Continued from page 1
The Pros and Cons of Keeping High Interest Student Loans Pros: ·Student loans can be put into deferment/forbearance if you should ever experience economic hardship. ·Interest on student loans can be used as a tax write-off for a certain number of years. ·In certain very rare cases, student loans can be forgiven. Cons: ·Student loans continue to accrue interest while in deferment/forbearance. ·Interest on student loans transferred to a credit card is not eligible for a tax write-off. ·It is next to impossible to have student loans forgiven.
The Pros and Cons of Transferring Student Loans onto a Low Interest Credit Card Pros: ·Faster pay off time and less interest paid. ·Bankruptcy can be filed on credit cards if you experience economic hardship.
Cons: ·Credit Card amounts can’t be put into deferment/forbearance. ·Miss a payment or be late making a payment means loosing a low interest rate.
Obviously there are pros and cons for both sides. Most important, however, is your level of tolerance where debt is concerned. For many people, a seemingly never ending cycle of payment after payment made to high interest student loans with
majority of each payment going toward interest is a huge burden.
I don’t recommend this as an option for people already on precipice of economic failure, but rather for people just looking for an alternative way to eliminate old student loans quicker and cheaper.
Each person should weigh their situation carefully before deciding to take this or any other route where student loans are concerned. For me, this presented an excellent option to finally rid myself of an old pesky student loan once and for all.
Jona Kessans is the editor of Simple & Frugal News and the Simple & Frugal website http://www.simpleandfrugal.com: a website dedicated to providing information to those on the journey to simplifying their lives.
Terry Rigg is editor of The FREE Budget Stretcher Newsletter and Budget Stretcher web site http://www.homemoneyhelp.com.
