Guest Post by Marcela De Vivo

Starting a new chapter in your life can be exciting and scary, and full of possibilities. Making sure you start off on the right foot on the path to your financial future is important. New graduates and soon-to-be graduates are facing some of the highest levels of student loan debts in years due to ever-increasing tuition costs (an increase of 500 percent over the last 60 years).

It’s important that we are honest about how long that debt can stick around, if not handled correctly. Upon graduation, the student loan comes due—and with current interest rates, if you only pay the minimum, you may end up paying nearly double the original amount of the loan or more. With the average student borrowing $25,000 to cover four years of tuition, books, food, and other college costs, the loan can end up taking decades to pay off.

The decisions you make on how to handle repaying the loan will have an impact on your finances. Be savvy about how you plan your post-collegiate life by learning more about the past, present and future of student loans in this Consolidated Credit infographic.

 

Do these facts change your mind on how you need to budget for college? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Guest Author

Marcela De Vivo Marcela De Vivo is a freelance writer and online marketing professional in Los Angeles. With three kids of her own, she realizes that she has much planning to do so that they can best take advantage of life’s opportunities.