August 13, 2020

The simple change that helped me pay off my student loans in half the time

Chipper Help
This post was written by one of Chipper’s ambassadors, Lissette Calveiro.

In case you haven’t heard the news already: I am finally 100% DEBT FREE! Yup, student loans were the last to go and as of spring 2020…they’re DONE! And, in about half the time I anticipated. The big solution that got me there? I faced my “number” and reduced my monthly payments to ones that weren’t so scary and more manageable. I know, you might be asking yourself: if you’re paying less, how did you pay them faster? Let’s dig into my journey and take a look.

When I graduated college, I truthfully had no idea how many student loans I was left with. I knew I was on some sort of autopay that was taking about $500 out of my bank account each month and just dreamt of the day that I’d get a letter in the mail saying I was done. Out of sight, out of mind? Spoiler: that didn’t quite work. I actually became quite resentful of how much money was being taken out for this, had zero savings, quickly got into credit card debt and took zero accountability of my finances. One day, I decided to look into my dusty student loans for options. With my credit card bills piling up, I looked up ways to try to save money on student loans and found my way to income-driven repayment. With this, I was able to reduce my monthly payments by a couple of hundred dollars during that period of time. I used this extra money each month to get out of credit card debt and eventually to begin a healthy savings account. It really helped change my financial picture around to have more cash on hand when I needed it most. Because I became much more comfortable understanding my student loans and repayment options, I also got confident with frequently logging in and making extra payments during this time. If I had a strong income month, I could use the money above-my-budget toward my student loans and almost began to “gamify” my payment. For example: if I found my account at $21,239…I’d make an extra $239 just to get it to $21,000. I did this many times throughout my repayment period – still keeping my autopay to the lowest number possible based on income – until one day I found myself at less than $10,000 to go. Now, because my reduced payments helped me save over the last few years, I actually found myself with almost a year’s worth of “emergency savings!” Knowing I could spare some of that, I decided to make one big payment: paid in full!

Long story longer, I wish I had something like Chipper in my life to guide me through all of this.

While it doesn’t take a financial whiz to understand how to find repayment options and help you understand your student loans’ big picture, it’s usually a lot of information made complicated and hard to find that creates an obstacle for most of us to actually face and pay them off. Chipper is the only online platform that guides you through your repayment (and forgiveness!) options without the hassle. By connecting your student loan accounts to the Chipper platform, you can see the “bigger picture” and decide on a repayment plan that works for your lifestyle and career. Plus, they’ll encourage you to chip away (pun totally intended) just like I did with round-ups, boost payments of your choice, and an invitation to get friends and family involved with a money pool. Income-driven repayment helped me save thousands of dollars over the years, which translated into getting my financial act together and bringing the other money areas in my life into more stability. With that newly gained financial freedom, I was able to build the extra funds I needed to slash my student loans and be 100% debt-free. You can explore your options and get started for FREE using this link to sign-up for Chipper. Yes, it’s totally safe and secure! PS: I mentioned loan forgiveness, which is a unique option for some industries (like teachers, nurses, government, and non-profit employees) that allow you to work toward a debt elimination plan. Chipper also supports you with those options and breaks them down so you can take advantage if you qualify.

Ready to tackle your student loans!?

Use Chipper for Lower Payments

Chipper can help you find a student loan repayment plan that actually fits into your budget. You simply fill out your information and link your student loan account for us to generate your options in seconds. We help the average student loan borrower save over $300 a month off their student loan monthly payment. Lowering your monthly payment plan can game changing for your personal finance and can be done in minutes! Sign up for Chipper today to get on track with your student loans.

Use Chipper for The Best Path to Forgiveness

Finding your path to student loan forgiveness is easier than ever before. Chipper helps members find better Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans every day. Once enrolled in an eligible repayment plan, we can help you explore your forgiveness options and understand your path towards forgiveness. Sign up with Chipper today and get on track with your student loans.

Use Chipper for Round-Ups

Paying off your student loans doesn’t have to be a long and painful journey. Round-Ups are a way to directly pay off your loans with your everyday spending! By tracking your linked spending account(s), we will calculate the rounded up amount from each transaction in a week (IE spending $4.28 would add $0.72 to the weekly amount). We then initiate a payment towards your student loan for the weekly amount. Get chipping away on your student loans with Chipper today.

Use Chipper for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program was created to provide relief to borrowers aiding the public sector. Unfortunately, 30% of applicants are denied due to incorrect paperwork. We can help! Chipper was created to solve this issue by assisting borrowers in understanding their options as well as allowing forgiveness eligible users enroll into the best forgiveness program available. Sign up for Chipper today to see your student loan forgiveness options and get the forgiveness you deserve.

Use Chipper for Teacher Loan Forgiveness (TLF)

The Teacher Loan Forgiveness (TLF) program was created to enable teachers working in Title 1 schools to receive student loan forgiveness of up to $17,500 (depending on their teaching subject). Chipper has helped teachers from all over the country qualify for TLF program and can help you get the forgiveness you deserve today. Find out if you qualify for forgiveness in minutes with our employer search tool.

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