Parents’ student loan payments are often a big burden on household income. It’s easy for parents to feel like they’ve sacrificed everything for their children, only to be left with no savings and little in the way of retirement—and now their children want them to help pay off their own student loans? The good news is that you can help your parents without risking your financial future!
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Pay off the outstanding amount in lumpsum
The monthly payments are usually low, but the lump sum payment is usually higher than that. The amount may be tax deductible, so you should check with your accountant before making any payments. If possible, the best way to do this is by paying in cash or through a check.
“Average student loan payoff time is $460 a month,” according to Educationdata.org. stated by Lantern by SoFi experts.
Take an insurance cover that covers the loan
You should do a few things to ensure that your parents’ student loans are paid off. One of them is to take an insurance cover that covers the loan. It’s important because when you’re young, you need to think about your future and what you want it to be like. In case anything bad happens, there must be something that will help you get through it.
Start investing early
If you want to help your parents in paying off their student loans, start investing early. A good investment portfolio will be a mix of stocks and bonds, but with the bulk of it being in stocks. As a first step, make sure that you are familiar with what investments are available and how they compare to each other in terms of returns and risks before making any choices about where to invest your money.
Then, consider starting an emergency fund so that if something comes up unexpectedly (like your parents’ car breaking down), then at least some of the money can be used for that specific purpose instead of putting gas into their car every few days.
Review the financial plan and portfolio periodically
Reviewing the financial plan and portfolio periodically is important. It would help if you made sure that there are no changes in the financial plan, portfolio or tax laws. The changes could be caused by anything that would affect your parents’ finances and are not limited to:
- Changes in interest rates (i.e., if they have a variable-rate loan)
- Earning potential of their investments
- Retirement age
Avoid changing jobs frequently
In today’s economy, staying in one job for a while is important. You need a consistent employment history to get the best loan. A consistent employment history also helps with your job and salary.
You all have to help your parents in paying off their debts. Different people have different ways of doing it, depending on their financial situations and the amount of money they can spare for their parents. For example, if your parents have loans with a private lender, ask them if they could refinance into a federal loan program. This will save them money on interest and eventually free up more cash flow for other expenses like groceries and utilities.