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The Student Loan Myth That Keeps You Broke: You Don’t Have to Choose Between Debt and Retirement
Common Student Loan Myths

The Student Loan Myth That Keeps You Broke: You Don’t Have to Choose Between Debt and Retirement

There’s a myth that if you have student loans, every extra dollar must go to them before you can save. It sounds responsible. It’s a trap. It can...

2 months ago Read More
Buying a House With Student Loans: How to Know If You Can Actually Afford It
Big Purchases and Debt

Buying a House With Student Loans: How to Know If You Can Actually Afford It

Buying a house while you still have student loans isn’t automatically a bad idea. It can be a smart move if your income is stable, your debt payments...

2 months ago Read More
How to Stay Organized With Student Loans While You’re in School
Staying Organized

How to Stay Organized With Student Loans While You’re in School

Student loans get messy when they live in your inbox, your memory, and a pile of paper on your desk. The fix isn’t a fancy app or a finance degree...

2 months ago Read More
Your Student Loan Servicer Is Not Your Enemy—But You Need to Know Exactly Who You’re Dealing With
Understanding Your Loan Servicer

Your Student Loan Servicer Is Not Your Enemy—But You Need to Know Exactly Who You’re Dealing With

Your student loan servicer is the company that sends your bills, tracks your balance, processes your payments, and handles your questions. It may not...

2 months ago Read More
How to Choose a College Without Signing Up for a Lifetime of Debt
Choosing the Right School

How to Choose a College Without Signing Up for a Lifetime of Debt

The college you choose matters less than the debt you accept to attend it. That is unpopular when everyone from your high school to your social feed...

2 months ago Read More
How to Buy a Car When Student Loans Are Already Eating Your Budget
Big Purchases and Debt

How to Buy a Car When Student Loans Are Already Eating Your Budget

A car can feel like the one big purchase you cannot avoid. You need it for work, school, errands, or simply to stop relying on someone else. But when...

2 months ago Read More
Student Loan Taxes: The Deductions and Credits You Should Not Miss
Taxes for Young Adults

Student Loan Taxes: The Deductions and Credits You Should Not Miss

Paying student loans feels like a tax in itself, but tax season is where you can claw some money back. The rules are not as mysterious as people make...

2 months ago Read More
How to Track Down Your Student Loan Servicer Before You Owe a Payment
Understanding Your Loan Servicer

How to Track Down Your Student Loan Servicer Before You Owe a Payment

Your student loan servicer is the company that handles your loan after the money is sent to your school. It sends bills, processes payments, tracks...

2 months ago Read More
How to Travel on a Budget While Paying Off Student Loans
Travel on a Budget

How to Travel on a Budget While Paying Off Student Loans

You can travel and pay student loans at the same time. The catch is that you cannot pretend the debt is not there. Your loan payment comes first...

2 months ago Read More
Retirement Planning With Student Loans: Start Small and Stay Consistent
Retirement Planning

Retirement Planning With Student Loans: Start Small and Stay Consistent

You do not need to be debt-free to start planning for retirement. That idea sounds responsible, but it keeps too many people stuck. Student loans can...

2 months ago Read More
Income-Driven Repayment Recertification: The Deadline That Can Make or Break Your Budget
Income Driven Repayment

Income-Driven Repayment Recertification: The Deadline That Can Make or Break Your Budget

Your income-driven repayment plan is not set-and-forget. Once a year, you have to prove your income and family size. Miss it and your payment can...

2 months ago Read More
How to Slash Your Food Budget Without Eating Like a Broke College Kid Forever
Food Budget Strategies

How to Slash Your Food Budget Without Eating Like a Broke College Kid Forever

Your student loan payment is not negotiable, but your grocery bill is. Most people treat food spending like weather: it happens to them. Then they...

2 months ago Read More
FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Lifestyle inflation is when spending rises to match (or exceed) income as it grows — a raise leads to a nicer apartment or more dining out rather than extra debt payments or savings — which can leave someone earning more but not actually getting ahead financially. Being intentional about directing at least part of any raise toward debt or savings helps avoid this trap.

Lenders include your monthly student loan payment (or a calculated estimate, if you're on an income-driven plan) in your debt-to-income ratio, which is one of the key numbers used to decide how much you can borrow. It's worth asking a lender directly how they'll calculate this for your specific loan situation before house hunting.

Not directly, but insurance functions as a safety net that can prevent an unexpected event from forcing you into new debt on top of what you already have — for example, health insurance limiting medical bills, or renters insurance covering a theft or fire. Viewed that way, adequate insurance actually supports staying on track with existing debt rather than being an unrelated expense.

Generally it's better to keep making at least the required loan payment and save separately, even if slowly, rather than pausing payments (which can trigger fees or hurt credit on federal loans, since payments there are required, not optional, outside approved deferment or forbearance). Building a small dedicated savings fund alongside your regular payment usually works better than stopping payments outright.

A common approach is to apply for free money first — grants and scholarships — then consider work-study or part-time earnings and any savings, and treat loans as the option that fills whatever gap remains. Filling out the FAFSA early each year helps make sure you're not missing free aid you'd otherwise qualify for.