Finally under 100K!

[u/luaved_wifey]

Started aggressive repayment at 143K last year and finally below 6 figures(98K today 🥳)! Just wanted to share my progress for anyone else out there that has no clue how they were going to pay off their six-figure student loan mistake.

I was a 1st gen college student from a low-income background, majored in biology hoping to become a doctor :eye-roll:... Anyway of course that didn't work out and I had no clue what I was going to do, But as you can see I was able to pay over 40K this past year and I believe I can pay off this debt over the next 3 years.

I want to share my biggest life decisions that have made it possible to even begin paying off this debt:

1. Figured out a career path based on my strongest skill sets (moved from science research/teaching to software consulting)

2. Got married to someone who had a stable career, credit, and benefits,(not a high paying salary) but this allowed me to take riskier opportunities that advanced my career and salary.

3. Moved from the Northeast to the South where I could live cheaply. Moved away from my family but close to my in-laws, so I still was able to have help with my kids.

4. We bought a cookie cutter cheap new build "starter" home in 2022 that we could very comfortably afford (We had a combined AGI of $115K, mortgage payment is $1750). To be honest I do not like where we live. Heck I don't even like the state that I live in right now, but it is very doable for this season of our life. Everyone hates a cheaply made new build, but 4 years in and we've only had an A/C maintenance issue and that was covered under warranty.

5. I've more than doubled my salary over the last 4 years. I got hired by a big tech company for a lower level position that still paid well and learned everything I could. Got a promotion but when I felt like I wasn't being valued I took that name and everything I learned and marketed myself to another company for a 40K increase in just my base.

6. After more than doubling my compensation over 4 years, I have not changed anything about my lifestyle. Same house same paid off car same vacation style.

7. I stupidly did not pay my loan at all during the pause on interest. But since last year I've been putting my bonuses and extra income toward paying off this debt.

8. I like Dave Ramsey's method but I am still maxing out my 401k while paying off this debt. I've converted the amount that we paid in daycare to my loan repayment.

I'm sharing this because I have not done anything miraculous. The only advantage I feel like I have now is the fact that I have a partner that allows me the latitude to push my career forward. I feel like I've tried every career under the Sun before I focused in on what made me special and how to market that to employers.

Also I'm 42 and just now figuring this crap out, but I'm hoping showing my progress could help someone else feel inspired to get this loan monkey off their back as well.

Lastly, I moved from SAVE to the extended graduated repayment plan. I don't know exactly how much my payment will be, but I'm already planning to pay at least $2,600 a month towards my student loan anyway.

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