eventually, a representative informed Morgan that assistance was available to her due to her work in the military. She could send a letter in her name asking for loan forgiveness.
After four to six weeks, Morgan was approved for a $25,000 settlement, which shaved a year off his initial payment goals.
“For the time it took me to research, it made me $25,000, so it was definitely worth doing the research,” Morgan said.
Other calls similarly helped reduce Morgan’s student loan debt.
“I was lucky enough to speak with an agent who informed me about a specific military student loan reduction program that I qualify for,” she told us.
“It helped me reduce $60,000 of my debt, and the military paid an additional $50,000. With the help of YouTube, I was able to pay the remaining $130,000,” she said.
3. Sign up for autopay
Another piece of advice Morgan offered was to sign up for automatic pay and have your student loans charged to your account.
She signed up to have her loans automatically deducted from her bank account, which helped reduce the interest rate on her eligible loans by 0.25%.
“Even though it wasn’t a lot of money, there was some reduction. It’s better than zero,” Morgan said.
4. Enroll in school to stop interest
Morgan suggested that if you have the option available, consider enrolling in school to stop paying interest on your student loans.
7 Tips for Repaying Student Loans
Paying off student loans can seem never-ending, especially with the interest they accrue.
Money expert Shalae Morgan shared seven tips to help pay off your student loan debt quickly.
- Check the National Student Loan Data System – provides an overview of the student loans you have.
- Create a plan and conduct research – find out what time frame you want to pay off your debt and review state programs, employer programs, federal programs, and private loan programs.
- Sign up for automatic payment – this can reduce the interest rate on eligible loans by 0.25%.
- Enroll in school to stop interest – if your employer pays for a degree program, enrollment may interrupt interest rates and your payments.
- Sign up for biweekly payments – doing this can help reduce your spending habits and ensure steady payments on your student loans.
- Look for free money – examples include entering writing contests, reselling items, participating in surveys, or making YouTube videos
- Capitalized on free services and exchange – examples include hair styling for a free haircut, exchanging video services for free clothes, and exchanging a blog post for free event tickets.
She clarified that she no longer took out student loans, but that her employer offered to pay for a degree program.
By enrolling in school, he stopped interest rates and payments on his student loans.
Depending on your enrollment status, federal student loans typically go into “in-school deferment,” meaning you are not required to make payments and interest may not accrue during this period.
“Not all servicers will charge you interest while you are enrolled in school,” Morgan said, advising borrowers to research and confirm the specifics of their situation.
5. Sign up for biweekly payments
In addition to signing up for autopay, Morgan suggested signing up for biweekly payments so that money is automatically deducted from your account every two weeks.
This allowed her to restrict her spending habits because the money was essentially deducted from her check before she had access to it.
Additionally, whenever Morgan received a bonus at work, tax refund, or extra money, she would put it towards her private loans first.
“I utilized the ‘snowball effect’ by paying off the smaller amounts that were under $500. Every paycheck or extra money I had, I would pay off a loan. By paying off these smaller amounts first, I could see that I was making progress in paying off my loans, and that motivated me
keep going,” Morgan shared with us.
6. Look for free money
Another piece of advice from Morgan was to look for opportunities to secure “free” money to put toward your loans.
She gave several examples of how she made money without having a second job, including writing an essay for the local news station.
I was paying people to write essays, like the Teacher of the Week story, so Morgan entered the competition and ended up winning $1,125.
two
Morgan also picked up bargains and deals from retailers and sold them for a profit on Poshmark, earning $1,891.
Additionally, she received a $10,000 reenlistment bonus from the military.
Other ways to earn free money include taking surveys or making YouTube videos.
“It wasn’t really anything out of the ordinary. I didn’t have to work another job. I didn’t have to donate my left kidney,” Morgan said.
7. Capitalized on free services and exchange
The last tip Morgan offered for saving money and paying off your student loans more efficiently was to make the most of free services and switching.
For example, she signed up to be a hair model for a local beautician and in return received a free haircut.
She would also trade her videography services for free items at local stores or boutiques and trade YouTube videos for free clothing from retailers.
Additionally, Morgan maintains a small blog. She noted that when events came to town, they would contact local bloggers and she could get free tickets in exchange for a blog post.
She also suggested taking advantage of work trips and turning them into vacation trips so you don’t spend extra money on travel.
Following his own advice, Morgan was able to pay off $90,000 in 11 months.
She then paid off her remaining $83,000 in student loans within five months, with your next goal being to pay off the house.
“It gives you that boost. It makes you be like, ‘Wow, I can do this.’ And if I can do it, I’m sure you can do it,” Morgan said.
The US Sun previously spoke with a budget expert who discussed why the popular 50/30/20 rule doesn’t work and an alternative.
Plus, read everything you need to know about student loan repayment.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
