{"id":14468,"date":"2022-08-11T14:43:30","date_gmt":"2022-08-11T19:43:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fitbux.com\/articles\/?p=14468"},"modified":"2023-06-21T07:09:22","modified_gmt":"2023-06-21T12:09:22","slug":"creative-ways-pay-off-student-loans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fitbux.com\/articles\/creative-ways-pay-off-student-loans\/","title":{"rendered":"19 Creative Ways To Pay Off Student Loans"},"content":{"rendered":"

I recently wrote an article on how to pay off student loans fast. <\/a>\u00a0In that article, I chastised other articles that simply say things like \u201cmake more money.\u201d I then provided nine real actions anyone can take.<\/p>\n

In this article I\u2019m going to highlight creative ways to pay off student loans.\u00a0 Most of the following deal with \u2018making more money.\u2019\u00a0 I also provide creative ways to pay off student loans that involve behavior action items you can take.<\/p>\n

Creative Ways To Pay Off Student Loans: The List<\/h2>\n

1. Pay off high interest rate loans first<\/h3>\n

There are many ways people try to get creative to pay off student loans.\u00a0 However, one way dominates in regards to efficiency.<\/p>\n

Targeting the high interest rate loans with prepayments<\/a> firsts saves the most money and reduces the repayment time.<\/p>\n

2. Pay off low balance loans first<\/h3>\n

This is not as efficient as paying of the highest interest rate loans first. However, it works from a behavioral stand point.<\/p>\n

People tend to continue with an action the faster they see results.\u00a0 By targeting the low balance loans with prepayments first, you will feel like you are accomplishing more.<\/p>\n

Therefore, studies show that this method produces good results because people continue with their financial plan<\/a> instead of quitting.<\/p>\n

3. Coordinating salary and benefits when married<\/h3>\n

Getting creative with benefits is a huge way to get ahead financially.<\/p>\n

I often see married couples that both get a salary and have benefits such as health through their employer.<\/p>\n

However, there is no need for both spouses to have health care benefits.\u00a0 Therefore, one spouse can have benefits while the other gets paid more by being a 1099 employee.<\/a><\/p>\n

For example, I have met many physical therapists who have a spouse that receives benefits from their employer.\u00a0 They can easily be PRN or 1099 at a cash pay clinic and get paid way more than if they accepted a salaried position.<\/p>\n

Warning\u2026 If you do this, you just have to make sure you\u2019ll get the hours needed<\/a> to make it worth your time.<\/p>\n

4. Travel employment<\/h3>\n

This does not apply to everyone but we see this opportunity with many health care professionals.\u00a0 Nurses, OTs, and PTs can make significantly more.\u00a0 In addition, they receive a tax-free stipend.\u00a0 This extra cash flow goes a long way.<\/p>\n

Check out this podcast with Kyle<\/a> to hear how he travelled and used creative ways to pay off his student loans.<\/p>\n

5. Home health<\/h3>\n

This also primarily applies to health care professionals.\u00a0 Home health jobs pay significantly more. Many think this is a creative way to pay off student loans.\u00a0 However, before going this route, you must analyze if you will get enough hours.<\/p>\n

For example, we see many people located in Florida get paid a lot because of the high demand from retirees.\u00a0 However, we see many home health employees struggling to get 20 hours a week in many other locations.<\/p>\n

6. The debt chain<\/h3>\n

Speaking of behavior, Ashley paid off $220k in student loans<\/a> in 4 years.\u00a0 Her creative way of paying them off involved a debt chain.<\/p>\n

She made paper chains and linked them together. Then strung the chain around her house. Every thousand dollars she paid off, she\u2019d remove a chain.<\/p>\n

Our podcast with Ashley was published three years ago. I still receive emails from people telling me they paid off their loans and they used the debt chain after they listened to Ashley\u2019s interview.<\/p>\n

7. Work more<\/h3>\n

This seems simple but many people don\u2019t even try it.\u00a0 They constantly look for things outside of their profession.\u00a0 I get this. I mean not everyone wants to spend 60 hours a week doing the same thing.<\/p>\n

However, a little sacrifice in the short-run will payoff greatly in the long run.<\/p>\n

8. Side Hustle<\/h3>\n

The hardest part is not doing a side hustle but figuring out what to do.\u00a0 Below is a quick list that we\u2019ve seen people leverage their experience to make extra money:<\/p>\n